Dear Friends
Thank You for your condolence messages. It feels nice to know that in this vast virtual world there are friends like you. I will be back to blogging and reading your blogs. Your laughter and friendship is the best cure for any rainy day.
It’s just one week since I got the news that my dad passed away and the thought feels strange. So many moments flash by me and I’m yet to grasp the realization of what has happened. Life is so unpredictable. One day here and one day gone. One moment I was laughing, celebrating and winning poker chips and the next moment I crying, mourning and loosing my balance. However mentally prepared you are for a situation like this, the reality is far from the imagination.
Life can be strange.
I always admire people who have the knack to give the most appropriate gift for the appropriate person or occasion. It’s a skill. But it’s not something difficult to acquire or do. I spend a good deal of time myself musing around when I need to buy a gift. So I know it’s can be daunting but not altogether impossible. There are so many options to help us nowadays. Google for example, will throw numerous sites suggesting numerous options. A sales rep at a departmental store will ask you the right questions and within minutes have few options for you to choose from. For the social networking junkies, a status message on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace will do the trick. Friends and family are always eager to help, so ask. Gifting can be tricky, but it is really not the most difficult thing in the world certainly.
Why then, do some people give such ridiculous gifts? A gift in my opinion reflects a little bit of you, a lot of the person you’re giving it too, in some small way the relationship between both of you and the nature of the occasion. There are reasons why we give gifts. So why do people not keep the reasons/person in mind while buying one? A gift is a thought, not an obligation. Even wedding gifts, birthday gifts etc are not obligations, although, you might be remembered fondly as the “person who did not bring a gift” 
, but I would prefer that any day than to be remember as the “person who brings purposeless/senseless gifts” 
.
During my wedding, I received soft toys as gifts. Now I love soft toys. But are they really wedding gifts? Maybe if it was my birthday it would have been a different thing. A friend recently received a sex toy during her baby shower. Sorry lady, the kid will be too small to play with that one 
. Last year I threw a bachelorette for a close friend and one of her office colleague gifted her, a wall calendar. The bachelorette was in September and more than half the year was done!
Sometimes, I think people just pick up something they don’t use in their house, wrap it in some colorful paper and dump it in your house. Voila, a gift!! I think gifts should be meaningful. They need not be expensive but they should serve some purpose. It does help if you know the person you’re buying the gift for. But even if it’s someone you’ve just met there ARE generic gifting options. It’s ok to go empty handed if you don’t have time to buy a gift. A genuine “I did not have time to get anything for you guys” will go a long way than something thrown in hurriedly. I’m sure the fact that you’ve been invited means that your presence and company is valued and not so much the gift.
Some people would say that it’s the thought that counts. Where is the thought when you give me an ashtray if I don’t smoke, or for my wife’s birthday you bring her a bottle of scotch for me, or you get a story book for my kid’s birthday when he’s yet to learn his ABCs, or give us a non vegetarian cookbook when we’re vegetarian? I can humbly accept such irrelevant gifts, once, maybe twice but after a while you’ll have me wondering!! “The manner of giving is worth more than the gift”, says Pierre Corneille, Le Menteur. I say Yes! But even for that manner to hold ground, there should be a thought behind it else the purpose of gifting is but a mere ritual followed blindly.
And speaking of Gifts 
……….I’d like to thank Swaram and Rohini for the beautiful and thoughtful awards that you’ve so lovingly given me. If you cannot wait till the next post to see what awards I received, click on ‘Swaram’ and ‘Rohini’ . These and a few other awards I received in the past derserve a post of their own so I’ll proudly display them next time. Right now I better get going else I’ll miss my flight to NYC and all the diwali parties. Thank YOU girls. You made me feel special.
……..…..the first time was a few years ago when I was entrusted with the task of accompanying my sis for all her entrance exams and interviews between Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai, since my mom had a family medical emergency to attend too. To cut a long story short and get on with the title of this post, my sis got admission in Bangalore and I did all the mommy stuff of buying things for her hostel, surveying the mess, checking out the roomies, glaring suspiciously at any boy who looked her way, opening a bank account, buying her new clothes and college supplies, attending the first day orientation which was for the parents too (and here I even contemplated on wearing a sari just to look older, but finally did not), telling her a hundred and twenty times not to stay out late, to eat on time, to drink lots of water, to study well and not bunk college (duh!! Like we all don’t) and be wary of strangers etc etc. I flew back home alone that day with an empty feeling and realized that one day I would be heading back like this after her wedding (I know I know…total filmy thoughts .
Today my sis flew to Hong Kong for a 10 day trip. Her first international travel and for days I spent time researching for tit bits to tell her. I wanted to equip her with all the knowledge and information she may need. I fretted like a mother hen fretting over her chicks and every time I was met with, “yes ‘A’, I’ve read about that”, “don’t worry ‘A’ that is taken care of”, and similar answers. Few hours before her flight I called to say bye and safe/happy journey and all that. My conversation with my sis…………..
‘A’: Hey Honeyyyyy……Excited?…All ready?
Sis: Yup Yup…..all ready, packed and heading out in a few minutes. Yippee!!
‘A’: did you pack the sanitizer bottle in your handbag?
Sis: Yes yes
‘A’: watch out for strangers acting too friendly with you ok, especially old men in the flight.
Sis: yup
‘A’: don’t roam around too late at night. Don’t go exploring alleys and far away markets on your own. Stay with the group while sightseeing. Don’t get too caught up with the sights. Take care of your money and be wary of your surroundings. Be careful what you eat and drink. Carry a map with you always.
Sis: Ok …relax, I’ll be fine.
‘A’: be careful of the Swine Flu (DUH!!! I said be careful of the swine flu like it’s a person!! what the freaking shit was I saying?? it’s not like she can see the swine flu coming at her!!)
Sis: Ehhhhh….ok I’ll look out for it and dodge.
‘A’: (in an almost but not quite scolding voice) Oiiiii I’m not trying to be funny. (in a long sad drawl) I’m serious pumpkin
..be careful.
Sis: yes ‘A’, I’ll be careful don’t worry..love you.
‘A’: Ok ok..bye now…..take care, eat properly, drink lots of water, wear a thin sweater in the evening if it’s cold…ok bye….acha listen…reach the airport early, carry some medicines with you, have you converted the rupee yet?….(Sis by now was laughing out loud)…….ok ok bye bye bye……don’t forget to use the sanitizer……carry your own towel…….ok listen…one last thing.
Sis: ha ha ha ha ha…..I’m listening ‘A’ (some more laughter)
‘A’: Take good care of yourself honey, I love you!!
Sis: Love you too.
Few minutes later my mom calls my sis and a similar conversation follows. At the end of it all my sis asked my mom,
Sis: “Did you speak to ‘A’ before calling me?”
Mom: No! She’s not called me yet. Why?
Sis: She told me the SAME things you just said. Ha Ha Ha !!
My mom calls me after hanging up with my Sis. We chatted and I told her about my conversation with Sis and all the advice I doled out. We both had a good laugh : ).
Not People, silly 
….
Pictures!! ……..lots and lots of random pictures around the tiny cube call my temporary living pad! Then of course I simply have to put them up here so that you can say how awesome they look (constructive criticism premitted), which in turn will make me feel so nice and good about myself and then I’ll spend more sleepless nights wondering what else I can shoot and the cycle continues.
Yeah…I’ve been called crazy by my friends before….I can live with that…
It is not the form that dictates the color, but the color that brings out the form ~ Hans Hofmann
The heart of my kitchen ~ Self
Without the right support we fall ~ Self
....and we scatter till someone pick us up again ~ Self
Love comes in all shades ~ Self
...and even between the lines ~ Self
The end of the day or the beginning of another? ~ Self
I am not a glutton, I am an explorer of food ~ Erma Bombeck
© Pictures are Copyright of ‘colormesunshine’. Please, Do Not Copy, without my permission.
If you do, you WILL break a leg or an arm…I promise you!!
[edited to add]
PS: Photos have Not been edited. They have been transfered AS IS from the cam to the frying pan..errr blog
I’ve often heard that “Good things happen to good people”.
Who defines good? Where are Myyyyyyyyy goodies? 
Pay it forward…..An interesting concept and a movement endorsed by many. A single act of kindness or goodwill, will bring the circle back to you! well, ya…that’s how it’s supposed to be.
Just how big is this circle? I’m still waiting!! 
If Karma means that we create our own heaven or hell, then why is my heaven like hell? 
Do I blame the accumulates karmas of my yesteryears, my fore fathers, my parents and all the influences of my life?
Is good karma my ticket to heaven? 
Chronic Dissatisfaction. Is that a new fancy term put together by shrinks or is it a new disease quickly replacing the swine flu as the new kid on the block. All-or-nothing, OR the good, the bad and everything?
Is this the final straw, then? To recovery or to the brink? 
They just don’t know how to be happy? Yes, they’re yappy most of the time, that’s why!!
Is happiness a feeling that we create or a feeling that needs to be felt naturally from the joy and bliss around? Create! Felt! Create! Felt!
Ok, let’s go ‘cook’ some up then! 
Leave it in the hands of God, I say!
Hmmmphh..show me those hands first! Is faith the blind alley with the light at the end of the tunnel?
Ahhhhhh, smell the coffee 
When destiny, fate or whatever fancy name you want to give it, never meant your child to have a blood brother or sister, then don’t intervene and ruffle the path of life. One can never know what turn the road might take.
“You often meet your fate on the road you take to avoid it” ~ French Proverb
Have you seen parents make their kid tie Rakhi (a holy thread tied by the sister on the wrist of her brother) on another kid, another kid who is not a blood-relation, to make him her brother! Yes, Yes…we’ve all seen it right. Did the parent ask the kids if they wanted their relation to be given this name? Of course not, because the kids are too young to even really understand the concept of this simply yet enormous act. Mummy, papa said to tie rakhi on so and so, the poor little thing did and now she has a bhaiya (brother). Have you ever thought that there might be consequences that might affect two lives? No, not really…we don’t think too much…and this bond is good! They are brothers and sisters…..we’ve told them this and they will grow up together knowing this…….…bas that’s it…….what’s there to think further? Maybe on a percentage basis you could be right and life really could be that simple but there is at least 1 % where you could be wrong. No parent does anything to harm their kids or their future and this too is done in good faith. How were they supposed to know, right!! But then too, this is not a necessity, so why?
I was talking to a friend today and she told me this incident involving her friend. This will seem like a Bollywood (Indian Film Industry) story believe me. To give you the gist of the huge drama let me cut this very short, else this post will run into pages. Two families with kids, one family’s daughter ties rakhi on another family’s son at age 2, 3 and 4. Boy’s parents were transferred and moved away. The parents kept in touch, but the kids grew up not knowing each other except occasional references of your brother is doing this now…and your sister passed class 10 etc. Somehow the kids never communicated, but they knew of each other’s existence and their rakhi relationship but that was it. Present day scenario; they are working in the same city and meet each other eventually. They found each other to be like minded, enjoyed hanging out together, had similar interest etc and without knowing it, they were in love! Now love is a funny thing right! It does not give a warning, it just happens.
“Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, but falling in love with you I had no control over.” ~ Unknown
I need not tell you the difficulty, turmoil, anxiety, pain, fear, apprehension etc that these two are going through right now, and the wailing, crying, pressure and emotional blackmailing that the family is imposing on them. Some might say, it’s just a thread and they did not really know the meaning since they were kids etc. and it was their parents who did them in. But in the long run we Indian do take our rituals seriously don’t we. We think of our family and clan and society and make decisions. Even though we can rationalize this and do what would make two people the happiest in the world, we will still hesitate. How does one nullify this? Is there a process to annul this ritual?
I can only hope that these two find the strength, courage and rationale to go beyond this, stay together and do what makes them both happy. People are talking, people will talk and people will continue talking, but they will also forget and move on to another topic.
But Love seldom knock twice!
“Whatever happened to anyone else could happen to you and to me – And the end of my youth was the possible truth that it all happens randomly.” ~ Indigo Girls
[EDITTED TO ADD on 22nd Sep '09] : Guys, the couple has send their thank you for all your wishes. The update on this is not very good but it’s not bad either. At least there’s been some movement. The girl’s parents have agreed but the boy’s parents are still sulking. The couple has decided to go ahead and get married with the blessing of their friends and the girl’s parents. They’ll have a court wedding followed by a traditional wedding. Hopefully the boy’s parents give their blessings soon too. Cheers to Love and Sensibility
I was on a road trip along the Pacific Coast Highway (also called Highway 1, CA 1 or ‘PCH’), which is one of America’s most scenic routes (though Route 66 is also scenic) along miles and miles of green fields and breathtaking coastline. This coastline is considered by many as one of the most beautiful in the world.
FAB and I set out with no destination in mind. Our only aim was to drive, stop, eat, lie in the sun and feast our eyes on nature’s wonder and anything else that chooses to come in between. Having covered the part of CA 1 from Santa Cruz to SFO on another road trip, we focused this trip between San Diego and Monterey Bay with a midway stop at San Simeon. The only known factor of our entire trip was the midway lodge we had reserved to spend the two nights.
The rest of the time we were busy cruising and swooning our way around the rocky cliff, sandy beaches, white roaring surf and huge oak trees and tall ancient redwoods. There was so much to feast our eyes on. We watched street performer doing daredevil stunts, artist leasing out their creativity, kite flyer doing their tug-o-war in the sky, we saw a wedding on the beach, a rich man’s castle, we did crazy stuff like sticking gum on the wall of the popular bubblegum alley, we watched pelicans dive for fish, fishermen getting their bait ready, sea lions swimming with the waves or simply napping by the dock, elephant seals lazing in the sun and occasionally tossing sand with their fin and excited gulls circling the sky searching for their next meal.
There are no words to describe the beauty and tranquility of the road we travelled on, the scenery we drown ourselves in and the people we observed and met. It’s been so difficult to choose just a few pictures, but these here should give you a sense of the beauty around, so I’ll just let them convey what I cannot do in words.
1059 miles, 789 photos, 6 beaches (counting only the ones we stopped at), 6 huge sumptuous seafood meals, 3 beautiful sunsets, 3 whole days of deep blue water, quaint towns and countryside roads, cool and cold breeze, endless coastline and a herd of deer with bright shiny set of eyes on the highway on a moonlit night makes for a very memorable road trip and priceless bliss.
© Pictures are copyrights of colormesunshine. Please, Do Not Copy, without my permission.
I like the creativity and challenge that 55 Fiction offers. The endless possibility to imagine, create magic, paint white picket fences or just dream.
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It’s the summer of 2025.
As she lay in bed, a tear tickled down her face,
Her mind wandered to that lonely cold January morning.
The roar of an approaching bike, then footsteps, then ting-tong!
She knew! It was 1998 all over again.
She wiped her tear, smiled and reached across the bed. Love Happens.
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This is my second attempt at 55 Fiction.You can read the first one here.
For more on 55 Fiction, check Wikipedia and hop around the Blogsphere for many interesting reads.
God love animals and put them on earth. Man love animals and put them in cages ~ Self
As beautiful as they look and as much viewing pleasure or entertainment they provide, it pains my heart everytime I see an animal in a cage.
Pictures taken at San Diego Zoo.
© Pictures are copyrights of colormesunshine. Please, Do Not Copy, without my permission.
I’m guilty for being lazy and busy and not logging into my blog. I’ve not logged in for more than a month and wordpress already looks different. I had even forgotten my password! There are so many wonderful post I’ve missed reading and it feels like I’m starting all over. sigh!
I still don’t know what to post specifically, althought there are lots of things I could write about. But to get this thing stated again, I’ve napped this tag from Monika and Deeps (I know, I know….all you nice people who’ve tagged me before are probably pissed I’ve not done your tag…but really, I’m bad with some tags… but I’ll do them….eventually !
So lets see how do I plea to the charges ……..
* Asked someone to marry you? Innocent
* Ever kissed someone of the same sex? Guilty. No, there will be no follow up post on this 
* Danced on a table in a bar? Guilty. Not just on a table but on the bar itself too.
* Ever told a lie? Guilty
* Had feelings for someone whom you can’t have back? Guilty
* Kissed a picture? Guilty
* Slept in until 5 PM? Guilty. only when I’ve gone without sleep for more than 36 hrs.
* Fallen asleep at work/school? Guilty
* Held a snake? Innocent. and I don’t ever want to do it.
* Been suspended from school? Guilty
* Worked at a fast food restaurant? Innocent. Although I did have a fascination of working at McDonald cooking burgers .
* Stolen from a store? Innocent
* Been fired from a job? Innocent
* Done something you regret? G.U.I.L.T.Y
* Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? Guilty
* Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Guilty It’s great fun and real funny too
* Kissed in the rain? Guilty
* Sat on a roof top? Guilty
* Kissed someone you shouldn’t? Guilty
* Sang in the shower? Guilty. But what’s the big deal really?
* Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? Innocent
* Shaved your head? Innocent , and I do want to experiment with that too!
* Had a boxing membership? Innocent. WHY?????
* Made a girlfriend cry? Guilty.
* Been in a band? Guilty.
* Shot a gun? Innocent. But I really want to try my hand at one.
* Donated Blood? Innocent. Always wanted to, but every time I tried, the doctors always refuse
* Eaten alligator meat? Innocent. Dying to try.
* Eaten cheesecake? Guilty. Life’s simply pleasures!
* Still love someone you shouldn’t? Guilty
* Have/had a tattoo? Guilty, and I want one more!
* Liked someone, but will never tell who? Guilty
* Been too honest? Guilty and yes it has got me in trouble!
* Ruined a surprise? Innocent. I’m good at keeping my mouth shut when I should!
* Ate in a restaurant and got really bloated that you couldn’t walk afterwards? Guilty, Guilty, Guilty, on multiple counts.
* Erased someone in your friends list? Guilty, and I loved the feeling . Evil, I know !!
* Dressed in a woman’s clothes (if you’re a guy) or man’s clothes (if you’re a girl)? Guilty
* Joined a pageant? Innocent
* Been told that you’re handsome or beautiful by someone who totally meant what they said? Guilty
* Had communication with your ex? Guilty
* Got totally drunk on the night before exam? Innocent
* Got totally angry that you cried so hard? Guilty
