Being a domestic goddess

I never thought I would be good at being a domestic goddess, but I think I would make quite an awesome domestic goddess. The reason for this new found confidence in my housewife capabilities comes from my current track record. I've recently taken a sabbatical for 3 months due to some personal reasons and have been spending it at home. I've come to realise that being a domestic goddess takes a fair amount of managerial capabilities. I would put up a power point presentation to support this, but let's not get too managerial at this point.
Being a domestic goddess includes a fair bit of managing. We have 3 household help, a cook and a driver. When you have a team running the house for you, you need to clearly demarcate duties. Cue in: My amazing managerial qualities. Do you know the number of times I have prevented a fight from breaking out in the house? Do you ? It also involves some amazing negotiation skills if you have to get them to do the work you want them to do. Yes, you are going to hear the word amazing a number of times today.
Being a domestic goddess is hard work. I have only come to realise how easy my mother made it look. There are so many damn responsibilities to take care of. There's the house, the cleaning, the laundry, the cooking, the grocery shopping. I could go on, but you get the gist. I think housewives are the most under-appreciated workers of our economy. The kind of work they do, it's like running a company. They are like the CEO of the house and they've got all these sub-divisions under them.
I think I might have inherited my amazing (yes, there it is again) qualities at being a domestic goddess from my mom. I'm nowhere as brilliant as she is. But I try to do well.
My favourite department is cooking. I love to cook. I love to watch cooking shows more. But cooking is pretty amazing too. Especially baking. Have you ever knead dough? It is the MOST SOUL SATISFYING thing ever. With each fold that you massage, you can feel all your tension massaged away. It's also amazing for when you need to beat the crap out of someone. But I suggest not using that batter for a pie, coz it won't turn out nice.
I could stay up all night telling you guys about how tough it is to be a domestic goddess and how fun it is (especially going grocery shopping, where I ALWAYS go overbudget). But I won't. Because it is 1. And every domestic goddess needs her beauty sleep.
Signing off
xoxo
The Rambler

Monday hating and vacation dreaming

It's been over 1.5 months since I returned from my much needed holiday. Away from work and responsibilities, only with friends and family. And 3 whole weeks spent travelling across Spain and Portugal, eating the best meat and fish and drinking the finest wine. I don't think I could have asked for a better holiday. Maybe just another one sooner rather than later.

Speaking of holidays, Mondays are the most difficult thing to return to. Monday hating exists. And for a very good reason. Though the beginning of the week, it is one of the most unproductive days of the week. It is spent catching up with colleagues, replying to emails sent over the weekend, discussing conquests/wastage of the previous weekend, meetings for catch up, meetings for planning, meetings for meetings. You get the idea.

As I try to get through another Monday, all I can think of is why there exists this particularly horrible day of the week. Then all the wisdom that I have gathered in my almost 25 years of existence make me realise that Mondays exist simply to take the pressure off Tuesdays. So, good guy Monday. No, bad guy Monday. Still a bad guy for me.

I'd rather be vacation. Lying next to the pool or on a sunbed at Marbella. Or sipping on cava and eating tapas at a bar in Barcelona. Or just crusing through the Duoro valley after more than advised amount of port wine. Speaking of port wine, have you ever heard of green wine? Green wine is basically made from fresher grapes, with lesser sugars. Therefore, it is much more fruity and less fermented. And tastes SO GOOD!

Dammit, I am back to vacation dreaming on this Monday hating.

Ah well, it must be in the stars today.

Listening to Happy by Pharell Williams to get me through this rather drab Monday.

xoxo
The Rambler

The writer's block

As a kid, when I stumbled upon the term writer's block, I didn't know it was my first oxymoron. No wonder, the word left me flummoxed. I couldn't conjure in my growing mind, how a writer could ever have a block. The want and the need to write is what composed the writer. As an avid writer of short stories and attempted poetry, I always fixated upon the oxymoronic nature of the term. Till a few years back as well, I never could get my head around it. But as I get more wrapped up in my duties as an adult, I am beginning to recognize, how the need and the want to write is not always supplied with the material to write.

I have had and definitely think, will always have this great urge to write. But work, studies and the newly started yoga classes are leaving me drained. I don't have the jump in my stride anymore, the energy in my laughter or the imagination in my thoughts. I get bogged down by worries. I don't make leaps of faith. Instead, carefully analyse everything before "jumping in". 

The wise men have said, growing up is the most horrible thing you can do. I'd have to agree with the wise men on this one. It drains you out. Growing up that is. You become mechanical. You worry about the future. You stop enjoying the present. You party, not to enjoy, but to get drunk and be dead without the commitment. You stop planning a spontaneous trip with your friends because you can't run away from commitments. You definitely stop binge eating because of all the "oh my god! you've put on weight!" You stop with lying in the shallow waters of Goan beaches because you haven't been to Goa since you left university. And the worst of all, you stop writing. Because at the end of the day, you think only sleep can replenish the energy the overwhelming world has drained you of. Never once thinking, that writing is the best way to rejuvenate your mind. And you end up suffering from writer's block. Not because you are so deprived of life experiences. But because of your inability to discover experiences from everyday happenings. Because, if you are not working, you are sleeping and if not sleeping, working. Like a humanized robot. Either way, you are missing out on life and experiences.

Writer's block still confuses me. I understand why a writer could have difficulty putting things of paper. For lack of experiences. But, without experiences, a writer is no longer a writer. Without the ability to imagine people and circumstances above and beyond your current settings, through your current setting, you are just an ordinary human. Utterly incapable of transferring another human to a place far away from his current existence. To make him feel things. And to make him want to do things. To break away and escape. 

I was suffering from what people would normally term as a writer's block. But I don't anymore. Because, I have realized, I don't get any greater joy than writing. I get a surge. An adrenaline rush. A feeling of accomplishment so powerful, it gives me strength to do other mundane tasks. And the ability to find my stories in the slightest of experiences. Like today.

xoxo

The Rambler

I'm really bad at this

Well, it's that time of the year again when I feel guilty about not posting on my blog and start writing out another post. I'm sure this feeling won't last.
Alright. I can't deny it anymore. I'm really bad at writing blog posts and posting regularly. I mean, like really really bad. I always remember to look back on this site when I have some free time. And that is absolutely no way to treat my dear beloved blog. I think we should break up. After all, in this case, it is actually me.
Heh heh. I've always wanted to say that to someone. But never really got the chance. But, oh well. I said it to my blog.
I don't mean it. I'd never give up on my blog even if it meant just our annual date.
As it inadvertently happens when I start writing out my annual blog post, I have no frigging clue as to what I want to write about. But we will see how this one goes.
So, to get the most obvious things put of the way first. 2014 has started. I've been working (so booyeah, I have an actual reason for not posting). Work keeps me busy and my mind off the fact that I'm dating my work.
My mother plans on opening a shaadi.com account for me on my 25th birthday which happens to fall in November. So, thankfully I have three quarters of a year to frolick around. With models and sheets (those sexy financial models and hunky spreadsheets. Oh myyy) it's going to be hilarious though. "Wanted white Brahmin boy for workaholic Indian girl. Needs to be able to pamper her." Wait, I'm not a Brahmin. So, whatevs. In case you missed it, that's my attempt at being cool and young - to prove the stupid Facebook quizzes that say I'm 44 wrong! I know. I need to sort out my priorities.
As I had mentioned, my annual posts generally have no sense of direction. So, we've covered 2014, work and marriage. What else can a 24 year old do ? Oh yes. I've been studying also. Certifications. Kill me now.
Well, other than that, I've been trying to plan my travels. I really hope I get to go. Sigh. And meeting people. So pretty normal. Sigh.
I guess I lead a boring life. Nothing worth a blog post anyway.
As I promise at the end of every annual blog post, I shall endeavour to post more regularly. One can always hope. 

Till we meet again,
Xoxo
The Rambler

Do not marry before age 30 | GlobalRencai.com

Do not marry before age 30 | GlobalRencai.com:

'via Blog this'

xoxo
The Rambler

The allure of 'yellow fever': New documentary explores why so many white American men aspire to marry Asian women | Mail Online

The allure of 'yellow fever': New documentary explores why so many white American men aspire to marry Asian women | Mail Online:

'via Blog this'

Quite offensive imho.

xoxo
The Rambler

Reminiscing

The monsoons are finally here. Actually, they've been here for a while and I have just gotten around to writing about them. I love the monsoons. It makes me happy. Maybe because I am a really soppy romantic person deep down inside and I love the romance of the season. Or maybe because I am one of those nature enthusiasts who loves the fresh washed green look after the rains. Or maybe, I am just a depressed person at the end of it all and because the weather is so gloomy, it makes me happy. Whatever, be the reason, I really love the rains. I could stand on my balcony for hours and watch the pitter patter. I could watch the sea link slowly become visible. I could watch the sun shine through the clouds and I could watch the day becoming darker.
Rains always remind of the first time I entered college. It was the end of July. The campus was newly washed with rains. Green. Foreboding and inviting at the same time. I was excited. Because I was going to college. And apprehensive, since, being the protective only child, this was the first time I was going to be all alone. Away from home. I still remember my first night. I remember being a bitch and asking the other girls to shut up so I could get some shut eye. I remember the bed feeling so unknown. I remember waking up the next morning and finding the surroundings unfamiliar but realising in a second that a new chapter in my life had started. I knew college was going to help me come out on my own. I was an introvert till then. Still am I think. But I didn't have close friendships, wasn't one of the popular girls or never had a group I could hang out with. I used to study. And read and watch tv. I did all that in college. But in moderation. I did a lot of other things.
I think college helped me become more confident of myself. And more importantly, it helped me be myself. I could be my crazy self and still know I had friends who would stand by me. The 3.5 years I spent in Goa pretty much helped me shape my plans and attitude for the rest of my life. And made me comfortable about the fact that they could change.
College will probably the most important event in anyone's life. I mean. You have school which you spent more time in. But there is something about university. Atleast, it was for me. It's maybe to do with making friendships that last a lifetime. Or maybe to do with taking the first step towards independence. Or for some, maybe their first love. Everyone has their own reasons. But for me, it was about discovering myself, enhancing those traits and becoming the person I am today.
I have so many memories, events and incidents associated with college. If I close my eyes, I could still see them. As if they are taking place this very moment. And each of them had contributed to my growth. All of them, throughout the 3.5 years I spent in college. All of them, be it college fests, classes or trips.
I have been to two universities, yet, there is something about your undergraduate life. It's what you tell your grandkids. Definitely hide from your kids but hope they have it too. The kind of crazy person you were. You tell them about the time when opportunities seemed endless and afternoons lazy. When you didn't have to think about responsibilities or get mowed down by worries. You just lived in the moment as you lay in the shallow beach waters with a beer in your hand. Or when you had to make an hours trip out of the campus middle of the exams because you wanted to have a keema paratha. Or you decided to watch MIB or an entire season of House the day before your exams. Or take a long walk across the campus as it poured. You could just relax and remain suspended in that moment.
Yeah. College days will probably be the best as everyone moves on with their lives.
Everyone talks about missing their college days. I do not. Because to miss them, they would have to leave me.
xoxo
The Rambler

Overpopulation

I have been reading Dan Brown's Inferno since last week. And before you get all judgemental, I have a predisposition for thrillers and allow myself a treat of thrillers once in a while.
Anyway, first thing that the book has done is made me realise that I want to read Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy. I want to read about his journey through hell, purgatory and finally paradise. Actually, I mostly want to read the inferno bit of it. Because, apparently hell is described in the most beautiful way. Second thing, it made me think.
I don't know if Dan Brown intended to make his book on the ethical dilemma or not. But, the book does pose a very interesting question. If you had a switch which could kill half the people on the earth (any random half which could include you or your relatives), but ensure that the rest of the human race survives, would you do it?  I think I would. But then, that's my answer now. I don't know what I would do if I was faced with the actual switch. The book talks about the bane of overpopulation and how it will be the very reason to destroy the human race unless something is done to stem the population growth and the population in general. Very bold statements are made in the book about releasing diseases into the population to stem its expansion. Which can be termed as quite frightening. But the fact remains that overpopulation is leading to a strain on the earth's resources. And no amount of renewable resources can hide the amount of abuse the earth is under.
As a resident of India, I am very well aware of how bad overpopulation can be. With a population of 1.24 billion with a growth rate which is showing no signs of slowing down, the overpopulation factor is one of the major factors which is impeding India's growth. WIth limited access to amenities by a vast section of the society, the Indian society is suffering from the ill effects of overpopulation. One way to control this growth in population is to implement the one child policy like China did. However, in India, promoting the one child policy to combat overpopulation is most likely to lead to a further decline in the already low gender ratio. The same was witnessed by China with an increase in sex-selective abortions. Though, there has been a ban on sex-selective abortions in India, it is very difficult to monitor such cases, with a number of mom and pop sonography centres across the country performing the discreet services of sex determination.
Anyway, I am no expert on population. So, writing anything more than an opinion on the facts presented in the books is beyond my realm. But the book got me thinking. Which is not something I expect to do when I am reading a thriller. Would I pull that switch? If not me, then hopefully, there is someone brave enough to pull that switch.
xoxo
The Rambler

Back to blogging

So, hello. As promised, I'm back on my blog. Agreed, a little late. But nonetheless, I am here.
As usual, a thousand things are going through my head. But putting them all down would pretty much take eternity. But, I don't have that kind of time. We all die, you see.
On that grim note, let us proceed. First up music.
I have discovered new music while I have been away. And I am ashamed to admit that it is The Wanted. The video is stupid and the boys ugly, but the song 'I found you' is addictive. And I cannot get enough of it. I don't get the craze behind boy bands or boy singers (read Justin Beiber). I mean, yeah, the music is peppy and will make you want to dance. But I don't consider it good music. Good for dancing in a club maybe and listening to while I try to blog away. But that is where it ends. My liking for these songs. Anyway, who am I to judge. I am just as addicted to the song. Though without the screeching and fanatic behaviour.
I have also watched some movies. Bicycle Thieves being the first one to be mentioned. If you haven't watched it, then I highly recommend you do. It is beyond brilliant. I only wish I knew more Italian than the pasta and the bruschetta. Second to be mentioned is Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. I think I got the spelling right. Madhuri looks HOT. I wanna look like that when I am 40. Although with all the gym and yoga skipping I am upto, that looks next to impossible. A link to a very funny review of the movie:

http://stupidusmaximus.wordpress.com/2013/06/09/we-are-the-youth-of-the-nation-like-totally/

Talking of funny things, I am sooooo excited about finally getting to see The Vir Das this Sunday. I can't help but give a little girl's squeal at the thought. There go my attempts to be all macho. Oh well, I can always blame my x chromosomes for all my girlish behaviour unlike some of my male friends and their PMS symptoms.
Going a bit off topic (although I am not sure entirely what the topic was), have you heard the song Whistle? OH MY GOD! What is wrong with singers. Also, don't judge me if I say it's on my youtube playlist. Which might be a reason for me to go off topic.
Back on topics, men and their pmses. Am I the only female who thinks that the men and boys around her are way more emotional than them. I mean, I don't think I am suffering from any hormonal imbalances, yet, at innumerable points in my life, I have been left feeling I have the emotional capacity of a spoon. Oh, well. It has its upsides.
The monsoons are back in Bombay. But I hate the periods when they retreat to recharge their batteries. Gets so hot! But when they come back it's rather nice again.
Oh, and I also travelled. To New Zealand and Australia. Golly, I just realised it's been a very long time since I posted.
Anyway, I gotta get back to work. And my peppermint tea. (Yeah, I know. Such a girl. Meh.)
Hoping I shall be more frequent with my posts.
xoxo
The Rambler

Rather long delay

I know I have been away from my blog for a rather long time. But, been working and studying and doing all the other stuff that grown ups are supposed to do. Is a real pain. I think I quite enjoy being a student and am definitely considering doing a PhD. Although that isn't quite the motivation schools look for when they decide to spend money on you. Anyway, I shall post soon. After June 1st that is. But a promise has been made and a promise shall be kept. I do have a million things I want to opine about. Mostly women centric. A few on the general state of the economy and the country. Let's see what I do when I do get to it. June 1st it is then.
Till we meet again.
The Rambler

Shameful

Fewer girls being born in posh areas of Mumbai - The Times of India on Mobile

Xoxo
The Rambler

Lifeplan

Word.

From one of my favorite tv personalities.

xoxo

The Rambler

Something India should do

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-28/russia-hires-goldman-to-boost-investor-image-abroad.html

Something to watch

Fire in the Blood (2012) http://uk.imdb.com/rg/an_share/title/title/tt1787067/

Xoxo
The Rambler

Trillion dollar coins

http://godfatherpolitics.com/8847/will-trillion-dollar-coins-fix-the-debt-crisis/

The Rambler