Mannu bhai Motor chali pum pum pum! :)

I will not even say how I plan to write regularly etc. Obviously it is a gheesa tape by now with no meaning whatsoever. So let me just cut the chase and tell you what I want to save here for posterity. For a change it is about me and not the kids. What? I WILL write about the kids soon. Really! :)


So, we are well on our way to being a woman experienced at being in her 30's. There is a lot things that I did and so many more that I want to do. My bucket list if you will. Bungee jumping, visiting Disneyland and learning to swim are yet to be managed, but I have finally managed to learn how to DRIVE! Yyaayyy! :)


Having grown up in Bombay, with no obvious need for a car, we never owned one and by that simple fact never learned to drive one. My parents with their infinite foresight that I could not have imagined then, bought me a two-wheeler. Not that one needed that either, what with the trains, buses, taxis and ricks being easily easily available and all that. My folks thought that it would improve my non-existent sense of direction. It did not help on that count, but it did help me get a road sense and made my life so much simpler and richer once I moved to Bangalore post marriage. M had a two-wheeler and since I had a sales job that needed me to travel a fair bit around the city, I was soon riding along all over the city.


If you have lived in Bangalore, you know it is not an easy task to survive without a vehicle of your own. The autorickshaws are a pain in all possible wrong places. They are rude and cheats. Most of them. Buses have extremely random routes which take forever (though that has improved quite a bit now). So, the fact that I could ride a two-wheeler was such a huge blessing.


Life moved along fine with our trusty Dio. We bought a second hand Maruti 800 after a few years. M learned to drive. I went to a driving school. Had a weird old instructor who would hit us with a wooden scale if we made a mistake. Do not ask me why I didn't just holler or complain. He was just so old and grandpa like that I could not. Oh well! Anyway, after finishing the training thing, getting a license and putting up a L board, I tried to drive. I did too a few times, but not enough to get comfortable with it it. Then I was expecting the Cub and everyone talked about not taking unnecessary risks etc and my driving took a back seat. For a long time.


Then a good friend decided to learn and insisted I did too. So, off we went again. This time to the Maruti Driving School (the one run by the company and not the one just named Maruti!) This one was done by Pratham Motors, one of their dealers. We both have sorta big cars at home, so we decided to learn on the Swift D'zire. The instructors were much better and we got comfortable behind the wheel pretty quick.


Of course, it is one thing to drive with the instructor knowing fully well that they have controls under their feet as well, and quite another to drive your own car with mortal fear of denting your car or even worse killing someone.

A wise friend told me that the trick to actually driving on the roads is to driving every single day for atleast a month. So with M by my side, I was finally driving our Punto! We had our screaming matches and we still do every now and then! :p


We managed to get decent amount of practice done before M was to leave for the US for a month. And what a blessing that was. I could take kids out over the weekend. Go out with friends and do my grocery shopping without worrying about how will I carry everything on the bike.


More than anything else, it was the kick of having learned something new. To have been able to achieve what you could not previously. To see the pride in M's and Cub and Bub's eyes.


I still do not drive very well or anything. There are jhatkas and bumps, but nothing bad enough to stop me from driving, though the lazy me would now rather do it only when i HAVE to! ;)


Here's a picture to go! :)

a letter to my son (aka you better read this letter 3)

The news of a girl being gang raped in Delhi in a bus and then pushed off it along with her friend has disturbed everyone to no end and I am no exception to it. And this is not a one off incident happening in one city of our country either. We all keep wondering what can we do to make things better and of course there is no single answer.


There is the need for extremely stringent punishment obviously! (but what is obvious to us, is not to the Powers in question! sigh!) There is a need for more safety all around for women. But what we need most are sons who are bought up better. Honestly, to me, that seems like the biggest problem that needs to be tackled. In a country where Boys are considered 'better' than Girls, where patriarchal attitudes are an accepted norm, more and more men seem to have trouble understanding and accepting that women DO have a mind AND will of their own that goes beyond pleasing men.


So here is attempt at drilling some sense in to my son! I hope that he will be a gentleman around all women - all the time!


Dearest Cub,


A woman is NOBODY's property. Irrespective of what our society makes us believe. I hope by the time you grow up an application form that a woman needs to fill will NOT have Father / Husband's name as a mandatory field. But till that happens or does not ever happen, remember that a woman is as much her own person as a man is. Right?! Right! :)


There is nothing that is only a man's or only a woman's job. No work can be decided by gender roles. Both the Bub and you will learn similar things at home. Be it cooking or changing the light bulb. (I cannot, but then I am sure I will be able to if I have to. Just like I CAN pick up the 20ltr water cans when I have no choice!:p). Men change diapers and women drive.


There is nothing wrong in being chivalrous. It is charming really. But do not expect every woman to want it or even like it. Cherish and respect the independence of women around you and you will be one lucky guy. So be ready to split the bills at the restaurant and get laughed at for opening the door! :) That said, charm is never wasted, especially when it is genuine! :)


When a woman says NO, she means NO! I know you will see enough ridiculous movies and read enough silly books that tell you otherwise. That say that when a woman says No, she actually means Yes! There is nothing farther from the truth. She might change her mind over a period of time. Or she might not. Whatever it is, please to note that it is HER call to make and your responsibility to accept it.


Never take advantage of a woman who is either sad, on a rebound or drunk. No actually make that NEVER take advantage of a woman in any situation. Always be kind and helpful. Ok?!


Do not glorify women to be perfect mothers, wives and daughters. They have had quite enough of that. Understand and accept that a woman has as many grey shades in her life as a man. They are as susceptible to frustrations and highs as you are. And yes, they think about sex as much. So try not to be shocked. Oh! and need I say do not objectify them either!


Repeat after me ad-infinitum - A woman NEVER ASKS for it! It does not matter what she wears, where she is and what time it was. So do not fall into the trap of blaming the victim. It is our collective responsibility as a society to ensure her safety and first step is having more awesome men like you around! :)


Be happy if someday your wife / girlfriend earns more than you! :) There is no reason to be insecure just because traditionally it is the man's job to earn the bread. Or do not get upset if your super educated partner chooses to stay at home to raise your children instead of winning accolades in her field of expertise. The most important tenet of Feminism is 'choice'. You will remember that I am sure.


There are so many raging feminist issues now which I hope by the time you are older will have reduced greatly. I mean surely we still won't be discussing of a woman should take her husband's surname or stick to her maiden name? It will be quite de rigeur. And the word 'dowry' will not exist! 


There are so many things still on my mind which I do not know how to put on paper. Hopefully you will watch and learn. The good things that is. The important thing to remember that an individual is an individual and the gender really has nothing to do with it. It is as pointless as religion is, but that is for another day, eh?!


Love ya lots
Mamma

ps: you can find the previous two letters here and here. 

the pehla wehla phoren trip! :p

A lot has happened and yet not much! The Bub turned two, two months ago and I have STILL not written a post! Bwwwaaaaah! :( But it is there in my drafts and I intend to finish it one of these days. Enough whining and to the post I intend to write now! :p


This was my Facebook update a couple of days ago;

"We are back with bags full of dirty clothes, hearts full of happy memories and memory cards full of fun photus and of course wallets that are very empty! :) One week in Singapore was perfect to say the least! The weather gods played truant only after we had done major sightseeing! Cub got his wish of getting pics clicked with his favourite Shrek and Alex. There were animals, birds, roller coasters and boat rides. And most of all Cub and Bub got to know one more of their Buas and Uncles better! :) Thank you Kittu Bua and V uncle for being brilliant hosts and making out trip that much more memorable! We cannot wait to have you in Bengaluru now! Hugs!"


So, now you know we went to Singapore on a holiday. Couple of fellow bloggers on my friends list said that I should do a proper blog post and it was that push I needed. I do hope i finish writing this in a day or so!


We flew with Tiger Airways (the only airline we could afford) and were worried about the whole low cost experience, but we had a really good and comfortable flight - to and fro. Since we had a cousin living in Singapore, we spent a couple of days at hotel and stayed with family another few days who indulged us with some seriously good hospitality! :)


We tried to keep our schedules fairly easy considering we had two kids and one senior citizen with us and we are not great on stamina either. Since we were five us out of whom four needed tickets everywhere, we stuck to using cabs for most part. Cost us almost the same and saved us fair bit of time.


A friend asked me how was Singapore? Well, Singapore is Singapore i said! It is neat, clean, child and differently able friendly and full of surcharges and taxes of every kind! It is also hot and humid and bright sun makes for gorgeous photos, if you are looking for that weather silver line! :p


We managed to visit Jurong Bird park, Night Safari and Universal Studios in detail and did bit of Sentosa and some small shopping at the fun China Town and boating at Clarke Quay / Boat Quay.


The day we reached we stepped out only by late afternoon and had to skip the zoo and went straight for the Night Safari. It was a fabulous experience starting from getting to see some animals right outside (with their care takers) to the tram ride taking us through the whole gamut of nocturnal animals to the short walks one can take within the safari. 


Day 2 was Jurong Bird Park and we had a great time yet again. Cub fed the birds, we managed to catch some interesting shows about Birds of Prey, Penguins and birds trained to perform, like macaws and cockatoos. I loved the stunning colours on so many of these winged wonders and it is something to see over 50 flamingos together. 


Day 3 was the day Cub was excited about the whole Singapore trip - Universal Studios! :) He was looking forward to meeting Shrek and got the whole cast of Madagascar as a bonus as well. He did his first roller coaster ride and surprised us by not being scared of pretty much anything! :) That boy has some genes of mine then. Yayyy for that! I am a big roller coaster type thrills junkie and it is good to have company! :) The Shrek 4D show was good fun and so was Donkey Live. We were lucky to find very little wait time at almost all the rides and performances and could make most of the time we had there.


At Sentosa, we just went to the Underwater World and saw the Songs of the Sea show. And yeah! Did the cable car ride. There was an evening spent with friends at Marina Bay Sands' shopping mall and the lovely open area outside. I was meeting these M's friends for the first time and it just did not feel like that. Add to that some fabulous Italian food and we were very happy people. 

We also did the short boat ride at Clarke Quay and it was a pleasant way of spending 40mins. Relaxing and smooth and you get to see all the lovely sights of Singapore. Clarke Quay is also known for its clubbing scene, but with kids on tow we skipped that. The other side has a long line of restaurants that serve you every kind of food available. Seeing the huge, live crabs and lobsters in tanks all around is not for the fainthearted! :p Almost all the eateries offer some sort of discount or welcome drink etc. You can see folks from all over the world converge and enjoy their meals by the bay side. 


What we missed doing and wish could have was go on the Flyer and see the zoo. We also wanted to take kids to a big water park, but the last two days were pretty much washed out with constant rains. We did go to China Town - a market place for all things sasta, pretty, souvenirs and probably not very teekau. Actually not very sasta considering the exchange rate! :( But it is a really cool place and you should make a trip there if you go to Singapore. We just bought chhota chhota things to give Cub's and Ally's friends and some clothes. 


For khaana, we ate some local food, some ghar ka khaana and some Indian food outside as well esp since ma in law got kinda sick of the seafood smell from everywhere! The kids survived on chips, biscuits, juice and an occasional nutritional meal. Bub had a few yogurt dinners as well! :p


The Cub and Bub were quite well behaved unless hunger or fatigue hit them! The Cub enjoyed most of the stuff and after ages we got some really cute photos! :) The Bub on the other hand spent most of her time greying our hair by running amok all over in crowded places. It was one person's full time duty to just keep track where she was. Phew! Oh and must mention how she kept taking off her shoes just about a thousand times a day and sitting on the ground pretty much everywhere! Oh well!


Here are some photos! :)

well past bed time! At Bengaluru Airport! :)

The Croc-Hunter?! :p

My tail who refused to leave my side! I am talking about the Bub! :p

Yes! That Owl is real! :)

We are same same but different! :) (Idea credit to M)

The very tired Bub after a late night flight, a full day and a night safari!

Errr... self explanatory?! :p

At the Jurong bird park! :)

in the Tram that takes you around the Bird Park.

Cub feeding the birds. He was little scared but soon quite amazed! :)

Then it was the Bub's turn!

But no birds came along!

Till one came and sat next to her to finish off the worms! :)

The Cub and the Flamingos! :)

Some jumping around is always good! :)

Who knew that Karate was a water sport?! :p  (Thanks Richa for the water park tip!)

At the Marina Bay Sands shopping arcade!

Kids loved running around the huge open space! :)

The yogurt dinner!

The tired Cub pretending to sleep Bub style with a Tauiya! :)



Phew! I am tired of adding so many photos. So, the rest of the pics in next post! :) 

Hope you guys are having a fabulous new year. Cheers!

on a rainy day! :)

When Cyclone Nilam was ravaging Tamilnadu, Bangalore saw it's side effects with two days of incessant rains, crazy winds and sudden drop in temperature turning Bangalore into a veritable hill station all of a sudden. Considering there was hardly any rain during the entire rainy season, everyone welcomed these showers (atleast for the first day before the roads got worse, traffic turned for worst and damp clothes occupied every available surface in the house!;)


All said and done, the weather was gorgeous - the kind where you either cuddle under a razaai all day long or step out and enjoy the rains. We decided to do the later! We left thinking of having lunch at some new place in the city. But both the places we shortlisted were typically enclosed spaces and how does one enjoy the weather there, really?


So, we just turned the car around and decided to go to another new place we had just heard about called Cafe Buzzinga in Whitefield, Bangalore. Found the phone number, called and found exactly where it was and reached. It is lovely open space @ Lakeview Farms (which in itself is a private property - a part of which the owners have given for commercial purposes).


Cafe Buzzinga is as casual as it's name makes it sound. Run by two young partners, it is a simple place with daily fresh menu on a white board and comfortable cane chairs on pebbled ground. The kids felt at home instantly. Add to that the huge lawn (belonging to the owners) where they had a free run (till the owners came along) and indulgent service - we ended up having an absolutely fabulous afternoon!


What made the whole experience superlative was customer delight offered by the cafe! We absolutely LOVED the bacon in their all day breakfast combo. Since we wanted to have more of the said bacon, we asked them if they could make us a bacon/cheese sandwich which was not on the menu. There wasn't a moment of hesitation and a perfectly grilled sandwich was at our table soon enough! :)


Here are some pictures that should give you an idea! :)

On our way out! Cub holding Bub's hand to keep her under the umbrella, while Bub has plans of her own! ;)

In the middle of the huge lawn of Lakeview Farms! :)

Cub trying to channelize his inner Hulk! But he was too happy to get it right! :)

Arre Bhaiyya! Let me pose by myself! :)

Doing a round of the lawn while the food gets ready! :)

and Bub chose to take a walk with her Papa! :)

Time for some hot chocolate?! :) Served very thoughtfully in a little Espresso cup for a little girl! :)

Content smiles post a great meal and a good time! :)  

The lake and wet roads on our way back! 

name a name?

If you know me on facebook, chances are you know that I LOVE online shopping... most of it window shopping, I promise. But, I love finding new things, cool stuff people are making - slowly becoming a veritable guide to everything nice and new. Not everything, but a lot of it. And I love sharing it!


Yes! There is a point to this rambling! :) I am thinking of doing once a week post featuring these people / pages. Probably a middle of the week Wednesday. Wondering what I should call it though. Any ideas?! Suggestions are welcome! :)


Right now I am drawing a complete blank.


That said, how went navaratri? Did you guys do anything special? Dandia raas? Pandal hopping? Quiet puja? We did not do much except go to the Pujo pandal near our house and feast on the awesome fish being served there! :p Yes yes! Pehle pet puja and then Durga puja.


Now we are looking forward to Diwali. My parents and uncles and aunts descend upon Bangalore this year and need I say we are SUPER EXCITED! :)


Here are a couple of pictures for the road! :)

The Pujo hogging! :)

Dressed for Dassera! :) 

Mera haath pakdo bhaiyya! :)

You better read this letter - 2

Dearest Cub and Bub,


I am not sure you cared much for my previous letter, but then that is no reason to stop me from writing you another one. This time lets talk about beauty perhaps? The inner and outer variety? What really matters? Or let us just play by the ear and see what this chitthi says, eh?


Wear comfortable shoes. Most of the time. Especially you, Bub. You are the one who is going to have all the  temptation in the world. Yes, wear those impossible heels once in a while. Be a fashion victim sometimes. Sometimes, being the key word in this case. Nothing is worth a broken back and painful knees and bad posture! :)


Same goes for clothes. Wear clothes that are clean, ironed and comfortable. Wear ones that add to the feel good factor about yourself, but do not let That be he deciding factor for how you feel about yourself! Ever! :) Taking this a little forward, do not judge people by what they wear. In most cases, it just will not matter or even give you an idea about who they really are.


Ever noticed how the word Make-up screams that what you have is not enough? That you need something more to Make-up for what you do not have. Do not use it as far as possible. It is just a lot of chemicals that you can easily do without. Save it for special occasions if you will? And wait till you are old enough to use it? As for me, I have liked my lipsticks and in recent past nail polish. But, I have never felt the need to have those on every time I step out and find myself being more comfortable in my skin as is. I don't expect you to get there young, but least you know you can try! :)


Instead, concentrate on staying healthy. Eat well. Eat fresh as much as possible. Both of you love fruits (most of them) - keep that love going strong. Drink lots of water. Try and not be fussy about food. It is meant to give you nourishment. If it is tasty as well, that is a bonus. (See, how I covered my not being a good cook!;)


Get exercise. Especially the fresh air kind. Or even the gym, if that is what works for you. Stay fit and keep up stamina. Do not let yourself go, the way your parents did. Take up a sport if you can. Just for fun really. You know your AAji always told me, that whatever you see outside is a sign of what is going on inside your body. If you are not taking care of that, even best shampoos in the world cannot save your hair or best lotions your skin! :) I did not listen to her, but you can and should! :)


Maintain basic hygiene at all times. Bath, teeth, nails - yes that kind of basic stuff. It is hugely underrated this commonsense funda. Oh and let us not forget basic bathroom manners as well. Especially no dirty and wet seats, PLEASE! :)


Edited to add - This suggestion by my friend Swapna! Use sun screen! And umbrella or a hat as well! Yes!


You know all that talk about 'Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder" - true that! :) And, I do sincerely hope that both of you will find that for yourself - sooner than later.


Repeat after me - Colour does not matter. Nor the size. Fair does not equal to beautiful. More importantly, Dark does NOT equal to ugly or any less beautiful. People come in all colours, shapes and sizes and none of it really matters except for differentiating one person from another. Really. :) I know there will be times, when it will all seem balderdash - the inner beauty thing - particularly. But keep the faith. Your natural kindness and genuineness will always shine through. So will a true smile that reaches your eyes. That is the time when you do not need to use so called regular parameters to decide if someone is beautiful - physically.


Most importantly, LOVE YOURSELF. There will be moments of self doubt - a desire to be someone you are not naturally. But it will pass quick enough if you believe in yourself. Just stay healthy and happy and the rest will follow.


And if you are ever worried about not being good enough - look at yourself through our eyes! :)


All my love and kisses
Mumma

The Pratham Experience!

I have been a BIG fan of Pratham Books since the first time Starry Eyed gifted Cub a couple of them - The Monsoon Concert being one of them. I have a whole lot of them at home and Cub loves them as much. I also keep a stock for gifting and gave them as return gifts for Cub's birthday last year.

Last year, a couple of friends had done book reading for them on World Literacy Day and it sounded like a fun thing to do. So, when the chance came up again this year, I jumped at it... okay I was little hesitant, but I really wanted to do it So off went a mail to folks at Pratham and got an enthusiastic response from Maya, one of their team members. Soon, I had in my hands an envelope that had the book they had picked for this years reading (Susheela's Kolam), a couple of more books and a banner saying "Pratham Books Champion". Need I say, I was super excited.

the story telling starts! :)


M and me thought it would be best to do the reading in colony itself which is full of kids around Cub's age. We shot out a mail and kept it open for kids ideally aged between 4 - 7 years. Of course younger and older children were welcome. Around a dozen parents responded that they would send their kids over and we were set.

Kids also getting warmed up!



The D-day arrived and I would be kidding if I say, there were no butterflies! :) The kids arrived on time and some mothers stayed around too. I decided to start with one of our favourite Pratham Stories - The Annual haircut Day - a hilarious story about Sringeri Srinivas who cuts his hair only once a year. The kids responded to the narration and fun elements in the story and by now I was quite comfortable with this whole story telling business! :)

The picture always makes me smile! :)

I am also lot more at ease now! :)


Once the kids were in the groove, I started with Susheela's Kolam - a story about a little girl who loves drawing Kolams everywhere and how she gets them in sky! It was a short story and the kids were mighty excited answering questions about where else could she draw kolams. Since Kolam means rangoli and it also involved aerial acrobatics done by the Air Force, after the story was done, we showed the kids a video of an Aero-show - coloured smoke and all! :)

Watching the aerobatics video! 


Once that was done, two of the mothers did a Rangoli demo for the kids - one with stencil and another the join the dots variety. The kids filled colour in those and tried their hand at using stencils. The messing around done, kids got in and coloured printed rangoli designs with crayons. I loved seeing how beautifully they all coloured and with so much enthusiasm.

The talented l.adies! I cannot draw three dots in a line even. So, these women were my lifesavers! :)

The kids adding colour!

Cub looking at his stencil Rangoli!



Before we knew it, the time was up. Kids took their coloured sheets back home (some asked for extras to go home and colour). The mothers thanked us for an hour plus well spent. And me, I was happy to do something new and different from the usual. It was so much fun seeing kids have a good time and participating enthusiastically in every activity.

Sincerely colouring their paper rangolis! :)

Showing off finished work!

Here are a couple of video links of the story telling;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2yUuHXlWwU&feature=context-gfa

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9hTiU286yY&feature=relmfu


Thank you Pratham Books for giving me this opportunity! May your tribe grow! :)

Ps: there are a whole lot of interesting things happening in Bangalore this Saturday, 13th Oct.

A story telling by Geeta Ramanujam with Tulika (An evening with your Myths) at Aata Galata, Koramangala. 4pm onwards. See this https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=362220400529068&set=a.279171128833996.66834.274368322647610&type=1&theater


Our very own Arthi Anand is doing story telling at Orion Mall at the same time. The picks are ever popular The Mixed-up Chameleon by Eric Carle and few other stories. Art is an awesome story teller, so go! https://www.facebook.com/events/119266278224920/


The Flea Market arranged by the Second to None group on Facebook called Shanivara Santhe happens till 7pm at Fraser Town this time. You can find all the details here - https://www.facebook.com/events/108467272642070/


And there there is the Gourmet Bazaar at Olive Beach which has some of cities best bakers and chefs selling best of their wares between 11am - 4pm. You can find the details here https://www.facebook.com/events/283053198471079/


I seriously wish I could make copies of myself and go everywhere! Sigh!