Kismet
January 24, 2002
What puppets we are at the hands of love
The fingers that play, control from above
A tug this way and we feel our hearts soar,
A little slack comes in and the lovers are torn.
Could it be true, that our lives are just a play?
The strings of fate pulling us each our own way.
Rhythmless movement to a tune we cannot hear
And we dance with people we hold dear or we fear.
What slaves we are to the bonds of family
With roots that run deep, we are held to the tree
When hard winds blow, we all feel the gale,
And when good times flow, we all partake the ale
Is it fact that the apple doesn’t wander too far?
Wherever we may be, we are what we are...
Rolling through life for all eternity
With each new fruit carrying the same basic seeds.
What pawns we are in our work everyday
Under kings and queens who navigate the way
Step by step we move up in the game,
With the common end of bearing the queen’s name.
Are we really so ambitious that we never look around?
Never testing the doors that we suspect are unsound?
By keeping our target focussed only on one goal
The carrot is dangled and the blinders play their role.
How is it we do not sense these powers that be
Indifferent to forces, we pretend we are free...
Like a kite on a string we fly high and soar about,
Ignoring the power of the wind and the one who holds the clout.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
The Day Technology Bit
I don’t remember my first day of school. I do remember that I looked forward to it, because I thought I would get to go the place where my big sister went every day, and as a result spend more time playing with her.
However, if I had been an only child, I assume the pre-anxiety leading up to the first day of school would’ve resembled how I feel about joining my first technology/software/IT company. Let me explain why there are slashes…
I graduated from my Masters in Communication in 2000 to a life of writing, conceptualization and creativity ahead of me. Having worked in advertising agencies as a copywriter, event companies as a conceptualizer and an interactive agency as a content strategist, I worked for six years in the laidback creative atmosphere of late mornings, sloppy clothes, last minute deadlines and loud music.
Technology was relegated to trying to solve why my comp went on the blink, before I “had” to call the systems admin. It was also relegated to difficult tech clients who just didn’t “get” creativity. All in all I thought technology was something that could be handled as long as it was consumed in small portions and washed down with a lot of vodka.
So what was I doing working in a technology company? That was the first thing that struck me on my second day here. I was suddenly immersed in a world where people spoke to each other in abbreviations. Did SK approve the BMC case study for the PLS? Blink. I was in a world where you were given three passwords to access two applications. Blink. I was in a world where…
Ohmigod, I’m Dilbert! Which was when my better creative half (also known as my husband) gave me a nudge and told me to write it down. This is the result of that one “Ah-ha” moment.
When you join a large company one unusual problem may arise which you may never have encountered before. Which building is mine? Having landed at the wrong building in the wrong place on my first day, didn’t portend too well of things to come.
Having then reached the correct building, I was sent to a meeting room, where a friendly HR person dumped 50 pages of forms, contracts and other documentation for me to fill. “Joining Formalities” is what it is called. Six hours later, still signing away in that over air-conditioned room, I had a headache and a finger cramp. I had inscribed my signatures more times than a two-time Wimbledon champion, and since no one was cheering me on, I was naturally both cold and irritable. Having learned that I get an extensive spread of lunch everyday at the amazingly subsidized price of Rs. 72 per month, (though welcome news) did not help alleviate my mood.
I had time to kill before I had to fill the next form, so off I went in search of medication. The first problem I encountered was that I couldn’t get in or out of office unless I had a swipe card. Having knocked my knuckles sore through every door, (there were three between me and the reception), I arrived at the reception and asked for a Saridon. Heaving a small sigh of relief I was about to turn back when a voice at the reception said, “Madam?” The security man pulled out a register. In it were columns that needed to be filled.
Date, name of medication, time, serial number and... signature.
Nope, Toto… Kansas this is not.
However, if I had been an only child, I assume the pre-anxiety leading up to the first day of school would’ve resembled how I feel about joining my first technology/software/IT company. Let me explain why there are slashes…
I graduated from my Masters in Communication in 2000 to a life of writing, conceptualization and creativity ahead of me. Having worked in advertising agencies as a copywriter, event companies as a conceptualizer and an interactive agency as a content strategist, I worked for six years in the laidback creative atmosphere of late mornings, sloppy clothes, last minute deadlines and loud music.
Technology was relegated to trying to solve why my comp went on the blink, before I “had” to call the systems admin. It was also relegated to difficult tech clients who just didn’t “get” creativity. All in all I thought technology was something that could be handled as long as it was consumed in small portions and washed down with a lot of vodka.
So what was I doing working in a technology company? That was the first thing that struck me on my second day here. I was suddenly immersed in a world where people spoke to each other in abbreviations. Did SK approve the BMC case study for the PLS? Blink. I was in a world where you were given three passwords to access two applications. Blink. I was in a world where…
Ohmigod, I’m Dilbert! Which was when my better creative half (also known as my husband) gave me a nudge and told me to write it down. This is the result of that one “Ah-ha” moment.
When you join a large company one unusual problem may arise which you may never have encountered before. Which building is mine? Having landed at the wrong building in the wrong place on my first day, didn’t portend too well of things to come.
Having then reached the correct building, I was sent to a meeting room, where a friendly HR person dumped 50 pages of forms, contracts and other documentation for me to fill. “Joining Formalities” is what it is called. Six hours later, still signing away in that over air-conditioned room, I had a headache and a finger cramp. I had inscribed my signatures more times than a two-time Wimbledon champion, and since no one was cheering me on, I was naturally both cold and irritable. Having learned that I get an extensive spread of lunch everyday at the amazingly subsidized price of Rs. 72 per month, (though welcome news) did not help alleviate my mood.
I had time to kill before I had to fill the next form, so off I went in search of medication. The first problem I encountered was that I couldn’t get in or out of office unless I had a swipe card. Having knocked my knuckles sore through every door, (there were three between me and the reception), I arrived at the reception and asked for a Saridon. Heaving a small sigh of relief I was about to turn back when a voice at the reception said, “Madam?” The security man pulled out a register. In it were columns that needed to be filled.
Date, name of medication, time, serial number and... signature.
Nope, Toto… Kansas this is not.
My Favourite Quotations - collected over the last 10 years
A calm sea does not make a skilled sailor
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road your trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint on the clouds of doubt,
And you can never tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar.
So, stick to the fight when you're hardest hit
It's when things go wrong that you mustn't quit.
A dog thinks: Hey, these people I live with feed me, love me, provide me with a nice warm, dry house, pet me, and take good care of me... They must be Gods!
A cat thinks: Hey, these people I live with feed me, love me, provide me with a nice warm, dry house, pet me, and take good care of me... I must be a God!
BIRTHDAY BELIEF SYSTEMS
Idealism: Happy Birthday.
Capitalism: I shopped all day for your birthday.
Atheism: I can't believe it's your birthday.
Hinduism: Holy Cow! Is it your birthday?
Taoism: It's everybody's birthday.
Buddhism: If your birthday party was held in the forest and nobody came... would it make a sound?
Existentialism: Your birthday means nothing to me.
Sarcasm: You don't look half bad for someone twice your age.
Even Popeye didn't eat his spinach until he absolutely had to.
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
It is not how busy you are, but why you are busy- the bee is praised, the mosquito is swatted
It is OK to let your mind go blank, but please turn off the sound
I tried sniffing Coke once, but the ice cubes got stuck in my nose
I was going to waste, but Jesus recycled me
May your life be long and useful like a roll of toilet paper.
Morning people: "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
Night people: "Anybody who goes to bed the same day they got up is a quitter."
When your outgo exceeds your income your upkeep will be your downfall.
When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt. (Henry J. Kaiser)
If you are never scared, embarrassed or hurt, it means you never take chances.
Some people are bitter, some sour, others are sweet. Who you hang out with depends on your taste
Vital papers will demonstrate their vitality by spontaneously moving from where you left them to where you can't find them.
We could accomplish a lot more if we'd get rid of our ifs and and's; and get off our butts
We live in a society where pizza gets to your house before the police.
We, the unwilling, led by the unknowing, have been asked to do so much with so little for so long that we are now capable of doing anything with nothing.
Subtlety is the art of saying what you think and getting out of the way before it is understood.
"Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats." - Howard Aiken
"A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort." - Herm Albright
"Drawing on my fine command of language, I said nothing." -- Robert Benchley
"We humans are a curious sort... Little girls like dolls and little boys like soldiers. When we grow up, women like soldiers and men like dolls." - Monee C. Kidd
"Reality is for people who can't handle fantasy."
"Be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work." - Gustave Flaubert
"I was an atheist, until I found out I was God."
"Writing is like Prostitution: First you do it for the love of it. Then you do it for a few friends. And finally you do it for money." -- Moliere
"It only stands to reason that where there's sacrifice, there's someone collecting the sacrificial offerings. Where there's service, there is someone being served. The man who speaks to you of sacrifice is speaking of slaves and masters, and intends to be the master." -- Ayn Rand
"What's another word for thesaurus?" - Steven Wright
"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug." - Mark Twain
"I never entertain wicked thoughts...Wicked thoughts entertain me."
"Writing is an occupation in which you have to keep proving your talent to people who have none." -- Jules Renard
Trust the computer industry to shorten "Year 2000" to Y2K. It was this kind of thinking that caused the problem in the first place.
Arthur Evans
"Nothing, not love, not greed, not passion or hatred, is stronger than a writer's need to change another writer's copy."
Bobby Knight
"All of us learn to write in the second grade. Most of us go on to greater things."
Clarissa Pinkola Estes
"To create one must be able to respond. Creativity is the ability to respond to all that goes on around us, to choose from the hundreds of possibilities of though, feeling, action, and reaction and to put these together in a unique response, expression or message that carries moment, passion and meaning. In this sense, loss of our creative milieu means finding ourselves limited to only one choice, divested of, suppressing, or censoring feelings and thoughts, not acting, not saying, doing, or being."
Richard Bach
"I'm a writer as rarely as possible, when forced by an idea too lovely to let die unwritten"
Thomas Berger
"Why do writers write? Because it isn't there."
The only thing some people can achieve on their own is dandruff.
You don't marry someone you can live with; you marry the person with whom you cannot live without.
You must be the change you wish to see in the world. (Gandhi)
The man who stops advertising to save money is like the man who stops the clock to save time.
Great Rules for writing from William Safire in the New York Times.
1. Do not put statements in the negative form.
2. And don't start sentences with a conjunction.
3. It is incumbent on one to avoid archaisms.
4. If you reread your work, you will find on rereading that a great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.
5. Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
6. Unqualified superlatives are the worst of all.
7. De-accession euphemisms.
8. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.
9. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
10. Never, ever use repetitive redundancies.
11. Also, avoid awkward or affected alliteration.
12. Last, but not least, avoid cliche’s like the plague.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power
The meek shall inherit the Earth after we're done with it.
When I'm good, I'm very good. But when I'm bad I'm better. Mae West
Sorry, but my karma just ran over your dogma.
A day without fusion is like a day without sunshine.
There is no gravity. The Earth sucks.
Those of you who think they know everything are very annoying to those of us who do.
It's not that you and I are so clever, but that the others are such fools.
Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum -- "I think that I think, therefore I think that I am."
EARTH
smog | bricks
AIR – mud -- FIRE
Soda | tequila
WATER
Trust: Just as you would not want to do business with someone you can't trust, this law simply stated is: When you can completely trust the process of the universe and life, you will be supplied abundantly and you will be able to make your life work just the way you want it. And the trust you give and have must be 100% or it is zero. It cannot be given under one condition and not under another. There are many things we trust with our lives and have no concern about. Such as: the sun will come up every day; the law of gravity works all the time; the pilot who pilots the plane we fly on, is competent; our garbage is picked up on certain days. If we could not trust the things we take for granted will occur without any effort on our part, the fear for our well being would be so great we would not be able to enjoy our lives. Can you imagine what the world would be like, if we could not trust the food we buy, the water we drink or that the people we depend on would not manipulate or harm us? But the only way we can expect others to trust us is, we need to be trustworthy ourselves, and especially to ourselves. Unfortunately, many people don't trust themselves and the judgments and decisions they make. Therefore, they experience disharmony with their lives and their world.
Sidney Madwed
I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)
Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.
Seneca (3 BC - 65 AD)
"Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards."
Robert Heinlein
"I think that writers are made, not born or created out of dreams or childhood trauma -- that becoming a writer is a direct result of conscious will. Of course there has to be some talent involved, but talent is a dreadfully cheap commodity, cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work and study; a constant process of honing."
Stephen King
“I’m not a poet, nor a prophet, but I dream from time to time.
I'm an artist of illusion and I sketch a strange design.”
- Did a Verse End? by Common Rotation
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road your trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint on the clouds of doubt,
And you can never tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar.
So, stick to the fight when you're hardest hit
It's when things go wrong that you mustn't quit.
A dog thinks: Hey, these people I live with feed me, love me, provide me with a nice warm, dry house, pet me, and take good care of me... They must be Gods!
A cat thinks: Hey, these people I live with feed me, love me, provide me with a nice warm, dry house, pet me, and take good care of me... I must be a God!
BIRTHDAY BELIEF SYSTEMS
Idealism: Happy Birthday.
Capitalism: I shopped all day for your birthday.
Atheism: I can't believe it's your birthday.
Hinduism: Holy Cow! Is it your birthday?
Taoism: It's everybody's birthday.
Buddhism: If your birthday party was held in the forest and nobody came... would it make a sound?
Existentialism: Your birthday means nothing to me.
Sarcasm: You don't look half bad for someone twice your age.
Even Popeye didn't eat his spinach until he absolutely had to.
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
It is not how busy you are, but why you are busy- the bee is praised, the mosquito is swatted
It is OK to let your mind go blank, but please turn off the sound
I tried sniffing Coke once, but the ice cubes got stuck in my nose
I was going to waste, but Jesus recycled me
May your life be long and useful like a roll of toilet paper.
Morning people: "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
Night people: "Anybody who goes to bed the same day they got up is a quitter."
When your outgo exceeds your income your upkeep will be your downfall.
When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt. (Henry J. Kaiser)
If you are never scared, embarrassed or hurt, it means you never take chances.
Some people are bitter, some sour, others are sweet. Who you hang out with depends on your taste
Vital papers will demonstrate their vitality by spontaneously moving from where you left them to where you can't find them.
We could accomplish a lot more if we'd get rid of our ifs and and's; and get off our butts
We live in a society where pizza gets to your house before the police.
We, the unwilling, led by the unknowing, have been asked to do so much with so little for so long that we are now capable of doing anything with nothing.
Subtlety is the art of saying what you think and getting out of the way before it is understood.
"Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats." - Howard Aiken
"A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort." - Herm Albright
"Drawing on my fine command of language, I said nothing." -- Robert Benchley
"We humans are a curious sort... Little girls like dolls and little boys like soldiers. When we grow up, women like soldiers and men like dolls." - Monee C. Kidd
"Reality is for people who can't handle fantasy."
"Be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work." - Gustave Flaubert
"I was an atheist, until I found out I was God."
"Writing is like Prostitution: First you do it for the love of it. Then you do it for a few friends. And finally you do it for money." -- Moliere
"It only stands to reason that where there's sacrifice, there's someone collecting the sacrificial offerings. Where there's service, there is someone being served. The man who speaks to you of sacrifice is speaking of slaves and masters, and intends to be the master." -- Ayn Rand
"What's another word for thesaurus?" - Steven Wright
"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug." - Mark Twain
"I never entertain wicked thoughts...Wicked thoughts entertain me."
"Writing is an occupation in which you have to keep proving your talent to people who have none." -- Jules Renard
Trust the computer industry to shorten "Year 2000" to Y2K. It was this kind of thinking that caused the problem in the first place.
Arthur Evans
"Nothing, not love, not greed, not passion or hatred, is stronger than a writer's need to change another writer's copy."
Bobby Knight
"All of us learn to write in the second grade. Most of us go on to greater things."
Clarissa Pinkola Estes
"To create one must be able to respond. Creativity is the ability to respond to all that goes on around us, to choose from the hundreds of possibilities of though, feeling, action, and reaction and to put these together in a unique response, expression or message that carries moment, passion and meaning. In this sense, loss of our creative milieu means finding ourselves limited to only one choice, divested of, suppressing, or censoring feelings and thoughts, not acting, not saying, doing, or being."
Richard Bach
"I'm a writer as rarely as possible, when forced by an idea too lovely to let die unwritten"
Thomas Berger
"Why do writers write? Because it isn't there."
The only thing some people can achieve on their own is dandruff.
You don't marry someone you can live with; you marry the person with whom you cannot live without.
You must be the change you wish to see in the world. (Gandhi)
The man who stops advertising to save money is like the man who stops the clock to save time.
Great Rules for writing from William Safire in the New York Times.
1. Do not put statements in the negative form.
2. And don't start sentences with a conjunction.
3. It is incumbent on one to avoid archaisms.
4. If you reread your work, you will find on rereading that a great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.
5. Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
6. Unqualified superlatives are the worst of all.
7. De-accession euphemisms.
8. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.
9. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
10. Never, ever use repetitive redundancies.
11. Also, avoid awkward or affected alliteration.
12. Last, but not least, avoid cliche’s like the plague.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power
The meek shall inherit the Earth after we're done with it.
When I'm good, I'm very good. But when I'm bad I'm better. Mae West
Sorry, but my karma just ran over your dogma.
A day without fusion is like a day without sunshine.
There is no gravity. The Earth sucks.
Those of you who think they know everything are very annoying to those of us who do.
It's not that you and I are so clever, but that the others are such fools.
Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum -- "I think that I think, therefore I think that I am."
EARTH
smog | bricks
AIR – mud -- FIRE
Soda | tequila
WATER
Trust: Just as you would not want to do business with someone you can't trust, this law simply stated is: When you can completely trust the process of the universe and life, you will be supplied abundantly and you will be able to make your life work just the way you want it. And the trust you give and have must be 100% or it is zero. It cannot be given under one condition and not under another. There are many things we trust with our lives and have no concern about. Such as: the sun will come up every day; the law of gravity works all the time; the pilot who pilots the plane we fly on, is competent; our garbage is picked up on certain days. If we could not trust the things we take for granted will occur without any effort on our part, the fear for our well being would be so great we would not be able to enjoy our lives. Can you imagine what the world would be like, if we could not trust the food we buy, the water we drink or that the people we depend on would not manipulate or harm us? But the only way we can expect others to trust us is, we need to be trustworthy ourselves, and especially to ourselves. Unfortunately, many people don't trust themselves and the judgments and decisions they make. Therefore, they experience disharmony with their lives and their world.
Sidney Madwed
I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)
Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.
Seneca (3 BC - 65 AD)
"Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards."
Robert Heinlein
"I think that writers are made, not born or created out of dreams or childhood trauma -- that becoming a writer is a direct result of conscious will. Of course there has to be some talent involved, but talent is a dreadfully cheap commodity, cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work and study; a constant process of honing."
Stephen King
“I’m not a poet, nor a prophet, but I dream from time to time.
I'm an artist of illusion and I sketch a strange design.”
- Did a Verse End? by Common Rotation
Monday, December 01, 2008
Free writing services for social organizations and charities
I'm on a break from work, and looking to occupy my time meaningfully. If you are a charity, social organisation, etc., and require writing support such as web, ad or marketing promotional copy, please feel free to contact me. I'll be happy to offer whatever writing services I can.
I have over 7 years of writing experience for advertising, the web and corporate communication.
Email: varadarajan.vidya@gmail.com
I have over 7 years of writing experience for advertising, the web and corporate communication.
Email: varadarajan.vidya@gmail.com
Thursday, January 19, 2006
The growth of the begging industry
Bangalore. India's Silicon Valley. Home to 5.2 million people.
Soon to be home to the largest begging population in the country.
There's no doubt that Bangalore is a city were money comes and goes freely. I also do not question the need to give back to society. But frankly, everytime I see another drugged and sleeping baby in the arms of a begging "mother", I feel a twinge of guilt. We gave money, we created another job opening.
It's just another story of Bangalore. India's land of opportunity.
Everytime you see a helpless child and decide to part with your change, you've just created another opportunity for a child to be exploited.
Pay attention to what we are doing to our own people. You may think you are helping, but the money you give is not going into helping the one who got your attention. If you want to donate there are so many transparent charity organizations who could use your help.
Soon to be home to the largest begging population in the country.
There's no doubt that Bangalore is a city were money comes and goes freely. I also do not question the need to give back to society. But frankly, everytime I see another drugged and sleeping baby in the arms of a begging "mother", I feel a twinge of guilt. We gave money, we created another job opening.
It's just another story of Bangalore. India's land of opportunity.
Everytime you see a helpless child and decide to part with your change, you've just created another opportunity for a child to be exploited.
Pay attention to what we are doing to our own people. You may think you are helping, but the money you give is not going into helping the one who got your attention. If you want to donate there are so many transparent charity organizations who could use your help.
Sunday, January 15, 2006
The movie mania
Movies. So much a part of our lives these days, that there is almost no gathering, get-together or group conversation topic that doesn't swing towards movie experiences at some point or another.
Take this weekend. Four new DVDs. A Matrix Marathon Sunday. And an evening exchanging favourite movies, storyines and favourites.
I guess I'm what you'd call a movie buff. But you'd be wrong. It's my husband.
I've been watching movies since I can remember. I grew up on them, studied them, did my thesis on them, and even tried to go to college to write them!
Whereas, my husband spent our first time in a darkened movie theatre snoring softly on my shoulder...
And so time flies and life balances itself. He does the buying, watching and discussing, while I do the sleeping.
It makes me wonder what's going on with the world... is there some great cosmic set of scales in the heavens which places the DVDs on one side and Zzzzz'z on the other? I mean I've heard of ying-yang, opposite attraction and the works, but since when does one change one's stripes to maintain polarity?
I mean, I really enjoy movies. It's just that off late real life has just become much more interesting.
And perhaps there lies the point.
Take this weekend. Four new DVDs. A Matrix Marathon Sunday. And an evening exchanging favourite movies, storyines and favourites.
I guess I'm what you'd call a movie buff. But you'd be wrong. It's my husband.
I've been watching movies since I can remember. I grew up on them, studied them, did my thesis on them, and even tried to go to college to write them!
Whereas, my husband spent our first time in a darkened movie theatre snoring softly on my shoulder...
And so time flies and life balances itself. He does the buying, watching and discussing, while I do the sleeping.
It makes me wonder what's going on with the world... is there some great cosmic set of scales in the heavens which places the DVDs on one side and Zzzzz'z on the other? I mean I've heard of ying-yang, opposite attraction and the works, but since when does one change one's stripes to maintain polarity?
I mean, I really enjoy movies. It's just that off late real life has just become much more interesting.
And perhaps there lies the point.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
The unspoken rules of the kitchen
First let me get this straight: My husband is an EXTREMELY helpful person to have around the kitchen. However the problem arises when he doesn't understand the unspoken dynamics that determine crtical operations of a kitchen.
For example, when one lowers the stove and turns away from a simmering pot of contents, it is known amongst regular kitchen experts that the said contents can continue to cook without anyone needing to constantly stir. In fact it's not just in the kitchen that it is considered rude if you go around stirring someone else's pot!
When more than one person is preparing food in the kitchen, there is a silent 'first come first serve' tenet while using the cutting board, blender or burners. You cannnot simply move / remove the first cook's dish and begin your own, any more than you could walk into the living room and switch TV channels (ahhh... but that's another rant).
Let's also not forget that there can only be ONE head cook. Juggling can be done by jugglers, bartenders and mothers of young children, the kitchen is not the place to showcase your roti flippng skills and we are definitelty not Italian pizza makers.
Ladies, you know what I'm talking about. Gentlemen, we are delighted that some of you are choosing to move with the times, help your spouses or pursue a new passion, but let's face it: for most of you this is new territory like any trip into the unchartered it would help if learned the rules.
Or asked your wife.
For example, when one lowers the stove and turns away from a simmering pot of contents, it is known amongst regular kitchen experts that the said contents can continue to cook without anyone needing to constantly stir. In fact it's not just in the kitchen that it is considered rude if you go around stirring someone else's pot!
When more than one person is preparing food in the kitchen, there is a silent 'first come first serve' tenet while using the cutting board, blender or burners. You cannnot simply move / remove the first cook's dish and begin your own, any more than you could walk into the living room and switch TV channels (ahhh... but that's another rant).
Let's also not forget that there can only be ONE head cook. Juggling can be done by jugglers, bartenders and mothers of young children, the kitchen is not the place to showcase your roti flippng skills and we are definitelty not Italian pizza makers.
Ladies, you know what I'm talking about. Gentlemen, we are delighted that some of you are choosing to move with the times, help your spouses or pursue a new passion, but let's face it: for most of you this is new territory like any trip into the unchartered it would help if learned the rules.
Or asked your wife.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Out with the old
Ok, here it is... another New year, another resolution.
This year I've gotten older. All my life I've waited for to "grow up", and as of 2005, it's finally happened. Tension headaches, anxiety attackes, psychosomatic ashtma and writer's (near) burnout.
Congratulations Vidya! You are now an adult.
So now that I'm in-charge of my life and doing such a bang-up job of it, this year's resolution is to be more adult-like and less of a granny.
My resolutions in a nutshell are:
1. Thou shalt write a daily blog: I have views, I am a writer. The two shall meet.
2. Thou shalt move thy ass: The theme of the year is "fitness". Yoga, Walking, gymming,
3. Thou shalt spring clean thy God-given Talents: Tanjore Painting, My Vocals, My Guitar.
4. Thou shalt write like there is no tomorrow: No more moaning over ideas that amount to nothing more than a synopsis
5. Thou shalt chill: Dirty dishes are not the end of the world. Hubby blowing 1000 rupees a month on dvds is no big deal. Life is still good even if there is a pile of dirty, soggy, smelly laundry at end of the rainy season.
And last and biggest of all.
6. Thou shalt remember thy life is full of blessings and only getting better.
This year I've gotten older. All my life I've waited for to "grow up", and as of 2005, it's finally happened. Tension headaches, anxiety attackes, psychosomatic ashtma and writer's (near) burnout.
Congratulations Vidya! You are now an adult.
So now that I'm in-charge of my life and doing such a bang-up job of it, this year's resolution is to be more adult-like and less of a granny.
My resolutions in a nutshell are:
1. Thou shalt write a daily blog: I have views, I am a writer. The two shall meet.
2. Thou shalt move thy ass: The theme of the year is "fitness". Yoga, Walking, gymming,
3. Thou shalt spring clean thy God-given Talents: Tanjore Painting, My Vocals, My Guitar.
4. Thou shalt write like there is no tomorrow: No more moaning over ideas that amount to nothing more than a synopsis
5. Thou shalt chill: Dirty dishes are not the end of the world. Hubby blowing 1000 rupees a month on dvds is no big deal. Life is still good even if there is a pile of dirty, soggy, smelly laundry at end of the rainy season.
And last and biggest of all.
6. Thou shalt remember thy life is full of blessings and only getting better.
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Cricket in the air…
In my original role as a full-fledged tom boy, my first experience with ‘Crickets’ were these paper clip-sized black insects that hopped around (somewhat similar to grasshoppers, but in my mind, not as big, not as powerful and certainly not as gross). I spent many a constructive day honing my stalking, hunting and capturing skills with a focus and intensity that would’ve had my farthest African ancestors smiling down with approval. Those cricket days opened up one of the simple childhood joys in life… you caught them, they entertained you, and you sent them hopping along their way when you were done. Casualties were negligible.
My second experience with ‘Crickets’ was when my parents excitedly trundled my sister and me into the car with the limited information that we were going to meet some famous people called ‘Crickets’ at some friend’s big bash. My curiosity was piqued only when we stopped at a drugstore to pick up an autograph book.
“Why on earth would we need an entire autograph book for a rock band,” I wondered aloud. And since when did my folks become fans of The Crickets? As far I knew at the time, they only listened to records of The Bee Gees and The Carpenters.
“It’s a sport,” my dad clarified, “we’re gonna meet the Indian team players…!”
“Oh!” (parental enthusiasm is sooo infectious when you’re eight). Then, of course, since I was now a big fan of our Indian Cricket (no ‘s’) Team it was important for me to know how we were faring… “Are they any good?” (I was a pretty naïve kid back then…)
Cut to rich family friend’s house. Turns out my parents decided to have kids so they could get us to do these oh-so-oddly-demeaning chores for them… like pulling weeds or hey, getting autographs. In the US, you never talk to strangers and you’re always very careful who you mingle with. But if you’re parents think it’s ok, you may push your way roughly through a crowd of boys twice your size and age, wave your autograph book under the nose of the chunky guy with the big moustache and get his autograph all without saying a word. (Except of course “Thank You” since we were very polite)
If you’re me, getting the entire teams’ autographs becomes an exciting quest and may result in having the cricketer in front of you raising a “what have I done wrong?” eyebrow and saying with as much aplomb as he can manage “I’ve already signed this”. This happened a few times before I decided I had ‘gotten’ everyone. (Hey! When you’re a kid growing up in the US, all Indian men with moustaches look alike.)
Deciding the pool was a much more fascinating subject of study I went to the edge and stared at the bluey depths a little mesmerised… when two large hands held my shoulders and turned me around. Another mustachio. He got down to my height (which believe me, an eight-year-old kid will always appreciate) and said quite calmly, “Hey baby, watch out... you could fall in.” (Grrr… let me add here that eight-year-olds are NOT babies and don’t like being addressed as such.) And then he kissed me.
Years (and years) later I wonder… what is it about the first kiss (albeit on the cheek) that ensures a girl will never, ever, forget it?
And what is it about Kapil Dev that ensures he always makes a lasting impression?
Crickets anyone?
My second experience with ‘Crickets’ was when my parents excitedly trundled my sister and me into the car with the limited information that we were going to meet some famous people called ‘Crickets’ at some friend’s big bash. My curiosity was piqued only when we stopped at a drugstore to pick up an autograph book.
“Why on earth would we need an entire autograph book for a rock band,” I wondered aloud. And since when did my folks become fans of The Crickets? As far I knew at the time, they only listened to records of The Bee Gees and The Carpenters.
“It’s a sport,” my dad clarified, “we’re gonna meet the Indian team players…!”
“Oh!” (parental enthusiasm is sooo infectious when you’re eight). Then, of course, since I was now a big fan of our Indian Cricket (no ‘s’) Team it was important for me to know how we were faring… “Are they any good?” (I was a pretty naïve kid back then…)
Cut to rich family friend’s house. Turns out my parents decided to have kids so they could get us to do these oh-so-oddly-demeaning chores for them… like pulling weeds or hey, getting autographs. In the US, you never talk to strangers and you’re always very careful who you mingle with. But if you’re parents think it’s ok, you may push your way roughly through a crowd of boys twice your size and age, wave your autograph book under the nose of the chunky guy with the big moustache and get his autograph all without saying a word. (Except of course “Thank You” since we were very polite)
If you’re me, getting the entire teams’ autographs becomes an exciting quest and may result in having the cricketer in front of you raising a “what have I done wrong?” eyebrow and saying with as much aplomb as he can manage “I’ve already signed this”. This happened a few times before I decided I had ‘gotten’ everyone. (Hey! When you’re a kid growing up in the US, all Indian men with moustaches look alike.)
Deciding the pool was a much more fascinating subject of study I went to the edge and stared at the bluey depths a little mesmerised… when two large hands held my shoulders and turned me around. Another mustachio. He got down to my height (which believe me, an eight-year-old kid will always appreciate) and said quite calmly, “Hey baby, watch out... you could fall in.” (Grrr… let me add here that eight-year-olds are NOT babies and don’t like being addressed as such.) And then he kissed me.
Years (and years) later I wonder… what is it about the first kiss (albeit on the cheek) that ensures a girl will never, ever, forget it?
And what is it about Kapil Dev that ensures he always makes a lasting impression?
Crickets anyone?
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