These are a few of my favourite things

When the mind wanders searching for comfort, it tends to think of things....familiar things...things that help it remember good times, good moments, good memories. While my favourite things are a far cry from Julie Andrews', they are mine and mine alone.

Long drives on empty roads, old tracks on the radio, silly movies that show unexpectedly on the TV, hanging out at a friend's terrace, gossiping all through the night, late night phone conversations, train rides with loved ones, open empty spaces where dreams and plans are made, eating dosa while sitting in the car, watching the endless waves hit the shore, walking around the mall with a best friend, coffee breaks at the office, reading an old dog-eared book, playing tennis and basketball, grilled cheese & chilly sandwiches, dark chocolate & breezers, grandparents and their unquestioning love...

The list seems endless but comfort seems a little far away too, at times. Hmmmmmmmmmm

Paused

There are times when one has a lot to say about so many things...the thoughts just keep flowing. Any and every situation becomes a little story...funny, insightful or just random. And there are other times when one just glides over everything...in a way that only a passer-by can. That doesn't mean that the observations stop or that things don't register. It's just that there isn't time to process the things that matter and translate them into a form that can be easily understood.

Busy and preoccupied...that's my excuse. Back to the grind soon...the good grind, though. Observing, noticing...and then writing.

Dreaming away the day...dreaming away life

It's so nice to dream...especially day dream. It isn't easy, though, because in order to be able to dream, the mind has to be free...sort of empty, vacant, relaxed...like it's chilling out.

She closed her eyes...and the images came flooding in. Running carefree across wide open spaces, jumping madly in puddles, climbing tall trees, talking late into the night with friends, dreaming big, imagining that everything was possible and just doing the sorts of things that people would call crazy! The kind of crazy that can only be attributed to youth and the madness of it all.

Why do we let this stop? Why do we allow the madness to end? Why do we build a shield around ourselves and become guarded? Why are we unable to allow maturity and carefreeness (if there is such a word) to coexist?

Why do we not realize that growing up doesn't mean giving up the simple pleasures of life?

You can't take your eyes off it!

Diego, Dora, Peppa Pig, Charlie and Lola, Teletubbies, Thomas the tank engine and countless others...but none of these have kept both my children so glued to the telly as this - Infomercials! No, it's not a new show on any kids channel! It's what airs from midnight to 7am on many of the kids channels. For whatever reason, the kids turned on the TV at 6:30 and watched in absolute silence for a half hour! The best part was the endorsement from my daughter that the steam vacuum is great because there are no chemicals!

Finally, a TV show for all! Chemical-free too :).

Memories for life

It's nice to recount incidents from the past...old stories, events, people, places...memories. What makes this recounting even better is that it's being recounted with the people that you are about to make new memories with! Like a circle of memories...or something like that.

I've always believed that memories that you make in the course of life are not just for yourself...that would be too selfish! Make memories that will live on in other's minds too.

I definitely think I have!

Buzz buzz buzzzzzzzzzzzz

What a nice word...or sound...or feeling....whatever!

:)

The Cheekiness Of Chat

Just the tongue-in-cheek emoticon says it all. You can say whatever you want...almost whatever you want, anyway, and get away with it by using an emoticon. Something like "I didn't mean that...just joking, really" when you may or may not have been. That's the beauty of chat.

On a deeper level, what is it that makes it easy to chat up someone on 'chat'? Is it the knowledge that you can say anything and the other person won't see through you? Is this what allows you to mask your true emotions and feelings? Or sometimes, the other way around?

Either way, the person on the receiving end may never truly get the intended meaning. Or maybe they will but don't let on...they're probably using a complementary emoticon as well. An emoticon face-off, if you will.

Which emoticon will blink first?

Swalpa Kannada learn maadi

I wrote this post soon as I moved to Bangalore. It's almost 2 years now and I'm nowhere close to learning even a little more Kannada than just that. Except for one term - the ubiquitous 'Adjust maadi or swalpa adjust maadi', which means 'Adjust a bit please'. The term is so famous around here that it should be legal to say 'I got adjust maadied'!

Legal or not, I got 'adjust maadied' a few days ago. While driving through the absurd traffic, I'm not sure why I had my windows down. But waiting for the signal to change, I suddenly heard a 'swalpa adjust maadi, madam'...auto driver trying to squeeze into a non-existent space in front of my car!

If that term didn't bring a smile to my face, I might've adjust maadied his face :)

Routine and Randomness

The words routine and random might sound contradictory but they are related in a funny way. Routine facilitates randomness. When you do certain things at certain times day in and day out, there are some things that you will eventually observe. Some patterns will emerge and some deviations as well. But to observe the deviation, you need to understand the pattern first.

Where am I going with this? Nowhere, really. It's more an argument within...to tell myself that as boring as a routine might be, it does have its uses...as random as they might be.

Randomness - what would I do without it!

Oh to escape from the madness!

The mind is a crazy thing...thoughts, memories, wishes, dreams, conversations, emotions...an endless barrage pounding constantly without any relief. You want to tell it to just let up for a bit...just chill out. But you know it won't happen. There's just too much in there.

Imagine being able to escape to that imaginary space where it's calm, still, blissful even. A space where only what you want, you do. Where only what you feel, you touch. Where only what you picture, you see. Where only what you sense, you believe. Where only what you believe, you live.

A space where it all comes together...fits in...and makes perfect sense.