And Now, Nightmares!!

Found this post lying in my drafts for quite some time now, so put the finishing touches and posted. Enjoy..

***

So, I haven't really been sleeping well for the past few days, almost a week actually! I fall asleep, and then get up in a couple of hours with a terrible tooth ache - wisdom tooth acting out - and then when I think I'll be awake for the rest of the night, I fall asleep again; only to awaken in a few hours again! And that leaves me really tired in the mornings.

And that's not all, to make things worse, I've been having very realistic nightmares! Some days back it was about a school friend I hadn't seen in years. I dreamed that she gets kidnapped and is tortured, and I see the whole thing. It was so realistic, I got up and almost called Ma to check with her if all was ok with her (the friend).

Anyway, last night was a whole different nightmare, which literally had me in the front seat!! So, it must've started off pretty normal, I can't remember! The only scene I do remember, and which played out like a movie trailer on loop, was the most scariest scene ever! here goes:

I'm sitting in the front passenger seat of a car, which is traveling at an average speed, neither too fast, nor too slow. I don't really know the driver, in the sense that I'm not really aware of him. I mean I know that somebody is driving since the car is moving, but don't really 'see' the person, or maybe there want anybody in the driver's seat! So, I have to rely on some unknown person to be my driver, who might not even be there. So we're going down the Chicalim slope towards Vasco. When suddenly at the first sharp turn, a huge bus comes right at us! We were going in the wrong lane, I realized later. So anyway, the bus comes and the front engine part of our car goes under the bus, and we're stuck in a position where the bus driver can look down and see us sitting in our car below him, and he does! Our eyes meet, and we look at each other, and the next thing I know, he falls back and the whole bus rolls down and falls into the valley!
Thats when I woke up in a sweat!

***

So I told the whole nightmare to Adi and he was shocked at me getting off that easy without a scratch in an accident, even in a nightmare! It apparently proved his statement that I love myself too much to let anything untoward happen to me, even in such unreal situations! And I agree, for a change!

Have you ever watched kids
On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain
Slapping on the ground?
 
Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

You better slow down
Don’t dance so fast
Time is short
The music won’t last.

Do you run through each day
On the fly?
When you ask How are you,
Do you hear the reply?
 
When the day is done,
Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
Running through your head?

You’d better slow down
Don’t dance so fast
Time is short
The music won’t last.

Ever told your child,
We’ll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste,
Not see his sorrow?
 
Ever lost touch,
Let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time
To call and say,’Hi’ ?

You’d better slow down.
Don’t dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won’t last.

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift,
Thrown away.

Life is not a race
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over.

***

260386-110514

My Top 5 Dream Jobs

Got the idea to do this post from a book I was reading some time back. It's being lying in my drafts for a very long time, so cant really remember which book. So without further ado, I present to you:

My Top 5 Dream Jobs:

 
1. International Travel Show Host/Travel Blogger
Who doesn't want to travel all over the world?? The icing on the cake, I'd get paid for it!!! Some gig like Samantha Brown's maybe?

2. Professional Shopper
Again, getting paid to do what you love and would've done for free!! I guess that is what you'd call a dream job..

3. Librarian/Book Shop Owner/Book Editor/Book Reviewer
Or any other interesting job dealing with the written word.

4. Pastry Chef/Chocolate Tester/Food Critic
Creating world records with something like this maybe:

5. Psychiatrist/Psychologist/Therapist
I like listening to people's stories, and advising/commenting on them. Some may call it gossiping, but I don't think so!

***



Images Courtesy:
http://kellelynn.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/dream_job1.jpg
http://www.curiehs.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=29144&type=u
http://travel.spotcoolstuff.com/shopping/best-chocolate-shops
http://www.psychotherapy.net/humor/8
http://www.condenaststore.com/-sp/Let-s-try-focussing-on-your-posts-that-do-receive-comments-New-Yorker-Cartoon-Prints_i9383731_.htm

Give me the sound, to see
Another world outside that’s full of all the broken things that I made
Just give me a life to bleed
Another world outside that’s full of all the awful things that I made

'Cause we are the last disease
Another broken life that’s full of all the awful things that I made
And we got the eyes to see
Another broken life that’s full of all the awful things that are made.

- Joel Zimmerman, Gerard Way


Image Courtesy: http://www.meetup.com/judaism-124/events/127407582/

High School Reading Lists!

Ok, so I've come to the sad realization that although I've read a lot of books, I've not even skimmed the surface of the milk pan of books classified as classics! Did that even make sense?

In high school, we didn't have reading lists or any compulsory reading, which I now find to be very sad. There were no essays on my interpretation of Shakespeare or Keats or any of the others. We just had text books, with lessons in them, like articles and stories and poems. We had to study these, and answer questions based on them in the exams. That was it.

Well, that's the Goa Board of Education for you! I know I'm complaining now, but I guess I should be happy that I had it easy for English at least. I don't know if I would have been able to cope up with the rest of the subjects like Maths, Bio and all, with all this extra reading and writing. Who knows, I might have only concentrated on English then. Wow! How different would my life be!! I'd probably be a professor or something, that's the only legitimate occupation I can think of right now for a Literature graduate!

Anyway, my point is, I missed out on a lot of important reading, and its time to rectify this, starting today.
So, I've got the list, all I now need is the time and patience to deal with Shakespeare.

I'll just keep adding the titles and checking them as and when I finish them, in this post.

The List:

1. To Kill a Mockingbird By Harper Lee
2. Romeo and Juliet By William Shakespeare   -   WIP
3. The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald
4. Lord of the Flies By William Golding
5. Emotional Intelligence 2.0 By Travis Bradberry
6. The Catcher in the Rye By J. D. Salinger
7. The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne
8. Macbeth By William Shakespeare
9. Animal Farm By George Orwell
10. Of Mice and Men By John Steinbeck
11. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain
12. Hamlet By William Shakespeare
13. The Odyssey By Homer
14. 1984 By George Orwell
15. The Diary of a Young Girl By Anne Frank 
16. Julius Caesar By William Shakespeare
17. Night By Elie Wiesel 
18. Pride and Prejudice By Jane Austen
19. Jane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte
20. Brave New World By Aldous Huxley
21. Fahrenheit 451 By  Ray Bradbury
22. The Crucible By Arthur Miller
23. Wuthering Heights By Emily Bronte
24. The Grapes of Wrath By John Steinbeck
25. A Midsummer Night's Dream By William Shakespeare
26. Frankenstein By Mary Shelley
27. Great Expectations By Charles Dickens
28. A Tale of Two Cities By Charles Dickens
29. The Giver By Lois Lowry
30. Beowulf By Seamus Heaney
31. The Outsiders By S. E. Hinton
32. Othello By William Shakespeare
33. A Separate Peace By John Knowles
34. The Old Man and the Sea By Ernest Hemingway
35. The Canterbury Tales By Geoffrey Chauce
36. The Taming of the Shrew By William Shakespeare
37. Flowers for Algernon By Daniel Keys
38. Mythology By Edith Hamilton
39. The Little Prince By Antoine de Saint-Exupery
40. The Hobbit By J. R. R. Tolkein

Rag-a-Tag Tag!!

A tag I found somewhere in blogosphere:

1.What is your current obsession?
Online shopping!! Been a current obsession for a very long time now.

2. What are you wearing today?
Kurta, Leggings & Sweater.

3. What’s for dinner?
Egg masala and roti! Cant wait, cos its one of the rare times I'll be having non-veg for dinner.

4. What’s the last thing you bought?
Lunch - Chicken Kadhai, Rawa Laddoo & Sugarcane Juice.

5. What are you listening to right now?
Arguments regarding religion at work!

6. What are your must-have pieces for summer?
Non-transparent cotton tops & Jeans.

7. If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Leh.

8. What is one thing you want to learn to do?
Ride a bike.

9. What’s your favourite quote?
"Live and let live!"

10. Who do you want to meet right now?
My mom & dad.

11. What is your favorite color?
Red.

12. What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own closet?
A black & white printed dress.

13. What is your dream job?
Travel Host.

14. What’s your favorite magazine?
People!! 

15. If you had $10000 now, what would you spend it on?
Jewellery. I really really want a diamond ring.

*Image: http://www.pricescope.com/forum/show-me-the-ring/my-first-coloured-diamond-thanks-dbl-t176538.html


16. What do you consider a fashion faux pas?
Guys wearing low-waist jeans!

17. Who are your style icons?
Victoria Beckham, Emma Stone.

18. What kind of haircut do you prefer?
I think its called a Feather Cut!

19. What are you going to do after this?
Get back to work.

20. What are your favorite movies?
So many of them. Off the top of my head I'd say the LOTR Trilogy.

21. What are three cosmetic/makeup/perfume products that you can’t live without?
Something on my lips (balm or lipstick), a VS body spray & Nail paint on my toes.

22. What inspires you?
Reading about inspiring people!


23. What do you do when you “have nothing to wear” (even though your closet’s packed)?
Go and shop if there's time, else jeans and a top.

24. Coffee or tea?
Coffee!

25. What do you do when you are feeling low or terribly depressed?
Get a bar of chocolate (Current favorite is Cadbury Silk) & eat it while either watching a chick flick or reading a M&B.

26. What is the meaning of your name?

I used to think it meant April in French, and while that still holds, it is derived from a Latin word that actually means "to open/to blossom". So I guess that is the actual meaning. 

27. Favorite Dessert/Sweet?
I'm not partial to any particular dessert/sweet, I love them all equally!

28. Favorite Season?
Winter, without a doubt!
29. If I come to your house now, what would you cook for me?
Egg Bhurji

30. What is one book that you would suggest the whole world reads?
Gone With The Wind By Margaret Mitchell.

People, please tag yourself!!!

Twinkle Twinkle

So, I was traveling back to Pune, last night. I'd gone home for a family get together, which was actually a Welcome Home Celebration for my brother, disguised as a "Birthday Party" for me! Yeah, that happened!!

Anyway, I was in a sleeper bus, and as I rarely sleep well on such journeys, I was listening to music on my phone. We were going up the ghats at this point in time, and I just happened to glance out the window and what a sight my eyes beheld!!!

Lying on my bunk I could see the night sky. Deep blue with stars sparkling like diamonds.
There was this one star in particular that was shining way brighter than the others, and I feel like I should know which it was, but I don't! I sometimes find my lack of general knowledge off-putting!!! 

Anyway, it was so beautiful! And the bus kept turning around and around while climbing the ghats, it felt like I was in some sort of a rotating planetarium! Yes, that was my first thought, which is kinda stupid, I know. But I've rarely seen all this in recent times. Suddenly trees and hills would sway into view, and block the sky, but it always came back..

It was all a little hypnotic, and a wonderful way to fall asleep!!    

***

Image: http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2010/sep/03/amateur-astronomy-telescope-night-sky

Good Bye & Good Luck!

After nearly four years together, I'm left with all  kinds of memories, and this...

I wont say that you were always there for me, cause its not true, and vice versa, but you were there at some of those crucial times when I really needed someone to talk to. You might not have realized it, but I was and will always be grateful that you were there. 

From watching The Mentalist religiously every weekday at 10pm and bitching about the others during the commercial breaks, to going to church every Sunday! Eating sausages that you got from home, arguing with the numerous bais & gossiping about all the moronic FB statuses & pictures! I will miss all that. Believe it or not, I will miss you. We had a sort of disconnected or disjointed relationship (I don't know what else to call it, talking like long-lost friends one night, and just a nod to acknowledge the other the next night) but somehow we made it work for nearly four years. Somehow, through all the good times and the not-so-good times, we stuck together. We survived all the lovelies & the crazies!

You've been gone for quite some time, but it just struck me now when I saw the empty room, that you're never coming back again, not on weekends just to stop by and use the machine, nor on holidays when you're alone. This is it. The End.

Past, Present, Future

Just something I found while looking around, and decided to fill up:

Ten years ago, I:

1. started class 11 in MES, where my mom still teaches!
2. was really shy.
3. had to deal with being the only child around.

Five years ago, I:

1. was very busy with the final year college project.
2. was getting ready to shift into our big beautiful new house.
3. was giving piano lessons to three kids.

One year ago, I:

1. turned 25!
2. was seriously considering switching companies.
3. had a flare up of RA in my knee.

So far this year, I:

1. have resumed blogging.
2. completed three years in Pune.
3. have gone on the best holiday ever!

Yesterday, I:

1. Made serious diet plans.
2. Went for Physiotherapy.
3. Ordered a pizza for dinner.

Today, I:

1. dressed in a traditional outfit for Dandiya night at work.
2. listened to Just Give Me a Reason for like 10 times straight!
3. spoke to my brother after about two weeks.



Dandiya Night!

Tomorrow, I:

1. will continue with watching episodes of The Office.
2. will try to sleep early.
3. will arrange my books by the order in which I'll be reading them.

 In one year, I:

1. will be a better/nicer person.
2. will have hopefully learned to salsa.
3. will be thinner, as a consequence of (2)!

In five years, I:

1. will be married!
2. will live someplace else, maybe.
3. will be earning much much more than I currently am.

In ten years, I:

1. will have a kid.
2. will have written a novel.
3. will celebrate this blog's 10th birthday.

***

One of my favorite desserts: Tiramisu at Little Italy!

Shopaholic, Me & Dexter!

Theres not much to do these days at work, as it looks like I completed my work for the August Release in July itself!! Shocking, but true! Anyway, I've been reading the Shopaholic series, and am on the third book now.

The second book Shopaholic Abroad, was a bit like a filler book or something, with quite a simple plot actually. Becky moves to the US with Luke and shops (obviously!) and gets into debt over there. Towards the end however, all her issues get resolved and she starts a new job as a personal shopper. How I wish real life had simple solutions like that! *sigh*

The third book is Shopaholic Ties The Knot.

In this book, Luke proposes and the wedding is all set to take place at Becky's parent's home in UK. However, Luke's manipulative Mom lures Becky into having a wedding at the Plaza Hotel in New York, which Becky just cannot refuse once she sees the place. And if I'm being honest, neither would I, look at the place, its beautiful:

Becky doesn't have the heart to tell her Mom that she want the great big NY wedding, so things spiral out of control with the wedding being planned for the same day but at two different locations. To give her credit she does try telling the NY wedding planner to call off the wedding, but is forced to go through with it once she finds out she signed an agreement according to which cancellation would cause her to pay the wedding planner $100000!
It really is kind of stupid the way time and again she buries her head in the sand and just lets things snowball into avalanches of sorts!

But I cannot afford to be judgmental, I'm sort of doing the same thing!

 

And then there's Dexter! I really love the series and am at the end of the 7th season, which honestly seems like a big mess. Everything's going wrong. There is no single serial killer being hunted by Dexter as in the previous seasons, instead there's are a bunch of killers thrown around! Also, Deb is attracted to Dex (weird!!) and she finds out the truth about Dexter, who in turn is attracted to a fellow serial killer he almost kills. LaGuerta discovers the real Bay Harbour Butcher, and the Ukrainian mafia get involved. As I said, big mess! Loved the new characters of Issac Sirko:

And Hannah McKay!

Reality Check!

Ok, the weirdest thing happened to me last night. I'd gone to watch a movie with a couple of friends. We left E-Square at around 11pm, and as we reached the gate I noticed a girl standing there. She looked so very familiar. She also saw me and smiled, so obviously I smiled back (I smile at a lot of people, strangers included!!). Then she came nearer and the following conversation happened:

She: Hi, how are you?

Me: Hi??!!!!

She: So, you stay in Aundh or what?

Me: Uhhhh *mumbling* yeah

She: Ohhh!! Me too!!!

Me: Oh, ok???!!!

She: See you then, Bye!

Me: Bye??!!

It was such an uncomfortable situation. I mean, I'd seen her somewhere, I knew her. And she was speaking with me so familiarly! It wasn't like when you cant remember somebody's name, and remember everything else about them. That has happened to me countless times. This time, I just couldn't remember who she was, couldn't figure out where I knew her from, yet her face was so familiar!
I know that I know her, but I just don't know her!!!

This is the kind of thing that usually happens to my mom! Age is finally catching up with me, and I'm only 25!!  :(

The call

Ok, so I was loaded with work yesterday. Usually I spend time on shopping sites & blogs, but yesterday I just didn't have any time. As I was busy typing I got a call. When I checked the phone screen, I saw that it was a Goan land-line number. I answered immediately, there was a man at the other end of the line. Our conversation went like this:

Me: Hello!

Man: Hello, who's speaking?

Me (irritated): Whom do you want?

Man: You??? I thought I'd called Mama!

Me: Pa??? Is that you?

Man (Pa): Yea

Me: Ok, what happened? Where you calling from? Whose number is this?

Pa: I forgot my mobile, so was calling Mama to tell her, I must've dialled your number!

Me: Oh!

Pa: Yeah, even when I'm calling someone else, I dial your number!! See how I think about you all the time!

Me: Yeah :)

Pa: Ok, call Mama now and tell her I don't have my phone. Bye!

*cuts the call*
Me (To nobody): Ok, Bye?!

The call made my day!!! 

The times, they are a-flying!!

Ok, so another weekend passes by very quickly, and we're already in the third quarter of 2013! More and more people are moving on: getting engaged, married, having kids, new jobs!

And here I am, working at the same place & same project for more than three years, and at the same seat for just as long!!! Same flat, and same roomie since I moved here.Not much has changed for quite some time now. And I'm happy with that. I'm not a big fan of change. So, all's well that stays well!

***

Watched the movie Despicable Me 2 yesterday.

A very entertaining and fun movie. I cant remember the first movie that well, so can't say which one was better. Enjoyed the minions, and can't wait for the next minion movie, coming out sometime in the future.
Loved the minion songs (I swear & YMCA) and the way they sing in their minion language!
Also, while the credits were rolling, there were some scenes of minions auditioning for the next minion movie, one which had the minions blowing soap bubbles. The 3-D effect for these was so good, the kid in the next seat actually jumped up and put his hands out to burst the bubbles!!!

***

This was followed by lunch at the best Italian place I've been to. Ate till our stomachs ached! 

Just Another Slow Weekend..

Ok, so I've been sick since Thursday with the usual sore throat, sneezing, running nose and all that. It actually started Thursday morning when I was at work, and by noon everyone was begging me to go home lest I infect them! Really! Anyway, my throat became worse on Friday, as in I couldn't talk, so I stayed at home on Friday. Hence the long, slow weekend at home. I blame the rains. Its so wet and muddy and disgusting here at this time!

Bored at home with nothing good on TV, and tired of SATC, I decided to start watching Dexter.

Its interesting and all, but really really creepy. The opening credits only gave me chills the first time I saw it. I mean just imagine, having someone in your life who you're close to and think you know well, and then he/she turns out to be a serial killer!!! It got me thinking as to who might be the "Dexter" in my life. There is one guy at work who seems suspicious, but that could be because he's new, has crazy curly hair and keeps smiling!! But that seems kinda obvious, and my instincts are unreliable most of the time, so it could be somebody less conspicuous.


Believe it or not, other than stepping out for a Blood test on Saturday, I was in the flat the whole time, about 80 hours!!!!! I was actually happy to go to work on Monday, and that's a first!

That was my state by Sunday evening. And I survived those 80 hours mainly on Chicken Manchow Soup. Thank God for Kimling!


Anyway, I'm just relieved I can talk properly now, and fingers crossed I haven't spread the germs to anybody from whom I can get them back!  

P.S. Image courtesy: http://funny-pics.co/tags/bored-funny-pics/

At Last....

I'd been in a constant state of melancholy ever since Monday, when I heard about it. As the days passed I gradually descended into the very pit of despair. Broken dreams, shattered hopes! All of it best described, as usual, by a song:

Woke up to reality
And found the future not so bright
I dreamt the impossible
That maybe things could work out right

I thought it was you
Who would do me no wrong

And now you've given me, given me
Nothing but shattered dreams, shattered dreams,
Feel like I could run away, run away

- Johnny Hates Jazz

MaPa and my friends were hopeful and kept telling me that things would turn out all right in the end, but I just couldnt help thinking of the worst. Adi specially was considerate and tolerated (without much complaint) all the moping around that I did for three whole days!

Anyway, as I was getting back to work from the tea break today (the third day), I got a call which confirmed my worst fears: I was the only one left. Just me!

I had a silly smile plastered on my face as I logged in and tried to make sense of the reality, like I couldnt believe this was happening to me! As I was gearing up to do what I do in such situations, it appeared in the lower right corner of my screen, those magic words:

Congratulations on your promotion

And just like that, all was well again!

I think I can make it now, the pain is gone
All of the bad feelings have disappeared
Here is the rainbow I’ve been prayin?for
It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun-Shiny day.

- Johnny Nash


***

Picture of the Day: Cat Got Your Bike?

Snack Time!!

Ok, so I've been eating a lot these days, like really a LOT! Thought I'd share pics of some of my currnet favourites. Will go on adding as my tastes change.

Apples: Although this is a full one, due to dental issues I cut it into many tiny pieces and eat.

M&Ms:

Gummy Fruits?: Thought I wouldnt like them, cos I dont really like Gummy Bears, but I was pleasantly surprised. Thanks Adi! And for the M&Ms and all the other chocolates and everything! Muah!

Walnuts & Almonds: My latest food craze! I read somewhere that almonds and walnuts are really good for the brain somewhow. Apparently all foods shaped like a body part are good for that body part; like kidney beans would be good for your kidneys. Hence the walnuts!

 

CCD's Dark Passion: Last and the Best!

 

 

 

My mouth's watering now, off to eat!! 

 

Freaky Friday!

Ok, so I never used to understand how some people could come to work on Fridays in Formals!! I mean its like the most awaited day of the week. How could you forget about it??? HOW??

Today I went to work in Formals... and I still don't understand how, but i really just forgot!