Happy New Year!

This year is coming to an end and so is the decade. Moving to the New Year with some hopes and dreams. Wishing the best of everything for my loved ones.

Peace
Shaki

Heart

drew this today on Paint ..

Strawberry.

I don't know whether I am missing her but I am remebering The Wise One's reactions, the joy she brought to The Wise One and to The Big Guy's life for those few months, The Wise One's reactions everytime she went to the Doc, Her voice filled with happiness and The Big Man's plans each time. It had been wonderful!

Strawberry, God Bless You, wherever You are!

Peace,

Shaki (Maasi)

How do you help?

Yes. Yes. I have started writing more regularly... Its just that I think this is serving as a good outlet for me. Yesterday's worries are still there somewhere at the back of my mind. Anyways, today there are some weird thoughts. When PC told me about a friend going through a rough spot, there were the usual things running in my mind when someone tells me about there problems or as in this case about others problems. I land up saying things like "don't worry.. you/they will get through it.. you/they need to be patient... i know its tough..." But as i started typing something on those lines I thought if I were in their place how would I feel... I mean everyone knows things dont last forever and everyone knows not to worry and so the words above aren't always welcome. So I tried my best. After the usual I asked if I could help. Though PC might not really need my help in this case I still asked. You never know! It got me thinking about how easy it is for me or for that matter anyone else to say consoling words or words to encourage but then the person who is at the receiving end usually feels the same as he/she did before. So unless you can help dont offer any consoling words.  It's like talking to a Wall! Your presence will matter more than your words thats for sure! These are just my thoughts for today. Might change tomorrow. But then don't tell me that cause you can't help that!

Peace
Shaki

The London Series- After Effects

Gotcha! No. No. This is not part of my London Series.. Ha! Ha! Ha! Its just me ranting. Here I am. Back from an amazing holiday. And all I get back to are worries. You know the moment I landed here I had a million worries. I was wondering how to get a cab, will I get home on time, will I get the bus back, will Anjudi remember to pick me up, the house must be dirty, will the Bai come, I have a million bills to pay, I have to go to office the next day, I am hungry, I am sleepy, I am awake, I need to bathe.. You get the drift.
So. this series of worrying just doesn't stop... Today I am sitting here and thinking God! give me a break! I am desperately searching for a room mate. I am fed up with the way The Grinch treats me! I can't wake up in the morning till the Bai comes. God forbid, one day if she doesn't turn up, I will be sleeping the whole day! I am trying hard to save some money and cut a few expenses. Trying to lose all that lard I have accumulated around my middle region. And I am a bit lonely. I want to have all my family and friends around. Yes ALL of them! And I want to go to Bangalore right now. But I am sitting here typing this! Uff!

Really. I want to move.

Peace (You wish)
Ranting Maniac Shaki

The London Series- Food Glorious Food!

Aaaaaaaah.. now this is the best part. it was a gastronomical adventure! And Boy! Did I miss some people who would have appreciated the food and enjoyed it as much as I did! To start with I had home made Manipuri khaana by Ma which included kangshoi and iromba. Mouth watering.. slurp slurp.. Then the amazing Bengali specialties, kosha mangsho and the chodchodi cooked by Tamdi. Slurrrrp.. Tamdi has proved herself to be one heck of a cook!  Gjjee showed his cooking skills by cooking delicious kali dal one day :) Dipali Di had cooked some awesome Biryani.. it was finger licking good.. so good that I am considering her to cater for my wedding ;). Slurrrp… how can I forget the food at Tamdi and her college gang’s reunion- roast chicken, sun dried tomato, garlic and red pepper pasta, yummy ratatouille (cooked by Joyoni Di). It was the first time I tasted ratatouille and its set some standards. All the people who cook ratatouille, please be assured your dish will always be compared to Joyoni Di’s. It was simply delicious.

Besides the above we did eat out. We had different cuisines ranging from Indian, Italian, Thai, Japanese, Chinese, German, American food (that was just a hot dog) to of course the English food of course. The only thing I didn’t eat was fat round big prawns that looked like the intestines of a human! Of course it was delicious but the sight wasn’t so good. I kinda got nauseous. In normal circumstances I would not have let go of those prawns!! Don’t think I missed much though. Yes. I hogged all throughout the stay. Didn’t lose any chance to eat out. I have a completely different outlook about food from different regions now. And when I go to these places which say they serve food from the above mentioned places I am so gonna judge them!

Other than that I Loved the mulled wine at the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park. Yes it was the first time I tasted it! It was nice and warm and sweet. I am so hunting for a place where you get mulled wine here. So I did drink a lot of wine generally and I think now that I am a Wine Person. Okay for the time being I am!

If you have read my previous post, you will know that I was a bit awestruck by everything around. This of course includes the vegetables as well. Mom, Dad and I were completely taken aback by the variety of vegetables available. We wanted to buy everything which was of course not such a good idea considering the fact that we would not have been able to eat many of them or just not be able to finish it! There were so many things that we had not seen before. And we took loads of snaps of vegetables we dont get back home. Funny thing to do, i know! 

And I toast to all those people who make food so enjoyable!

Peace

Overweight Shaki

The London Series- Tourist In Me

Back from visiting Tamdi and Gjjee. Had been there for three weeks. London is pretty! I mean of course I have seen the streets on the telly and I have done my bit of reading about London but being there was a different thing. I felt like I was in London.. ha ha! what the hell! I was in London. What I meant was it was nice, despite the rain and the cold, cold wind. Everything is so cute there. Weird adjective to use for a city but it IS cute!! Especially the place where Tamdi lives. The plants are beautiful and the people are stylish.  It's just so PRETTY! I was the typical middle class never-been-out-of-my-own-country tourist. You can only imagine what that is like!!

We took a tour to Stonehenge, Windsor Castle and Oxford. The bus journey was wonderful. The country side is just lovely. Passed through some places that looked like a jungle. Tamdi said “You never know you might spot a Unicorn there”. Of course the kid that I am I actually hoped so. And had my camera ready just in case. The Queen was in when we reached Windsor Castle.  We took a walk on the banks of Thames. There were swans and ducks there. Not something I was excited about. Okay, I sound horrible but then I just don’t find birds to be cute, beautiful, elegant or whatever they say. Anywhooooo, so, I was really excited about going to Stonehenge. Really really. The first thing that gets you is the beautiful landscape. Next thing that gets you is the cold. It's freezing. Of course that’s also because it is December. About the size, well I always imagined it to be taller. But yes it is magnificent and you do wonder how did those people manage to move those pieces of rocks. Oxford was nice too. The colleges instantly reminded me of Eric Segal’s books. I don’t know. The descriptions of the colleges he uses are like the colleges of Oxford and just like how I pictured it. Well, saw the "Harry Potter" sights. As in some places where it was shot and also from where J K Rowling got the inspiration for the sign on Harry Potter’s forehead. That was that.

Other than that we went to Greenwich, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, National Art Museum and Natural History Museum, the Aquarium, London Bridge and the Tower Bridge. Dad really wanted to visit Greenwich. The Geographer in him was inching us towards the 0 degree mark. And Boy! Was he thrilled! The view from the Royal Observatory, Greenwich was breath taking. Like the movies really. The sky line was marked with big names of the business world at the Canary Wharf. We took the DLR till Bank station. It was the most awesome ride. It reminded me of this movie called Wanted where Angelina Jolie is on top of a tube and she shoots someone who is inside a building while balancing on the roof of the tube. Well those who have seen the movie will know. So the DLR goes through the buildings and as Dad says “building ke andar station hai”. The visit to the Aquarium was quite exciting. My folks and I behaved like we have never seen fish! Of course Tamdi was quite amused by our reactions. I loved the Sting Rays! And the sharks and the tortoise and the “cow fish” and the sea horse and the jelly fish and loads of other creatures! I was like Oh, its just like it is in National Geographic Channel. Heh Heh.

I saw dinosaurs.. ha ha! ok, their fossils in the Natural History Museum. It has been one thing I wanted to do ever since I was in Class VI. Awesome!

Apart from that I went to the home makers pilgrim- IKEA and the shopaholics paradise Harrods. Now the thing about me shopping is that I do the scanning and then the shopping. In IKEA and Harrods I couldn’t scan cause I just wanted it all! No scanning required! And too much to cover before I shop! You are never done shopping in IKEA. And in Harrods you just don’t know what is good cause everything is so damn nice!

So this is the first part of my many posts that will be about my visit to London. Be rest assured there are more posts and many many pictures to come. Told you I was a never-been-out-of-my-own-country tourist.

Peace

Tourist Shaki

The Planner in Me

There is no point in planning! You know the more I plan the more you should be sure there are going to be twists and turns to it. I work hard on making things right. You know, everything should go as planned. Every detail on track. Making everyone and everything fall in its place, much to a lot of people's annoyance.  Sometimes I do achieve it but the way to it is full of worries, changes, stress. Yes, there are frustrations too when things don't quite work out the way I planned it to be. And disappointments that I couldn't make some things right. But still I plan and worry. And I feel only I can do the job and that is the worst thing! So how do I get myself from becoming this wierd control freak of sorts?Perfectionist? Naaa..
Wouldn't it be easier if I just let things be the way it is? Just let things be. But then you know what, I just cant stop myself from planning and expecting! Strange! I know this habit of mine can get on people's nerves but I just cant help it!

Peace
Shaki

Chai Aur Main

I love a good cup of chai anytime during the day or night. I am the sorta person who gets up early so that I can enjoy my chai. My day usually starts with a cup of chai in one hand and the newspaper in the other. No chai and I will be pretty cranky and probably a bit sick. चाय में आखिर ऐसा क्या है? I haven't been able to figure that one out since I first started drinking tea!
Chai Bonding. That's what we used to call it in College. I was the only chai drinker in the beginning and soon it was like a following! We used to maro addaa in the college canteen with a chai ka cup in our hands. The cups were those ganda walla white turned yellow cups with cracks. The chai used to be made to our tastes. कम दूध ज्यादा पानी थोडी चीनी और बहुत सारी चाय पट्टी! All the plotting used to happen over a cup of chai. All the stories used to be told over a cup of chai. Gossips and fights over chai. Staying up late with a cup of chai during exams. Raat ko khane ke baad chai to discuss the events of the day and to enjoy the star lit skies with a cup of chai in the garden!  We used to make fun of Shalu because she didn't drink tea and we even made her drink a cup once Pyar ke khaattir :) Chyaas- जब चाय पीने का मन करता है! हमे च्यास हर दम लगती थी!We would drink tea all the time.. during breakfast, break mein, bunk karte hue, classes ke beech mein, classes ke baad, evening time, after that, dinner ke baad and sometimes uske bhi baad. It used to keep us warm in cold windy winters. It was our source of energy! कुछ तो है इस चाय में!
And now its getting up in the morning and walking straight to the kitchen to prepare tea. Listening to the radio and reading a bit of the newspaper sometimes, staring out of the window holding a cup of chai. Chai at breaks in office. Garam garam masala chai on rainy days after getting back from office sitting on my window sill. Chai with friends to de-stress. Chai for the migraine. Chai to soothe my nerves. Sometimes going to the CCD round the corner and having chai. and I still wonder कुछ तो है इस चाय में!

Love,
च्यासी Shaki

My First Cakes!

Well. I finally did it! I baked a cake. It is one of the things I thought I would never be able to do!! But it was Su's birthday and I had to do something special. She is leaving in a month :( So I decided to bake her a cake :)  Of course to start I had to call the expert, Che N. She is the best cook in this part of the World :)
Its crazy how she knows so many recipes! She asked me which cake I wanted to bake and I was totally confused. Settled for the easiest- The Chocolate Cake with no frills. Now, the thing is no one tells you the minute details or what might go wrong but thanks to Che N I got over all the hurdles! Another thing, preparing for the cake is the hard part, baking takes just about 6 to 7 minutes! Putting up the picture of the cakes I baked. Have to comment here that they turned out to be great and tasted good too!

Love,
Shaki

Blah Blah Blah..

I dont know. Am a bit chatty today and there is no one I can talk to or who will probably be able to make out what I am trying to say. You see the three, ok make that four, people I like to talk to and who can make out what I say are very very far away. So I am left with these conversations in my head with myself.
Disconnected thoughts running in my head. I feel like talking about pink. Yes the color. Its been in my head for some time now. I am wondering do men think that women with long hair are submissive. I am thinking of this pipe line which fell on the train in Thane. How did it fall? What might have happened? Is Maldives better or Mauritius? The food given by the caterer at the office is improving. Maybe its good that I give feedbacks in spite of him saying that I always complain. I want to watch a movie at the theater but then there is none which is worth a watch. Has anyone watched any good movie lately?
But of course there are answers that are there in my head to all those questions too.
Now that I put almost all my thoughts down I dont feel so chatty anymore!! hmmmm.. but I still feel like talking.

Peace
Shaki

Happy Diwali!

Happy Diwali!

Wishing everyone a Bright and Prosperous Year!

Shaki

Your Smile

I ran out of office. What was he doing? Where was he? In this cold rain what could he do? Was he alright in this city unknown to him? He had been waiting long. Just when I was getting a bit panicky I saw him walking down the road towards me. With a big smile on his face and a bounce in his step. He waved at me from far. His glasses were a bit foggy and the rain did its job of seeping through his tee shirt. As I watched him coming nearer everything around just became a blur. All I could see was him and his big smile. I can't explain what that smile did to me. The rain did'nt seem so cold then and I was no more worried or panicky or scared. All I know is that my heart felt as if it was about to burst and it felt good!

Peace
Shaki

It rained again...

suman at work.. pakoras and chai on a rainy evening.. aaah.. bliss :)

This is now..

Peace
Shaki

Pehli Baar Mohobbat ki hain.. aa haan.

Dont get carried away by the title. thats just a song I have been humming.
Bada Mazaa Aya.. Well. Ok.. So what happened is that Swat ran away from home with Tonn... It was just SO exciting! Here was a meitie (read Manipuri) boy and a jaathni (read Haryanvi) running away from Chandigarh to Pune to get married in the Maharashtran way! The wedding was organized at a Hall in Alandi. Supposedly this place is infamous for these kinds of marriages!
All the time I kept humming the tune of “Pehli Baar Mohabbat Ki Hai” from Kaminey. I mean being in the midst of all the drama, the emotions, was just too much fun! Yes, yes, I was also taking immense pleasure from the confusion and conflicts that Swat and Tonn were going through. I just couldn’t help it! So yeah, I had the duty of updating the folks back home about what’s going on this side. I name myself the official Wedding Correspondent for the day. Sab khabar le rahe the. And I did my part pretty well, Thank you! I gave all the details I could from what color lehenga Swat wore, what was Tonn wearing, what jewellery Swat had, what time was the ceremony, where we are, what are they doing, what are we eating, where are we standing, etc. etc. Full details full mein. In all this what I though was awesome was the girl and the boy's enthusiasm. They look so happy together that it would be a sin to pull them away from each other.
The wedding was attended by close friends but the immediate families of the boy and girl could not attend it for obvious reason. Bhai bhaag ke shaadi kar rahe the naa! However, there will be a wedding again with the parents present which again I intend to attend.

Was thinking of writing much more but that would take ages to write. So as for now I am just so excited on being part of this whole Filmy Type Shaadi! God Bless the Couple!

Peace
Wedding Correspondent

Birthday Week!

Its' My Birthday Week!! Yippee! No I am not 16 or 13! But am extremely excited. I am looking forward to my birthday like Zombie waiting for his biscuit. Yes, yes, of course all this excitement is mainly due to the fact that RD is coming to town to celebrate my birthday! Yay!
Now, its time to count the things done and those that were left undone. Last year went by so quick! But then all the years have. Its been a topsy turvy year for me. I tried recounting the things I had done in the past one year.. decided that its a long list to jot down here and I could get tiresome just writing it.. So...
The year had some moments when I was overwhelmed by emotions I never knew I had. It had its share of the good, the bad and a bit of ugly. I have regretted not doing some things too. Learnt a few things and committed the same mistakes. I have travelled a fair deal. I have discovered a few things in me. I have fallen at times. Experienced and experiencing being in Love. Its been a year I shall never forget.
On each birthday I start thinking of the numerous birthdays I have had. Gets me to think how I am changing. But there is one birthday that still pinches the most and that is the one of 2007. I didnt cut a birthday cake that year. It was the loneliest one. Ok. Better memories. I remember those spent when my mom and my sisters would hide the gift they bought for me and my joy when I received them. I always had a party when I was in school :). Sometimes in the club and sometimes at home.. Things were the same and not yet same in college. Birthdays meant going out for food and later drinks in the small cramped hostel rooms. actually the rooms were big enough but we were too many to fit in. heh heh.

This might be followed with a few more posts after my birthday because I have suddenly lost my chain of thoughts and I would rather post this before my birthday than afer.

Love and Peace

Rain Rain Come Again...

Bheegi bheegi, jaadoo bhadi lamhon ki yeh raatein, dekho karne lagi hun mein boondon se baatien- Thakshak

love the rain

Peace

Shak

Experiments

the chai i didnt have...

miniature flowers...

i love this color :)

Oh, i have a Blog!

Just remembered that i had a blog! heh heh.. Thinking of posting more often.
So yeah, i feel like saying nothing much has happened knowing that a lot has happened. But that later.
So, there are the Dos and Donts which I had made up in my mind about a lot of things. And when the time comes to follow them I suck at it!! Some of the Dos and Donts I am finding hard to follow:
a) Do Call Your Friends- Sad to admit it but...
b) Do Lose Weight- This has been there in the list for a long time..
c) Do not roll your eyes while talking to the Uncle- Thats a reflex action and needs a lot of self control! Working on it..
d) Do some craft work- it did begin but it never seemed to end!!
e) Do save that extra buck- Well..
f) Do not leave the bulby plant in the open- I always want that plant to experience the rain but forget to get it in once its done which has led to the plant kind of wilting i think.. Excess of anything is bad.
g) Do not frown while thinking- This is also a reflex action and needs a lot of effort.
h) Do wake up at 7 AM- Hmmmm.. its not just not happening. The "bass paanch minute aur" turns into 30 minutes aur..
i) Do not think that you know everything- I always fall for this trap. I think I am too smart sometimes and well then I get into trouble... hee hee..
j) Do not sleep while talking on the phone- It leads to dreams where you think you are still talking.
k) Do cover the milk before putting it in the fridge.. leads to a lot of accidents otherwise.. Have you ever had milk wali dal?

I think thats it for now.. I mean the list might get longer so i want to stop. This is looking more like a New Year Resolution now.. hmmmmm...

Have been inspired by looking at people's photographs and now attempting to try something myself. Wise One once said "Don't try too hard". Again something to think about. Dont want to scare everyone with my random photographs.

Thats it for now.

Live Long and Prosper!

Dedicated to the "B" Gang

When I moved from Kolkata to Patiala I was excited about a new beginning and yet feared that this might be the end of the comfortable World I knew. I was leaving everything to go to a place which I didn’t even know existed till two years before I embarked on the journey. I had always wanted to run away. To go far away from Kolkata because I thought I would never be able to get out and see the world! Well… that is that...

It’s really interesting how the people you thought you would never ever hang out with at first turn out to be your best friends. Never had I imagined being friends with these bright, intelligent, adventurous, crazy, dramatic, rebellious, stubborn, opinionated, witty and beautiful women. All different from the other. Yes, we were not as close when we first met. Each had a very different opinion of the other or none at all. But as time went by all of us found each other. And soon College was our play ground and each a player of the same Team. Always standing up against injustice. Fighting for “The Cause” whatever that maybe as long as it is for our rights. College and hostel made us stronger. We never ever let anyone break us. My friends were my support then and are still today.
I miss each one of them. I miss the laughter and the always making sense of a lot of things of Ms. Pink. The smiling face and the lets get them attitude of Ms. Pretty and Petite was something no one could resist. Ms. Dramatic, I miss your brashness sometimes and definitely the craziness. I am sorry I missed your wedding. You could always make out Ms. Determined and the Looker from far. She had a lost look on her face and would be usually trying to get into the conversation none the less. A Pilot now- she has made us proud. Whenever I got scared or missed home I could always squeeze Ms. Sensitive yet Strong. I wish you were here to do my hisaab kitaab. Ms. Charming is The Fun Party Girl plus The You Can Lean On Me Anytime Friend. An awesome Cook and a Clean Freak, she is the closest one. Trying to maintain the balance between the rest of us.
I do wish we had more time to spend with each other. To each of the 6s I want to say I miss you.

Emotional June

Well, learnt a lesson or two.. first dont lie when you know you will get caught eventually and dont do what you dont expect others not to do. So yeah, over the past few weeks realized that there is no point in hiding things but keep the not hiding part with respect to yourself only.
Its been crazy, this month. Have been going through so many emotions all at the same time. Happiness, anxiety, frustration, anger, love... And the thing is that all these events were happening simulatenously. More or less the days would go like this. In the morning I would be sober and determined. By afternoon just a bit flustered. Evening would be frustrating with me spitting fire. By the time I reached home I would be back to being hyper in a good way, excited and super happy. Yes, now comes the part which completely made me crazy. In between the frustrating, angry moments there would be this one call or mail that would make me get up on my feet and say "Well, Bring it on" or make me feel like a princess. And then when I was feeling a bit happy or warm inside I would suddenly remember how things are'nt like what they seem to be and then that would get me back to being grumpy. Now, considering this I wouldnt blame people around to think that I am going nuts because within minutes I would be swinging from being extremely grumpy to smiling like the Cheshire Cat. I do pity people who were in contact with me at those times.
Looking forward to the next month now. But I have a feeling it's going to be more or less like this month. Cross my fingers now!

Connections

Since I was still clueless on what I should write next. I decided to read others blogs .. you know trying to get “inspired”.. that’s what the Big Guy would say. So, I did this... I went to a person’s blog then went to another blog of another person who was following that persons blog and so on. As it turned out.. I went through a whole lot of blogs mostly ones whose captions caught my eye like the one called “A cup of Chai”. What I found is stories merging into other stories. It is interesting actually how people connect. It may be that the person whose blog I started with may not even know the person whose blog I read at the end and yet there was this one thread running through, whether it be the love of chai, flowers, travelling, rain, faces, colours… there was this connection. I think I am coming up with a theory here which probably has been propounded by a gazillion people “Every person has at least one common interest with every person on the planet and if you feel you do not then it means you probably have not lived long enough.” There! I shall call this theory the “We Have Something in Common Theory”.

A start..

How do you start on your first post? I kept wondering this. n I wondered whether it is necessary to describe yourself when you start writing a blog. I mean do we have to mention that we are funny, weird, obsessive, short, tall, have a PhD, have a fascination for kittens, like to travel, live in NY, etc. etc. Do we have to begin with a story or a poem? Is it necessary to have a subject? Do you start with what you believe in or what you don’t believe in? Is it a personal diary or is it a public forum? What do you write in your first post? I still don’t know how to start... but then again I guess this is a start...