The Maxims of Life

Random thoughts that flitted through my mind as I sat brooding this morning, feeling completely let down and lousy,  looking for some kind of outlet for all my pent up frustration and bitterness,  a build up from the chain of events that transpired yesterday evening. Scattered thoughts Mundane routine Over and over Wearing us out Now is this what  Life is all about. No joy in the doing No fun in the living Time dictates, and You just follow it out Now is this what  Life is all about. At the end of the day I'm far from any of those depressed and bored feelings I nursed this morning.  Well I guess I have come full circle for now but might go on another rant when something or someone lets me down in the future.

She opened the bathroom door with a soft knock. It was dark inside, the only light coming from the lamp in their bedroom. He was sitting there on the bathtub rim, lost in thought, cigar smoke swirling all around him. Sensing her presence he looks up and smiles. But the smile falters, seeing her upset, because he's AGAIN sitting up late in the night SMOKING. "This is the last one, I'm going to quit. No more cigars from tomorrow.", he says. She rolls her eyes in anger, which then gives way to a resigned look. She's been hearing it on and off since they got married. 10 years of marriage and 3 beautiful daughters later the story is still the same. The resolve usually lasts only for a day. And he sits idle that entire day. To do anything worthwhile, he needs a puff. He follows her into the bedroom, turns her around and repeats his promise earnestly. And like all the other times, hands her the remaining packet and lighter asking her to destroy it. She takes out her...

Sleep seems to have evaded me. So thought of tapping away on the keyboard and the outcome is this post. It was only last year that we moved down to India. Having lived abroad most of our life, it has been very difficult adjusting to the way things work out here. Back in UAE we could set the schedule for a year and not have to worry about making many changes. Life was that predictable!! Save for the occasional bouts of cold or fever that came with the seasonal changes, nothing much happened that disrupted the smooth functioning of our household.  Woaw! Things happen pretty fast here. Sometimes you can't even plan ahead for a week. An unexpected Hartal or Bandh, someones's Shaadi or a House warming, the list just goes on. But what I found most interesting living here is the scenario I have with my neighbours. Initially I was shocked by the kind of nosiness that these people showed. For me relationship with neighbours had been limited to the polite smile you shared when ...

Several friends who've come across my blog have been wondering why I haven't posted anything in such a long time. And since I'm not really inspired to write right now :( I'm going to post the few lines I've put together on various occasions and get away with it :P Music is an expression of life.  The changing seasons from birth to death. Some people form the notes of our life,  Others join along to give rhythm. The music moves on Scaling ups and downs. Eventually the music comes to a stop  Yet to start again as another life...... You bring a smile to my face And add sunshine to my days You are my happiness and cheer, always. You bring a twinkle to my eyes Making me feel young and nice You are my joy and spirit, always. You make me want to do more Pushing me on to the fore You give me courage and my strength, always. If, I were to lose my loves A bitter sadness it would arouse, And Life would never be the same, ...

I don't know how it works for the others out there, but for me a slight dip in the reading of the weighing scale gives me immense pleasure. Not that I am a Size 0 fanatic or something, but I feel so elated whenever the scale dips, even if its only by a mere 0.5 Kg. I feel so full of glee and guilt free at having lost some weight, that I don't think twice when I sink my teeth into the next calorie loaded yummy thing out there. My current station usually doesn't permit for the kind of fast food trend I have been previously accustomed to. Since the kids are having their vacations, I've ventured into the world of experimental cooking. Hubby darling not being around helps a lot, coz a hungry testosterone laden male is hardly conducive to experiments in the kitchen. They'd very much prefer the tried and tested fares we lay out, especially during meal times. My first attempt was at banana cookies because I was craving something really sweet and buttery. Since I h...

Inspired by my writing that goes in fits and starts, my daughter has started a blog :D It was fun watching her check out names for her blog. After 5 attempts she was losing hope of coming up with a name. Most of the names she came up with were already taken. She would immediately go and check out that blog. The last post on most of them were dated anywhere between 2001 and 2005. She gets frustrated and angry at all those people who have started out with the blog name she wants and then not bothered to maintain the blog. She put up her first post a few days back. A Day Yet to Come And I'm wondering what the fate of the blog will be, few years down the road. Will the enthusiasm fade and the blog wilt away like the ones she had checked out. I'll have to wait and see. Their school has a blog, but she has always been hesitant to express her views out there. When she went ahead with this blog, I was curious about the sudden change in attitude. Her smart ass reply was, ...

For every post that I publish I always seem to have two in the pipeline. And this is one of those, which I actually started writing sometime last year. Procrastination and me and conjoined twins so its pretty tough to escape that bad guy. I had made an escape from the harsh world of reality to my blissful (though virtual) blogging world. But once again, I was sucked back into the deep cauldron of life, where several things were brewing and boiling and brimming over. Its taken me almost 3 months, but whew! I've just made a short escape back, as we do in our dreams............ That blissful state in sleep where we live out the unknown. Some days you live out the serene and beautiful life of a princess. Other nights you might have aliens chasing you down mysterious passage ways. Once, when my sister was just a kid she'd stopped midway through explaining her dream telling me to continue since she couldn't remember what happened after that point. Everybody had tur...

I've had this post in mind ever since I wrote the one about my better half's peculiar mannerisms . Kids tend to ramble. But my youngest one used to go about it with such a serious outlook and so much maturity that a few of them are really worth sharing. Coming from a 3 year old, some of it is pretty heavy. I bet all moms have little gems like these stashed away. Being a working mother, I often missed out on a lot of the baby talk, especially with my elder two. Regretting doesn't help, I know, but better late than never. I'd somehow managed to juggle my work timings to be available for them more. Sad to say that only the youngest one still needed me around by then. The other two had learned to survive without me. It was heart breaking, when you offered to do something, but found them more comfortable managing by themselves. Its usually when I'm in the kitchen or folding up the laundry that my 3 year old sidles up, with never ending streams of questions or to s...

A few quirky facts about me :D I'm still a hardcore Tom & Jerry fan. Since I fight with my trio aged 12 to 6 for my share of chocolates and goodies, their father buys everything in 4's now. He claims I'm a 34 going on 4. I bawl shamelessly when I happen to watch atrocities on TV. I have a passion for drawing and photography. I have a phobia of frogs and lizards. If lizards were my enemies during my stay in the UAE, it is the former which is making life hell for me now. Music influences my mood very strongly. But when I'm feeling down they somehow tend to make me more sad. Silence and Solitude are my best friends. I prefer writing to speaking. During our honeymoon days, my hubby was perplexed by my uncanny ability to give answers with a bare minimum YES or NO wherever possible. But now he's finally realised that ingrained habits are hard to change. To avoid arguments I usually debate it out in my mind, thus saving the parties involved, especially me t...

I've been fuming with frustration and pent up anger ever since I returned from the class arranged by the RTO Kalpetta, Wayanad. A class for driving students aimed at spreading awareness among drivers. ?????!!!!! You'll must be wondering what my problem is? I'll enlighten you on how the whole affair was carried out and probably at least some of you will empathize with my sentiments. The seminar was being conducted at the auditorium of a government school nearby, as part of a road safety campaign. I got there at the campus and the very sight of the structure made me want to puke. Shattered window glasses everywhere, surgical gloves and blood stained cotton swabs (probably left behind after some medical camp conducted there), disposable paper cups,. The inside of the auditorium was no better. The dust accumulation on the table seemed at least 3 inches thick and the above mentioned debris had found its way in there too. The place never seems to have seen soap or water...

I want to write like crazy. I have cartloads to write too, but I am on the mend from a very bad infection and don't have the energy for much creativity. Thought I'd share this article which I read recently. Of Paper boats and Plastic dolls So until next time, Ciao!!

I don't know if these points can be genralised for all men, but at least this is what's happening with my man and from what I've heard from friends I'm not the only one with a "Hard to Understand" partner. And I thought sharing these thoughts might help you and me relax a bit and accept them as they are. Ok, let's go: 1. Men hate shopping - Never ever go shopping with your man. They tend to have this constipated look (I pray my hubby never happens to come across my blog), which ruins the kicks we females get out of shopping, even if its only to buy the groceries. And five minutes into the thing he'll get started with the, "Come on let's get going" line, eventually forcing you to give in. And the next time you mention shopping, he'll wail, "But we already did our shopping last weeeeeeeek". 2. Do not let him handle that shopping cart!! - This is a corollary, to point 1. Now, if at all you have the bad fortune of sh...

I had one of those very uneventful days, which took a turn for the better. Woke up late this morning, no power supply (Groan!!!!!), rush around getting kids ready for school, serve breakfast, clean up the mess scattered all over the house, make beds, broom,.....Its a never ending list, the compilation of which is arduous in itself. And home makers all over the world probably go through the same motions every day of their life. And if on any given day you choose to be a bit lax, all hell breaks loose, making you wonder, why you thought you could get away with a bit of laziness. That's one thing I envy all those maidens out there for. You don't want to make your bed, fine, no one's going to raise hell, except probably your mother, whose tantrum you are used to. Ok, where was I? Ya, so the day passed without any dramatic events, except for the fact that there was still no power, but since we have an inverter, there was no excuse for keeping away from my office work. (I don...

I sometimes get the feel that I have 3 managers in training at my house. And it irks me big time. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...... Ok, now what basically do managers do? "They control or direct an institution or operation", says the dictionary. And in my personal opinion, a manager is one, who not only ascertains that his subordinate is loaded to the max, but also never appreciates his/ her efforts. And off course blame them for all the failures in an operation. Now where do my managers come in? I'll explain. I have 3 angels, who are perfect (OK, not so flawless actually) until you ask them to do something. The moment I ask my eldest one to help me out with something, I hear her yelling out to her younger ones and breaking down the task, assigning them to do it. Three people being there on the job I hope something will come out of it. Ha! And what do I see when I come in? Nothings accomplished. I call out my eldest who had been initially handed the job and there comes a ...

My sister in law recently gave birth, to a healthy young boy, which brought back memories of my first personal exposure to motherhood. Since I have 3 girls, aged 12 to 6, I come under the experienced and wiser category I presume. But thinking back to that first time I can't help laughing. Ignorance sure was bliss. Going through the daily ups and downs of taking care of the family, I often wonder if I would have willingly stepped into the role, not because I detest it, but due to the impending fear of failing miserably. I got married during my first year of college. Falling pregnant was not on the agenda, but it somehow happened when I was in my final year. There were a host of emotions that coursed through my mind, regret, anxiety, joy. And though I had to put up, and also at times give up, I really treasure the memories of those wonderful days. It left me pretty exhausted at the end of my tiring days at class. There were days of sickness, days when all I wanted to do was ...

Its always amazing how an old snap manages to open the flood gates of memory. You may have forgotten a few names, but the faces even after all these years stay put. I happened to post an aged school photo on fb and the response it generated was so overwhelming. It gave me a chance to connect with so many long lost friends and classmates. The magic that photo spawned still lingers on the  fb  pages. It took us all back to those care free days where the only thing that mattered was us, the only responsibility our books. Gone is the freedom, gone too is the innocence and trust. But it makes you feel young and vibrant and like a fantasy lets you escape into that world where you were just you and all that mattered was just you. Makes a refreshing change from the inexcusable duties bound to you. Studying could always be done tomorrow, right?. Sitting in a row and doing last minute eecha(fly) copying assignments from the guy or gal next to you, who in turn might be d...

"Father, I love you like meat loves salt!" The first time I read that, I really thought the girl was crazy.  No wonder she had  to face the wrath of her father. (King Lear and his youngest daughter Cordelia from Shakespeare).  Now that I've started cooking (and making guinea pigs out of my unsuspecting hubby and kids) I perceive the true power of salt. The all so important, common Salt or NaCl in the chemist's language is truly a power to reckon with. (I wonder who coined the term, it should have been Emperor Salt or Royal Salt).  My Chicken Biriyani is a pinch short of salt and  all for want of a pinch of salt, my whole days effort goes down the drain.  Oh and don't ask what happens, if it was the other way round, then its just plain ruined. No chance of even salvaging the dish.  Salt the almighty ingredient. But, come to think of it, no one exclaims, "The salt is just perfect!" Its always the chicken or the bhindi or something that ...