Dew

A simple word as it may sound, Recall simply keeps happening in my mind. Not sure, if its the same for everyone my age and kind, but thought its okay to share anyways. I looked at a sketch that my daughter made and recall how some of our precious books back home had similar scribbles - those of mine, my mother told me later. I heard two college students talk about Voltage, Shunt and Series and Parallel Controller and some such highly "Electrical Engineering" like words this morning. Could not help recall how I was in a similar position fifteen years ago discussing and studying same subject. I bought coconut cookies yesterday for my children and recalled how I used to be crazy about them back in childhood. I got dressed in a saree the other day and my daughter asked if I would buy her the same color saree some day. Recalled how I had asked similar questions to my mother when I was of my daughter's age. I take the children out today and t...

There was a time when I used to travel from Chennai to Cuddalore every month at least once. So, I knew the roads too well. We have had several cyclones, almost every November and heard this November-December episode has the town shattered completely. And Chennai.. Although a short stint of three years in Chennai, I have relatives living in Chennai, which means my association with Chennai is more than I have with any other city in India. I love the city for all its highs and lows, plus and minus, facts and fictions. It was an interesting phase of my life. I saw the tsunami times in Cuddalore and Chennai and kind of know how bad it can be to the people who live close to the sea. The current torrential rainfall in the East coast, India, makes me go back in time and I keep thinking of Chennai more often than I want to. I like the people's strength and the standing up together for each other and the city to get back in action.  

I came across a beautifully hand-written book title in a hospital's reception desk. I could not help asking, "is it hand-written or printed?". The counter clerk was visibly pleased that the work got noticed and said it was hand-written. Such beautiful script it is, the Cursive. I recalled some of my friends' handwriting that I have admired throughout my school days, and I still do. Mine was also once in the list of award-winning hand-writing. Today, after years of leaving school I find it very hard to write a legible piece of text in a notebook. The other day I had to write a note to my daughter's class teacher in her school diary. Pathetic is the best word I can use for my hand writing at present. Surprisingly, all the cards or wishes that I write still come out neat!!! Which is a good news. But, I want to work on my handwriting. I managed to find someone who has a really good hand writing in the same hospital and asked him about how he manages to keep his...

After a very long time, I am in this 'Feel like writing' mood. I discovered that this happens when the mind is full of something and words are few. I am thinking of closing this series of blog posts soon, say mid of next year and then planning to do something different on blog. Ten years of blogging, although very rare these days, blogger has been my start of real writing. Technical Writing, Content Writing, Technology Writing, Techno-functional Writing, Instructional Writing are few of the many kinds of writing that my jobs taught me. But my blog taught me things that these kinds of writing didn't teach. How to write without worrying about the grammar? How to write without worrying about what a reviewer would say? How to take comments well? How to think like it doesn't matter what you write as long as you write without hurting other people? Somewhere during the blogging tenure I thought I will try to make some cash out of it... Then dropped the idea. Someo...

Its a popular colloquial term I recall from my Chennai times used in many contexts. Here my context is : At four minutes past midnight on a very normal day/night, what are the masalas on my head : 1. How do some people's skin glow like they just came back from utopia where there are no rashes, blemishes, tan and wrinkles? 2. How do some children sleep through the night from day one of their birth? 3. How can work be exciting after a trying and tiring day at home with regular demands from everyone? 4. How does programming glue you to computer like nothing else in this world? 5. Why does a No Whatsapp message bring a slight 'low' to you at this hour? Would everyone you know be night watching like I do? 6. What is for tomorrow's breakfast? 7. Did I sign the school diary today? 8. Do I have a work plan for tomorrow's home day and work day? 9.Isn't multiplication the toughest math in this world? 10. What is it like to Sleep like a Log and to Sleep like a ...

Realizations are generally blessings when they happen in time. I have been feeling overwhelmed over the last few years with child birth, the after math effect which includes predominantly crying and trying to understand the cries mostly, dealing with toddlers and the nano-second to second mood swings - both theirs and mine. Yesterday was the first ever time I have been away from my daughter. She has gone to spend few days of her vacation with her grand parents. Clock seemed to tick slow.. there seemed nothing to be done at home. My younger one was still toddling away to reach everything within his reachable limits in the house, still, all my thoughts were so totally fixed on my daughter who was still on the train traveling with my Dad. Last night, when my son slept off early by my standards at 9:30P.M, I sat down to watch T.V, hoping that would divert my mind from what I realized was boredom. Four years of beingg too busy and never a moment to sit by myself made me think...I switc...

I was trying to tell the Ramayana's nut shell version to my daughter. The attention span is ten min and then its the next story. So as i was doing a marathon run with my story she stopped me at one point. Amma " you say Sita Devi gave her hair clip to hanuman as identity card ... so what will she do to clip her hair? " For those of you who are trying to understand where hair clip and identity card comes in vaalmiki ramayana, its the sundara gaantam. Sita Devi gives her choodamani to hanuman to be given to Rama. Choodamani as explained to my daughter was hair clip. I didn't think what Sita devi would do to tie up her hair if she gave away her clip. Did you?

I may not be correct when i ask this question.. why so many write-ups on women.? BUT i guess its on a visible increase for those who read a lot online. Recently, as recent as one month long now, I have started spending a little time on generic reads online mostly on links directed from face book news feeds. At least over the last six days there are articles on women who have gone through rough times in the hands of men in many different circumstances. Agreed men are strange and can be tough to deal with simply because they are THE MEN, but these overtly descriptive and candid write ups on what all happened in a girl's life and how she came out shining makes me wonder... where is the mistake really..all mis-behaviors as women write seem directed in the lady's favor. Are all men bad? Definitely not. One of the articles i read spoke about a girl who thought she needed to know IT all before her wedding night. She has tried many boys and now writes about her emotions being pl...

"10:28 P.M is no earthly time to call up anyone" says my mind for it has been groomed that way since my childhood. "11:00 P.M is no good time for a bath" says Indian ancient medicine. "10:30 P.M  is not the right time to eat" says general medicine. "11:00 P.M is not a good time to read " says the energy level studies. But coming to think of it, I find peace and quiet to do all these only at these unearthly hours... I am wondering if all the strict disciplines that I grew up with will ever come back? Some nice principles from my childhood : 1. Never visit anyone or call up anybody after 8:00 P.M unless it is extremely important. 2. Eat on time and sleep early. 3. Do not sleep until the sun rays brighten the room every morning. 4. Sunday is no different from the other days in terms of "early to bed" and "early to rise". 5. Bathe only during the Sun's working hours. 6. Read moderately and well within the rou...

What's in a Good Night Kiss?? I kissed my birthday girl good night after she slept off today with prayers and lots of 'Down the memory lane' thoughts. She  smiled beautifully, although faintly. I am sure she slept off and I still cant stop wondering how she knew the kiss. Somewhere I have read, Kiss your children good night even if they are asleep. They surely know. Back then, I didn't realize that it could be true, but today I did!!! Learnt this : Never miss an opportunity to say love, hug close, and shower kisses on your children. They are the only reasons why you stay grounded most of the time amidst life's rides.

Searing pain in the lower back moving to the center of the belly, Heavy belly so much so its difficult to walk, Steep ramp making you wonder why ramps are built, Heavy traffic of one cycle making you think why this cyclist has to come in your way... All these happened when I was in labor one year ago. Labor pains started just about early that morning.... And when I stepped inside the hospital, the next thing I knew was the labor board and then the next timing I knew was mid day when my baby boy arrives in a small bundle.... All that fight in the labor room and all the smiles of the victorious doctors made me smile slightly. The aftermath was tough to cope with and when all was wrong with me, the doctors said, " yes this is what is expected!!! Sleep well..We'll come after three hours to check on you." So saying, I was left alone to SLEEP when after all the struggle, physical and mental, I just couldn't close my eye lids. It was a total blank.. and then all hazy......

People buy tables and make sure that nothing is kept on it. People fix AC and make sure they cover themselves with a fleece blanket. People wear dresses and make sure that nothing is covered. People work out at the Gym and make sure that they don't leave any heavy, spicy, fatty, food item in any restaurant or bakery unexplored. People watch Television and make sure that their phone and computer is ON in parallel. People live in a gated community and make sure that they are alone, talk of privacy and definitely don't know their neighbours. People earn money and make sure they don't take time to enjoy their money and spends. People talk so much about life and make sure they don't live it to the fullest because of a hundred thousand reasons that each one may have. People talk so much about integrity and fake things because of identity crisis.

There is a series of tremors, I want to reword as terrors happening in Nepal. Even as I type this post, there are thousands of people suffering, thousands killed, hundreds lending helping hand... I go into the bathroom and I cant stop wondering what would the victims of the quake do for their basic needs. I switch on the computer and wonder what would the people in Nepal do without communication lines of any sort? I cut open the milk packet in the morning and wonder if people who have been victimized by the huge quake wouldn't feel like having any beverage in the morning? I cant help thinking of pregnant women, just born babies, young children, teenagers with lost dreams, old people, just married folks, and tourists in Nepal. I have seen the outline of Tsunami from the safety of my concrete house back in 2004 December. I cant help going back ten years in time and compare the wrath of the ocean with the wrath of the earth. It was so devastating and the back to back after sho...

Ideally i should be off to sleep but here i am writing about something that cannot wait until tomorrow morning. sleep... that is what i want to write about. Not to theorize but dont u think sleep is a gift? There was a time when nine hours of undisturbed sleep was possible. Then it came down to eight. In college it reduced to seven or six. Work life brought back sleep routine to seven or eight. Marriage changed it to 'number of hours undefined'. Baby one changed it to less than five and baby two changed sleep hours to four hours of disturbed sleep. Now i value sleep more because sometimes it just seems like nights are for naps as i wake up too many times. Awake mind at night is a devil's workshop. So if the workshop is noisy some nights become sleepless. To those who take your night sleep time for granted please be aware that if u dont value yr night sleep u will regret later. I just hope to get a seven hour undisturbed night sleep sometime soon. I definitely reali...

Sounding serious? Actually its about this person, I have been observing from my balcony for a month now. Its been a month in this new house and we have a road facing balcony where my children spend most of their time in the mornings and evenings. The security guard and his family lives on the ground floor of every apartment in our locality. This person, a security's wife had a close friend Manisha, a security guarder's wife too. They had their own job routines to do and when they are free, they never spent a minute alone. From my balcony I could see that they were very good friends. I used to envy their friendship so much. One fine morning, Manisha's family decided to move to their home town. Since then I used to see that her friend spending all afternoons alone. It is almost like she is waiting for Manisha and her family to get back. She never mingles with anyone else and is almost lost in a distant memory all the time. It is really hard to sit stoned in a place for...

I am just settling down in Bangalore. Among the many processes that a relocation and settling in involves, the most important thing I felt was setting up a bank account. With the welcome kit came half a dozen PIN mailers. I am super scared about these passwords in life, especially the cash related ones. I just tossed the kit inside my bag after one glance at all of the mailer covers in it. There were hundreds of things to think about. When my husband did a withdrawal for the first time to check the account initiation, he mentioned the password to me. Immediately I did a minor math with the digits and that is all. Never had a chance to think about it again. Three weeks later, I am at a hospital counter for paying a bill. The amount was heavier than what I had with me. I took out the card and just then I realized that I have not got the password with me and I am going to be using the card for the first time. Madness, but I still counted on the formula that I had worked out earlier...