31 May, 2011

The Kerala effect

The beauty of Kerala has affected me. I'm in love with the place and since Padhu has promised a trip once in a while there, I'm already looking forward to the next one. I was walking around with my camera a lott there.

The roads had hibiscus plants fully bloom and I say it again - green everywhere. I loved how almost every house I noticed had their own patch of kappa plants. Ok Kappa is Tapioca in English, Kutchi Kezhangu (for those who know Tamil). In Kerala they make a sabji out of kappa which is mostly bland but delicious if made the right way. All one needs to grow a kappa plant is take a small piece from a healthy stem of a grown plant and there's ur sapling! Ten months for a healthy kappa root!

The resort had banana trees all over. As if it weren't green enough!! Arecanut trees were also around most of the places. Evertime i looked at a patch that had various shades of green, I'd tap Padhu on his shoulder to show it to him. After a while he was so bugged - he stopped responding!


I'm sting stung by the Kerala bug - Will stop posting unnecessarily once the poison wears off.

We made it!

After a lot of whining (that I always do) and a lot of pestering (that I can't do without) we finally left to Cochin on Saturday morning. Pah, what a feeling to hear ur fav songs and sing along like no one cares! It was a 4 hour drive which was interuppted by lunch. Lunch. Now when I say lunch, it wasn't a quick bite to get back on the road. It was a long taxing yummy chewy lunch. I tasted Octopus and Fish egg fry for the first time. Heaven it wasn't, cause it was a tiny little place that was on a main road, near a bridge and had almost 6 cars parked in front of it. We shared a table with 2 other people and ate. My stomach was finally happy! (my hands weren't, and I wasnt ready to use the soap they had there)

Back on the road we took 2 wrong turns but reached Cheraai beach resorts and fought to use the loo! It was such a beautiful place. I only hoped mobile phones didn't work there, but they did. We reached with almost 3 hours left for the big IPL 4 finals. Had tea and relaxed a bit. The place does that to you - it makes you hungry and wants you to relax. 'You are in God's own country. Welcome to his permanent address' - thats what the resort says. I stared at the backwaters that connected to the room's sit out.

With too much interest in the match we rushed through dinner and ran to stare at the tv. We had so many reasons to scream shout and say YAY! Chennai played amazingly well, Banglore could have put in some team effort instead of depending on Gayle - the duck.

We booked ourselves a massage for the next day. As an ex-Googler, almost all of you reading this should probably be thinking I have used my birthday free massage coupons in Hyd. Well, hmm no. I was too shy to try out the massages that cost us Rs.200, so I waited to get here and paid Rs.1000. I saved my money, now I'm spending my husbands. Paavam.

We walked into the Ayurmana or the massage parlor and then I lost myself. First, when the massuese told me to remove my clothes. Second, the smell of camphor. Well, I was hypnotized. I did shed some shame and my clothes but had covered every important bit just the amount it required. :D

It was one hour of pure indulgence for every inch of my body. With hot oils and the soothing pressure the massuese just put me to sleep. I woke and I could swear my vision was much clearer, my hearing was better and my stomach hungrier. After the oil massage was the sauna. Summer in a box room connected to a pressure cooker! It was perfect. After a bath, she gave me the only bad thing that day - a kashayam. Urgh.

Padhu was so tired after the massage, he had a little lunch and slept like a baby. I couldn't sleep. One, I didn't wanna miss the sunset. Two, it finally stopped raining. So I locked the door and trotted towards the beach with my camera. I spent a solid 2 hours at the beach watching families have fun. Just when the sun could start setting, it started raining again. I ran back to the villa and found Padhu still sleeping. So I did what one is supposed to do in Kerala - order in and eat.

My club sandwich came with fries and tea. Padhu woke up. Of course we fought for the first bite of the sandwich and then watched a lousy movie on tv. We then went to the beach again and sat on the rocks and took some questionable pictures. I had to sleep. My body was on the verge of signing a mercy petition. We hurried through dinner and got back and hit the bed. Blackness.

At around 6:10am I woke to hear heavy rains from our oh-so-open-bathroom. (I had my quickest showers here) I ran out and watched the rain. Padhu laughed in his sleep. When we had been to Ootyy, I woke to the sound of rains and ran outside and watched. I think he had a deja-vu! I watched for a while and then my pillow called out for me. I hit the bed again and woke just in time to pack and leave. Breakfast, packing. Leaving.

Cute and compact - enough time for me with myself, my camera and oh yeah, my husband. Cheraai is officially the place we go to when we have a day with us, from now.

It wasn't luxurious and loud - but it was a much needed 2 days!

Did I say this? - I crossed the Kerala-TN border and almost cried. Kerala is the place to be for a relaxing retirement or a budgeted honeymoon!

We turned one on May 26,2011. Also, Padhu turned 25! (Oldie, I know)



Still thin and happy in one couch - Us! My dad always says that it takes not more than 2 ladels of dough to feed us with dosas - I agree!

We spent the day with family.. we invited over closest relatives for lunch. For dinner, we treated our closest friends. (There is nothing more one can do in Tirupur) We did take the weekend off and go to Cochin! More on that - soon :)

Thanks all you guys for your wishes and calls!

24 May, 2011

I'm a pretty cupcake!



My pretty cupcake wearing a skirt! :D Watch her do the ballerina on my fb account!

23 May, 2011

My poor Tirupur

I realise I'm feeling bad for Tirupur for the first time in my life. 24 years of my life I've had Tirupur a part of my permanent address and its going to remain forever. But to be honest, I travel 53kms to get chocolate chips and the kurtas of my choice.

There used to be this famous phrase 'If you learn to drive a car in Tirupur, you can pretty much drive anywhere.' Its true. Tirupur is filled wih so many industries which means a looott of out of station labour. Companies here provide two wheelers to all these people and they aren't plying - they are flying. Any No Entry is an entry. No U turn is a U turn. No left is Go left. No right is go right. Driving among all this needs 5 brains.

My mum and I went to the parlor today and to my astonishment there was NO traffic. A Monday! Dyeings have all been shut down and all - but I didn't expect that to make this place orderly. In the scorching heat, I almost fell in love with Tirupur!

22 May, 2011

Liril fressshh



One of my favorite activities when I go to mummy's house is watering the lawn and plants. Its like a wonderful evening job to play with the tubes! The tree is the pic according to my mom is the 'Christmas tree'. I kinda agree but being in the hilliest convents, I prefer the fir trees.

I had to click a pic of this tree while the water drops were still there - so my mom held the tube while I clicked. I pulled up my pants and entered the slushy bed. But alas, all the slush was on my pants. My mom looked at me and stared. I said 'Karai padradhunaala nalla vishayam nadakudhunna, karai nalladhudhaaney. Surf excel, karai nalladhu' - and we all laughed! :)

This one is my personal favorite!

Keeping in touch :)



I don't know where I read it, but it said '
If someone is not keeping in touch with you, its because they don't want to'. First I stopped reading and thought - No, that can't be true. What if that person has had a baby? Not all mothers are occupied full time. Our mums managed to cook three meals, some of them even worked in farms and still take care of us. Then I thought, what if they have gone abroad? Huh, so? Keeping in touch is all about breaking the distance no matter how long it is right? What if that person got married recently? I kinda agree not calling from your honeymoon or for the first few days. But keeping in touch is not an everyday affair na? You can cheat on the attention you give to your husband by giving it to your friend, right? What if that person has a job that takes away almost the whole day? Hmm.. aren't friends the one who make you feel better? What if this person.. Wait. Person? Just cause someone ain't keeping in touch, they become a person and not your friend? Apparently, yes.

Keeping in touch is that one part of life that looks back on memories and the joy of reliving them. Friends are a part of it. Well, today facebook, email and chat have made it easy - yet most of us don't use it. I keep in touch with ALL my friends. ALL of them! How much ever it annoys them, I refuse not to stop posting on their walls, load their inboxes and the occasional lucky letter receivers. Cause I want to.

Does it bug you when your friend don't keep in touch with you? It bugs me, very badly. But then, friends are friends, right?

Choco chip mania continues



Choco chip cupcakes with honey and shredded coconut. They became so hard cause I (as always) beat with my hand. But they tasted yuuumm when heated and served with ice cream.

20 May, 2011

Hooked to this song

I love Karthik's voice. Its magnetic! This is his recent song from engeyum kadhal. Personal suggestion - watch this movie on mute. Shot in Paris entirely. AMAZING camera. Why mute? - like any expensive tamil movie - story sucks.

Dhimu dhimu dhim

Not feeling so bad Kani.. you know life's not about the money!


The repeated scene of policewomen holding Kanimozhi's hand and walking her to the Tihar jail makes me feel like I had 20 scoops of ice cream with chocolate sauce. wait, no LINDT chocolate sauce.

Just when the nation was soo happy and proud with Dhayanidhimaran's work as Telecom Minister - Karunanidhi had to remove him from that post and appoint A.Raja. Just when the whole nation thought 'Ok, thats it, he has no more hidden wives' Karunanidhi had to bring his daughter into the limelight and use her as his walking stick. Baah, what lou. The Marans seems to be doing exceedingly well no matter what post they are given - not cause they are a part of this family, but cause the have the brains and know how to use them!

Removing Dhayanidhimaran from the post was probably the worst decision ever made - it stopped putting Kalaignar under the spotlight on their SUN network which was the only channel that covered all news! Well, who's loss was it. That was the birth of Kalaignar TV - and the bribe from the north. Had he just shut up and let Dhayanidhimaran do his job, we would have STD calls at the rate of local calls and free SMSes throughout the nation. But NOOOO, he had to spoil those little pleasures.

Bah, talking about this family is breathtaking cause it never stops. Thank god Jayalalitha won these elections with an awesome difference pushing DMK to place 3.

Well Mr.Karunanidhi - Great politician, bad leader, excellent father, bad uncle. Overall I'd just like to know, how the slap in the face with hands dipped in dung feels.

Kudos to the K family, cause honestly I've never heard of anyone work for almost 50 years in politics to end his political reign with such disgrace.

We need leaders, not politicians.

A few facebook statuses from ONE friend that I have loved!

One year back I found Prateek Khandelwal loud and buggable. All of a sudden he has this cool and dabbang theme to himself. I'm in love with his recent status messages!

Mario’s an asshole. I don’t think he even gives a shit that we wasted our childhood trying to save his girlfriend.

-Is as bored as a blind man in a strip club.

To Respect IMF Chief Strauss Kahn, IMF now officially stands for 'Inappropriate Maid Fondler'

Never hold your farts in, they travel up your spine, into your brains. And thats where the 'Shitty' ideas come from

One should have a dog's attitude towards all difficult things in life. If u can't eat it or fuck it, then piss on it & move on !!

Life is all about ass.. you're either covering it, kissing it, behaving like it or working it off.

HAHAHA!!

19 May, 2011

nonsense talk

Why do girls always want brothers and not sisters?
Me : cause brothers won't steal your clothes.

Why do boys prefer brothers?
Me : to share clothes. even underwear emergencies.

So you're saying brothers are better.
Me : I have a brother. So I'd say - yes.

Wish we could just choose, like we choose friends.
Me : I wish we couldn't. I would never choose someone who'd hide and eat up my toblerones. My brother does that, I like it.

Actually yeah, we shouldn't choose.
Me : I know.

Ok now tell me where is the toblerone.
Me : hidden Sai, hidden.


P.S : this never happened. Sai is my brother.

Coping with loss - dealing with truth

I've had a list of topics I wanted to write on since my laptop decided to misbehave. The tragic death of singer Chithra's daughter Nandana is one.

It was just a sleepy morning for me but as I read the papers I couldn't stop thinking of my experience with singer Chithra. When I read about the death of her child, I cried. I cried a lot. I personally don't know her but like how these talented people become a part of everyone's household - she was related.

The whole day I spoke to my mother in law about how painful it would be for her and her family to cope with this loss. Even when I was alone, this tragic incident ran in my thoughts.

As college girls, a group of friends organized a music concert to raise money for a blind home called Nethrodaya. We spent a lot of time and energy on this concert. Inviting singers to sing for 'free' was one of those activities.

My closest friend Saranya and I decided one Saturday night that a concert in Chennai would never be complete without singer Chithra. We scanned so many places for her address and decided to show up the next day morning.

Like how every celebrity's maid would treat an unknown person - Chithra's maid told us she wasn't home and asked us to leave. We for sure knew she was home - 1. cause we could hear her playing with her daughter 2. we were at her doorstep at 8am.

We left closing the gates and then walked across the house and sat on a heap of sand. 3 hours. For 3 solid hours we heard nothing but baby talk - Chithra entertaining her little girl - Chithra singing and laughing. Somewhere around 12:20 pm someone peeped through the curtains in the bedroom upstairs. It was her husband. He was a bit angry about us stalking and hanging around there but later when he heard us out he invited us in. (they actually thought we wanted donation) We were seated in the hall and Chithra peeped from the verandah upstairs carrying her daughter. Her husband heard us out and agreed to let Chithra sing in the concert. We were overjoyed. Later, Chithra won the state award from the Karnataka government and could not make it to the show. She sent us a letter.

This incident was in my thoughts for almost a week. I couldn't stop thinking about those 3 hours we sat outside her house. We didn't feel bad about the wait. We didn't feel bad because it was hot. All we knew was a woman was up there in a room sharing a warm Sunday with her kid.

Shattered as I was, am still - I kept thinking how long it would be before Chithra could meet with peace. Well, to me my head said 'never' - out loud. I do hope Chithra doesn't lose hope in life.

When I think of coping with life and its pace - I think meeting with every second is not important - cherishing the one that went by is. I'm a memory person - I like pictures, I like pranks. Cause these remain memories.

18 May, 2011

Grandparents :)



With nothing much around me to take pictures of, my Picture a day, 2011 sey' has come to a stop literally. Ive tried to keep up, but alas there's nothing much around. Well, I came to momma's home today since Padhu is out of town for a few days.

I got to clicking as soon as I got in and here is a happy pic of atha and thatha at their spot at home.

Love today :|




'Of course I love you, till I find someone better' costs 100 bucks. If you have an afternoon with nothing to do - read this book. Its pretty much everything there is to love today. Find a girl who looks good, within your spending limit and say I love you, only till you find someone better. Bah it was to me.

Message in a bottle - a message of love and hope!



A lost hobby found again is the best thing to a guilty soul! Well, reading is back and I'm so glad I have the time. The days of sitting staring at a laptop are over and my books are under my pillows again. Now any good looking picture appeals to be my bookmark :) Going to Coimbatore means stopping at Connexions for books.

I've watched the movie 'A Walk to Remember' and loved it! I didn't know the movie was made from Nicholas Sparks's book. None of my friends had ever suggested his books to me ever. I picked out 'Message in a Bottle' last Sunday. Monday and Tuesday were as usual busy but wednesday had me hooked to the book and my bed!

I was in the love with the story. I delayed lunch so much, I had to eat in a hurry at 4pm after my mother in law got so worried and walked into my room to find me reading! She blamed Padhu for teaching me his horrible habit of eating late, phew!

I cried, I laughed, I smiled as I read the book. When Padhu got back home that night, I told him the story and he chumma just said 'What do you think you would do if it were you?' I was stumped. I refused to answer his question or even think about what my answer would be.

I was in love with the writing and all I knew was I had to buy more of Nicholas Sparks's books. And I did!

Currently reading : Bend in the Bottle.

I suggest Message in a Bottle. There is confidence, there is hope, there is love, there is solitary, there is feminity, there is everything a book needs.

Winter soup - Recipe

Hello All! Winter does call for some cozy and cuddly food. My first choice for cuddly winter food would be a  good bowl of soup. Initia...