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

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

Lifeplan

Word.

From one of my favorite tv personalities.

xoxo

The Rambler

Instagramming too much

After my blackberry crashed, I had no option but to go get a smart phone.  I bought the Samsung Note 2. It is quite nice. And after installing a multitude of apps, I spend half of my day on it.
I am even typing out this post on my phone.  But only because it is a small one. I suck at typing on the touchscreen. 
Anyway, been instagramming a lot. is a lot of fun.
Check the pics out.
Xoxo
The Rambler

New year greetings

Happy new year everyone.  New year resolution is not to make any resolutions.  Looks like I am failing already. 

Xoxo
The Rambler

Crimes against women

India has always been a land of hypocritical morals when it comes to women. At one end, we see men worshipping goddesses such as Lakshmi, Parvati, Saraswati, etc. On the other hand, we see heinous crimes such as rapes taking place in apparently safe places such as public transport.
Women in India must not be new to eve teasing, staring, inappropriate touching, etc. But we learn to deal with it. Since it doesn't kill us, it obviously makes us stronger. But where will this stop? What will it take for it to stop? It started from the days of Draupadi when she was shared among five guys. I mean c'mon. Even our mythology isn't bereft of misogyny.
With politicians blaming the intermixing of girls and guys for the increase in sexual crimes to lowering the age for marriage for girls as a solution to an end these horrible acts, the blame is always put on the female. I mean, how will lowering the marriage age for girls help prevent this act? It is not a question of whether girls are horny or not. A rape within a marriage is still a rape. It is still against the wishes of the woman. The girls are not the perpetrators of these obscene acts. They are just the victims.
I think a major reason for this state of affairs is the huge taboo associated with sex. While everyone in the country is doing it, it is still not a good thing to talk about it out of the closed doors of the house. Why the huge silence when it comes to these things when we are where Kamasutra took birth, something that is celebrated worldwide? This taboo is making sex a dirty word and as a result a dirty act, when actually it is supposed to be something beautiful.
But, I am not here to comment on how the society works and why it does what. I am just mad. As a female I take offence when society refuses to respect another woman and her body. I do know that people will say that this one act is not representative of the entire society. But what the hell! The society isn't doing anything to protect the Indian woman either.
I am an only daughter. My parents are afraid to let me out. And I don't blame them. Which parent wouldn't be in the current state India is in. In doing what the Indian society is doing, it is actually curbing the rights of the Indian woman to move about freely, dress as she likes and do even something as simple as get a drink at a pub.
I would like to point out that in the whole Indian society, Bengal and Kerala stand out. Bengal, barring madam Mamta's statement, has always been a progressive society. Maybe it is because of our excessive emphasis on the development of the mind. But never in a Bengali household will you see a woman fasting for her husband or putting her husband on a pedestal and touching his feet. A wife is an equal life partner. All the hindi serials that you see will show the wives worshipping their husband, keeping that inane Karva Chauth fast and all other kinds of bullshit. I have a whole post on how asinine those shows are. But thats for another time. But bengalis truly adore their daughters and wives. Another household is that of a keralite. Kerala is a matriarchal society, so that's a whole different ball game. But my basic point is, much of the Indian society's perception of woman is based upon the fact that women are generally not treated as equal life partners. And that needs to change. Fast.
One last thing. I am just at a failure to understand the logic behind carrying out such abominable acts. Do these men really think they can get away with something like this? Do they think a woman is going to keep quiet once you have completely ravished her modesty and left her humiliated? Do you really think women are that weak?
I know I have said a lot in this post and I know there will be lots of people who might not agree with everything I say. But then, I am just some unknown blogger in the world wide web. And this article is just my view. But I do hope, that I get a chance to just be my free self, sometime, very early in the future. And these hypocritical standards to which women in India have to adhere to is done away with.
My thoughts with all the girls who have endured men and their atrocities. If I had a choice, I would have them castrated. But then, I don't think I would ever get elected into a position of power. Because, we are a country of men. And men will do anything to keep women from getting into power. Because, they are afraid of becoming redundant (especially with stem cell research which shows that we don't really need men to reproduce) The only reason men are relevant today is because women still keep them relevant.
The men who were the perpetrators of this crime will in most probability be punished. But imagine the same crime being committed by men or boys coming from the upper strata of the society and being well connected. Would the nation be crying out with the same outrage? Would the politicians be denouncing it loudly on public forums? Would we even get to know about it? There are thousands of sexual crimes committed against women all over India. And yet, we get to be up in arms about only the ones which the media tells us about. The hue and cry will persist till the media finds something more sensational to report about. And then what? All of us will go back to our lives. And she will have to live with the agony of what happened.
A final word though, maybe in India, the lack of respect for women is in your face. But it exists elsewhere too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZAxwsg9J9Q

If you find this post feminist or sexist or racist, its fine by me. I am an Indian girl. And I get to be all of them.
Peace

The Rambler

The last task

A field blossoming with Posies, 

Enwrought with scarlet blood

She walked, her feet dragging

As she remembered all the slung mud

The black hood covering the scar

The crippling fear embalming the pain

The dark agony never to be erased

The shine of the dagger cleaned by rain

She was a simple village woman

Driven to her present dire strait

She could be any other woman

Someone without the repulsive fate

A simple village woman, captured

Traded and tormented, treated as a good

Sold in the market, used and abused

She never really enjoyed her womanhood

She endured it long, she endured each test

She endured the pain, the humiliation

Until the day she could endure no more

She freed her soul from the encapsulation

And so she was walking through the field

Unknown fears about the place, so new

The blood surrounding her, so red

When at the end, she saw what was due

She had a chance, to set things right

She had a chance to get what was hers

She just needed to go back one last time

And add to the field of blood tears

So, go back she did, back one more time

To give the dagger a chance to nourish

To be able to silence those who strangled her

Before she could truly and completely perish

The Rambler

Marriage

Too many people I know are getting married. Not conducive for my peace of mind. 

http://randomprocessing.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/no/

xoxo

The Rambler.

The need for chaos and anarchy

‎"..in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.." : Harry Lime, The Third Man.

Such a wonderful thought. I know there would be lots of people who would disagree with this line of thought. Foremost would be the people who actually lived during the time when the Borgias ruled. But maybe chaos and anarchy do give rise to the development of arts and science. Or is it just that you recognise the talents and creations more effectively when you are surrounded by pandemonium. After all, the shine of a diamond is most evident when placed in mud and not among other diamonds.

Here is an interesting article on this topic:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19202527

As the article explains, people are apprehensive about admitting that art can flourish under tyranny for the simple reason that freedom will appear to be overrated if that was the case. Though contrary to the article, my view is that art flourishes under despotism for the simple reason that despotism can illicit in a person strong feelings and emotions, something that is central to the development of art. All forms of art, be it written or graphical is the result of acute belief in an idea and the strong emotion to give that idea a physical form. And autocracy is just a basis to develop these emotions. The emotions of competition, rivalry, anathema, abomination among others are absent from a democratic harmonious setting which will lead to cultural desolation.

Conflict and antagonism seem to have a more conducive effect on the development of culture and art forms when compared to harmony. I am an example of this. I feel that my writing flourishes whenever I am in a state of despair and desolation. Like now. I am strung out since I don't have a job. And I have suddenly writing with a voracious appetite. I was similarly under a major amount of stress when I had my last creative spell. When I am happy, I am unable to coin anything. I stare blankly at the paper and words refuse to form in my head. But in moments such as these, I attain a clear perception of my feelings and my need to emote through words. And I begin writing. I write as if that is the only thing I like doing. I write for large parts of the day. And I am not tired of it. There are so many ideas that I want to put on paper. And so I do. My states of stress and tension has the capability to awaken the writer in me. And I am glad about it. Because, I really do love writing. But I cannot write until and unless I feel something forceful enough.

Though the original statement is not accurate since the cuckoo clock came later and the Swiss were a major military power, but the statement is still quite strong and gives form to an idea which has been prevalent. The core of the statement, the idea that culture and its development seek antagonism is quite emphatic and calls for attention.

Leaving you with something to think about.

The Rambler

What You Imagined Your 20s Would Be Like Vs. What They’re Actually Like | Thought Catalog

What You Imagined Your 20s Would Be Like Vs. What They’re Actually Like | Thought Catalog:

'via Blog this'

xoxo
The Rambler

Things to do before your final set of exams for your Masters

Watch Men in Black (in 3D)
Watch the Euro Cup quarterfinals
Drink Cider
Watch an episode of MasterChef Australia
Oh... and study a bit

xoxo
The Rambler

Devolatilized

Sitting amidst volatility models, significance tests, utilities and investor wealth, thinking about the bigger scheme of things

xoxo

The Rambler

Panic? Me?

With the last assignment of the term due and a Scotland trip to look forward to, this is exactly how I feel.

xoxo
The Rambler

False confessions: Silence is golden | The Economist

False confessions: Silence is golden | The Economist:

'via Blog this'

Poetry of the Samurai

Poetry of the Samurai:

'via Blog this'

My favorite:
Death poems
are mere delusion-

death is death.

xoxo
The Rambler

Simply being Calvin

I can't get enough of them.
Off to read more Calvin and Hobbes
xoxo
The Rambler

Divorces and Independence

http://www.indiauncut.com/iublog/article/we-should-celebrate-rising-divorce-rates/

What utter bullshit. Excuse my language, but as a female, who believes she is strongly independent, I am mighty well offended by this absolutely nonsensical measure of my independence.
More broken homes is not something that we should celebrate. If you are so independent. don't marry in the first place. Or at least find out about the guy you are marrying. Do a background check. We have enough jobless PIs for that. If he is a jerk after marriage, there is a high probability that he was one before marriage too.

While I am not for or against marriage or believe in the sanctum sanctorum of marriage, I just feel that feminism does not need bullshit like this. If you want to celebrate the independence of women, look at their achievements in politics, education, etc and not just how many divorces they have had. Divorces is something quite unfortunate that any family for that matter could be subject to. And celebrating something like this just reeks of immaturity. 

People blame it on the so called system of arranged marriages in India. But, arranged marriages have the lowest rate of failure. Trust me, they are a good thing.
Also, if the woman is independent enough, she would say no before entering the marriage and not after committing to the marriage. I mean, any independent woman is smart enough to figure out during her engagement or courtship period whether she wants to be with him or not. If you can't have a conversation for more than 5 minutes, I think that's pretty much the red danger sign that the couples counselor would tell you about.  I am telling you about it for free. While we have a higher rate of divorces, we also do have higher engagement periods. So, why should it be so hard to figure out that you are not made for each other.
And you would know if you had an abusive boyfriend. There's no getting past that. You need to be either senseless or completely stupid to not see an abusive partner. And there aren't so many people with CIPA. I think. 

And for those of you who talk about compromising, you compromise with a lot of things. do you give all those things up? A lot more people would be without jobs if everyone stopped compromising. Just saying.
And like everything else, marriage needs work. If you think its as easy as eating cake, well then everyone is better off eating cake and not being married.

Anyway, I think the guy's talking bull. And since he's a writer for TOI, DEFINITELY bull. I am off to stare at the snowflakes

Toodles

xoxo

The Rambler