Be a sport!

1:56 PM by lostworld


I am happy! I thought I live in a corner of Bangalore where fun quotient is negative (Its true to a large extent) but as they say - 'Every cloud has a silver lining'. There is a lot of open space around my apartment and recently a couple of folks living nearby have set up a make-shift Badminton court in one of the unused plots ( I assume this happened with the permission of the owner ;-) ) I'm all set to join in and enjoy my evenings -- Whatever remains of the evening by the time I reach. Anyway, I am certain weekends will be action packed for the already hyper-active me. Though I wish there was an avenue for me to learn Tennis someday. I'm pretty certain I cannot even lift the racquet given my current fitness levels. 


Throughout my school days, I used to play Badminton & Table-Tennis. Although my parents never discouraged me & my academics never suffered, I did not pursue it actively during my college days. I don't really know why. The only plausible explanation I can come up with is that I had quite a bit of traveling to do in those days. But I know you're thinking 'Where there's a will there's always a way' ! ;-) Since I am on a roll with cliched sayings, let me add this for motivation as well - 'Better late than never' !! 


 In school # 4 ( I have studied in 5 schools ) , sports played a very important role. Would you believe if I told you that the boys used to be trained in Boxing here !!??! Nice way to arm them if you ask me. Ask a girl out, she refuses.. Box her ears !! :-D ( Nah I have no personal experiences! ) Not just that, they held annual marathons , hired excellent sports teachers and ensured everyone participated, by choice or force. They had a very annoying rule though. Sports classes/periods were always after school. Evenings 3 - 5 p.m. Twice or thrice a week. Their uniform was funny especially for boys. Too embarassing to reveal it here - Email me for details ;-) For girls, it was alright - skirt and shirt. Let me reveal something even funnier. Students were not allowed to wear their sports uniforms to school (like all other schools). Instead you had to carry it with you and change prior to the sports classes. Yuck. I used to HATE it. Imagine... I know you can't. Try !! School ends at 3. All girls rush to the changing rooms. Sports classes ends at 5. Again change and go home. Well I usually never changed back and went home directly. So much change in 1 day was beyond me and frankly I didn't care. 


More often than not, in the lower classes, I'd forget to carry my 'Sports Kit'. Or worse, my shoes would be dirty because I would've forgotten to polish them. My mom is a stickler for rules and cleanliness. Since the classes were always in the evening, she would polish it and keep it ready (and clean). My school was 2 kms away from home. At sharp 3 , my mom would be at the school gate with my neatly ironed uniform,  clean shoes, Table Tennis bat, Racquet etc. Even if I had remembered to polish my shoes, sometimes she'd feel sorry for me and still come by in the evening so that I didn't have to carry such a heavy load in the morning. I know I seem royally pampered and spoilt. Don't rub it in. I was glad when I changed schools though !! Even most of their other procedures in schooling were strange and non-conformist. 


I loved the sports classes though. I played for inter-school, intra-school etc and I have fond memories of the winning moments. There are always hits and misses. That's what makes playing so much fun. In school # 5, I used to play Throw-ball too. I was abysmal to say the least. I couldn't  serve despite repeated sessions also. Didn't help my cause that I am not tall. Add to the fact that I was made the Captain. Ridiculous! I tried to reason with the sports-teacher that it didn't make sense. Thanks to the other girls, we managed a few respectable wins.


I have learnt several lessons as a sportsperson. I won't delve into preachy guidelines and sermons since I find them all sounding hollow :-) That its easy to let go of inhibitions nearly sums up all my learnings. When in school, I was quiet and spoke only when I was spoken to. Even with girls. I made lots of friends but it was usually after a shaky start. As for the boys, I shall save it for a later day. If all those boys talk to me today, its purely because of their inherent goodness , no credit to me. I was nicknamed 'Ice princess' or something like that in one of the schools :-) You get the drift I bet. Ooops sorry I drifted away. The point I was trying to make is simple - I'm usually game for most things that life throws at me. Trying my hand at something new is my favourite hobby. 
I don't sit glued to the TV and watch sporting events regularly. I used to religiously follow a few Tennis tournaments when in college. My current favourite sports-person would be Michael Phelps. Locally, my brother was tops. He used to follow and play most of the games - favourite being football. So much so that even my mom knows who manages Man U* and the like ;-)


Even today, the Badminton, Athletics and TT certificates I had won are so close to my heart. None of my academic 'achievements' can take their place. There is simply no comparison (in my eyes). I'd like to know your experiences. Any achiever lurking out there? :-) If you don't have any to share, then start now. 
I plan to play all my life :-) 


* Manchester United
** I'm buried under truckloads of work & hardly get time to write ; Though ideas are literally flying off my head. Happy weekend ya`ll  :-)


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Lady like no other?

10:06 PM by lostworld


" The English-speaking world is divided into those who have read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings and those who are going to read them " - Sunday Times



My brother used to taunt me with this one-liner for years until I finally got down to finishing his all-time favourite novel, you guessed it --  'The Lord of the Rings'! :-)

On similar lines, the world of today's ladies is also divided into those who carry a smart feminine handbag looking chic and elegant , and those who heave a shapeless sack backpack along with their sorry self. Of course  I comfortably fit into both ( Huh! I dare you to disagree! ). But no, this isn't a post about how my bag is stuffed with my entire wardrobe, followed by a detailed boring description of how I never manage to dig out my hairbrush from the overflowing stack when I need it the most and other banalities!




To start from the pre-historic times, I never needed an occasion to shop for a bag. I have a trunkful of bags, all shapes, sizes, kinds, colours.. Oh absolutely, I can open my own store today. I would readily give away my old and new clothes, shoes, sandals, watches or anything else I own, but NEVER my bags! I nearly shed tears of blood a few years back when I donated my favourite backpack (in a fit of generosity) to my brother for a semester and he treated it worse than trash :'(   Back to the topic. To office I am usually seen with a backpack (I have several of these also in various sizes :-P ). Its only during the weekends that all my hep and happening bags see the light of the day. As my mother observed and remarked rather nastily once - " Why is it that when you go out for movies with your friends, you go gallivanting like a heroine !?! But when you come with me, you take that extra effort to look so dull & drab that we look like 'Madam and maid' !!!!! "


What I carry in my backpack will follow towards the end. Just like anybody else, I carried everything I needed. A couple of months back, my friend gifted me a gorgeous roomy burgundy ladies handbag! I must correct myself here, I did not have all kinds of bags..in fact, I never possessed a propah ladies hand-bag! I always fell for the ethnic-chunky-funky looking bags and spent a fortune on them. So I was thrilled with my gift. I stashed it away with the rest of my prized possessions after admiring it sufficiently. When I went to Kannur recently, I decided to inaugurate my new big bag. I could fill a house in it, which I did! After my return, I was too lazy to transfer the contents back to my good ole' backpack and so the brown beauty got more visibility. As for me, I got quizzical looks, surprised exclamations, wondrous glances and revelled in all the attention. The bag and I got along famously. I didn't miss my backpack one bit. The best part was - Every evening I would just stuff my ID card in one of the compartments and never really remember which one. When the security demanded my ID the next morning, I'd miraculously produce it in a jiffy! Literally even before you could say 'Abracadabra'. I felt so smug , almost as if I shared a deep unspoken bond with my sleek new bag. I had arrived in the elite world of elegant ladies!



What I was unprepared for were the expectations that came along with slinging a stylish bag on your shoulders. It started rather innocuously.



" Hey do you have a pair of scissors? " , my colleague asked.


" Umm.. no..sorry. ", I didn't give it a second thought.




Couple of days later, another colleague, " Hey I need scissors!! ".
" Well, I don't have them. I have a stapler though ?? " , I was trying to sound helpful.
"No use. I need to cut cello tape". He stalked off.


Soon enough, " Hey do you have a nail file ?? " , the same colleague.
I was drinking coffee and nearly spat it out, " What !! Why ?? " I asked in a shrill voice.
"One of my nails chipped :-( Don't you carry a nail file in your bag? ", eyeing my bag. I could read his thoughts courtesy his sarcastic expressions - 'You didn't have scissors!...being a lady, you must at least possess a nail file !'. 
I interrupted his train of thoughts hurriedly because I get alarmed when an adult isn't really 'man about things' ! ( No offense to anyone ;-) ), " Oh go away ! Bite it or something !! ".



I guess my bag and its mysterious contents really gave him some food for thought. A few hours later he came to my seat again. " By the way, I don't mean to touch a tender nerve here , but do you at least carry hand cream ? ",  expectantly waiting for my nod.



I was quite annoyed with this incessant and not to mention merciless poking and prodding. I opened my mouth to put an end to this once and for all ; one look at his expression shut me up . I suppose he knew what was coming too. He put his head in his hands, sat down , finally looked up wearing a flabbergasted expression -- " What kind of a lady are you??? ". I chose not to retort with my usual  "wisecracks". In any case don't you think it was too late for explanations of any sorts ! We had a hearty laugh over this for days followed by merry discussions  :-)  



Some weeks later, as I was heading out, he hesitantly asked me for a pen which I had. Some marginal respect for my bag and me were restored. One hopes !! Coming to the fascinating part. What's actually in my bag as I write this post ? Well how I wish my bag was like Pandora's box !! ;-)  I carry, among a lottt of useless and unused items..., a Novel, Torch, Tissues, Umbrella, Water, Hairbrush, Photo Album (Somethings are best left unexplained .. always) , Scarf, A pair of Socks (Go figure!), and yes, a new bottle of moisturizer .. ( only because winter is setting in !!!! :-P )




All you ladies reading this post, please DON'T scandalize me by confirming that you never leave the house without hand-cream, nail-file, handkerchiefs, hair-slides etc ?!! Ohhhh, and all you men reading this post ,  carry your own nail-file, scissors and the works.  Spare us the torture :-P


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From riches to rags ;-)

9:59 AM by lostworld


My first real job was a "business venture" with my neighbour PS when we were in school. We painstakingly made colourful and creative bookmarks sitting on our neighbours' car and sold them around our apartment for prices ranging from Rs. 2 - Rs. 15. We warned our parents that they might be the scape-goats lucky folks in case no one bought our priceless merchandise. We lived in a huge housing colony so no dearth of potential customers. Our bookmarks were sold out the same evening! Talk about demand. We celebrated by treating ourselves to the new Kwality Walls` Choc-o-Rock ice-cream and divided the remaining amount between us ;-) We shut shop as we had lofty ambitions after this success story!



My next near-perfect-job was many years later and this one was part-time. My friend A got to know about this job from her friend. We were having semester break. It was a call-centre job or something like it in a commercial complex called 'House of Lords' !!! :-D We had to call and bore rich people about Mutual Funds. A was well-versed about mutual funds and the terminology but yours truly had no clue. I was just glad A was around for entertainment. Well, we got KT about the firm's plans and offerings from a chap one rainy evening. In between dozes, I got the hang of what we had to do. A was pumped up and she had chalked out a plan complete with how much money we would make and a humungous shopping list of must-haves :-) Alas. That chap never called us back (sob) & all our grandiose shopping plans went down the drain (rather A's, since I had decided to go with her plan). Many weeks later, one evening I got a call enquiring whether I'd be available to give the session (on mutual funds of course) to another person they had newly hired for the same call centre stuff. Since I had college, I declined. That's what I told him. Really, how could I confess I didn't remember anything :-D



The rest of the jobs as they say is all a blur. Campus placements, off-campus offers etc. Nothing out of the ordinary here. My first placement happened all because my T-shirt played a huge role in conveying a distorted impression of me. I was an IEEE Volunteer (Just clarifying) !!! All the questions revolved around IEEE. Another Technical interview for a different workplace was outright embarrassing. My cellphone ring tone in those days was a comical Chicken dance. I had conveniently forgotten to set the profile to Silent. Bang in the middle of the interview, the chicken dance tune echoed loudly in the room and I turned completely red. The Interviewer was supremely amused , couldn't control his broad smiles and told me to go ahead and attend to the chicken. Sheeesh !!! In case you're wondering whether I got hired, as cliched as it may sound, that's for me to know and you to guess ;-)



More stories about the corporate world and my bitter sweet experiences is for a later day when I am someplace far away !! Adios amigos.
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Trials and Tribulations of a cookie

4:22 PM by lostworld

Whenever I spring surprises on an unsuspecting and hapless soul , I am the one who ends up truly surprised.. at my own shtoopidity of course ;-) Couple of days back I decided to cook up one such for the family (pun intended). I shall dedicate a post soon to my kitchen kitsch's since I for one, find cooking an extremely confusing process. Have you read this post of mine? I am proud of my limited culinary skills nevertheless. Who else would be? That's why.



I zeroed in on Coconut Burfi. I got the recipe from here. It seemed easy ( I was careful & chose a recipe with minimal steps ) . The only tough part was grating the coconut. I am a klutz in the kitchen. Someday I shall write about how I broke the gas cylinder's regulator & spent the whole night wide awake :-P Can you believe this - The mixer grinder gives me the shivers ! I am always scared the lid would hit the roof even if I sit on it ; Please don't imagine the same :-D



Well aware of my 'strengths', I asked the vegetable vendor to break the coconut into 2 halves. Back home, I hunted for the coconut grater and prepared myself mentally for the arduous task ahead. It was already 8:00 p.m. I have never grated coconut before. I kept a plate beside the grater and with one knee on the wooden plank , took one half of the coconut. Technically it was a quarter ; that genius broke it unevenly. Whatever. It was broken and that's all I should care about. I started grating and my knee kept slipping off the grater. After five minutes of sliding and grating (in turns), there were only a few crumbs on the plate. I was so discouraged when I noticed a lot of crumbs stuck between the blades. Happier that my efforts were yielding some results, I scraped it off the blade. I continued grating and within 20 minutes, got the hang of it....And then tragedy struck. I guess I put too much pressure with my knee on the poor grater and the screws became loose. Grating became difficult and slow. I got out the screw-driver and repaired the grater. Just when I thought I was in control, the handle came off. No, I don't have a 20 year old ancient grater :-( I fitted it back and finally finished it.



I fried the dessicated coconut for a few minutes on low flame. I took 2-3 cups of water and added 6-7 spoonfuls of sugar in a separate pan. All trial basis. Set it on the gas to boil. I kept stirring and waited for it to become syrupy. Twenty minutes. No syrup. Thirty. Far from syrup. Tring Tring! I called my married friend. Unreachable. Next - soon-to-be-married friend. She hasn't the foggiest idea about the syrup or the burfi. Next - another friend (last resort types). Encouraging words - " Keep stirring, ho jayega " ( Sooner or later, it will become a syrup). I stirred for ten more minutes. Sugar water looked golden. Suddenly I remembered reading another recipe where they'd mentioned adding a little milk. Why leave any stone unturned? So milk was the latest addition to the boiling sugar water. Ten more minutes. It was 9.45 p.m. I decided not to think anymore and the grated coconut & cardamom powder went in as well. I stirred for fifteen minutes and it seemed like I achieved some sort of burfi-like consistency. I had a plate smeared with ghee ready. The 'burfi' was on the plate. I spread it evenly and waited for it to cool down.



The moment my dad entered, he declared " I can smell something sweet ". First stage passed. At least there was an aroma ;-) Few minutes later, my dad tasted it and claimed it was good. Second stage, passed? Not at all. My dad is only person who appreciates even when I cook Maggi noodles and end up burning it ( Not anymore obviously ). So I knew I had to take his compliment with a pinch of salt. An hour later, I tried to cut it. Alas. It was SOFT! :-( I managed to cut it but it didn't have that clear cut shape of a burfi at all. I went to sleep very discouraged knowing that I botched up the sugar water/syrup!! I didn't see my mom's reaction in person, but she was taken aback and added that it was very good :-)


See full size image Of course realization would've dawned on her that she might get a better burfi anytime, but never a better daughter ;-) Oh, I'm pining my hopes on that one.



** Burfi is a sweet made from condensed milk, cooked with sugar and dessicated coconut until it solidifies. The name is derived from Hindi Word baraf which means snow since burfi is similar to ice/snow in appearance. Source - Wiki

Image Source -- www.dhesisweets.com/images (That's the closest to how my burfi looked)

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The Sweet Escape

3:52 PM by lostworld

Call me queer, but I have never enjoyed Diwali celebrations too much. The mass-merrymaking leaves me disconcerted. As a kid crackers and sweets were something I looked forward to, but nowadays its just the holidays. Its only Diwali or Deepavali as we call it, I love most other festivals! I haven't been able to pinpoint why though. Naturally I was ecstatic when I got a chance to escape far from the madding crowd this year.


My friend S's family lives in Kannur (north Kerala). I wasn't an alien to the place as my mother did part of her schooling here. I have heard stories repeated from time to time about Cannanore (as it was then called) beaches, temples, and so on. Nothing can prepare you for how beautiful Kerala really is. Define green and it would be apt for ANY place in Kerala. Having visited many of the famous spots in Kerala in the past, I can safely claim now that Kerala never disappoints with its ever present enticing aura. However, this trip was different. I got to stay with my friend's family and had the time of my life !! Where S and his family stay is a place that would only figure in most of our dreams. A huge house right in the midst of lush green trees and farms. A breath-taking garden with plants, trees, shrubs, blooming flowers and a swing too. The first morning when I woke up and looked out of the window, I really wished I could capture that misty view and keep it tucked away in my memory forever. I got to visit the most famous temples in Kannur and was pleasantly surprised to note how well-maintained they were. I made sure I visited my mom's Alma-matter as well - her school. How can one not go to a beach when in Kerala ?? Payambalam beach was beautiful at twilight and CLEAN !! I just can't help emphasizing on the cleanliness aspect, especially since I hail from Chennai where really.. Cleanliness is miles away from Godliness. Apart from these, I wish I could explain but there were some places so divinely picturesque I wanted to get lost in them :-) Paradise!


The icing on the cake..or rather the toast of any trip for me has always been and will always be the company. S's neighbours were a bundle of unadulterated energy - 2 little girls aged 4/5 and a bunch of teenage boys. They only spoke Malayalam and I proudly claimed initially that I could understand a little. To put it bluntly, I had no clue whether they were abusing me or praising me :-) A chatterbox like me used only 3 words throughout my interaction with the boys - 'Ariyale, Puriyale, Theriyale' ( Don't understand ). They were amused beyond words; I must have seemed like an extra-terrestrial to them! With due credit to them, for my convenience they usually used a smattering of English words to convey the message. Not just that, they would involve me in everything they did. Despite the fact that I couldn't reply, it never stopped them from talking to me, pulling my leg, observing everything about me and expressing it all every now and then. Totally cute. One boy even imitated the way a monkey looked to convey that there was one on a tree above :-) But alas! I couldn't reply although my mind was working overtime to try and talk to them. With this one-way communication channel established, we played board games all the time -- Sudoku, Carrom, Dominoes, Monopoly, Chinese Checkers, Ludo, Cricket etc. Smart huh? To give you a faint idea, I was a mute spectator most of the times; I enjoyed it though. I love kids, feel right at home with them - the uncanny mental connection :-D



At least the teenagers understood that I didn't know Malayalam and usually S or someone would translate and such. But with the 2 little girls , it was a different ball-game altogether !! They were sho shweeet. One kid imitated her mom, dad and even the way she had her bath! They were simply content that there was this 'chechi' (elder sister) who would play with them. They sat on either side of me and spoke nineteen to the dozen animatedly. I'd have given anything in the world just to understand what they were talking about. Even my blank expressions and lack of response didn't deter them. One kid would complain about the other to me. They would give me standing instructions sternly and play with each other. They would run around, eventually come back and relay a new tale. My response was always the same - Smile, pat them, give them a hug etc ;-) I'm glad I wasn't video-taped !!! Phew.


How can I forget S's family! Meeting his family was just like meeting a whole lot of S's at once. Everyone is just as soft-spoken, ever-smiling and so hospitable. I could go on and on, about the food, the fun and most importantly the priceless memories I will always keep with me. I was really speechless and touched several times but I fear I may tarnish the feeling by being too vocal ! :-)

On a lighter note, we all totally enjoyed pulling S's leg along about prospective 'brides' for him who had such bewitching names! Everytime he got tensed about these marriage talks, he would .. eat an orange!!! I AM serious. Oh and he also turned into a kid , joining his friends in - Blowing balloons, singing songs, playing local games (I forgot the name). Seemed to be God's favourite child ( or Kannur's ;-) )


I'm saving the best bit for the last - I didn't get to hear crackers bursting this time as Diwali isn't celebrated with much fervour in Kerala !!!!! Unparalleled relief :-) I don't really want to stop gushing about my fabulous trip, but I'm fast running out of appropriate words.. my poor vocabulary. Tragedy! :-(


I am skeptical about posting photos of my friends and myself, so do take a look my favourite one. I could stare at this ALL DAY.




* Credits to the photograph goes to S's talented sister - M :-)

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