Pea Pod - A taste of everyday life

My mother's come down to visit me. It's so nice to have her here and talk about so many things. And today we were talking about how we should always remember who stood by us in bad times. This brought back to me many memories. With the memories, came realizations. My father's passing away was very traumatic. But there are some people who's true nature was exposed to me during that time. Some people are selfish and have no emotions or empathy. At the same time some of them were so caring and kind that I can never forget them. But these were only a few. I'd like to put down their names in writing here and give them a BIG thank you for just being there - My uncles,Vipin kaka, Mahendra kaka and Suresh mama, my dear friend Wigbert Piedade, my ex-bosses and friends Rajesh Khanna and Krishna Unni, both my brother-in-laws Anandbhai and Shaileshbhai. Thank you all...for standing by me.

Of two little princes Riding on their horses Serpent studded with a jewel Of mermaids deep under water And magical lunch boxes That gave one what he tells Of a fat li'l fellow Spoilt by his mother His bag full of laddoos And a monkey for a brother Of two different boys One good and one bad One read the books Other tore ones he had Of moon chariots And parties on the clouds Of learning lessons And making your parents proud Of thumb sized husbands Who travelled in wive's wallets And thumb sized wives Who sat in shirt pockets . Who says you have gone My dear Father? You very much live on In stories that you told us Now I pass them to my son. For My DAD. On his 75th birthday.

Little children can be a handful. But they can also be real destressers! I too have my share of tiring spells with a toddler in his 'terrible twos'. I often tell him to listen to mummy as mummy gets very tired. Today, after I gave him a bath, he sat on the sofa and made a sad little face saying, "Babboo is tired!" A few days back, we both were busy doing a puzzle in the afternoon. Of animals and thier babies. He picked up a chick and showed it to me. "That's my little baby!", I said lovingly. Immediately he picked up the hen and said "This is my mummy!" I just couldn't help but laugh out loud! And the best part about being a mother is receiving so many wet kisses before going to bed and early in the mornings. I can tolerate any of the terrible twos, threes or fours for that.

I find it too funny. And it's such a hoax! Just heard some girls talking about their life and how they were in love with someone and how things never worked out. Interesting overhearing. One girl said a guy in her office wrote a song specially for her where he put forth his love; how she was the only girl that he'd love all his life and all that crap! Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum! The other girl said she wasn't sure of the guy who had proposed to her. He was willing to wait for her for eternity. He told her that she was the bird he loved and he loved her so much that if he'd set her free, she would come back to him if his love was true. I found this conversation hilarious. Could I laugh out loud?! These girls need time. To think in a mature way. The promises that are made to them will fly away with time. The boys will go their own way and the girls too will find their true calling. Though I really hope that their love blossoms with time and that I would be proved wrong.

Whoever said Bangalore was the IT capital of our country? Well, in a way it is. It's the 'Inept Town' of India. I've just moved here a week back and everything seems so different when compared to Bombay. Power cuts, water cuts, rotten vegetables and fruits, snobbish locals, hardly any home delivery services, no hindi speaking help available, no sense of time in people...The list is endless. Bombay has really spoilt me. It doesn't give you the kind of space Bangalore offers, nor does it have a pleasant climate. Yet, the pace and the quality of everyday requirements is just too good to be true. My first week in Bangalore, I was down with a bad throat and a severe cough. And nowhere could I find the Ayurvedic medicine that I usually take during such times. None of the chemists had it. Back in Bombay, even the smallest of chemists would stock it! I was surprised when a the local chemist told me to go to another suburb to get it. Well, I just had to do some home remedies...

I've started toilet training for my little toddler who is still to turn two. After every meal, I put him on his baby potty and most of the time he does everything possible sitting on it except doing what he's supposed to. But one lucky day, he stood up from his potty and staring inside, he exclaimed, "BIG!" When i went close to see what he'd been refering to, I was surprised to see the 'small little BIG job!

When red and yellow is not orange When blue and yellow is not green When white is all you can see Somewhere in the world There's no harmony When the sun does not rise When the moon does not set When rivers don't flow to the sea Somewhere in the world There's no harmony When a flower does not bear fruit When a fruit does not have seed When a seed does not grow a tree Somewhere in the world There's no harmony.

Sometimes, I feel so useless. I ask myself a question. Why am I doing things that I am doing, that which I've never done? Why do I feel like breaking out of this shell of mine? Why do I feel these worldly interactions is the shell? Why do I have to interact with these entities? What is the karmic connection here? Why am I going through a certain experience and what am I going to learn from it? Why can't I show some people their mirrors and tell them what a distorted reflection they make? Why do I control my feelings when a volcano is ready to erupt within me? It's because sometimes you have to give in to this unknown power that is operating from I don't know where. Up, is it? Or is it just within all of us? Or is it that someone called God wants you to think of Him sometimes? Sometimes...I just don't have any answers. And no end to questions.

He must have turned away from his 'black' self He must have turned away from his marriages He must have turned away from normal human behaviour He must have turned away from limelight But there is one thing he could never turn away from Music. We've been together for such a long time now Music, music and me Don't care whether all our songs rhyme Now music, music and me Only know wherever I go We're as close as two friends can be There have been others But never two lovers Like music, music and me Grab a song and come along You can sing your melody In your mind you will find A world of sweet harmony Birds of a feather will fly together Now music, music and me Music and me

Yeah! I feel like a Supermom! Wish I had that cape. The only thing left for me to do is fly! To me, being a mom means : Waking up early Preparing baby's breakfast Soaking an almond for the baby Making the bitter medicine paste for the baby Changing the diaper as soon as he wakes up Brushing his teeth Preparing for our breakfast Feeding the baby breakfast- that takes pretty long, mind you! Taking him down to say 'ta-ta' to Papa Strolling in the garden and showing the baby butterflies, grass, clouds, cat and everything that is there to see! Coming back home and having my breakfast with the baby tugging at me all the time. It's difficult to eat that way! Potty time! Cleaning baby's potty Massaging him with baby oil Bathing him and letting him play for long in the tub with splashes of water thrown at me! Making him sleep after his bath Bathing, cooking for the baby, lunch and my design work is done ONLY when he's sleeping! Woof! Feeding the baby lunch when he wakes ...

Life is simple. We tend to complicate it, always. Material wants are growing by the day. 'I want this' and ' Buy me that'. Children are exposed to so many things today, it's difficult to curb their desires. But is wasn't like that when I was a kid. One drawing book would keep me engaged for a whole month. Or a fountain pen would be 'the thing' to buy! Who uses fountain pens now? Kids use 'gel' pens! The charm of smoothening the nibs on a lime stone and that of filling ink in them is gone altogether. I play this CD of Walt Disney songs for my baby. One song from there made me think about how the simple joys of life have dissappeared. And how those very simple things can make you happy. Daisy, Daisy Give me an answer, do I'm half crazy All for the love of you It won't be a stylish marriage I can't afford a carraige But you'll look sweet Upon the seat Of my bicycle built for two.

I'd watched Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na some 6 months back. Since then, it's title track sung by AR Rahman has been haunting me. I hummed only a line or two, but those lines were enough to coax me into buying the CD recently. I've been listening to it almost daily and somehow, whenever I do, something about the song reminds me of Sting. It's been almost 2 years since I heard any of the Sting numbers. In spite of he being one of my favourites. I stopped listening to Sting for the mere fact that I didn't want to get tired of him. Familiarity breeds contempt! Now after all this time, I owe it to Rahman for making me want to listen to him again.The beautifully composed jazz number of Jaane Tu, reminded me of 'The Moon Over Bourbon Street', 'An Englishman In New York' and 'Mad About You', all songs having a very jazzy feel to them. Tonight I heard all of my Sting favourites and I'm feeling all jazzed up!

There are places I'll remember All my life Though some have changed Some forever, not for better Some have gone and some remain Saket, My home in Vile Parle. The bungalow still stands but gone are the 'Otlaa's - where we sat and passed many idle moments in our childhood. Gone is the 'Paachad no compound' - where we collected 'lucky stones' for a game of Hop-skotch. Gone are those artistic metal gates on which we stood and kicked them to open and shut. Gone is that corner where I spent making mud cakes. Namiella, the neighbourhood building. That too stands till now...looking ill-maintained and old. The pre-school in it's compound still exists. That's where we all studied. We called it the 'Alvares' school - after Mrs. Alvares, the principal and the owner. Nagrecha Nivas, another building in the neighbourhood. A joint family seperated and living on different floors. With fights galore. Abuses, insults and some very entertaining and...

I've read a lot about how one should think of God as a Mother. Paramhansa Yogananda has spoken many times about this but it was difficult for me to take God as a parent - untill I became a mother. He said one should leave everything to God. Submit yourself and depend solely on Him. He knows what's good and bad for you. I feel only a mother can truly understand this concept and I am glad I was not born a man. When my baby finds comfort in my arms, I feel I should find this comfort in God. When my baby depends on me completely - for changing his wet nappies to making him go to sleep, I feel I should depend completely on God for my daily requirements. When I intuitively come to know there's something wrong with my baby, I feel God too must surely know when I'm in trouble and help me. When I give a bitter medicine to my baby in time of sickness, I feel God too must be giving me difficulties so that I can come out being a stronger person. When I wipe the tears from my baby...

My brother's song is out! It's so exciting! He's done two tracks for Apoorva Lakhia's Mission Istanbul. The title track that's been telecast on all the channels is his and it's already #2 on the Radio Mirchi countdown. The other song is being shot at Film City as I write this blog. It's called Nobody Like You . It's an item number that features Abhishek Bachchan and a model. I think that song rocks! I just love it! I title this blog 'Mission Possible' because my brother has made all this possible on his own. No help from any 'filmi' connections that relatives keep inquiring about. I am proud of you, brother! Papa is looking after you from up there.

Some men at my workplace think being a mother is easy. Well, what can I say? Have they dealt with a colicky baby and sat up all night trying to make him go to sleep? Have they left their food, stayed hungry so that they can give attention to the wailing baby? Can they do this for a week continuously? I wonder if they did all of this or their wives! I don't know why these opinions are never voiced out directly to me! I'd appreciate if they did that. Anyway, I can't be a JLo or a Farah Khan. That's for sure. And my baby will thank me for that.

:-) I am a mother to little 'A' now! No time to blog. Little one keeps me busy all day...and night ;-)

I was offered a job at Lintas as a junior visualiser when in college. The studio manager soon became a friend. Being a Christian, he was obviously into a lot of western music. The radio would be playing all day in his studio and my colleague and I spent much time there. I would often hum or sing along with the radio. The manager was quite surprised by my knowledge of all kind of music, be it rock, pop or the oldies. The studio artists were amused too as I was not only singing English numbers but also most of the Hindi ones playing on the radio - whether from 1950s or 1990s. Soon there were discussions on music taking place and I would be called from my personal cubicle to the studio if there were any nice numbers being played. I also learnt many facts about singers, genres etc. from the studio manager. Somehow, I always keep my ears open to learn whatever I can about music. In the next job that I took up at an interactive agency, there was this senior of mine who was a musician himself...

*Devnagri script begins - ॐ भूर भुवः स्वः ॐ तत् सवितूर वरेनियम भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि धियो यों - नः प्रचोदयात् ॐ *Devnagri script ends - Aum Bhoor Bhuvaha Svaha Aum Tat Savitoor Vareniyam Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi Dhiyo Yon-naha Prachodayaat Aum I remember my mother teaching us when we were children, this divine Mantra called Gayatri. She asked us to chant it everyday before bedtime and whenever we were scared of the dark. Since then I have been chanting the Gayatri Mantra - never knowing the exact meaning of this verse. Do it because Mom has said it's the most powerful prayer of the Universe. As I grew up, I came to believe that Gayatri was the goddess that was there in my mother's pooja mandir. It's a beautiful image with the goddess sitting on a white swan and the Gayatri Mantra printed below. But somehow, since childhood, I never could have that emotional feeling while praying to the idols. I got that feeling only when my mother or father told me stories...

Yes. Today I'm stressed because I got angry. It's very rare to see me losing my temper this way. And now I'm feeling so, so bad for being angry that I'm angry at myself. This cook has a knack of making me feel like this. He's been putting so much salt in the food everyday. I've been patiently telling him since months now to control his burning desire to put extra salt in the food. But nothing changes. He has to be suffering from low blood pressure and is adamant to give us a soaring high blood pressure! Today it was the limit. When I asked him if he had put less salt, he laughed saying he didn't know. What did he mean by that? Are we paying him to make us sick? My mercury rose and how! I screamed with all the bass and treble god has gifted me with. And this fellow has the audacity to tell me that he will make food the way he wants. And I shouted in a 'speaker burst' loud tone and shook the hell out of him. But I wonder if it would make any difference...