Sometimes I forget

...that we really are spouses. Him and I, of course.

The other day, my MIL and SIL were narrating some incidents and ticked off a list of boys in their family who got married recently. When they took my hubby's name, for a couple of seconds there, I thought to myself... "Oh, wow! When did this guy get married?!"

And then I turned to the hubby who was sitting beside me, saw his face, and recognition dawned. "Oh, yeah. I know when."

And I burst out laughing :D

Unforgiving and forgetting

[Picture downloaded from here]

Triggered by TMM's dilemma (?)

I believe that the world still spins peacefully only because I'm not a witch (and, therefore, my curses don't work). I encounter many people who make my day more interesting (by acting arrogant, uncivilized, and sometimes downright stupid). To each one of those, I wish many interesting returns. Here, take your pick:

• May you hear Himesh Reshamiya in your own head day in and day out.
• May your neighbor's dog pee on your shoes every night.
• May one of your vehicle's tire be punctured on your way to the office, especially when you're running late.
• May the other tire get punctured the next day.
• May gnats drone around your head all through the imminent walk to the puncture repair shop.
  
• May you never find anything of a particular size that you want when you visit any store for the next 6 months.
• May your sweat brew up a stench during the first month after your wedding :-P
• May each of your mobile phone get stolen within a week of its purchase.
• May you be hit with static electrical charges, at least 32 times a day, all through the next winter.
• May you be hiccup-ridden all through your next airplane journey.
• May your roof leak for 3 hours on 3 random non-contiguous days, once every year.
  
• May you have to spend 1 month of 12-hour workdays with the colleague you find most irritating.

Okay. I've got to quit now, because I've got to attend the 1x1 with my boss. Besides, if I continue, I fear the risk of finding myself in at least one of the above situations. You never know when your jinxes would backfire!!

Me? Growing up? Surprisingly, yes!

This is a quick post off the top of my head. Some thought that just caught me in the tracks.

I was talking to my dad over the phone this morning and he mentioned that mom has lost her new spectacles during a bus journey. She tucked them into a pouch attached to the seat ahead of her before she dozed off for the night. Upon waking up the next morning (possibly in a hurry because she reached her destination), she alighted without taking them along.

Now, why wasn't I surprised?

She had lost dad's wrist watch somewhere in the apartment's parking lot just a couple of days before. Now, don't ask me what she was doing with his watch in the parking lot. She neither follows a strict schedule, nor does she drive. So she has no valid explanation for having the watch on her self. And then she cried for at least an hour, alone, before she called me to share the news.

By the way, my dad keeps forgetting umbrellas in places. He must have lost about half a dozen of them over the years. Not to forget a couple of tiffin boxes and his helmet.

I was pretty calm when all of these events occurred. How come? Beats me! Maybe I've just grown up and become more patient.

Had something like this happened when I was a kid, I would have loved to yell at them or at least taunt them about being as absent minded as I was. Which I did, when my mom lost her purse a couple of times during my school-going years. And that was sweet revenge, because, obviously, I was yelled at when I forgot things.

And now, when it's their turn to turn forgetful with age (that's silly to say because they're not even 60 yet, but...) I think I'm being pretty gracefully understanding. And I feel this sweet halo around my head ;-)

Snootiness apart, another reason for my calmness could be that they're not losing anything that is earned by me. To a certain extent it is rational that parents get angry with their kids when they break or lose things bought with money that they have really worked hard for. And, usually, kids respond in the same manner when it's their turn to earn and support their parents. And then, there are those wonderful kids who learn from life, become wise, patient, and treat their people kindly. I only pray that I grow into the latter. Amen!

To us

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. (Old Chinese proverb? Lao-Tzu? Confucius? I'm confused! To whoever thought that up, thankyou for letting me use it :-P) We took that step a year before today, formally. The journey began for us long before that. But back then we walked in opposite directions--towards each other. What we took this day last year was a step in a totally different direction--ours.

Now, I don't know where we are going or what our goal is, and frankly, I don't care. For I am someone who believes in enjoying the ride. The arrival of a destination is the end of a journey, and I'm not yet ready for that. However, we've crossed a milestone, in social terms, and here's something to celebrate the occasion...

Wishing us lotsa love and fun times! Let's relish this life together while it lasts :)

Mitr

Picked this picture from here.

Dear Sun (or Mitr, as we call you in Sanskrit),

As I sat on the rock, facing you this foggy morning, and I saw you rise, here's what I wanted to say to you. It's been a very rare thing lately for me to see you alight from the other side of the earth every morning, but whenever that happens, I'm so full of awe for you. The delightful play of colors you indulge us in, the warmth you spread on a cold winter morning, the essential energy you provide the earth and all the creatures on it--it all makes me feel so pampered and content. Besides offering you my thanks for all of the above and more, I wish to ask a few more things of you.

Will you wake us earthly creatures with your warm caresses every morning, forever? Will you be our constant source of energy and exhilaration? Would you teach me how to be so consistent, so nurturing, so willing to give? And to be harsh when the situation demands it? Would you teach me how to live in harmony with nature? To be born and to perish with grace? And live like there's no other life... burn with zest, burn with passion, burn with agony, burn with compassion? Burn, and emit the beautiful light that sustains life? And when the life fades out of me, burst like beautiful fire crackers and give people tears of joy to think of how I lived, rather than to cry about my passing away quietly?

I know there are many scientific explanations of how you were created and how you might perish, but all that aside, if you were a human being like me, how would you talk? What would you have to share with me from the millions of years of the universe that you have been spinning? I'm always on this quest of learning about what I am, why I am here, and where I should be heading to. But I doubt those answers will ever come in this lifetime. Not unless I try relentlessly, sincerely, passionately. So, while I am at it, will you be my friend and teach me all that you can? Will you be the inspiration? Will you teach me persuasion? I don't know where this list of will yous will end. Maybe it won't. But, let me ask, as long as I can. It's a way of accepting that I'm a tiny speck, powerless in comparison with you. But, with a mind that wonders, opens up to ideas, to situations, to whatever life has to offer. And loves to live every bit of it.

Here's wishing very many lively conversations (to me) with you. May we talk someday. Amen. :)

One good analysis after a long time ;-)

You Have a Choleric Temperament

You are a person of great enthusiasm - easily excited by many things. Unsatisfied by the ordinary, you are reaching for an epic, extraordinary life. You want the best. The best life. The best love. The best reputation. You posses a sharp and keen intellect. Your mind is your primary weapon. Strong willed, nothing can keep you down. Your energy can break down any wall. You're an instantly passionate person - and this passion gives you an intoxicating power over others. At your worst, you are a narcissist. Full of yourself and even proud of your faults. Stubborn and opinionated, you know what you think is right. End of discussion. A bit of a misanthrope, you often see others as weak, ignorant, and inferior.

What Temperment Are You?

Company Calendar Candidates 2008

I plan to send these to the Calendar Committee of my office... they're playing up a competition wherein employees submit self-clicked pictures, and if they find 13 really good ones, they might just use the winners' pics for the calendar months of 2008!


This is the rooftop of my closest family friend who lives in Goa. We visited them last year, after a decade or so. They're the closest, nevertheless. [Category: City]

This hibiscus was right outside the Science Museum in Bangalore, which we visited last year with a couple of my dearest friends-cum-ex-colleagues from Pune. [Category: Nature]

This one (of many similar ones) is very dear to my heart: an evening on the rooftop of the apartment building where I lived in Bangalore. The picture takes me back into that moment each time I see it. I can feel the colors, the breeze, the smell of the earth, all like it was then. [Category: Nature]

It was a dark, noisy evening with slight rains accompanied by lots of lightning. Dragged my poor hubby to the rooftop, and made him stand with me (and click pictures, too) through the scary episode just because I found it exciting. I was thrilled to bits each time God flashed his camera :) [Category: Nature]

That's my nephew-in-law, whom I met on the day of our wedding. He was sleeping most of time that day, but I got shoot him in all his flavor the next day. Just loved those two pairs of teeth peeping through his mischievous mouth. [Category: People]

That's him showing off his strength in lifting the heavy coconut and messing up the bed with it. [Category: People]

The butterfly park hidden in the Bannnerghatta National Park gave us double relief: it cooled the humid heat out of us (we went there at the peak of summer) and allowed me to take pictures in peace (unlike the bus, which drove us through the park, where the driver would move on as soon as I'd taken my position, zoomed in on a lazing animal, and was about to click). [Category: Wildlife]

This is my favorite! A tiger in the woods, about 50 feet away, just being himself while we drove past... sadly we were enclosed in a caged bus, and I couldn't get close and curious ;-) But then, that's probably why I'm alive to share this gem with you :D [Category: Wildlife]

I'd picked about 50+ of a thousand pics I may have taken, and then asked a photography-enthusiast friend of mine to help me choose the best of those. He's entering the competition too, and I probably don't stand any chance with people like him competing, but I love my pics too much to just let them rot in my portable hard disk!

Wish me luck... pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?