The Lovely Periwinkle

           Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication, as they say.

Home-made Happiness

Sometimes when I come home from the workplace, mentally exhausted, I want nothing more than to turn the music on and start cooking something from the scratch. 

It becomes a part of the unwinding process rather than yet another thing on the 'to do' list. 

Cooking is no doubt a super stress buster. 

Kneading out frustration and anxiety becomes very easy.

If all goes well, it is a reward in itself. You may slip into this mild trance of variety of colourful ingredients and when you wake up, viola! Raspberry cheesecake!

There are days when nothing turns out right.

The vegetable preparation burns in the pan.

The soup tastes flat and the most needed ingredient is not available.

But still. Being in the kitchen feels right. 

That moment of anticipation when we are not sure if a new dish is going to be edible feels right. 

It is a chance to be creative, try new things, make a mess and often get something delicious to eat. 

There is something comforting about chopping, rolling and turning. 

In a world so busy and fast, it is simple things that keep us grounded, reminding us to stop and savour life.

So keep calm and cook on!

Wondering...

 

 Sometimes it so happens that a tear trickles down your face when you listen to a melody or read something. Without any similarity in the situations you feel like being a part of the story, a part of the theme. It is a sudden realization that you have had happy moments and lost so many of them. You just feel thankful for this life but still yearn for the dear ones lost. You don't know if they are the tears of joy or it is sadness oozing out.You just keep wondering.

Because Writing Makes Me Feel Better!

  I should probably be studying right now. With exams almost 2 weeks ahead, I should be certainly studying right now. But I just can’t! The atmosphere around is so peaceful that I just can’t!

  

  There is a party in my neighbourhood and as devoted fans as they are, they play all Honey Singh songs as loudly as they can. Plus, the two Navratri mandals in the vicinity have a competition it seems. No! Wait! Don’t get it wrong! Not garba/dandiya competitions! Worse than that! Whose sound system can deliver higher decibels, for one, and who plays the most irritating and *not so suitable for the festival* songs for two!

  

  So I am here with all my draconian books trying to read. My brain (whatever miniscule part that is still alive), trying to wade through the combo tunes of Koligeet + Bhaktigeet (that too the one that is being sung on the tunes of a bollywood dud)+ "Honey"geet.          

   Goodness! Save me! Save me Durga Maa! Save me Lord Ram! Save me!!

  

  I am intently waiting for Dussehra. I so am! Not just to celebrate the day as a mark of victory of Lord Ram over Ravan and Goddess Durga over Mahishasur but as a day of freedom from this sound violence!

 

 

Speaking of newspapers

While travelling to London on last weekend, I came across this man who was totally engrossed in reading a newspaper. 

An actual newspaper, not the e-version.

 I must tell you Dad, I missed you so much in that moment. 

This man was surely enjoying his daily dose of news but not as much as you used to. 

Do you remember how religiously you had taught me '5 tricks to fold a newspaper neatly'? I have learnt those tricks for my lifetime. 

Do you remember waking up on Sunday morning

 and tiptoeing onto the veranda to grab the big fat 'Times of India'? 

After tossing it onto the kitchen table you would flip through each of its pages carefully, scanning superficially once and then reading in detail again. 

As years passed by, you had to use your reading glasses 

and I adored that look of yours! 

The look where you glanced at the newspaper through the glasses 

but looked at us from over them. 

Reading a newspaper was like a momentary reprieve from the world around into world beyond.

 I read newspapers mostly on my laptop or Kindle now. But scrolling down the screen just ain't the same. Flipping past various supplements of the actual newspaper was much more satisfying and pleasantly mysterious than rapidly clicking on 'Most Popular Headlines'. 

I am  definitely switching back to 'your' way of reading the newspaper. 

I can still feel you reading the newspaper sitting cross legged on the floor besides me. 

How I wish I could live that moment just once more!

Baba, it is not the same without you around.

English people around - Part II

Here is a post sharing my experiences with typical 'British way of speaking'. 

The British accent.It makes everything sound very agreeable.There is a liveliness to the British tongue never quite duplicated. Britishisms in day to day communication are amusing and funny. 

You get a packet of 'crisps 'instead of 'chips'. 

You have to 'queue up' for the tube tickets. 

'College students' are 'University students'.

 'Cheers' as 'thank you' and 'Brilliant!' as 'a mere affirmative response' are the most common word usages. People in my office talk about an idea being 'rubbish' or not 'clever' enough.

You never know what British people mean when they use certain phrases.

It is a tricky code to crack.

 "Quite good" means "A bit disappointing" and "That's not bad" implies "That's good!".

 If a colleague starts a conversation with "With the greatest respect", he definitely thinks you are an idiot. People must be very annoyed if they say "We were a bit disappointed".

 If you think a "by the way" in your chat window is an indicator to a minor topic coming up, you are completely wrong. "By the way" essentially says "The primary purpose of this chat is...". 

Do not boast yourself as 'courageous' if the boss says " That is a very brave proposal". 

What he/she means is "You are absolutely insane". 

Gone are the days when I used to think people are expressing concern that something is wrong when I was greeted with "You alright?". I now know that they just mean "How are you?"

So far, so good. Cracking these indirect, seemingly polite usages of language is a fun task. It all depends on how accurately you match the pairs: 'What they say', 'What they mean' and 'What we understand'.

Baba

I wish to tell you how different this country is from India. 

I wish to give you an excited narration of my trips to London, Manchester and Leeds. 

I wish to see your sparkling eyes, happy with the interactive chit chats. 

I want your opinion on which colored jacket looks good on me. 

I want to tell you that I have started using maps as efficiently as you did. 

I want to share my apprehensions on driving a car. 

I want to hear your munching of food whilst talking on phone.

I want you to explain how the currency rate fluctuations affect the world. 

I wish to hear your view on current affairs in India. 

I wish to talk to you on skype just like I do with Mom. 

I wish to show you my new high heels.  

I wish this and I wish that.

I wish. I just wish. 

 

Simple Pleasures...

 

 

Devouring a mango. Dad's style...

Chilled and diced!

English people around - Part I

A month in the English country has given me some opportunities to form an initial opinion about the general public here. The thoughts are generic and are definitely subject to change but here I go for now.....

They like rules. They particularly like rules when they are driving. They do not overtake in any case if they are in the inside lane. They really respect traffic signals.

They talk about weather all the time. And I must say, they talk about it with many better adjectives. Gloomy. Muggy. Chilly. Drizzly.

They seem a little reserved. If you want a Brit to open up, wait until you know the person a little. Or, talk about the weather.

They adore tea cups. You may impress your British friend by finding new things to put in teacups, be it risotto, jewellery, soft toys or a small plant.

Many of them have travelled to India. They will have been to Delhi, Rajasthan, Shimla or Darjeeling.

They have a very sharp wit. Naturally, sarcasm follows.

They seem overly polite at times.

It feels nice to explore people along with places. I hope to find out more, till then, Cheers!