Cartons; full and labeled. Not.

we gonna move in
we gonna shift
new home,
here we come
the smell of fresh paint
the shiny taps
cabinets in deep wood
i would live in them
(if i could)
cartons lugged
cartons, big and small
up the stairs
and down
aching limbs
sore muscles
we barely felt
as we bathed in the lights
of home, our home
our hearts did swell

our eyes took in
every precious corner
and
thats where we spotted
the damaged wall.
seepage!
sacrilage!
i am so bloody killing the plumber.

The (F)art of Fine Dining.

it was a day to celebrate. so i asked around and zeroed in on a fine place to dine.
beautiful ambience - check
soothing music - check
well mannered staff - check

a dream, it was... before it all came undone.

the first indication of disastor was the audible gulp that came from the husband. the table, neatly tucked away in a corner (thank god for that, thank god for that...) looked deceptively tame.
in its fold it held an assortment of cutlery that i failed to recognise. i almost turned to ask the waiter if we were expecting company.

so, the guy-who-takes-the-order came over. he put a card that listed all the wines they serve. i for one know of only port wine and white wine. the husband is well... er, lets just say he is a beer guy. after much deliberation, we asked the person responsible for putting us in the situation for suggestions. that done, we turned our attention to the food list aka menu card.

i am starving said the husband
so am i, said i.

we ordered for a platter of blah blah something for starters.
i think they take you literally in that particular restaurant. they did get us a platter. a really huge one. nice and white and ceramicy. only, there was barely anything IN it. a tiny piece of cheese here and a sauteed capsicum there... oh and, plenty of crunchy lettuce.

moooo to you too.

the order guy looked definitely disapproving when we used the wrong fork. until that minute, i didnt know there could be any such thing.

its my birthday and i don't think i wanna eat here says husband
situation = bad.

our main course arrived.
my 2 year old nephew gets larger helpings.

we ate in silence.
paid the bill.
headed out to the nearest mcD/ barista/ cafe coffee day.
fine dining is not for us.

ps: Jai Hind. Go India!

line up for the autographs

The husband and I were on national tv last afternoon.
We were invited to be special guests, experts, awesome couple (ok, this was not listed, but what the heck) on a show that spoke about marraiges that are fixed over the internet vis a vis the traditional offline version.

A lot of people asked a lot of questions ... some innocent, some blooming out of ignorance and some downright moronic.

I liked it. A lot.
Despite having to sit there in a stuffy studio with cameras catching your most inopportune angles (er ... and the decent ones being?)
Despite having a terrible allergy that made me want to scratch my forehead off
Despite having to wear a knowledgeable/ agreeable grin when Team India was taking a bashing by nonsense WIndies

I liked it.
Know why? The very reason people called up to ask, argue or chat up was because the Internet had managed to rouse their interest. Which is incredibly good.

I believe in the power of the www.
Hardcore fan.

Go Internet.

Good help is non-existant.

One day, I shall write a book ... nay, a trilogy... on the trevails of building a house.

For anyone out there who has ideas about doing the same (building a house, not writing a book silly)... just remember, you need immense dedication, patience and energy.
Dedication to see the project through
Patience to out think, out manouver, out argue (?) the masons, carpenters and painters
Energy to survive and go on with life.

Cheers~

let me tell you about the tree

the neem tree
it swayed gently
green... so green
right outside my window too
beautiful, majestic, grand...
squirrels made it their home
and the birds
oh the cute little chirrupy birds
the cacophony
the symphony
i stared at it
dreamily
many a morning
and then
last evening
i stood staring
at a naked tree
stripped
off all her glorious leaves
and branches
raped
mutilated
left for dead
and all her tenants
my lovely neighbours
gone
but i have faith
in nature
in my tears
in my brave tree
she will come around
i think
i pray.

Happy new year and its a boy!

Happy New Year to ye all ...
and my lil sistah has had a baby boy...
Yay boy.
Cheers~