What Do I Write?

THIS IS MY STORY
ONCE THERE WAS AN OCTOPUS CALLED OSWALD.
HE WAS WITH HIS PET DOG GROW.
HE WANTED TO GO TO THE ICE-CREAM SHOP AND GET SOME ICE-CREAM FROM JOHNNY.
HE GOT A SWIZZLE BERRY SWIRL FOR HIMSELF, AND WEANNIE HAD A BANANA DOG BISCUIT.
THAT'S THE END OF THE STORY.

And, forgot to mention that I am back in Chennai too.
Been back for about 6 months now. Mumbai stint turned out to be very short for various reasons.

Mumbai was a wonderful place. Lived in an apartment complex for the first time in my life. (I've lived in a hostel, but other than that our folks always lived in independent houses). It was a great experience. I don't know if this is unique to Mumbai, but the apartment in Mumbai was more like a well knit extended family. With the usual prejudices, biases, teaming ups etc thrown in.

The only disadvantage was that you really couldn't do much withought your neighbours knowing it. You buy a new TV/Sofa set - your neighbour comes in to admire it immediately. You are out for a whole day unexpectedly - your neighbour knocks the door in the evening, and asks if you had a wonderful day. Well, to tell the truth, you also get to know all thet your neighbour does, so you really shouldn't complain. I guess it's just that in the small confines of an apartment complex, you cannot help but see what the others are doing.

In the short time I spent there, I made many valuable friends. Got to know who got along with whom. I didn't really have time to make any 'people to avoid' list. But I did start making my 'people to be wary of' list.

The amazing thing is how friendly, helpful and generous people there are. Here, if your child falls and hurts himself in front of the gate, noone will even ring the bell to let you know. There if the school bus has reached the apartment corner and you are not there to receive him, your neighbour drops him at your doorstep.

Being on leave from work was not very difficult there. I was still interacting with a lot of people, meeting my friends everyday. Now that I am back in Chennai, I feel confined within the four walls of the house.

Am back to this blog after a long time. In the meantime, I'd like to let you know about another blog I've started - A daily blog with solutions(the ones I get) for the Hindu Crossword.
I've been posting this for about two weeks.
I am able to post the blog by 2:30-3:00 PM everyday.
Am working on how I can find time to post in the morning itself. Maybe once my son starts school, I'll be able to post in the mornings, around 11:00 AM
Still trying to improve the blog - reader suggestions welcomed.

Do check it out if you are a Hindu Crossword enthusiast.

http://dailyxwd.blogspot.com/

Labels: Announcement

The last Onam I properly celebrated was in 2001. (That statement makes me feel like an octagenarian reminiscing on the past)
I was staying with two of my friends in JP Nagar at that time. Our house, and three guys' houses planned to celebrate Onam together.
Onam was all about the big Sadya that year. One house decided to host the Sadya. Their job was only to make rice, buy banana leaf, and clean up the space so that we can sit down for a banana leaf lunch.
I remember that I made Avial. I don't remember what other dish we made in our house. Maybe rasam?
Surji's mom made payasam.
I can't say that the food was unforgettable, but the lunch definitely was. I don't think I'll ever have so much fun for Onam again.
Like I was telling my friend today morning - I've learnt to make much better Avial and Olan since then.
Happy Onam everyone!

I'm moving base from Chennai to Mumbai. Hubby's getting transferred, and I'm following, as any dutiful wife should.

I've been scavenging at my mother's and father's ancestral homes for the new house. What they've thrown away as junk, I consider "Antique". I've been scavenging in the "Arai" (Literally room, but more like a dungeon - neither light nor air penetrates there easily) when I visited both ancestral homes last weekend.

Picked up quite a few things - An Uruli, an Eeya Chombu, A piece of wood which was once part of an Arai's wall, and was later framed as a wall hanging by one of my aesthetic aunts, a Kallan Bharani, a Para and an Idangazhi, a Chest of Drawers, a Letter Holder in wood, and many other stuff.

Dunno where I'm going to keep all these in my small Mumbai house, but I've asked my dad to engage Packers and Movers, and send all these to Mumbai soon.

This is an open invite for all my friends visiting Mumbai - do drop in and say a few oohs and aahs to make all the pains my dad will be taking to transport these worthwhile.

It's gloomy time.
Am going on long leave from the organization i was working with for almost 6 years.
Having mixed feelings - looking forward to being at home doing whatever I put down here, but at the same time, definitely going to miss the daily routine.

This is what resulted when I tried to take up the prompt posted by Kumari here.
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I am a bit of a curious cat… Well, not just a bit…. Ok, I admit, I am a curious cat!

I stay in an apartment block. I moved in last month. And my favorite hobby is looking out through the peephole of my front door. I share the stairwell landing with another flat. So much of the time I end up watching my neighbor across the landing.

I have not met my neighbor socially. He seems to be in his late twenties, and lives alone. He is an average looking person whom you’ll never remember if you’d seen him in a crowd. There is nothing remarkable about him. But I find his un-remarkableness intriguing.

Also he stays at home during the day, and doesn’t seem to do any work either. He collects the news paper and milk around 10:00 AM, when he comes out looking still sleepy. I have seen the maid letting herself in with a key in the morning – he probably doesn’t even get up till 10:00. The cook comes in around 11:00. I wonder – does he do nothing but read paper, sleep and eat?

I despise lazy young men. He seems to do nothing, and lives in the lap of luxury. No discipline in life – sleeping odd hours, and getting up whenever he wants? Back in the village, people get up early, and by sun-up, they are bathed and ready to face the day. They are industrious, and spend a busy day - the farmers toiling in the fields, and the new generation going to office.

The chime “Please closes the door. Dayavu saithu kadavai moodavum” of the lift sends me rushing to the peephole. It is visitors for my neighbor again. A young couple. Since it is almost tea-time, it looks like they’ve dropped in for a cuppa and a chat. I can hear faint music and laughter when I listen through my keyhole.

Seeing the time, I go into the kitchen and get the percolator running. I need to start preparing dinner. I think it’ll be chapattis today. I check the vegetable basket and start selecting the vegetables for the day’s subzi.

The lift chimed again, and this time when I peep through the door, it is my son coming back from work. I open the door and welcome him with a happy smile. Moving to the city from the village and living with my son had been a tough decision to make – but I do not regret it. I do miss my friends in the village, but keeping home for my son has given me immense satisfaction these days.

I can see love brimming from his eyes too. He loves have me around, and is happy that he can keep an eye on me, now that I am here. He used to fret so much when I was alone in the village!

He starts gossiping about what happened at work, while washing his hands, and freshening himself. I keep smiling and nodding while preparing his coffee. But there is one question that keeps nagging me, and I just have to ask him. While he sips his coffee I ask:
“This boy who lives in the opposite flat – doesn’t he have any parents or relatives? Why does he while away his time doing nothing? Doesn’t the apartment protest that he is lazing all the time?”

My sun burst out laughing!!! “Amma, who says he doesn’t work? Haven’t you seen him go out in the evening?”

“But… he goes out in the evening only… And that too regularly… I keep wondering what he’s upto – dressing in jeans, and fancy shirts, going out every evening. I have heard about the parties and nightclubs in cities – does he go everyday??? Where does he get the money for all this? And he looks such a straightforward guy too, not-at-all the bad type.”

“Ammaa… Amma..” My son interrupts. “He works in a BPO Amma. His work is at night when the other side of the world like USA is awake. He works in a late shift, and takes calls from people in America and answers their questions”

“Why should they call him and ask questions?”

“They don’t call him. They call a helpdesk, and any one of the people like him, assigned to the job will pick up the phone and answer their queries”

“But questions? What kind of questions?”

By then the lift chimes again. I am curious to see who is coming this time. As I rush towards the door, my son gives me a peck on top of my head and turns the TV on.

No one saw her son rolling his eyes towards heaven and thanking God for the chimes of the lift.

Apple Kids (International Play School) had a small social function for Children's Day - An evening of fun for the parents and the children, with the MD of Apple Kids as the chief guest for the evening.

They had organized a fancy dress for the kids. Vaibhav was a Chinaman. We had the full accessories - cap with a pigtail attached, small stick on moustaches, and a cure little beard. But our man was very clear what he wanted. He wanted to wear the cap (with the pigtail), but "Vaibhukku thaadi vaaenda... meesa vaaenda...” He was very polite, but firm in his refusal.

Also, our practice session had included him walking in with his hands clasped in such a way that it looks all sleeve, no palms. And his dialogue included bowing, and saying India China Bhai Bhai. But by the time his turn came, yours truly had to coax him on the stage, and do the walking and bowing, while he was making faces, and trying to run away. But the mike caught his attention, and he at least gave out his dialogue- not once but thrice :D

We all had a great time watching the gypsy girl who kept on asking 'Kuri Sollava', and Bob the builder showing his engineering prowess on stage. There were butterflies, bunnies, spidermen and even spacemen. There was even a China girl (Aditi), complete with slanting eyebrows and pink cheeks and lips. Vaibhav and Aditi made a really cute pair.

But when the felicitations came along we were in for a pleasant surprise. No points for guessing who was given the title of Apple Kids King. Bingo! His majesty Vaibhav!

He made faces at the MD who tried to place the 'Gold' medal around his neck. What a well behaved child I have!

One of his friends, Samyukta was given the Apple Kids Queen title.

We were pretty sure that the title had more to do with the ISO episode than with the fancy dress, seeing how he behaved that whole evening. But in spite of being convinced that he got a well deserved title, we were a tad disappointed because the communication on the "Why" for the title was not very clear.

It was indeed a surprise to us, and I am sure a disappointment to all other parents when his name was announced, soon after a Fancy Dress 'Competition'. The kids who got the titles were not the ones who actually did best in the Fancy Dress. If I were one of the other parents, I'd have felt cheated for having called it a Fancy Dress Competition.

At home, now, as ever, His Majesty rules....

She sat staring at the screen for a long time. She was supposed to write a short story in less than 55 words. After about 25 minutes, she started typing. She got a smart idea... :P

If APPLE KIDS (it is a play school) gets ISO certified this year, they have a smart young fellow called Vaibhav to thank for it.

According the reports by Mallika ma'am, who is staff at Apple Kids, this smart young man was very enthusiastic and proactive in aswering all the questions put by the ISO inspectors to the kids.

She says:
"Vaibhav was the centre of attraction that day. He was very quick in answering any questions put to him, and even answered a few questions which we had not covered in school. He identified all shapes and colors even before the auditors finished asking the questions."

"All of us at Apple Kids admire his exuberance and energy. He is a kid anyone would wish to be theirs"

Our informant who is a close acquaintance of the little hero says :

"I wouldn't be surprised if I were told that Vibhav asked himself a few questions, and answered them too, even before the auditors could think of them."

We will return with an interview of this Hero soon.

Been long since I came here.

Updates:

Last week we had BCM celebrations at work. We had Ethnic Day on 24-th, and I spent the whole day dressed as an Iyer Maami. Was decked in Madisaaru and Temple Jewellery. Even had a Thiruku Poo in my Kondai.

We also had workplace decoration contest for which our wing got Second Place. Thanks to connectivity with US being down most of the day, 80% of the folks were on the aisles putting up streamers and baloons. Credit to my lungpower: I blew up around 100 of the 150 odd baloons we put up.

Janmashtami was on 26-th. Amma made lot of savouries - murukku, thattai, cheedai, athirasam... Vaibhav was a proper nuicance, and finally she had to put him to sleep before continuing with her work. I could not contribute, as the whole week was hectic and I was going home late everyday :(

Am taking a certification exam in October. So what with study grp meetings at work, and self preparation at home and during the bus journey, I hardly get to read any books now :( Am reading "The Secret Garden" by Francis Hodgson Burnett currently. It's a childrens book. Did I tell u I love childrens' books?

Vibes, be prepared to fight with me for who'll read the Amar Chitra Kathas, Fairy Tales and Enid Blytons from the library first.

Where would you reach if Vaibhav took you to Uski - Bastan?

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Ans : Uzbekistan :)

These are some of the things I think I'll do if and when I stop doing a regular job.... Dunno how many I'll get down to doing...

• Take a leisurely walk by myself around the place, explore the area (will work only if it is an inhabited area, safe to take walks in)
• Is there a public park? Make it a point to visit it.
• Is there a childrens' park? Make it a point to visit it.
• Is there an association in the apartment? Join it ;)
• Read as many books as I can get hold of... That's how I have found some rare gems, which are otherwise not very well known.
• Try to learn baking. Try out a new recipe every week at least. Search the net for interesting reipes.
• Try out a new dish everyday. Again take inspiration from the net.
• Try my hand at knitting/crochet/tatting. all r pretty tough to learn on your own, and u'll be lost for hours trying to untangle the tangled yarn/wool :D
• Play patience, play scrabble, play carroms.
• Watch as little tv as possible. Make it my aim in life to be independent of a tv.

May have more items to add to the list, but these are the things that come to the top of my mind.

Vibes is my son. Vaibhav.

He is all of 2 years 3 months old now.

People tell me he is a very sweet and obedient child. Little do they know the tantrums he throws at home!

It is his granny who gets to handle most of his tantrums. I get the reports when I get home from work.

The other day he wanted to wear his granny's spectacles and walk around! He was holding on to her saree pallu, and not letting go...

"Paatii.... kannaadi.... pease!!!!!"

No go. Paati ignores him.

Rolling on the ground.. "Kannaadii..... kannaadii.... peeease..........."

Finally he had to be made to forget the kannaadi with offers of chocolate (Big thank u to my best friend who got him a big stock of chocolates from Germany)

He started going to Play school last month. His school is called Apple Kids.

Everyday I ask him:
"School-ls enna panninai?" (What did you do in school)

"Ayuthen naan" (Cried, I did) is his proud answer. Looks like he thinks it is a proud achievement to cry in school every day.

"Teacher Akka enna sonnaa?" (What did Teacher say)

"Shh... Vaibhav, don't cry"

"Appara enna sonna?" (What else did she say)

"Raghupati.. " (Claps and sings Ragupati Raghav Raja Ram..)

After starting school, it is a delicate process to get him ready to go out. Every time we dress him in good clothes he stars saying "Apple kids no...." He wants his grandma to lock up his school bag inside the cupboard, and his grandma and I should be carrying our handbags (that's a sure sign that we aregoing out). ALso, on reaching the main road, he'll say "Left... Left..." as Right turn takes us in the direction of his school.

Yesterday he was all ready to go to school, but the school van didn't turn up. My aunt had come to visit us, and offered to drop him in her car. He gladly got into the car, turned to paati and said "paati, dum dum kalyaanam polaamaa?" (shall we got for the wedding?) 'coz on monday he skipped school and went for a wedding with his Paati, and thought he's going to be able to playing truant again.

His latest hobby is helping Paati. Most days when i reach home in the evening, he'll be pottering around and say "Paati help pannaren". One day I went home and could not find him in the living room or in the bed room. I checked in the kitchen, and he was trying to fill the water bottle from the water can. He had not spilt a drop, and was trying desparately to close the tap before water overflows(he still doesn't know how to). He gave me a guilty look and said "Amma thanni off pannu". My angel, I didn't know whether to hug you or scold you!

I am not your conventional blogger... I am one with a permanent writers block! Kumari! I'll kill u for making me put in all this effort....

I loved reading her blog on books... It was a little long, but was interesting till the end, where she threw the bombshell at me.... She passed on the tag to me...

Not that I don't want to talk about books... Just that I am still not comfortable writing...

Coming to books - I've been in love with books even before I started reading. My parents used to get be those lovely Russian story books with lots of pictures and the story written in huge font for easy reading. I did have a lot of Rupa classics and other Indian publications also, but my earliest memories are of the Russian books.

From picture stories and comics (Marvel Comics, Amar Chitra Katha) I graduated to the 'big books' when I was around 7-8 years old (I think - not very sure). The first book I read was Secret Seven Bonfire - Enid Blyton. Amma asked me to borrow books for the train journey during Summer Vacation from my neighbor Sudha Akka. She gave me 2 Secret Seven books. I forgot the title of the second book. I also remember someone gifting me a copy of The Five Find Outers and a Dog (Enid Blyton). But unfortunately I lost it somewhere.

My parents used to get me a set of books every year when the Book Exhibition came to Kanakakkunnu Grounds at Trivandrum. That was the best part of the year. Black Beauty, Heidi, Ukranian Folk Tales, The Big Book of Fairy Tales... I must mention that I forgot my hard bound copy of Black Beauty in the train (while going to Delhi, I think) and was miserable about it for a very long time. I also had 3 big fat books (Light green, Dark green and Orange) which had a huge collection of stories, excerpts from stories, and small poems. This is where I first heard about Dr Doolittle and the Pushmi-Pullyu, Heidi (I read the Chapter At Granddad's House first in this book, and then wanted to read the whole book), Stuart Little and some other characters from these books. I was re-reading them when I was in Trivandrum during my Maternity leave, waiting for Vaibhav to come out into this world.

I remember reading Great Expectations and Pickwick Papers (The original unabridged) when I was in 7-th or 8-th class. I expect it was too much for me at that time, because when I re-read Pickwick Papers a few years back, I couldn't remember the story at all. But when I went through Great Expectation again for my Plus 2 English, I really lived Pip's life for a while, cried with him, and hated Emma. Other favorites from Dickens are Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Nicholas Nickleby (Read only the abridged ones till now)

I also remember reading a lot of classics in abridged form - we used to get those 4 inches X 4 inches X 1 inch books, with pictures on 1/4 of the pages. That's how I first read Jules Verne, Robinson Crusoe, Alexandar Dumas, R L Stevenson and a host of other authors(or rather their stories). My cousin Visakh had a huge collection of these abridged books, and I must have read them more number of times than he has.

I cannot forget the time I was in Mavelikkara at my granny's place, and she introduced me to the new neighbors (I don't remember the names :( ) Uncle had a huge collection of books and I was allowed to borrow anything from him to read. I read a book called The Far Country about someone who goes to Australia (when it was still a very young country). That was a beautiful book.

While talking about books, I have to mention my great love - Wodehouse. I think the first one I read was 'Pelican at Blandings'. I simply loved the style, and would be found laughing very frequently thinking about the book. I also remember reading Laughing Gas around the time I discovered Wodehouse. One of my great aims in life is to read every Wodehouse book I can possibly lay my hands on.

Taking a quick fast forward from school and summer holidays, I went thru a season of Thomas Hardy, Oliver Goldsmith, Charles Dickens et al on one side, and Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, The 3 Investigators and other mystery stories during high school and Plus 2 years. But the frequency of reading dwindled a lot during Plus 2, and the early Engineering years. My sources were limited during those years, and I had to read what I got and not what I want.

One major tragedy in my life happened around then. My uncle is a voracious reader and had a huge collection of books, and I was hoping to flick many of those once I got out of college and settled down. He had some problems lugging around his collection during every transfer, and decided to dispose off the books. My dad (traitor!) encouraged him to sell them to a library without my knowledge! :(

Now I am a member of Easwari Lending Library in Chennai, and a regular visitor there. I read a lot of books - some I want to read, some because I don't want to search, so pick up the books on top. I go so frequently, and read so many books now, that I lose track, and take the same book again sometimes(not that I really mind - some of the books can be read again and again, but I do mind paying full charge for second reading). I have exhausted their collection of Wodehouse, but I still keep checking once in a while if they have got new titles. I spend at least 45 minutes a day reading (on the return journey from work).

Books I am reading currently:

The Northern Light - A J Cronin (Am working thru the collection of Cronin at Easwari)
Restaurant At The End Of The World - Am reading the Hitchhikers series also - been wanting to re-read for a very long time. Read them first around 3 years back.
Wodehouse on Wodehouse - It is some sort of autobiography.
The Small Bachelor - Wodehouse - new addition at Easwari

Books I want to read someday:

Gone with the Wind
Black Shirt - this is a series about a gentleman cat-thief. Read one book when I was in school. Always wanted to read the others in the series. Found the name in the library database, but no one has been able to locate the books yet :D

Books that I cannot forget:

One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
Haroun and the Sea of Stories - Salman Rushdie
The Mayor of Casterbridge - Thomas Hardy
Sybil - Flora Rheta Schreiber (It is about a woman with multiple personality disorder)
Ponniyin Selvan - Kalki (read the translation in English - would like to read some of his other works too)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
Catch - 22 - Joseph Heller
Huckleberry Finn (And Tom Sawyer) - Mark Twain
Peony - Pearl S Buck
Masters of the Himalayas (or the Himalayan Masters) - It was a spiritual book my mother was reading. I started flicking through it, and could not put it down!
The Citadel – A J Cronin

Some of my current favorite authors (means I’ll look for these in the library first):

PG Wodehouse
Henry Cecil - Courthouse humor - really good.
A J Cronin
Salman Rushdie
Agatha Christie
Enid Blyton

PS: Passing on the tag - I really don't know many bloggers to pass on the tag to. So the tag ends here for now.

Dear friends....

I didn't get around to sending you my blog link...
Inferiority complex?
Got a sudden attack of panic... I don't write too well... and what is the point in circulating a blog link, with hardly any frequent posts??

But i have the optimism...

The day shall come when I'll have the inspiration... To write something the reader will read fully :)

Till that day, I'll have to rely on my friends to do me the favour of reading my blogs :)

Maybe this was destined...

Many of my friends seem to have got their own blogspots of late...

The least Ican do is have my own blogger id, and post comments for them.

Let me begin by wishing all of u a Very happy New Year.

And if not my own posts, you can at least expect some comments from me on your blogs :)

And who knows? I might find some yet undiscovered depths in me, only time will show.