Hiatus!

Ok people... after living this day as if 2 whole days were somehow scrunched into one I'm off for a week! :)

I spend all of tomorrow travelling! ALL OF IT! I guess tats why twas a 2-in-1 sorta day! :D The Baba once said to me, 'It's like a whole day just gets wiped out of your life! It's one of the best ways to find your purpose in life!' Hmmm.... lets see where my travels take me!

I'm dead! :D

Ohk... This starts with something that she will be murdered for putting on this blog!! Shekhar aka Mommy aka the Traveller and yours truly were playing hide n seek with the phone all day... (He was busy then she was occupied and then again n then again...!) Finally at 12:15 in the night they got talkin... The conversation ranged from light hearted banter to serious emotional issues to even a spiritual journey of sorts with the words, 'Motee main tujhe chappal uthaa k maarunga!!!!' also interspersed in between! :D At a particular point in the conversation this hero, under the influence of Vodka goes on to actually say, 'Oh Sweetheart! Leave him and come to me!' (The him part is a story for another day! Right now it should suffice for her to say that she's happy and she's lucky! :)) And to that one statement the visual imagery that kicks into place is way beyond amazing... Before she launches onto that description you need to know that he weighs a very tweensy amount of 53 kgs and she happens to be a very happy and brimming 69kilos!!!!! N wen it comes to lookin at 'em she's double his size and manages to carry him around! (She will definitely get battered for this!) Ok coming back to the image, she visualized, 'Her having pushed 'him' away and running (totally earth shaking considering her size!) towards Shekhar! Shekhar is standing rite in the middle of this garden with the pinkest of flowers fluttering in the sweet breeze with his eyes closed and arms outstretched waiting for her... As she runs full force into his arms both of them crash to the ground and she slowly, yet completely lovingly (dripping with the emotion) looks at him, all starry eyed and has just this one word to say, 'Praannaath!!!!!!!" ' :D

Ok ok.. hold it! It's not over yet! As if that wasn't enough, (he's the guy she calls mommy for a plethora of reasons), Shekhar goes on to add, 'Praanaath, tum mere Mommy ho!'!!!!!!! Ok go ahead... get over the outburst! (~I'm still giggling away to glory though...!) N she plans to say it to him in front of his newly wed wife.. (whenever he decides to get married that is!) :P

So that was that!

She's been a li'l pensive lately... No particular thoughts... jus a rambling of sorts... Sometimes questions of where her life is going, sometimes thoughts of how she has changed... (now even mom has noticed the change and commented!), othertimes an idyllic imagination raging a storm and those rare moments when she's jus lookin faraway onto the horizon and her mind blanks out! She has been low... but riding on the shoulder of a giant sent to her by someone special and exploring the world with a new perspective that you get only when you are way up high has given her a new high! :) The giant thundered his happiness at seeing her smile and laugh with joy and is still there looking on to make sure! :)))) (Loads o thunder n lightning today... I have a happy giant!) :)

Just when you think, 'This is it!' something comes along your way and makes you go, 'Vo Baby!' :)

Quirky li'l me!

After successfully managing to evade tags by some weird twist of fate since the time I started blogging, the Dream Catcher has tagged me! (Typical k-serial ishtyle... ~mai samajh nahi pa rahi hoon ki hasoon ya roun... ye khushi k aansu hain! and loads o sound effects in the background!) :P

Well...

Step 1: I post the rules. So here are the Rules:

• Start with eight random facts/habits about yourself
• Post these eight quirks on your blog and also post these rules along with them
• At the end of the post.. type in the names of the lucky (eh?) eight who get tagged by you and take this chain forward!

Step 2: My quirks come in now:

1. I am sooooo..... jinxed! It's like my middle name should have been 'barbaadi' (bole to Disaster!) Anything and everything I lay my hands on has to malfunction once at least if not get permanently destroyed. I have been known to blast a laptop to bits by merely switching on the power to it... More jinxed-pana can be found here and here. I have no idea how I manage it!!
   
2. Coffee... there's a coffee mug I have that reads, 'Love is like coffee.. purrfect any time of the day!' Call me an addict of sorts! Have been trying very hard to stay off it for the past few days.... (Gosh it's tuff!) and another sin that I commit is Chocolate! Now who can resist this amazingly delicious dark chocolate truffle called 'Devils Food'??? (can you? can you?) and then there's this other devastating concoction of Truffle with chocolate mousse called 'Death by Chocolate!' (Gosh! I just died n found my heaven!) :D
3. I have this insane habit of literally staring at a persons hand and and feet the first time I meet them! I have caught myself so many times it's beyond embarrassing now! N its no ordinary stare.. its a very concentrated, open mouthed stare... especially when my attention shifts from the hands and feet to the nose!! Call me eccentric in the weirdest of ways, but you know people with all 3 of these as nice are really sorta nice!! (try it! but don't stare like that!!!!) :D
4. When I'm alone I put on the craziest of bollywood numbers and dance my heart out to them! (yup! I do do that!... Ok now you all stop staring!)
5. I'm an sms freak!!! (Lucky me my sms's are free!!) A very dear buddy has gone on to call me 'the official sms spammer!' I', seriously bugging if I lay my hands on your number!! :D Beware!!
6. I have to match earrings to any outfit that I wear! Its crazy... but if I don't have earrings with something i'll probably not wear it till i go n buy me some!!! That's the girliest thing about me! They have to have to match!!! My 'hathoda haath' (as most of my batch mates describe the maar that they've khaaoed from me) totally defies the previously mentioned girliness but it's there nonetheless! :P
7. Confession: I can feel auras! Yup.. sit beside me n i'll tell you exactly what colors your aura is at that given moment! (That's a gift n I cherish it!) :)
8. I AM SHIT SCARED OF THOSE CREEPIEST OF REPTILES CALLED 'LIZARDS'!!! (someone told me they are the successors of dinosaurs... whyyyy???!!!! dino's were so much better!!!)
   

That's that! and it's been a revelation of sorts!! Dare you use any of this against me!!!!!!

Step 3: Aha! This I like! Eight people I hafta tag:

1. The first just has to be the firangi! AJ you've been tagged!
2. Next up: The traveller - Shekhar! (kill me for it.. but you I had to tag!)
3. Shraddha :)
   
4. Rajeev! (like you said... everyone luvs to tag you!) :D
5. Raka :)
6. Passionate
7. Stardom (found a way of renewing contact with you!) :D
8. Bhavin (Protege of life!)
   

:D C'mon now! out with your li'l quirks!!!

voices.....

And a desire is but a lesser dream... or so her heart tells her..

But wishes make each day more meaningful... thats what someone said to her..

She disagrees... life isn't as hollow as a couple of wishes blown together in a bubble waiting to burst any given moment...
Life she thinks is a myriad mix of various emotions... the emotions swell up an take form as the hormones and the DNA... (and she shakes her head in disgust at the science of it all!) But somewhere deep inside her she smiles... a slow smile... at least she knows its got a basis!

DNA... is a whole different ballgame altogether... It's a borrowed concept... The Baba introduced her to it... He said imagine DNA... it's two geometrical twists... connected together in between...

Now consider both ends as the two extremes... good-evil; black-white; pure-impure; yes-no... as it twirls... the ends don't all come on top of each other, they are not aligned... good, white, pure are not in the same line... not in the same space... they may be diagonal to each other sometimes and sometimes may just be opposite... 'what is good is not always pure....!' It explained a lot of things to me! It cleared up the question of, 'Why life is the way it is?!'

Talking of emotions.... hate, love, care, trust... even adore... are all emotions made up by the human mind that the human heart supposedly feels! Dam the heart... its a convoluted mix of arteries and veins which is zonked about it's own functions reversing the names of its most important components! (scary biology!!!) :D

It's the heart we turn to... people have oft been quoted saying, 'dil ki baat sun ni chahiye!' (listen to your heart!) and then many others have said, 'dimaag se kaam lo!' (use your brains!) How do u figure out the difference?? Do they speak in ur ear like, 'Hi! I'm the head - Do this!' and then the heart comes in, introduces itself and goes on to exert its influence on ur life! (i actually got stuck here lolling between where is the influence exerted?? head or life?!)

To me... you just listen to the voice of your conscience! Wow!! a whole new voice now! And where does that come from and what pressure does it exert on which part of you and how and all the other etceteras! Gosh!!! I know... the Baba had once described my question asking habit as this, 'Ek savaal.... recover ho hi raha hota hai ki thodi der me a question shaped crane comes, lift you and swings you over again! and again! and again!' :P

Well... I guess you just listen the voice that's loudest inside you! (don't ask where... i dunno!) :) heart, head, conscience, spirit, soul, devil angel, conscience, gut, intuition... take your pick! But follow it through! It is after all... your own voice!

Another beautiful day, another reason to celebrate!

A typical twilight 'neath the magnolia!

Pouring rain...! (The rain always does something to her... she can stand there and look at for hours or jus quietly wander into it and splish-splash all over! Her li'l head gets clear... her thoughts run a smoother track... I guess she kind of gets renewed!)

Once it stopped the weather was right out of a dream... cool breeze, the smell of the first rain in the air.. (bheeni bheeni khusboo!) and everything just looked so fresh n new! Her wanderlust took her to the 'Bhopal Haat!' - a place where villagers n tribals put up stuff they've made for sale... Mum's with her and their first stop was a bird seed stall where they'd created beautiful wall hangings out of wheat grains for birds to come and slowly peck it away!! They stopped next at the 'amla' stall... that's their latest fetish! Both of 'em carry it in their handbags all the time so stock had to be replenished!! A handworked handbag and a 'well shaped diya' later they were chit chatting at the tea stall enjoying garma garam adrak ki chai and bhajiye while listening to a local artist belt out bollywood songs to the notes of a guitar and a drum!

That ladies and gentlemen was the Magnolia part! She saw stars when her wrath turned upon herself and she fell from the stairs at home in the process scalding herself with a steaming cup of coffee she was gleefully carrying upstairs with her! :P Her jinxed-pana has off late turned to herself.. She had a minor accident a few days ago as well and the bruises are still pretty damn purple!!! :D

Baaki sab badhiya! (At least the gadgets are behaving themselves! By the way... that's another advantage of being 'Motee'! All the dunlop prevents broken bones from happening inspite of falling down a flight of 'Sweet 16' Steps! :D)

The constants and then some...

As the first rain of the season poured down on the yellow and red brick wall all she could do was look on in mesmerized silence.... her feet exploring the wet green bunches of grass on a muddy lawn and her heart staring on at the sky... wandering at the mysteries it holds and how many shall unfold!

She'd been wondering recently of the constants in her life! The starkest of them all stand out as the 'press wale uncle!' or the laundryman! Day in and day out.. he comes and takes the clothes and leaves them back! Taking it to another level... her biggest constant has been the smile in her heart! Yes it wanes sometimes... it takes different forms.. but its always there! Dad had looked on to her proudly one day and said, 'She finds her joy in small things! A crsytal champagne flute filled with coke is one her biggest joys!' :) She can't forget the expression on his face as he said that... it's like stuck in her heart!

Her joys and her sadnesses are the tiniest of things... The big things matter.. yes they do! But they've been made possible by the small ones right?! If I go on to describe them then there's just that song from the 'sound of music' that comes to mind...

' Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

Cream colored ponies and crisp apple streudels
Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles
Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things

When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad'

:) And that's the way it is with me! And then again, 'Happiness is the art of making a bouquet of the flowers within reach!'

Someone once said to me that 'Happiness is an illusion!' My reply to that has always been, 'You are as happy or as sad as you want to be! You just have to look a lil more to find your joy!' :)

Enjoy the monsoons people! (The song on her ipod right now.. 'Jeene ke ishaare mil gaye... Bichhde the kinaare mil gaye!') :)

Lucid Hues!

She's been in a spin since the she's come back!! The exhibition she's been talking about finally came to fruition! They called it Lucid Hues..!

The poster speaks for itself! The work that ensued was crazy enough! As the days progressed she proved to herself that her degree in Marketing management has definitely not been a waste! (to think she actually learned stuff!) Finding the right location.. bargaining on its price... setting it up... hard sales pitches.. design explanations... minute details being brought out like they were the best deals around... toil and hard work! We did everything on our own.. designing.. ironing.. packing.. making the bags for final parcel.. cutting and printing labels.. going and putting up posters.. being refused to put em up in so many places..cleaning the place every morning... the sales.. thinking of the minuscule things... flowers.. a suggestion diary... even repairing the electric board wen it decided to spark and burn out!!! An effort of 5 generations!

• Jahnvi - Dr Divya's (the designer) 5 year old daughter
• Me - Dr Gulati's (the second designer) 23 year old daughter
• Dr Divya - close to 35 years old
• Mum
• And Dr Divya's Ma in law as well!

Out from 9 in the morning to 1030 in the night! Almost standing through it all.. a lil respite in afternoon hours when the flow of customers would be reduced! The minute a customer would walk in she would start off explaining the details of the suit on auto pilot and not end till she convinced them to buy! To how many people she said, 'this colour will look so lovely on you!' (whether she likes it or not!) is not funny! Evening 6 to 9 used to sheer and complete rush hour... bolna shuru hui to bas bolti chali gayi! At the end of the day even she would feel, 'gosh mai kitna bolti hoon!'!! :D

She would come home.. mom would be ready with the food! (The bhooki sherni would be dying of hunger!!) and the only thought in her head would be 'toot pado!' :D A warm bath and a foot massage later she would switch on her ipod to the tunes of the guitar played by Baba and doze off like a baby! (n she'll get kicked for using those guitar tunes as a lullaby.. but seriously the tunes are soooo amazing and they relax her soul instantly!) Mom says she slept so sweetly after being sooooooo exhausted ki uthaane ka mann hi nahi karta tha!

(setting it up!)

(A view of the store!!)

(Our prize was this basket full of notes each appreciating the collection and asking for a permanent boutique soon!!)

Madness over.. they broke even on day 1 and the total profits raked in in the 3 day exhibition have been 25k! So all in all... a great effort! All of them gave each other a pat on the back after packin it all up! Keys of the store handed over to the rightful owner after she pettily decided to weasel out 30 bucks for the electricity that they consumed!! Imagine that! (yes 30 and not 300!)

But truly.. it was an amazing learning experience!

We bonded! We worked harder than we ever could and the chatter through it all.. our frustrations.. our hugs.. our nightmares of 'kuch nahi bika to?' and the pricing exercise... itna nahi itna! nahi it won't sell... arrey it will! sleepless nights... and hard worked days! The night before the exhibition... all of us combined caught about 2 hours of sleep! :D

We rocked!!! And as the eldest of us all said.. 'These 3 days will never go waste! We will all draw upon them at some time in our lives and learn from them even as our days go by!' Wisdom!!

That was Mother's day here! Gave the 3 mommy's flowers! Also called up Shekhar Mommy and Yogi Mumma! :D (These two will eat me alive for this!!) And sent flowers to a very glowing Mommy-to-be!!!

PS: The camera's still playing havoc with the dates!! I have no idea how to set it right! It's a Kodak easyshare! Anyone any clue??

Mumbai... and well.. me!

Yup.. I've been out! First Baroda for a few days then Mumbai for another 10! :) And as always.. that city does somethin to me on the insides! In it's crazy chaos I find my peace... it never fails!

And as the day sets in and turns to dusk... and the city lights come on... she sits down and looks on outside... wondering at the wanderlust! (her view is that from the top floor of a 32 storey building... The Worli sealink project... a lot of Bandra and a whole of Mumbai are under her purview!)

Her ears strain to hear the Azaan... sounds of metal beating at a construction site also find their way to her... an iarplane far away in the distance.. a solitary bird encircling the span of sky it calls its own...and down below.. human turmoil.. a story in each heart.. maybe a song... faraway wishful dreams.. a tired souls trudge back home.. but the faith of another day.. another way...

Not so faraway at the horizon the waves break against the beginnings of a concrete jungle.. the first look grabs a glimpse of a hap hazard city trying to reveal order... another long look and she realizes what peace there lies in the silent calm of the never ending chaos!

And a voice inisde her quietens down to a soft, slow hum as she sets out bag and ipod in tow to explore the city on her own! She's out alone on the streets of Mumbai for the first time.. she doesn't know where she found the courage... (she's really glad she did though!) And she's very proud of the fact that she can now do Mumbai locals on her own! all by herself!! :)

Her exploration revealed a lot to her! It increased her faith and made her believe some more.. It made her independent and she's been glowing on the insides! A lot of people.. (people who are very important in her life) have happened to notice a certain change about her... She's been lucky to meet quite a few of them on this trip as they live in and around Mumbai... :) One of them even went on to say, 'There's a different kind of charm about you! It's warm, it's like you've truly found happiness and it's so amazing to see this new woman! It's a whole new bundle of energy and warmth and joy!' She jus hugged him!

And she is slowly reminded of Shekhar's words a month or so ago where he said, 'sweetheart... take care! :) Can you hear the gentle winds of change?'

It's been a discovery and a bonding of sorts.. she's glad she was there... she knows these 10 days won't come back to her.. but she also knows that they'll stay in her heart for a very long time to come... some of her most special moments happened to her while she was there and right now there's joy in her heart and a spring in her step 'coz she believes! It's one of those moments when the colt while turning into a stallion saw the reflection of a unicorn! :)