Santa Comes My Way

I had finished writing a long post and was trying to format it. I don't know what's wrong with blogger, that whnever I try to select the entire post using the touchpad, everything disappears. And at that very moment it automatically saves the post!!AAArrrggghhhh!!! I will now try and re-write the entire thing as much as I can... :( - only this time on a Word document! Arrraggghhhh!!

Christmas this year has been an eventful one for me. It started with an award by IHM. It’s a cup! I have never received such a cup in my life so I am happy! I am adding it to my award column on this blog. Since there are no rules mentioned for this award, I will just pass it on to, Renu and Nisha.

Another first that happened to me was to attend a Christmas Lunch today. Yes, I have never been to a “Christmas Lunch”before. Never. Ever. Till today. I mean we do go out for Christmas eve every year, last year we were in Goa at this time and it was amazing, but going for a porpah chrsitmas lunch – never before.

This friend had organized a sit down lunch for a cozy group of 15 people. Each guest was advised to get a unisex gift under Dhs.X. We deposited these gifts under the christmas tree and were given return gifts while leaving. When we entered the apartment, it was buzzing with children running around, glasses clinking, casual conversations and laughter all around. The view of the sea was stunning. We sat down for lunch on a balcony way up in the sky. Actually we could call it more of a supper since the “lunch” started at 4:30pm and finished at 7:30pm! The food was yum and each course was served with utmost professionalism.

The conversations hovered around the Mumbai terror attacks and how Mumbai has become so quite now. There is excessive security everywhere and there is just no mood for celebration. Another topic that kept doing the rounds was the speculation on the today-released movie Ghajini (in Dubai the movies are released on a Thursday). That reminds me, the maid at home got a holiday today since it’s her Christmas today. Yes, we do not have a public holiday for Christmas here. Neither for Diwali. Every nationality has the freedom to take off on their festical, but rest of the staff works. Anyways, so the maid went to watch Ghajini today. Her review? The Tamil version was much better! It doesn’t convince me. Being an Aamir movie, I would like to check it out myself!

BTW here’s an update on the New Year’s Eve party – Hubby and I are contemplating on doing the RNBDJ pair. He would wear a trouser with a plain shirt, white sneakers, black square glasses, a moustache, carry a bag with the saying “I work for Punjab Power”, and an old mobile. I would hand him the tiffin at some point, which he will accept with a without-showing-teeth-smile. We still have to figure out the skit though. Yes we haven’t worked on it as yet! Any ideas?

Before I finish this post I would like to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!
(Just in case I do not write till the new year!)

Pic Source

Eighteen Ka Tag

Just Call Me 'A' tagged me for this wonderful questionnaire last week. Have been itching to do it asap so here it comes. (I know this is not asap, but nevertheless I am equally excited about it now as I was last week). The rule says that for every answer I have to google image search and pick a picture on the first page with minimal explanation.

Seems someone wants to promote google image search further...but well I don't mind at all :). So here I go:

1. The age you will be in your next birthday: Ah Ah...wrong question. No one asks a man hi salary and a woman her age...

2. A place you’d like to travel to: Prague, Paris and Nice

3. Your Favorite place: Grindelwald, Switzerland

This Ski village in Switzerland is a paradise. With snow all around the place, every person living in this village is connected to skiing. I hear this place is equally good in summer with a lot of people trekking the mountains.

4. Your favorite food/drink: I am a foodie and the fav food and drink varies. Indian I love choley bhaturey, Paneer Butter Masala, Chinese - Chilly Paneer, Japaenese - Dragon Roll(Sushi), Italian - Gnocchi in pink sauce, Thai - Green Curry....hmmm the list goes on and on...

5. Your favorite pet: Dogs. There is no other being that can show such unconditional love for anyone.

6. Your favorite color combination: Again depends on the season. Right now it's Black Grey and Red.

7. Your all time favorite song: English - Unchained Melody by The Righteous Brothers, Hindi - Main Jahan Rahoon, Namastey London

These two songs have some of the most amazing lyrics and music. Can hear them over and over again and not feel bored.

8. Your favorite piece of clothing: used to be jeans, but now I like dresses the best

9. Your favorite TV show: F.R.I.E.N.D.S I can laugh over the jokes umpteen number of times and every time I watch this (well I have done so over 4 times) I have a new favourite. Last time it was Joey.

10. Full name of your significant other: His name is R * Beeeeepp *

Rukavat Ke Liye Khed Hai (Sorry for the interruption)

11. The town in which you live in: Dubai

12. Your screen name/nickname: DeeplyDip

13. Your first job: Sucked. I worked in an events company

14. Your Dream Job: To run one of the best fashion/design company in the world

15. Bad Habit you have: I drinks loads of tea. Though tea is not bad as such, I am finding it hard to control the quantities I consume.

16. Your worst fear: Like everyone else said - Losing a dear one

17. The one thing you’ll like to do before you die: Travel the world with R.

We are both vagabonds at heart and ready to travel at the drop of a hat. By god's grace we have explored many places but the world is large and there are a lot of places we need to visit.

18. The first thing you’ll buy if you get $1,000,000: A new House. Then a new car if I have any money left (what with the property prices soaring, I hope by the time I get this money, real estate will be more reasonably priced!)

I now tag Reflections, Mampi, Coconut Chutney and D. From what I saw, most of you seem to have done this tag, but if you have'nt and I missed you, then please feel free to take this tag. It's fun answering it, it's fun (but a bit tedious) finding the pics and it's super tedious trying to format the post in Blogger, but once it's done, its super fun reading the post. So go on and tell us a little bit more about yourself. We are waiting :)

Celebration Time

It is with immense pleasure I announce

that I have been awarded not once but TWICE

By Shalom

(Owner of an excellent blog herself)

For my blogs It's me and Styalogue.

Styalogue has been awarded for

being a blog that invests in Proximity

And

It's Me has been acknowledged for transmitting values

to its readers.

(Clap! Clap! Clap Clap!! Clap!Clap! Clap! Clap Clap!! Clap!)

(My hands on the cheeks, teary eyed, I am ready to cry with joy!)

And now friends it is my turn to pass this baton of joy to you.

So here are the winners for the awards tonight-

The Proximidade Scroll Award goes to:

(I have esp included all the new connections I have made and very happy about)

Rang Decor - I love anything visual, to do with home and this blog gave me many new ideas

ChammakChallo - love the name ;) I feel she is just like me

...a Little Bit More - she brings out the foodie in me. Her recipes are awesome

Agnes - She loves travelling, fashion and everything good in life, and so do I

Goofy Mumma - Her shopping and travelling bug coincides with mine

(Clap! Clap! Clap Clap!! Clap!Clap! Clap! Clap Clap!! Clap!)

And The Premio Dardos Award goes to:

My Space

Reflections

Bum Bum Bhole

Mumbai Diva

Indian Home Maker

(Clap! Clap! Clap Clap!! Clap!Clap! Clap! Clap Clap!! Clap!)

Once again I would like to thank Shalom for honouring me with these beautiful awards. They will be cherished for a long long time to come and will decorate the respective blogs beautifully :)

And now a little about the awards and how to pass it forward:

The Proximidade Scroll Award is given to a blog that invests and believes in PROXIMITY – nearness in space, time and relationships! These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!
Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award

The Premio Dardos Award acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in his/her effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary and personal values every day.

The rules for these awards are pretty simple: put them up on your blogs (giving yourself a pat on the back!), link back to the person who gave it to you and spread the cheer to deserving blogs!!!

Mishmash Of This Weekend

This weekend we met some friends for lunch. It was my first time meeting the wife and kids. From the moment we met the conversation revolved around how unsafe every place is. The reason? They are from Pakistan and they hate the terrorism as much as we do.

Living in a neutral country and interacting with all nationalities, there are times when you feel awkward facing them after such acts of violence. Like now with the Mumbai attacks being traced back to Pakistan, conversations with a Pakistani has to be very diplomatic so that we do not hurt anyone's sentiments. After talking to them I realised, everyone is sick and tired of the violence around them. They seem to be hating the new government, and were openly in favour of the military raj. Law and order is in a mess across the border and the citizens there are just like us. It made me rethink - do we really want to go to war with Pakistan or we only want to get rid of the terrorists?? Their media is blaming the Indian government for framing them (Have a look at the video D put up on her blog). They said they have stopped watching TV as everything seems a farce.

There was a sense of shame in their behaviour - as if they were disowning their country for the violent acts committed by some of them. It is a sorry state to be in - to be covering up for something your people do - something you never agreed to in the first place.

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“Punjab Power, lighting up your life. Surinder Sahni this side ji.” That's what I came out rattling from the movie Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi.

Got my usual dose of caramel pocorn (God! how did I survive all the movies in India without caramel popcorn?!). This is SRK's first appearance this year and I must say I liked it a lot. I am usually not a fan of SRK - liked him only in a handful of movies, but this one shows he can perform well in different roles.

RNBDJ is about a love story AFTER marriage. Simple situational humor goes ahead once again to show that a good screenplay and good acting is all you need for a good movie.

Inspired by the mutli-starrer song Om Santi Om, this movie has one too - Phir Milengey Chalte Chalte (A cheesy line SRK uses in his new avtaar Raj to impress his wife Taani ji). Kajol, Preity and Rani looked lovely in the song while Lara did a forgettable job once again. (Well she was less forgettable than the other two whose name and face I can't seem to remember right now!)

The new actress Anushka Sharma (a model from Bangalore) has done a good job of a punjabi girl in Amrtisar. Liked her simple Chikan salwar Kameezes with multicoloured dupattas. Will do a feature on this on Styalogue soon. But what hubby and I were discussing is Deepika was heavily promoted during the OSO release. Anushka on the other hand didn't get as much exposure. We wonder why?

And well instead of telling you the entire story etc, I will recommend you to watch the movie and discover it yourself.

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Read in a report that due to the recent recession, a hotel in Dubai has come up with this unique idea of providing one free meal to anyone who has lost a job as of 1st Nov! All one has to do is visit the hotel and show them their redundancy slip and viola! the meal is on the house for you!You can read the full story here.

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And before I end this post, here's a hilarious video - a spoof on Jingle Bells. Hope you enjoy it!

New Year's Eve

This year has flown by (tchk tchk...don't we say this every year?). But well really the year HAS flown by. I love this cool wintry season and the recent rains have been a welcome change. Suddenly everyone wants to go for a picnic, sheesha or do a barbeque at home.

The other night we met up with friends to decide on what we are going to do for New Year's Eve. I know you'll say "it's still a long time away!!". I agree. But then we have booked a camp in a nearby place where we have to make all arrangements ourselves. Since everyone has their own routines, if we don't meet up and decide now, it will never work out. Pheww!! So after loads of food and gossip we finally sat down to decide what needs to be done.

The Accountant friend was given a sheet of paper and pen (he would've preferred a comp, but anyways) to jot down the minutes of the meeting. Everything had to be decided - from the basics of getting knick knacks, milk, tea, coffee, water to entertainment (games, music etc). Everyone pitched in their ideas and then came the more serious topic - the theme??

Here are some of the ideas and why we had to discard them:

Casino - nah, we will be in a sandy beach and the guys refused to wear a tuxedo there!

Cross dressing - well kids will be with us too :)

Devils - already done last year and was lots of fun

Period character - girls refused to dress in their refineries at a beach!

Less is more (since it's recession time ;) ) - but well it will be very cold out there

So after a lot of rigmarole we finally decided on a unique theme (I chuckle) - Bollywood!! Yayy!! We have a winner! So what's the problem you say? The problem is that we have to dress in any character and do a skit for 10 minutes!! It has to be funny and entertaining! And well I have NO CLUE what to do!! The skit would follow only after we decide the character.

You'll say "Sit down with your Hubby and decide". Well I would've but Hubby has no tension and full confidence in his wife! So now I need your help in suggesting some characters we can become. I wouldn't want to do the usual ones, but something new and exciting. I was thinking Bunty and Babli. What is your opinion?

Any ideas to help me out?

PS: And oh while you are at it, please mention any fun games you know to play at the party :)

Pics Courtesy: Pic1, Pic2

Where is our PM?

Everyone seems to be writing about the Mumbai attacks and even though I may be repetitive I would still like to talk about this.

As I checked my emails today morning, I recieved an email from my college condoling the loss of 2 students from the 2007 batch. I felt very sad for them. Then I moved on to read the various blogs my friends have written here and discovered about this to-be-married couple on Nisha's blog. Turns out this is the same guy from my college. I visit their wedding website (they were to get married on 6th Dec) and I can't describe my feelings. My heart goes out to this girl who has suddenly lost everything she had planned for. So many dreams, so much to look forward to and then suddenly everything has changed.

Every person who lost their lives in the Mumbai attack has a heart breaking story. Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan's mom cried inconsolably when his body arrived in Bangalore. The NSG Commandos, Maharashtra Police, Hotel staff and Army - all have earned the respect and love of the people. We thank them for all they have done to secure and help their people.

But in such trying times, one expects the leaders to come forward and offer something to console their people. What did our PM do? He came on TV, read the speech from the teleprompter, no emotions and no authority in his voice whatsoever. Everytime we are told to calmly bear the situation. Why are we never told "Don't worry we will go after them. Wherever they hide we will find them and destroy them. They have killed our innocent people, they have attacked our people in our country and they will not go unpunished for this"

First they bombed the trains, then they attacked the parliament and now they come and kill the top Police officials and many more innocent people - and all that the PM can say is be calm? Is this some kind of a joke? We are paying taxes to the country for getting a proper infrastructure and a decent security. Are we getting back any of it??

All public places in India have a security system in place. Hotels, airports, malls, cinemas - we are serached everywhere. And the citizens are very willing to cooperate. All these places have armed security personnel standing outside. Still no one could stop these terrorists from entering the hotels/railway station/restaurant? The amount of ammunition they were able to take inside the hotel is not funny. The ammunition lasted with them for the entire 40 hours. I read in a Gulf News article yesterday that when a policeman entered Taj immediately after the terrorists entering it, he was already crying that he had only one bullet left in his rifle! We know such things are happening time and again, so why are they not properly trained and properly equipped? Sending them out to battle, without proper training and equipment is like ridiculing their precious lives!

If a citizen fails to pay proper taxes, the govt imposes various penalties etc on them. What are the penalties for a govt not taking care of its citizens???

To India and Back

I am finally back from my trip and still feeling quite lazy. There are so many things I want to write about but am getting confused where to start! So in this post I will tell you all about our experiences and observations back home.

We landed at the Delhi airport at dawn. As soon as we reached the arrival area we were overwhelmed by the number of people reuniting with their families. While waiting for our pickup Hubby and I were amused looking at the people around us. A typical scene at the airport - families uniting, children meeting their uncles and aunts after a long time. The most amusing quote was "beta tauji ko pehchana?" We heard this one from atleast 3 different families...so well loads of nephews/nieces were meeting their uncles on this day!

The first day H and I took the car and went for some work. And boy it seems we have to follow everything but the traffic rules here. Even though we have lived mostly in India and driven there a lot, it takes a day to come back to our ruthless selves :). There are some simple rules one must follow -

• cross a signal no matter what the signal light indicates - that's just a colour!
• if you see a pedestrian crossing the road - NEVER stop! remember you have to win the race here
• if you need to turn right, stay on the left most lane and then cut at the last moment
• you are free to overtake a vehicle from any side - afterall we live in a free state!
• keep driving forward till your bonnet touched the vehicle in front - coz if you don't someone will surely come in front of you (remember? it's a race...)
• The side mirrors are supposed to remain CLOSED. Yes if you try opening them, someone will just brush against it and break it. So it is safe till the time it is closed
• Blow the horn at every opportunity you get
• All drivers must compliment their driving skills with some verbal abuse without which it is just no fun!
• Remember - it is a race - and you have to win!

Nevertheless we were back to our normal selves the next day - driving as if we never left.

The weather was very good and I hated coming back at this time. I love the wintry cold hazy mornings with fog (which sometimes meant no school in the good ol days :) ), the festive atmosphere, winter clothes, red cold nose, drinking loads of ginger and tulsi tea. In short everything that Renu is enjoying in Lucknow right now...

Well other than the weather, going back to India means loads of treats for us. It's as if we don't get any food here in Dubai. Everyday was reserved for one speciality which we had to eat since we were in Delh/Lucknow. So from Moolchand ke paranthey to Haldiram ki chaat in Delhi and Basket chaat and yummy Chilly Paneer of Royal Cafe in Lucknow, we ate it all. To top it all we carried Tundey ke Kebabs for all family and friends in Delhi and Gourmet Ice's Chocolate Truffle for the folks in Lucknow. That's our way of showing we care ;)

What do you do when you go back home? Other than meeting family friends and relatives, what is it that you must do when you visit your home town/country?

Your Opinion

Elders are always considered right in our Indian culture. Can an elder of the family ill-treat their children? By ill-treat I do not mean physical abuse here. We always here stories where about children ill-treating their parents and elders, but does the reverse happen as well?

Are You Right For The Job?

It's been a long time since I blogged. I guess I am going through a writer's block...but the problem is I am not a writer...do I still qualify? To top this, I have been busy interviewing people for a new company I am starting. So I thought just to break the ice, let me tell you about a couple of things that bothered me.

I am totally in for a casual friendly atmosphere at work and I conduct interviews in a similar manner - over a cup of coffee.Having said that, is it right for the candidates to be over friendly?

Like there was this one guy who came

1.5 hours late (after me checking with him 3 times), wearing casual clothes (shirt out). He kept laughing and showing a very casual attitude. Thankfully his work was good and so was the CV. But then again, was it a good idea to come late for an interview? (Note: the guy needs a job immediately as he is getting married in 2 weeks time and currently does not have a job). And was it a good idea to not inform me of the same?

Then there was this other guy who reconfirmed his attendance for the interview but never turned up! H says that's how people are over here - too casual and not bothered. But well this bothers me.

Once my fil told me that when he conducted interviews he would make sure he asked the guy to write something (to check he was carrying a pen) and to tell him the time (to ensure he was wearing a watch). According to him anyone who is serious about their work, would always carry a pen and wear a watch. I cannot agree with him more.

Other small things that matter in an interview or for that matter any meeting, are the courtesy to call an hour before the meeting to reconfirm, call and inform if you are running late (even if it is by 10 mins) and ask relevant questions. Relevant questions reminds me, there was another guy who got so friendly that when I told him we are hiring a team, he started telling me about his friends back home whom I should consider as well! I mean I appreciate the help and wouldn't mind checking them out, but hello isn't this a wrong time to promote your friend when you yourself haven't secured a job?

Sometimes I feel I should get more strict and ask the usual questions like "where do you see yourself in 5 years time", "what is your strength/weakness" - but then I believe these are predictable questions which we are taught to answer right from college! I remember in MBA we we wrote our CVs, went for mock interviews and got plenty of phrases which you can use to your advantage. Like "My weakness is that I am detail oriented" or "My weakness is that I cannot leave something unfinished. No matter how late it gets, I like to finish my work. So my colleagues get angry with me since they also have to stay back" (this was one answer I got from a candidate).

Another candidate had already ordered a drink for herself even before I reached the venue. Even though she had already paid for it, she was still meeting me for an interview. Is there any difference between a meeting and an interview? Is an interview more formal than a business meeting? Am I confusing the candidates by calling them to a cafe instead of my office for an interview? What is your opinion?

Picture Source

Taggit!

Yes! I have been tagged by Reflections and Mampi! This one is about telling everyone about 5 things that I am addicted to.

When I first recived the tag, I thought this would be quite easy for me - at least the first three addictions came very easily...then I had to think more. I am now ready with all 5 so here I go:

1. I am addicted to Tea (yes tea and tea alone and not coffee...I hate coffee!). Green tea, Oolong tea, Jasmine Tea, English breakfast, Assam tea, Darjeeling tea, Lemon tea, black tea, tea without sugar - you name any tea and I will be happy to give you company to drink it. But all said and done nothing beats an Indian masala chai - esp with ginger.


2. I am an internet freak. Even though I was brought up in the 80s and 90s I now wonder how I survived without the net in those days! From my work to entertainment to research, I depend on the net for everything! Blogging is fast becoming an addiction too :)


3. Another thing I am addicted to is clicking pictures with my camera. I do not use my phone camera ever! But use my SLR at the drop of a hat! Most of our holidays snaps have H in it while I am busy clickng the pictures. Sometimes I tell him people will think you went there alone, coz he hates to click and so I am almost never in the picture :(!


4. Nintendo DS Light - yes I am addicted to my Ninetendo mainly because of Mario Bros. I grew up playing that game and now playing the new version has kept me hooked on to it once again. I love playing the mini games, and sudoku and mind games on my DS Light. I hate sharing it with any kid lest they spoil it!


5. Singing! I cannot sit quiet while listening to a song. If I know it then I HAVE to sing it along. And well most of the times I know the lyrics. H says I waste my time and brain space to store useless stuff! But well it comes naturally to me. I remember the lyrics of most songs and as I said I have to sing along if I know it. Whether it's a good or bad thing, is for the listener to decide :)

The rest of the instructions of this tag - The persons who have been tagged have to link the blogger who tagged them and also extend the tag to five or more bloggers and link them too.

So now I tag - MySpace, Renu and Nisha. I will also leave it open for anyone else who would like to take up this tag. Kindly send me a message so I can link you here as well.

I Believe I Can Fly

I used to think that I could not go on

And life was nothing but an awful song

But now I know the meaning of true love

I'm leaning on the everlasting arms

If I can see it, then I can do it

If I just believe it, there's nothing to it

I believe I can fly

I believe I can touch the sky

I think about it every night and day
Spread my wings and fly away

I believe I can soar

I see me running through that open door

I believe I can fly

I believe I can fly

I believe I can fly

See I was on the verge of breaking down

Sometimes silence can seem so loud

There are miracles in life I must achieve

But first I know it starts inside of me, oh

If I can see it, then I can do it

If I just believe it, there's nothing to it

I believe I can fly...

Hey, cuz I believe in me, oh

If I can see it, then I can be it

If I just believe it, there's nothing to it

I believe I can fly...

Hey, if I just spread my wings

I can fly

I can fly

I can fly, hey

If I just spread my wings

I can fly

By R Kelly. To listen to the song click here

We visited Kathmandu this summer and were mesmerised with the scenery there. Like all tourists, we visited the temples and I saw something I had never seen before. At the foothills of the temple, there was a guy with hundreds of birds in a few cages (see pic above). You could hear them chirping from far away. Cute looking birds of all sizes and colours.

I wondered who would buy birds in a tourist spot! Out of curiosity I went up to him and he started selling me the birds.

"Nahi bhaiya hum yaha nahi rehtey to hum ye chidiya nahi le saktey"

"Madam ye chidiya paltu banane ke liye nahi hai. Aap jitni khareedengey mein utni chidiyaon ko azad kar dunga"

At first I loved the idea but then I thought - is this ransom money he is charging me to release the birds? After all he only would've caught them in the first place right? Moreover what's the guarantee it's not his own pet birds who will fly back to him after some time?

"Madam bahut sabab ka kaam hai. Bahut punya milega aapko"

"To tum sab ko aisi hii kyon nahi chod dete. Sara punya tumhey mil jayega"

"Hum gareeb aadmi hain, rozi ke liye kuch to karna padta hai"

"Acchaa ye bahar reh payengi? Aakhir itney time se pinjre mein rahi hain to bahar kaise reh paengi, apney liye khana kaise dhund payengi"

"Aap chinta mat karo, yahan itney ped hain, ye araam se bahar reh sakengy"

"Ye tumhari paltu to nahi, ki jab hum jaye tum inhey vapas apne pinjre mein daal do?"

"Nahi madam, isse to bahut paap lagega. Kasam hai. Aisa kaam main kabhi nahi karunga"

By now I was too tempted and no amount of reasoning would work for me. I was itching to see the birds fly out in the open. I looked at H and he looked convinced too. So we told him to release 2 birds. BTW each bird was priced differently! The "joda"(pair) was more expensive, bulk of 6 was cheaper and so on.

We relased the couple and they instantly flew out and went on sat on a branch of a tree. They looked so happy and free. I looked at my hubby again and he nodded.

"Bhaiya char aur ko chod do"

4 more were released and they seemed to be loving their independance.

By now H was charged up and he said "Do aur chodo"

We were getting addicted to this and needed to stop before we went overboard. The guy insisted we relase more, but we were not sure. By now a few passersby were stopping to see the spectacle as well.

Another man started the same conversation with him...and we noticed the birds were sitting in nearby trees only. Somehow they seemed to be his pets. As if accustomed to this act, they were his friend and accomplice.

We quitely walked out. Hoping and praying that the birds were not put back in that cage...but then we will never know...

Classified Nuisance

Classified is a cheap and easy way to get two intersted parties together. Many websites provide a platform to place adverts of services offered for free. But what happens if this website is not designed properly?

There is a site called www.dubaiclassified.com where one can easily set up an account and place ads. Now you will ask - so what's the problem? Well the problem is that anyone - yes anyone, can set up and account on your behalf - with your email id, and start posting adverts - in your name. And well you start recieving all the enquiries on your phone!

What we thought was a prank by someone has become a permanent nuisance for us 6 months later. I clearly rememebr it started on our anniversary in Feb this year and till date we (read my H) recieves numerous calls for sharing bed space, car pool, house rent, car sale, and many other possibilities. He gets calls in the middle of the night asking for such services which are being changed by the impostor everyday.

To solve this issue, we have written to the website people numerous number of times but have recieved no response whatsoever from them. The site displays people's email ids freely, so any tom dick and harry can come and lift your email id and start sending you junk mails daily. So that's another set of junk we recieve daily. We are now seriously contemplating on approaching a newspaper and get this nuisance sorted out.

How can the site not have a way of verifying the user's email when signing up? To make matters worse, when you use their passwrod reminder feature(which means they send you the password on your email) also doesn't work. So what does one do?

Do you have any suggestions for me? We are sick and tired of answering people that we are not offering any rooms for sharing, no car pools, no bed space, no fridge and furniture on sale@!!@!

I was Tagged!

Yesterday I wrote this entire post and just a click before publishing it, somehow the whole thing got deleted (I am surprised I could not undo the process!!@#@@!). It annoyed me so much that I did'nt want to write it all over again. I am now once again going to attampt writing what I did yesterday. So here I go.

Just as I recovered from a dilemma on an award I recieved on my other blog Styalogue, I was tagged by MySpace! In fact MySpace says she loves putting me in a spot. Since I am new in blogosphere, I am still trying to figure out stuff here and do not have a robust list of friends. So when I recieved another tag which I needed to pass on to 6 of my friends I paniced once again. But this time as well, I will reserve a few names to be sent out at a later stage. BTW MySpace soon the tables would turn and I will send a tag/award etc to all your friends and have you panicing the same way...hahaha*devilish laugh*

Here comes the tag and my answers to the questions:

The rules for the tag are:

RULE #1 People who have been tagged must write their answers on their blogs and replace any question that they dislike with a new question formulated by themselves.

RULE #2 Tag 6 people to do this quiz and those who are tagged cannot refuse. These people must state who they were tagged by and cannot tag the person whom they were tagged by continue this game by sending it to other people.

1. If your lover betrayed you, what will your reaction be?

Anger and hatred

2. If you can have a dream come true, what would it be.

They keep changing for me, so for now I would want my company to be the best and most recknoned one in its industry

3. Whose butt would you like to kick?

Right now it's the police and the terrorists attacking India

4. What would do with a billion dollars?

Wohoo!! I'll be jumping with joy. I would def invest the money carfeully so that we can retire and spend the rets of our lives luxuriously, travelling and doing stuff what we enjoy doing.

5. Will you fall in love with your best friend?

Is love deliberate? Can I make myself fall in love with someone? If it is meant to be it will be. In any case we love our friends right?

6. Which is more blessed: loving someone or being loved by someone?

There is nothing more blessed than loving someone and being loved back. But if that doesn't happen then surely being loved is way better than loving someone.

7. How long do you intend to wait for someone you love?

Again is there a time frame in love? Can WE decide how long we intend to wait? I would assume if that were the case with me, it would be forever.

8. If the person you secretly like is attached, what will you do?

Crib and curse my illuck! And well wish the guy and his lover all the best!

9. If you could root for one social cause, what would it be?

Education for every child. There is no better way to allievate an economy and help a person. It's like teach a man to fish and he will eat forever, rather than fish For him and he will depend on you forever.

10. What takes you down the fastest?

False flattery

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?

I hate time bound questions! It's so difficult to predict the future. But I think I would be successul, happy, alive and kicking in 10 years time :)

12. What’s your fear?

Just the thought of lizards and snakes makes me tremble!

13. What kind of person do you think the person who tagged you is?

Indecisive, creative, thoughtful and a constant learner!

14. Would you rather be single and rich or married and poor?

Now this is a catch 22 situation! I would def want to be married and have money too. Having said that, money is something that can follow but it's the relationship that's more important. So once I am married, we make sure we become rich too ;)

15. If you fall in love with two people simultaneously who will you pick?

Can that be possible? Hypothetically if that happens, I guess I would choose the one I am more happy with

16. Would you give all in a relationship?

Yes ofcourse. Why else are we in a relationship?

17. Would you forgive and forget someone no matter how horrible a thing he has done?

I may or may not forgive. But forget I never will.

18. Do you prefer being single or in a relationship?

A relationship. Who wants to be single?

19. List of 6 people to tag: (3 in my case)

Nisha

Aneri_Masi

Princess Diary

Din Kuch Aise Guzarta Hai Koi

I came across this poem by Gulzar and thought I'd share it with you all. You might have heard it before, but it's still a good read.

दिन कुछ ऐसे गुजारता है कोई
जैसे एहसान उतारता है कोई

आईना देख के तसल्ली हुई हमको
इस घर में जानता है कोई

पक गया है शजर पे फल शायद
फिर से पत्थर उछालता है कोई

फिर नजर में लहू के छींटे हैं
तुम को शायद मुघालता है कोई

देर से गूँजतें हैं सन्नाटे
जैसे हम को पुकारता है कोई ।

Wednesday on a Saturday

This weekend was once again packed with dinners and tents and well a hangover! Now that we had missed a movie(and my popcorn...hehe) on the weekend, we decided to go for one on saturday (If you are wondering that saturday IS a weekend then let me remind you I live in Dubai, where the weekend is Friday and only some lucky souls get Saturday off as well).

A Wednesday is based on the rampant bomb blasts taking place in various parts of India in the last couple of years. A great screenplay, great acting and good direction. The best part is that there are no songs - you see the situation does not demand one :). If you still have'nt seen the movie then I recommend you watch it soon. Thanks Nisha for the recommending it to me.

Loved the monolgue by Naseeruddin about pests infesting our house. I couldn't help but remember a post written by Reflections on a rat attacking her house and how she got rid of it. The movie makes you think and maybe believe that we can actually make a difference if we want to.

May all those who died in yesterday's blasts in Delhi, rest in peace. And we hope once again that the Police can nab the real culprits - maybe this time they will?

Hum Tum

Today I'll tell you a story of a boy and a girl. Let's call the boy "Tum" and the girl "Hum". (I know I know it's not very innovative, but what the heck! What's in a name? I want to be a bit filmy too!) The story is about how Hum Tum met and fell in love - and not in a trditional way where boy sees girl, falls in love at first sight - but boy messages girl and love at first type! Yes the story of love on the internet.

It dates back to the early times when internet and chatting had just started in India. Hum had just discovered the world of chatting and dabbled her way into creating conversations with strangers. With friends spread across India and abroad, she loved being in touch with strangers and connecting with them in some way - just like we make friends on blogoshere now a days! A small picture which may/may not show how a person looks, but their writings tell a lot about them - how they think, what they like, dislike etc.

One day while chatting with her usual set of friends on the net:

Tum: Hi!

Hum: Hi

Tum: Will you marry me?

Hum(amused by the line): What?

Tum(happy to get the attention and reply of a girl): Hi, I know you

Hum(now even more attentive and curious): Really? Who are you?

Tum:(happy to get undivided attention and rapid replies): I know where you live and well you are cute!

Hum(happy to hear the comment, no matter how silly it may be): Ya right. My location is mentioned right here. And if you know me then tell me who are you?

Tum: I was just joking. We don't know each other. But you sound intelligent.

Hum(smiling at the compliment): haa, I'm not so sure

Tum: Why?

Hum: Coz I am talking to you?

Tum: Smart woman! Marry me!

And so the conversation started. An hour into the conversation, the two discussed everything under the sun from food to movies to music and books. Not to mention their love interests. It's easy to guess they were both single and ready to mingle and Tum left no stone unturned by proposing Hum to marry him after every second line typed to her!

Things were going good between the two of them. They were loving the attention each got from the other and the non-committment factor in the relationship. Each lived their lives the way they wanted, but end of the day had someone to share their thoughts, anger and emotions with. Someone - who understood them well. This continued for a while and the two got closer to each other. Unlike most internet relations, they had found a connection which confirmed the other was telling the truth about themself. This took care of a lot of worries but there was still no reason why the family would recognise such a relationship. But then who is thinking of tying the knot here? It's just timepass!

Then one fine day on their usual chat this is how the converstaion went:

Tum: Hi

Hum: Hi! how are you? What's up?

Tum was silent for 10 seconds

Hum: What happened? Did you have a fight with someone

Tum: Yes

Hum: Was it that colleague again?

Tum: Yes. I wish I had a way to deal with him. He doesn't seem to understand anything...

Even silence spoke millions of words between them. And time went by with the two of them chatting and emailing everyday for a long time. Ultimately the two got married and lived happily ever after.

Now I know you'll ask - why such a long kahaani with no twist? Why such a Sooraj Barjatiya diabetically (I wonder if that's a word!) sweet story? Aisa bhi hota hai kya? Bina dekhey shaadi et all! The guy might be fooling the girl - after all you only said that it was timepass! He might be an old harried man and she a teenager just discovering a new phase in life! Maybe they were both guys! ;) Maybe everything was fine, but what when they saw each other upfront?

But well I wrote the story coz I felt like writing something positive, something nice and yes something diabetically sweet today! Hope this post can kindle some mushiness and some romance into your life. I am now off to call my husband! :)

Weekender

The weekend has been a busy one with a dinner, movie ramadan tent and outings packed in.

Booked a ticket for the movie Hijack. In my haste I hit the wrong button and boom - I had bought the tickets for the furthest cinema from our house! Great this is what I need on a weekend - a cribbing husband who hates long drives, to take me to a distant cinema for a flop movie. Anyways my motive of heading the cinemas usually is the caramel popcorn ;) So as long as I get my fix, I can bear his cribbings and I am ready to go watch any movie!

So we reach the cinema just in time for the show and are told by the lady at the counter that our tickets have already been picked up! We wasted 20 minutes trying to fugure out what the problem was. It so happened that another couple came in before us, and the lady at the counter heard the booking number wrong and instead gave them our seats!

We insisted on taking the same seats as we booked, coz there is a reason we pay online and reserve a seat right?! So the staff came in with us and tried to move the other couple to their original seat. They refused to budge. The movie has just started and they created a scene by blaming the staff. They were right in their own way. Luckily for us the row behind our orignal seat was empty and we got to sit there. After 10 minutes into the movie, guess the couple realised their mistake and shifted, but then we were well settled in our 'new better' seats.

The movie was a big let down with hardly any emotions, or story line. Shiney and Esha gave a dismal performance. And can you imagine - a song in the midst of a hikjack!! I mean there has to be some sense of direction here. One one side you are showing innocent passengers being killed, and then suddenly a song starts! They show a scene where the Indian Anti Terror Unit is sending an email to the hijacker (an email when you are already speaking to them on the phone?! And an email in an emergency situation?!) and the screen shows "Indian Mail" with the Ashoka emblem on top! Now I haven't seen any Indian email system personally but am pretty sure this is not how they look!

The movie finishes and we heave a sigh of relief. We were begining to feel empty and hopeless in our lives. Didn't we have anything better in life to do than watch this movie?? ;)

Then we headed to Mai Tai Lounge at JBR. A branch of Trader Vics, the place was buzzing with people. So much so that we had to wait for 30 minutes before we got a table. The guys got lucky as the table next to us was full of girls ;). The menu had limited choice and almost nothing to offer to vegetarians. But again, Trader Vics is known for it's Tiki puka pukas rather than food.

This was followed by a visit to a Ramadan Tent which is a unique thing they do in Dubai. Every Ramadan, all major hotels build a marquee/tent, which now a days is air conditioned because of the heat, with majlis/lounge eating, sheesha etc. It's nice to chill out with a bunch of friends, play cards, puff away some sheesha and enjoy some lebanese sweets. How we got to sit in this busy tent is another story!

Think About It

आज मुझे घर जल्दी आना है...कल पार्टी पर क्या सर्वे करना है? मुझे नही लगता यह बंदी अच्छा काम कर सकेगी...शायद येही करना सही है...

All sorts of thoughts going on in my mind. And they all speak the same language - Hindi.

Having met people who speak various languages, it is surprising to know that we all talk to ourselves and think in only one language. The language we are most comfortable in. The language that we can express the most in. And the language that comes naturally to us.

For me it's hindi all the way. No matter how fluent I am in English or my mother tongue, or that my first instance of initiating a conversation is in English, I am always thinking in Hindi.

What is your "thinking" language?

Unorganised to an Organised Diva

www.humorandlaughter.com/images/organize.jpg

Obtaining genes from my mom who loves to live life as it comes - I would hate to plan and organize things. It was easier to pack in stuff based on the "Just in case" phenomenon. If anything is planned to the tee it loses its charm for me. I like the idea of not knowing, the thrill of the last moment decisions. And just as they say, your spouse should complement you - I landed up with a super organized hubby. And not only hubby but a super super organized family.

So where I dont even know which place I want to dine tonight, they even know which route to be taken to reach the restaurant! "Today is Monday and at 7:30, the BRT corridor would be packed, so we would take the...." and so it goes on. Bags are packed 3 days in advance so that everything is taken care of. Lunches, dinners, outings, shopping - everything has a lead time of 1-2 days.

Over the years I have laughed and humored about the need to organise things before hand. And all this while, unknowingly I have been emulating the same! I was amazed when this year I have managed to pre-plan all the parties and dinners at home. We have already decided on the party date and venue for this Diwali! And to top it all I have even started looking for Diwali gifts which I normally do not start till the week before the distribution! I collect stuff for a new house we have bought and would shift into maybe 2 years time?!

Another thing I kept fighting with my mom was that she would stock anything new - till it was at least a couple of years old. From crockery to bedsheets to decor stuff, everything would be stored to be displayed at the right time and this would annoy me to no end. I want instant gratification - buy it and display it. To my astonishment, my hubby says the same things I told my mom - to me! I have become a hoarder who loves to hoard good stuff for my new home. And well everything that's new is good. So there you go, the story continues.

Is it just me or it happens with everyone? You have certain views in life and hope to follow them all the while. And along the way, you change into exactly what you laughed at a couple of years back. Without notice and without a warning, I changed from being unorganised to an "organised" diva! (Well I like to think I am organised now! People may have different views)

This post is inspired by MySpace's Travel Light post. When I was going through the post, I felt as if it was meant for me and not her "darling hubby".

Reality Bites - have one have all

One great success gives birth to many wannabes. Yes, I am talking about the umpteen reality shows on Indian Television. Each channel has its own competition on:

• singing
• dancing
• game show
• laughter challenge

Last night I was watching a show called Kabhie Kabhie Pyaar Kabhie Kabhie Yaar...and couldn't help but wonder what made them start the show? The same TV stars appear in all reality shows (except for music shows). In fact there haven't been many successful shows without celebrities. So now you find Kashmira Shah on every dance show. Seems she has become a pro reality show participant!

Another thing that makes me think is - how do these judges come up with a different comments on each performance! They surely need to be expressive and creative to be able to ramble out opinions without hurting anyone as such.

The formula for a great program lies in the right balance between entertainment value, originality and authenticity. While entertainment value and originality depend on the concept, the authenticity relies a lot on how genuine and honest the developers are in promoting the right people. Another big asset for such a show are its judges. The more they know about their field, the more consturctive the feedback and the more accurate their readings. Laughter Challenge on Star is losing its authenticity because Siddhu is laughing his ass off every joke! There is no constructive feedback being given and there is no threshold for a performance. The level of content on this show has gone down rather than picking up with every season. I mean move on from the same condescending tone of talking between couples, the same double meaning jokes which have less originality and more vulgarity! Today's generation doesn't even identify with their humor. They need to get out of their 70's and 80's style of talking about less clad women, and troubling housewives!

It's high time we get to see some good shows with some serious content - liked by the modern, educated audience.

Independence Day Celebration

My first blog is about a recent ceremony I attended to celebrate the Indian Independence Day.

It was organized by one of the most respected and well established groups in Dubai. The Counsul General was the chief guest and the highlight of the event was a show by Hema Malini and her daughters.

Much to our embarassment, the speaker from the group went on to ramble about how great India was and how good we were. But alas, the speech was not well prepared, the tone and words used were normal English, there was no pathos, emotions or thought used while writing it - and all this showed very clearly while he spoke unimpressively. He went on to introduce Hema Malini as a famous bollywood actress! I mean an accomplished guest to your function deserves a better introduction. Is that all she ever did in her life? Be a Bollywood heroine?

What made us proud was the beautiful speech by the Counsul General who spoke with a lot of emotion and genuine pride in the nation. No shallow talks - but pure belief in what he spoke. And what sounded good was that he said I do not agree with the introduction given by the speaker and would like to make corrections. He went on to describe the accomplishments of the artiste and tocuh on various issues. A great show of leadership and responsibility.

The cake cutting ceremony took place where no one could view it. We were all forced to watch it on the big screens (which were going off every now and then) - and again to our amusement - it said " Happy Independence Anniversary"!! I mean I alsways thought that it was happy independence day!

All in all the event did not start till 1.30 hrs of its scheduled time, so we decided to leave without watching the performance.

First One

I have been thinking of starting a blog but somehow been very lazy to do so. Well, I am finally here with my thoughts and ideas and ramblings about my daily life, about work and about things I fee strongly about.

Needless to say all feedback is more than welcome. So bring it on!