How do I categorise 2006? Can I call it the year of cathartic change?? or the year of absolute abnormality? or a mixed year- with equal share of ups and downs?
Whatever it is this year has been an interesting year... I have had some of my worst moments in this year...but also had some of the best moments which will be enshrined in my memory as being extremely special.... my life changed in many ways- some changes I never expected would happen, some changes that I had hoped would happen and did, some changes that I didnt want but did happen....In my final opinion- this year is a mixed year...
This is the year I met Baby Tomato a.k.a. Baby George on a perfect Sunday... Baby George spoiled mine and my sister's well laid plans to watch Lage Raho Munnabhai by coming before the scheduled arrival time .... I was the first person to hold Baby George since his arrival in the world and I was also the first person who burped him after his first feed..... the advantage? Baby George smiles at me more than he does at other people.... Truly special .... the disadvantage? since I hold him more he also pukes out his milk on me ....so I end up going to office smelling like baby milk....
This was also the year of defining certain relationships in my life....of redifining certain friendships.... some went out and some probably are on their way out of my life... but ever grateful for their presence in my life till now... I also made new friends this year.... showing me that life is full of pleasant surprises.... and ofcourse some good people continued to give me support and love through the year.... Thankyou for that....
Professionally I changed course last year and the same continued this year at a new place after ELP.....it has been a challenging experience ...Due to ELP this was one of the most stressful years professionally.... a bad boss is never easy to adjust to much less come out unaffected.... I hope I never have to go through that experience ever again in my life... I also hope I never become that kind of a boss any day........
One never knows what to expect but one always hopes for the best.... so likewise I end this year's blog by saying "May you live in interesting times".....
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Execution
There comes a day in every lawyer's lfe called the "execution day".... the day when the documents are finally signed by all the parties......
that day frinally arrives after days (or sometimes years) of haggling by both the sides, of lawyers calling each other names, of clients yelling at the lawyers saying "give it to me in the next one minute otherwise my company will fold up!", of 15,000 versions of documents going out and an equal number of meetings and negotiations between the parties..... most often murphy's law kicks in also at the last minutes and everything goes wrong... from the printer that stops working to the office peon who just disappeared into thin air... everything goes wrong!!! and while one is typing out the words, another one prints out the documents...
and finally after all the blood of the lawyers have been expended on getting the documents into perfection (including checking the ampersand and the comas), the documents are signed by all the VIPs who actually dont have a clue as to what and why they are signing those documents..... There is a large ceremony where all the parties shake hands and behave as if the days of acrimonious verbal exchange never took place .... and which finally concludes in a party in a five star hotel....
and finally when it is all over the actual execution begins... of the lawyer that is.... "there is a comma missing in page 34", "there is grammatical error on page 23' or even "there is a formatting error and (a) is now coming after (b)"... and most often while you want to just scream asking them to see the big picture your professionalism demands that you take note of all this politely and tell them " Yes Sir, That will be done immediately" while all the time thinking "Go Fly a Kite and while doing so please fall off a cliff"
So at the end of the "execution day" you end up feeling "executed"- comma by comma, word by word, ampersand by ampersand....
that day frinally arrives after days (or sometimes years) of haggling by both the sides, of lawyers calling each other names, of clients yelling at the lawyers saying "give it to me in the next one minute otherwise my company will fold up!", of 15,000 versions of documents going out and an equal number of meetings and negotiations between the parties..... most often murphy's law kicks in also at the last minutes and everything goes wrong... from the printer that stops working to the office peon who just disappeared into thin air... everything goes wrong!!! and while one is typing out the words, another one prints out the documents...
and finally after all the blood of the lawyers have been expended on getting the documents into perfection (including checking the ampersand and the comas), the documents are signed by all the VIPs who actually dont have a clue as to what and why they are signing those documents..... There is a large ceremony where all the parties shake hands and behave as if the days of acrimonious verbal exchange never took place .... and which finally concludes in a party in a five star hotel....
and finally when it is all over the actual execution begins... of the lawyer that is.... "there is a comma missing in page 34", "there is grammatical error on page 23' or even "there is a formatting error and (a) is now coming after (b)"... and most often while you want to just scream asking them to see the big picture your professionalism demands that you take note of all this politely and tell them " Yes Sir, That will be done immediately" while all the time thinking "Go Fly a Kite and while doing so please fall off a cliff"
So at the end of the "execution day" you end up feeling "executed"- comma by comma, word by word, ampersand by ampersand....
Friday, December 22, 2006
I want curd rice!!!!!
Now anybody who knows me also knows that I love food..... ok it shows that I love food....
but if there is any such thing as comfort food, it would have to be curd rice for me.... Yes just plain simple curd rice....I can eat that and feel like I am back on familiar territory.....feeling of reaching home.... and this feeling is absolutely unfounded cos nobody in Kerala would even consider making curd rice unless someone is sick or if it was a war like situation... but I just love curd rice.... it would easily be my first choice in any restaurant... mix it with some nice yummy mallu chicken cury or even some nice spicy panner dish and its pure heavennnn!!!!!
so coming to the point of this blog....can somebody give me some curd rice??? Pleaseeeee....
but if there is any such thing as comfort food, it would have to be curd rice for me.... Yes just plain simple curd rice....I can eat that and feel like I am back on familiar territory.....feeling of reaching home.... and this feeling is absolutely unfounded cos nobody in Kerala would even consider making curd rice unless someone is sick or if it was a war like situation... but I just love curd rice.... it would easily be my first choice in any restaurant... mix it with some nice yummy mallu chicken cury or even some nice spicy panner dish and its pure heavennnn!!!!!
so coming to the point of this blog....can somebody give me some curd rice??? Pleaseeeee....
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
We didnt start the fire...
There are days when I just get pissed off with the world... for everything that is wrong with it.... for everything that needs to be righted and is not ..... for everybody (including me) who doesnt or chooses not to do anything.... and today is one of those days.... so a few of the things I hate are:
- I hate seeing children beg on the streets, especially girl children. ... one of the most distressing sights in mumbai for me was the sight of a naked girl child walking from car to car begging and shivering..... While I laud the passing of the Child Labour prohibition act, I still dont know which evil I prefer ... since I have no option but to choose between the two... one gives a kid and probably his family some source of income but is exploitative.... but without at least that and with no option for a decent enough education you are forced to beg on the streets. what do I support???
- I hate the fact that rape is considered as retributive tool in our society. "oh he pissed you off? Lets go rape his sister and teach him a lesson"... in one popular malayalam movie the hero looks at the sleeping heroine and asks himself - "shall I just do a rape ?".. as if it is just an option that is waiting to be exercise by men..........It was supposed to be funny and romantic (ofcourse they fall in love later. duh!) ..... sorry but I dont see any humour in making women look so weak and vulnerable...
- I hate the fact that we dont do enough to protect our environment.... and this where I think I fail miserably.... I am so clueless about what to do to contribute my two bits to this cause... other than ofcourse occassionally puting in recycled paper into the office printer..... worse I dont even know how I am impacting the environment with my behaviour....
- I hate the fact that justice in India is sooooooo difficult..... I dread the day when I have to fight a legal battle... yes, me a lawyer is saying that.... I hate the fact that nothing is reliable anymore.... I hate the fact that most Indians go through life not having hope in such situations......
- I hate the fact that good takes so much longer to get adequately recognised... that sometimes the good gets sidelined and is most often exploited....
- I hate the fact that I have to watch my back nowadays with even "friends".... that it has become so difficult to have a normal conversation without being judged....
- I hate the fact that Bush got reelected.... I hate it more that it impacts an Indian girl sitting in Mumbai... unfortunately, Americans rule ..... At least for now, that is..... I hate it even more that a western approval is more important to us than our own....
- I hate the fact that women dont know their value yet..... independent of a man that is... sorry this is not a feminist rant- just call it a humanist rant..... I just want women to realise their value for themselves.... so that they can demand more respect from society...
- I hate the fact that female foeticide is still prevalent in our country
- I hate the fact that I dont say "I love you" enough to the people I love....
Something's gotta give....
- I hate seeing children beg on the streets, especially girl children. ... one of the most distressing sights in mumbai for me was the sight of a naked girl child walking from car to car begging and shivering..... While I laud the passing of the Child Labour prohibition act, I still dont know which evil I prefer ... since I have no option but to choose between the two... one gives a kid and probably his family some source of income but is exploitative.... but without at least that and with no option for a decent enough education you are forced to beg on the streets. what do I support???
- I hate the fact that rape is considered as retributive tool in our society. "oh he pissed you off? Lets go rape his sister and teach him a lesson"... in one popular malayalam movie the hero looks at the sleeping heroine and asks himself - "shall I just do a rape ?".. as if it is just an option that is waiting to be exercise by men..........It was supposed to be funny and romantic (ofcourse they fall in love later. duh!) ..... sorry but I dont see any humour in making women look so weak and vulnerable...
- I hate the fact that we dont do enough to protect our environment.... and this where I think I fail miserably.... I am so clueless about what to do to contribute my two bits to this cause... other than ofcourse occassionally puting in recycled paper into the office printer..... worse I dont even know how I am impacting the environment with my behaviour....
- I hate the fact that justice in India is sooooooo difficult..... I dread the day when I have to fight a legal battle... yes, me a lawyer is saying that.... I hate the fact that nothing is reliable anymore.... I hate the fact that most Indians go through life not having hope in such situations......
- I hate the fact that good takes so much longer to get adequately recognised... that sometimes the good gets sidelined and is most often exploited....
- I hate the fact that I have to watch my back nowadays with even "friends".... that it has become so difficult to have a normal conversation without being judged....
- I hate the fact that Bush got reelected.... I hate it more that it impacts an Indian girl sitting in Mumbai... unfortunately, Americans rule ..... At least for now, that is..... I hate it even more that a western approval is more important to us than our own....
- I hate the fact that women dont know their value yet..... independent of a man that is... sorry this is not a feminist rant- just call it a humanist rant..... I just want women to realise their value for themselves.... so that they can demand more respect from society...
- I hate the fact that female foeticide is still prevalent in our country
- I hate the fact that I dont say "I love you" enough to the people I love....
Something's gotta give....
My kind of Superhero
Apparently I am meant to be a superhero called Green Lantern!! Btw, does anybody know this guy??
You are Green Lantern
Green Lantern
70%
Superman
65%
Hulk
65%
Wonder Woman
62%
The Flash
60%
Robin
57%
Supergirl
52%
Spider-Man
45%
Iron Man
35%
Batman
15%
Catwoman
10%
Hot-headed. You have strong will power and a good imagination.
You are Green Lantern
Green Lantern
70%
Superman
65%
Hulk
65%
Wonder Woman
62%
The Flash
60%
Robin
57%
Supergirl
52%
Spider-Man
45%
Iron Man
35%
Batman
15%
Catwoman
10%
Hot-headed. You have strong will power and a good imagination.
Sunday, December 17, 2006
My parents left this morning for Kerala... after one month and a week in mumbai... during which time I am sure they would have wondered about a hundred times why I like this city... I dont blame them also... this city is too chaotic, too crazy, too busy, too dirty, too awake for new comers... but this city has a soul.... a soul which is not defined by religion or region- despite the best efforts of some political organisations .... I love that..
I feel kinda of sad that my parents have left..... it was nice to have mom and dad in the house .... nice to have warm food waiting for me when I reached home... ofcourse they were alarmed at how late I travel in mumbai ..... and even more alarmed that I dont double lock my house (yes that I must do)....
it was especially nice to take them around mumbai... .and ofcourse taking them to the new eating joints... so in a nut shell they:
- hated Kobe's ("too much of food!"),
- loved McDonalds ("reminds us of the time we first ate McDonalds way back in 1987"),
- loved Gelato icecream ("dont think this will come to Kerala for a while, dont you think?"),
- loved Atria Mall ("no wonder people are so happy in Mumbai"),
- tased momos ("you mean it is just steamed chicken? "),
- disapproved of Italian food ("its good once in a while but is very boring"),
- wondered why it was so difficult to get normal coffee ("what is this coffee called "chino'?) (a shortform for cappuchino).....
- wondered whether "world space" would have a 24/7 radio station belting out religious christian songs ("you must listen to them")
- loved my new office ("it looks like a cheerful place")
It was also a time for their grandchildren to play with them... christy loves guests in the house and cried everyday when they used to leave my sister's house.... Baby tomato ofcourse was too buy sleeping and crying for milk.... and the highlight of their trip was when all of us, my sister, a highly energetic Christy, a bundled up Baby tomato, my parents and me went to our favourite place Atria Mall.... Just few hours of family bliss.... after which the alarm bell rang i.e. Baby Tomato woke up and demanded milk....
Well... I am trying to fill the silence in my house by listening to world space... no no it does not have a station for devotional christian songs... I checked before buying ... heheh
I feel kinda of sad that my parents have left..... it was nice to have mom and dad in the house .... nice to have warm food waiting for me when I reached home... ofcourse they were alarmed at how late I travel in mumbai ..... and even more alarmed that I dont double lock my house (yes that I must do)....
it was especially nice to take them around mumbai... .and ofcourse taking them to the new eating joints... so in a nut shell they:
- hated Kobe's ("too much of food!"),
- loved McDonalds ("reminds us of the time we first ate McDonalds way back in 1987"),
- loved Gelato icecream ("dont think this will come to Kerala for a while, dont you think?"),
- loved Atria Mall ("no wonder people are so happy in Mumbai"),
- tased momos ("you mean it is just steamed chicken? "),
- disapproved of Italian food ("its good once in a while but is very boring"),
- wondered why it was so difficult to get normal coffee ("what is this coffee called "chino'?) (a shortform for cappuchino).....
- wondered whether "world space" would have a 24/7 radio station belting out religious christian songs ("you must listen to them")
- loved my new office ("it looks like a cheerful place")
It was also a time for their grandchildren to play with them... christy loves guests in the house and cried everyday when they used to leave my sister's house.... Baby tomato ofcourse was too buy sleeping and crying for milk.... and the highlight of their trip was when all of us, my sister, a highly energetic Christy, a bundled up Baby tomato, my parents and me went to our favourite place Atria Mall.... Just few hours of family bliss.... after which the alarm bell rang i.e. Baby Tomato woke up and demanded milk....
Well... I am trying to fill the silence in my house by listening to world space... no no it does not have a station for devotional christian songs... I checked before buying ... heheh
Friday, December 15, 2006
Lovingly yours
Christy wants cotton candy by afternoon... I lovingly agreed...
I want to go to the island of Tonga... Anybody wants to lovingly agree?? hehe....
I want to go to the island of Tonga... Anybody wants to lovingly agree?? hehe....
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Scholarships and the works
"Dont have such high hopes" is all my dad said to me when I broached the subject of me applying for scholarships to study abroad... well to be honest I didnt anyways have any high hopes other than the constant encouragement of friends ... but yet I was determined to try my best for it before I gave up.... which basically angered my parents as in their opinion I was working on something unachievable when I could use that time constructively on choosing a nice christian, mallu boy ........
Never one to listen to my parents I slugged on at the applications.... and to this day I consider it to be one of the most heart wrenching experiences of my life.....I applied for two years..... it is never easy to take rejection in any form... worse when they tell you that "you are a fine candidate but we really dont think you are as great as you think you are"...... one scholarship interview I remember particularly when I was told "you sit in an AC office and you want to change the world?".... gosh those days I think I lived on only hope, watching "friends" and hanging on each words of encouragement from my ever hopeful friends.... at times I did feel like giving up all hope but as always there would be something in me that would make hope float....
and finally when I did get that final decision from the British Council about having been awarded the scholarship I think in some ways it was a celebration of me and my friends... me for not having given up and my friends who actually never let me believe otherwise... and today while giving everyone advice on scholarships and interview I maintain one thing- never believe anything the world tells you about yourself.... ofcourse there will be people who are not encouraging.... one of my friends (yes one of those toxic kinds) actually said "I am not sure you fit the profile of a scholar"... well... did Gandhi look like a freedom fighter??
Finally it is important to also state that I dont approach each task the way I approached the scholarship process... I choose the battles I want to fight for.... so if today some people see me as being a bit of a wanderer it is cos I am pciking the right battles for me to put my heart, soul, mind, analysis, strategy, time into.... I am just made that way....
Never one to listen to my parents I slugged on at the applications.... and to this day I consider it to be one of the most heart wrenching experiences of my life.....I applied for two years..... it is never easy to take rejection in any form... worse when they tell you that "you are a fine candidate but we really dont think you are as great as you think you are"...... one scholarship interview I remember particularly when I was told "you sit in an AC office and you want to change the world?".... gosh those days I think I lived on only hope, watching "friends" and hanging on each words of encouragement from my ever hopeful friends.... at times I did feel like giving up all hope but as always there would be something in me that would make hope float....
and finally when I did get that final decision from the British Council about having been awarded the scholarship I think in some ways it was a celebration of me and my friends... me for not having given up and my friends who actually never let me believe otherwise... and today while giving everyone advice on scholarships and interview I maintain one thing- never believe anything the world tells you about yourself.... ofcourse there will be people who are not encouraging.... one of my friends (yes one of those toxic kinds) actually said "I am not sure you fit the profile of a scholar"... well... did Gandhi look like a freedom fighter??
Finally it is important to also state that I dont approach each task the way I approached the scholarship process... I choose the battles I want to fight for.... so if today some people see me as being a bit of a wanderer it is cos I am pciking the right battles for me to put my heart, soul, mind, analysis, strategy, time into.... I am just made that way....
Monkeying around
Today as i was standing on the very busy hill road waiting to cross over to the other side I noticed someone else waiting to cross the road with me... a monkey!!! Yes you read it right...
the monkey actually came out from the lane of my building walking right upto the end and was waiting for an opening on the road to cross ..... and he looked at both sides of the road and made a dash for the other side when the bus delayed just a little bit in picking up speed.... just like humans.... even I merrily ran after the monkey relieved that someone else had spotted the opportunity right on time...
But isnt it strange that you get to cross the road with a monkey?? It almost makes Mumbai look a little more nature friendly than the concrete jungle that it is .....
btw... I might have to cross the road once again with the monkey... what should I name him?? Coco Banana?? hehe..
the monkey actually came out from the lane of my building walking right upto the end and was waiting for an opening on the road to cross ..... and he looked at both sides of the road and made a dash for the other side when the bus delayed just a little bit in picking up speed.... just like humans.... even I merrily ran after the monkey relieved that someone else had spotted the opportunity right on time...
But isnt it strange that you get to cross the road with a monkey?? It almost makes Mumbai look a little more nature friendly than the concrete jungle that it is .....
btw... I might have to cross the road once again with the monkey... what should I name him?? Coco Banana?? hehe..
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Television friendly
When did the television become my best friend?? I have no idea... as kids we would watch TV whenever we were forced to stay inside... and my parents would let us also since that meant we were out of their hair for a while...
When I came back to India from the Gulf, since there was not much the Doordarshan had to offer, my TV viewing was ofcourse limited.. other than ofcourse Ramayan, Mahabharata and yes, Fauji... Law School.. well lets just say that I was extremely busy to watch tv..
The TV actually made a come back into my life only after I started working... that was also the time the Star TV network burst into India... soon there were shows, movies, songs at your finger tips... and to relax i would just switch on the tv.... and now switching on the tv is what I do first when I enter home.... and to be honest I find it relaxing... it takes me to parts of the world I cant travel to.. meet people I cant possibly meet in a life time.... live a life that I cant afford ..... to put it simply it helps me live my fantasies out a little...
why am I saying all this??
Cos most recently I was asked not to buy any more books cos i dont let up on watching tv.... and while I tried protesting, after considerable thot I knew the acccusation was absolutely right..... and it suddenly made me feel bad.....no no.. I am soooooo glad I was told this... but I started thinking about how much I have changed and how i need to change some comfortable yet unappealing habits of mine... I need to change fast people.... otherwise baby tomato would be more well read than me soon....
Well the other thing is....when I am not living inside the TV, I also blog ....
When I came back to India from the Gulf, since there was not much the Doordarshan had to offer, my TV viewing was ofcourse limited.. other than ofcourse Ramayan, Mahabharata and yes, Fauji... Law School.. well lets just say that I was extremely busy to watch tv..
The TV actually made a come back into my life only after I started working... that was also the time the Star TV network burst into India... soon there were shows, movies, songs at your finger tips... and to relax i would just switch on the tv.... and now switching on the tv is what I do first when I enter home.... and to be honest I find it relaxing... it takes me to parts of the world I cant travel to.. meet people I cant possibly meet in a life time.... live a life that I cant afford ..... to put it simply it helps me live my fantasies out a little...
why am I saying all this??
Cos most recently I was asked not to buy any more books cos i dont let up on watching tv.... and while I tried protesting, after considerable thot I knew the acccusation was absolutely right..... and it suddenly made me feel bad.....no no.. I am soooooo glad I was told this... but I started thinking about how much I have changed and how i need to change some comfortable yet unappealing habits of mine... I need to change fast people.... otherwise baby tomato would be more well read than me soon....
Well the other thing is....when I am not living inside the TV, I also blog ....
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Dad and his Professional Integrity
My dad is a person I have admired since I was a child... although he is not aware of it and mostly thinks I fight with him cos I dont respect him... but truth be told I am in awe of my dad...
there are many reasons why I admire my dad ... first one being that my dad struggled his way in life... he was born to a priest (not a very well paying profession but still one of the noble ones at that time) in a small little village in Kerala.... in true Ab Lincoln style my dad sat (not exactly under a street lamp cos his village didnt have streets forget street lamps), near a lantern to study and walked 6 kms to his school everyday.... and no people, there were no school bueses those days...... His father passed away when he was 13... since then my dad's family struggled to run the household while at the same time making sure the kids in the family got a good education ... despite such odds my dad topped every exam he sat for including his medical examinations....
The second reason I admire him so much is cos of the great sacrifice he made for my grandfather.... apparently before passing away my grandfather requested his children to each take up one profession... he wanted one to become a teacher, the other to become a civil servant and my dad to become a doctor.... and I have heard from my grandmother that my dad was meant to be a civil servant... he apparently nursed an ambition to work with Jawaharlal Nehru including even joining politics..... and when his father passed away he just blindly decided to follow his father's wishes and become a doctor.... and he is the best doctor i have seen!!! truly....
Given the default profession he chose, my dad is so committed to learning the latest techniques of his field... he will know the latest developments in his field .... he subscribes to each medical magazines and reads them religiously.... and on his visit to Mumbai, all my dad wanted to shop for was medical books!!!! I was surprised at how graciously he had accepted his fate and just went about mastering his profession....
The third reason I admire him so much is cos he really loves his kids.... and while this may not be true, I think he really loves me the most... he he.... that speaks volumes for him I guess... cos my sister does not think she is loved any less.... and he ofcourse had expectations from us as kids... and most often I would start studying only when my dad would show his total disappointment in me.... and after topping the class for a year I would go back to my wayward ways.... he wanted me to become a civil servant but ended up accepting and being proud of me being a lawyer..... and today whenever he writes me a letter he always makes sure that he writes, "Alice George-B.A. LL.B from National Law School of India University and Masters from London School of Economics"... I find that every cute as do some of my friends...
In many ways I am like my dad.... I wanted to join politics at some point, even nursing an ambition to work with the Prime Minister (still hold on to that ambition)... I have learned many aspects of life from him including how to always be fair in my dealings with people... and while sometimes I question him as to why he taught me such principles when others unfailingly flout it, I still know that what he told me was the right thing....
Anyways, he is off to do some medical book shopping now ....
there are many reasons why I admire my dad ... first one being that my dad struggled his way in life... he was born to a priest (not a very well paying profession but still one of the noble ones at that time) in a small little village in Kerala.... in true Ab Lincoln style my dad sat (not exactly under a street lamp cos his village didnt have streets forget street lamps), near a lantern to study and walked 6 kms to his school everyday.... and no people, there were no school bueses those days...... His father passed away when he was 13... since then my dad's family struggled to run the household while at the same time making sure the kids in the family got a good education ... despite such odds my dad topped every exam he sat for including his medical examinations....
The second reason I admire him so much is cos of the great sacrifice he made for my grandfather.... apparently before passing away my grandfather requested his children to each take up one profession... he wanted one to become a teacher, the other to become a civil servant and my dad to become a doctor.... and I have heard from my grandmother that my dad was meant to be a civil servant... he apparently nursed an ambition to work with Jawaharlal Nehru including even joining politics..... and when his father passed away he just blindly decided to follow his father's wishes and become a doctor.... and he is the best doctor i have seen!!! truly....
Given the default profession he chose, my dad is so committed to learning the latest techniques of his field... he will know the latest developments in his field .... he subscribes to each medical magazines and reads them religiously.... and on his visit to Mumbai, all my dad wanted to shop for was medical books!!!! I was surprised at how graciously he had accepted his fate and just went about mastering his profession....
The third reason I admire him so much is cos he really loves his kids.... and while this may not be true, I think he really loves me the most... he he.... that speaks volumes for him I guess... cos my sister does not think she is loved any less.... and he ofcourse had expectations from us as kids... and most often I would start studying only when my dad would show his total disappointment in me.... and after topping the class for a year I would go back to my wayward ways.... he wanted me to become a civil servant but ended up accepting and being proud of me being a lawyer..... and today whenever he writes me a letter he always makes sure that he writes, "Alice George-B.A. LL.B from National Law School of India University and Masters from London School of Economics"... I find that every cute as do some of my friends...
In many ways I am like my dad.... I wanted to join politics at some point, even nursing an ambition to work with the Prime Minister (still hold on to that ambition)... I have learned many aspects of life from him including how to always be fair in my dealings with people... and while sometimes I question him as to why he taught me such principles when others unfailingly flout it, I still know that what he told me was the right thing....
Anyways, he is off to do some medical book shopping now ....
Friday, December 08, 2006
If wishes were horses
No... I dont want a horse... but dont you sometimes have crazy wishes??
For instance dont you wish;
a) you were thinner? Or fatter (for some people)?
b) you were so rich that you went to work only to satisfy your intellectual needs?
d) you won a lottery
e) your hair was naturally shiny and always stayed in place when you were out
f) that you could write a book and also win the booker for that?
g) that you could be superwoman or superman for a day?
h) your window overlooked the sea?
i) you were always upgraded to business class while flying?
j) that ice cream was actually non fattening?
Well..if wishes were horses.... but no harm in dreaming right? ....
For instance dont you wish;
a) you were thinner? Or fatter (for some people)?
b) you were so rich that you went to work only to satisfy your intellectual needs?
d) you won a lottery
e) your hair was naturally shiny and always stayed in place when you were out
f) that you could write a book and also win the booker for that?
g) that you could be superwoman or superman for a day?
h) your window overlooked the sea?
i) you were always upgraded to business class while flying?
j) that ice cream was actually non fattening?
Well..if wishes were horses.... but no harm in dreaming right? ....
Fever and a cold
I have been waylaid today due to a bad cold and a on again off again fever.... I opted not to go into office as the AC would definitely not be helpful... and whil e sitting at home what is one to do other than think about the mundane inane things of life..
The first one for instane was whether I should blog anonymously... now I never even considered it an option as I was never sure whether there would be any readers to my blog... so I quite confident that I would not get caught by any of the people I know personally .... ofcourse that changed esp since I started directing everyone to my blog to get the latest on my life... I found it extremely convenient to do that instead of actually relating stories to people... well I guess now it is too late for me to even consider that as an option... everyone knows me.. I am out there now ... and everyone is welcome to criticise me...
The second inane thot that entered my brain was ofcourse guilt.... guilt at not having gone to office for a day... I always feel like I am being irresponsible by not dragging myself to the office even if I have a bad cold and fever... I dont know when and where I became like this but I recognise it as a problem now... I just love the feel of working all the time... well not all the time but yes I do feel bad when I have pending work in office and dont finish... what is wrong with me??? ....
and today cos of my cold I could not go and kiss baby tomato... apparently he was crying all day cos I didnt come and meet him... how sweet...
The first one for instane was whether I should blog anonymously... now I never even considered it an option as I was never sure whether there would be any readers to my blog... so I quite confident that I would not get caught by any of the people I know personally .... ofcourse that changed esp since I started directing everyone to my blog to get the latest on my life... I found it extremely convenient to do that instead of actually relating stories to people... well I guess now it is too late for me to even consider that as an option... everyone knows me.. I am out there now ... and everyone is welcome to criticise me...
The second inane thot that entered my brain was ofcourse guilt.... guilt at not having gone to office for a day... I always feel like I am being irresponsible by not dragging myself to the office even if I have a bad cold and fever... I dont know when and where I became like this but I recognise it as a problem now... I just love the feel of working all the time... well not all the time but yes I do feel bad when I have pending work in office and dont finish... what is wrong with me??? ....
and today cos of my cold I could not go and kiss baby tomato... apparently he was crying all day cos I didnt come and meet him... how sweet...
Sunday, December 03, 2006
The 5 a.m paratha
"Mumbai was under seige... Tension had permeated the entire city as news of the riots spread like wild fire.... Office goers wondered whether their families were safe and made frantic calls asking them not to step outside..... I was caught in the midst of this chaos with two of my office colleagues.... I was not so worried about my family as my parents were safe in my sisters house... however a chaos is never easy and slowly my colleagues and I made our way through the streets ... treading carefully and cautiously, not knowing when and where the next danger would come from.... all of a sudden the lights went off.... The streets were plunged into darkness...darkness brought with it its favourite bedfellow- pandemonium ... kids crying, women shrieking, men screaming..... I grabbed onto my colleagues hand in fright - afraid to loose the one familiar face in the sea of people....afraid that I might not see the next day... when all of a sudden I caught sight of my parents making their way through the crowded chaotic streets in search of me... A rush of relief came over- i suddenly felt protected .... I ran to my equally relieved parents.... I was finally home..."
And soon after that I woke up with a start...It was 4:30 in the morning and the world was quiet... the dream was still vivid in my brain ..... I went and hugged my mom who was sleeping peacefully probably dreaming about a lazy Sunday.... I lay down next to her like I used to when I was a child, before the weirdness and issues of youth crept into our relationship... I felt safe, secure, peaceful... I was home....
Ofcourse the real life chaos started soon therafter... my mom kicked me out of bed saying I was disturbing her... And I went off into the kitchen to make paratha .... at 5 a.m. in the morning.... Hearing the chaos in the kitchen my mom woke up .... and that is how a mom and daughter sat together peacefully relishing the 5 a.m. paratha..... Ahh.. Sunday is here...
P.S. Btw, Jubs, the colleague I saw in my dream was you... funny huh?
And soon after that I woke up with a start...It was 4:30 in the morning and the world was quiet... the dream was still vivid in my brain ..... I went and hugged my mom who was sleeping peacefully probably dreaming about a lazy Sunday.... I lay down next to her like I used to when I was a child, before the weirdness and issues of youth crept into our relationship... I felt safe, secure, peaceful... I was home....
Ofcourse the real life chaos started soon therafter... my mom kicked me out of bed saying I was disturbing her... And I went off into the kitchen to make paratha .... at 5 a.m. in the morning.... Hearing the chaos in the kitchen my mom woke up .... and that is how a mom and daughter sat together peacefully relishing the 5 a.m. paratha..... Ahh.. Sunday is here...
P.S. Btw, Jubs, the colleague I saw in my dream was you... funny huh?
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