Getting ready to party

Not really...but that's the theme of the pictures I clicked today. Here goes...

You like? 

A gift to myself

Christmas holds a special place in my heart. At home, we would decorate a small tree, my dad would get a cake for us and I would get a gift from Santa. At school, it was the most festive time of the year - we would sing carols, give food and clothes to charity, and we would deck the halls with boughs of holly (Fa la la la la la la la la) and mistletoe. I remember this one time when my sister signed the gift from Santa in her own writing and I got all suspicious. But she covered it up by saying that Santa was in a hurry and asked her to sign it. I actually bought that and continued to believe in Santa for another year or so.(Yes I know I was naive)

Anyway, this year, I indulged myself with a little Christmas gift. I figured I liked clicking pictures, so why not graduate from point and shoot to DSLR. So I got myself a Canon Rebel XS. If you are interested in technical specs, then please read the review here.

As expected, I am going to flood this space with some amateur photography while I learn to use it. Also as expected, you will be my critic and help me improve. Deal? Okay? Okay. Here are some of my clicks from the blizzard that wreaked havoc in New York over the Christmas weekend. I had read about blizzards in the fifth grade. We had this cute geography book which taught us about a place and natural phenomenon for every letter of the alphabet. So B for Brazil and B for Blizzard. I had never imagined I would actually get to experience one, but I did. Anyways, here are the pictures. Looking forward to your vishesh tippani! :)

Snow covered street

My Footsteps

Bush in hiding

Snow in a trash can

Mounds and mounds of snow

A long walk home

Snow at your doorstep

Diversity - While one tree has so many leaves, others don't have even a single leaf.

P.S I still believe in Santa. It may not be a man in red clothes with a snow-white beard, riding a sleigh pulled by reindeer, but I am sure there is someone out there who watches over us and gives us exactly what we need, when we need it :) 

P.P.S 2 down, 50 to go ;)

Happy New Year to all!

This is the first post of 2011 and I just wanted to use this space to wish all of you a very happy new year! I have often wondered what the big deal about a new year is.  After all, a new year is just another date. But over time, I have realized it means much more to people. For those who’ve had a rough year, it brings new hope of sunshine and happiness. For those who’ve had a great year, it brings back good memories and a good feeling that the next year will bring more of such memories to cherish for years to come. Most importantly, I think it promises a fresh start. So raise your glasses, dear readers, and let’s toast to a year of joy, hope and love - Cheers!

I welcomed 2011 with a few friends in Cambridge. We had a quiet dinner at a Thai restaurant, relished some lip smacking dessert at another and ended the evening with a few games of good ol’ carom. Like good children, we also went to the temple on the 1^st to seek God’s blessing for this coming year.

And a New Year would be incomplete without a New Year resolution. So even though The Boy insisted that I was perfect (**awww moment**), I still came up with a list of things I want to accomplish this year. Here goes:      

1.       Attain the perfect weight and a perfectly toned body. (Okay, don’t laugh)

2.       Catch up on my reading. (You would think that the books theme on this blog would be inspiration¹ enough, but a Kindle might be necessary. This resolution was actually inspired by someone I know who read 52 books in less than 52 weeks. )

3.       Spend lots of quality time with family and friends.

4.       Learn to cook at least 52 different recipes. (Obviously, I am inspired¹ by Julie & Julia)

5.       Learn to drive. (Very important)

6.       Blog at least 52 times this year. And hey 1 down, so 51 blog posts to go ;)

¹We are sophisticated and hence we don’t copy. We are inspired. **Cough cough**

The above list is in no particular order. So please don’t complain by saying I put books and weight-loss above family and friends ‘cos you know I wouldn’t do that!  I also have a few other personal resolutions which I am not going to list here. But you get the drift ;)

So what’s your New Year resolution this year?

Sigh...Kids these days...

 Not so long ago, in a land not so far away, there was a little girl who’s favorite pastime was reading books, playing outdoors or some other such inexpensive pleasure. Fast forward 15 years, the big girl now doesn't read as many books as she would like, doesn't play any sport and most of her weekends are spent in shopping malls scouting for the best deals or indulging in culinary delights at restaurants, or some other such pleasure requiring her to spend money.

In case you didn’t get the hint already, the person in question here is yours truly. Now how can I not buy that perfect fitting jeans when the poster in the trial rooms says

 I wonder what has changed in these years. I used to be like any other kid. I went to school, played outdoors with friends, and went to karate/swimming/art/music classes. What happened that I no longer seem to do any of these things? Is it just me, or in general the scheme of things changed when I was not looking? Part of the change is that I now have a job and an in-flow of money. And we all know Newton’s third law – Every action requires an equal and opposite reaction. Going by that, an inflow of money requires an outflow of money too. But if an inflow of money required an equal outflow, then we wouldn't be saving any money. Thankfully, that law doesn't hold true in this case…at least for most of us!

Another glaringly obvious change is the revolutionizing technology that has made the world flat. Kids today are glued to the computer, in school and after school. I am not saying technology is bad because I, for one, cannot imagine my life without email, laptop and a cell phone. But my question is do we really need to start that early? And how much of a kid’s time is spent doing useful things on a computer. I am confident that a majority of it is spent on social networking and chatting. Not just that, they go to clubs and pubs, malls and restaurants, and throw expensive birthday parties much before mine or your generation ever dreamed of (Yes, I am talking like a grandmother and assuming my blogs limited readership doesn't include youngsters!).  Though I can’t find a solid argument as to what’s wrong with this change in culture, I still find it hard to come to terms with. As long as the kid has a sensible head on his/her shoulder, I think its fine. But it’s definitely not the kid’s fault if he/she is crossing the limits of acceptable behavior. Knowingly or unknowingly, parents encourage it or give in to it. A large part of it is due to the parents’ need to keep up with the Joneses. Or sometimes, it is the need to give their children the comforts and luxuries they always wanted but didn’t have.  Either way, they end up doing more harm than good. 

Another contributing factor that I see is the growing trend of nuclear families. Married couples move away from their families and most of the times both the parents are working. So the kids do not come home to the loving care of grandparents or their mother. While it is not realistic to say that parents should give up their careers once they have children, it is important that couples figure out some flexible working options to be able to spend time with their kids. However, in the not so ideal world, flexible working options are sometimes not available to everyone and many have to let go of their career aspirations and settle for a comfortable job that may not be the most challenging, but will allow them to spend more time with their kids. Sometimes, it boils down to a catch 22 situation. Do you  take up more challenging positions at work that will allow you to bring home a bigger package and provide better for your children, or should you take up a job that lets you spend more time with your kids albeit at a much lower salary? There are couples who strike a balance between both and manage to get the best of both worlds. But for others, it’s a tough choice that they have to make.

In my opinion, there is no right or wrong here, and there are just too many variables involved to be able to arrive at an ideal situation where each variable is set to a specific value. In the past the formula: mother_working = FALSE and Joint_family = TRUE and career aspirations = MEDIUM might have worked, but not today. So the best that you can do today is to bring up your children with values and teach them to be good human beings. If you have achieved that, consider it a job well done. Rest, they will figure it out as they go along. 

Thanksgiving weekend

Since we have decided to be sincere about our blogging this time around, here we are. The only way to keep me motivated at this is to appreciate me. So any/all feedback is not only welcome, it’s absolutely critical to the survival of this blog. Get the point? Good.

Anyway, so yours truly took her first vacation day off this year and decided to spend Thanksgiving in Boston. I wanted to catch up with all my friends before I leave. We dined, laughed, clicked random pics, walked around in the windy weather, and basically much fun was had. I had forgotten how cold Boston can get. I officially hate the winter weather. I had quite enjoyed the first winter, excitement about seeing snow for the firs time surpassed the pains of cold weather. I don't like it anymore. I hate wearing the thick jackets, gloves and hates. Anyway, enough cribbing. So back to the happy stuff. Black Friday Shopping! I actually woke up at 4:30 AM and was in the mall at 6:30. Madness. But it's the my last Black Friday sale, so why not go all out huh?! And it paid off, I got some good deals. So I'm happy. Oh, here's a picture from the trip:

And to continue the Thanksgiving theme:

Dear God,

Thank you so much for giving me such a good life. I am surrounded by people who love me so much, and who I love so much. I have a place I call home, people I can call, people who call me, people to visit, people who visit me, people who give me a ride and let me stay in their homes, people who care so much about me. I don't have to worry about where my next meal will come from. I don't have to think too much before buying the next gadget that I like. Thank you for keeping me healthy and happy and thank you for the most wonderful family & friends!

Love
M

P.S. What are you thankful for?

A heartfelt Thank You note

Dear N,

Thank you for being such a good friend. You were there with me when I was lonely. You entertained me with something new every time. What would I have done this year without you? You were promptly at my doorstep when I needed you. Never missed any dates, never disappointed me. You even managed to bring some flavor of home. I am so grateful to you. And I must thank P for introducing me to you. Even though I am moving to India now, I will always think of you fondly. If you ever decide to come to India, rest assured, I will introduce you to all my friends. Thank you, Netflix.

Love,
M

Yet another comeback

So there's no point in me making a big hullabaloo about my comeback. Yes/No? If you said yes, then sorry, that's the wrong answer. If Hollywood, Bollywood, Tollywood, & not to forget - Kollywood (Am I forgetting any other wood?) celebrities are allowed multiple comebacks, then why not me I ask. Fair enough you say. Okay let's cut the crap. This is my yet-another-lame-attempt at keeping my blog alive. Lets see how long this one lasts. Hopefully longer than the last one. And obviously, a comeback has to be accompanied with a totally new look (you know how celebrities say " I have reinvented myself with this movie"), so I obviously had to reinvent myself with this blog and hence the new look. Hope you like it. 'Cos I do. It has one of my favorite things. Books! Lots of them. In all honesty, we haven't done much reading in the past year. Except for Eat Pray Love. Which we totally loved. If you haven't read it yet and if you are of the female race, do yourself a favor and read it. No, watching the movie is not good enough. And yes, we did watch a lot of movies this year. So much so that we can call this year - the year of the movies. And talking of Eat Pray Love - The movie. Not only did we watch it, we watched it in true eat pray love style: by promptly eating some spaghetti and gelato as soon as it got over - Totally Julia Roberts style. She looks kinda old in the movie. But we love her. Still. Bali looks heavenly. (Note to self - Gotta visit Bali.) Talking of Bali, S is in Jakarta for a couple of days. The currency there is really funny. 100 USD = 8,00,000 Rupiah (approx). So S has pocketful of 50,000 Rupiah notes. And he had dinner worth 75,000 Rupiah. It amuses the hell outta S. I really shouldn't be blogging now. I could have gone to the gym. But I chose to blog. Because I am passionate about blogging...oh well, or lazy about sweating it out at the gym(**Guilty**). Enough rambling for today. More to come. Soon.

I am back!

You could say I went into hibernation from fall through winter. But now that spring is knocking on the door (yay!), I find myself inspired to get back to blogging. I don't promise to post something everyday, but I will try to keep you all updated with the latest. So what have I been doing all these months?

1. I graduated! So now I have B.Tech, M.E.M after my name. Cool huh?
2. Survived the rigors of a job search during recession. Phew!
3. Visited India for a month :)
4. Survived the rigors of apartment hunting in NY.
5. Completed one month on the new job.

Now aren't you glad that I wasn't blogging all this while? Cos If I did, all you would have found here are rants and complaints about my struggle, except for a month of complete bliss when I was at home.(I do make it sound more dramatic than it was!). So what have I been doing lately? Well, I have watched more movies than ever in my life (I signed up for Netflix). I will soon add a movies list here so that you know what I have been watching. Next on the list is to enroll at the public library so that I can get back to voracious reading. I miss doing that. Then maybe we will add a reading list here as well. So that's the plan. Ready, Get Set, Go!

Craving for good food!

Random musings:

-Lately, I have been craving for good indian food and maggi. Somehow, this term I have not been cooking as much as I did in the other terms. I wonder why. Maybe because I don't feel like spending so much time in the kitchen just cooking for myself. Or sometimes I feel its such a waste of time. Anyway, so yeah I am craving for good food.

-I am looking forward to meeting P next month...a much-awaited and much-needed reunion after 3 years! I am so excited and I am sure P feels the same way too.

-Oh by the way, I am almost done with my Masters. Precisely, I will be done with my exams on December 7th. Yay! Last 2 assignments and last 2 exams. I don't think I want to go back to school ever again. Or atleast, so far, no such plans!

Anyways, I better get back to work now. It's a nice rainy day and all I want to do is curl up in my bed with a book, and a bowl of popcorn, or maybe watch a movie...sigh...I am back to dreaming about food. Somebody please send me some maggi!!!

A Simple Life

Let your boat of life be light, packed with only what you need - a homely home and simple pleasures, one or two friends, worth the name, someone to love and someone to love you, a cat, a dog, and a pipe or two, enough to eat and enough to wear, and a little more than enough to drink; for thirst is a dangerous thing - Jerome K. Jerome

The above quote precisely states what I want in my life right now. Except that I am not too keen on getting a cat or a pipe. A drink - Orange juice will do :)

I am back!

I am done with 390...yay! High five!!

So those of you who don't know what 390 is, it is the course code for the M.E.M project. Basically you need to do a project at a company and then present it later at school in front of a review board. And as soon as you land here for this program, you start looking for a 390 project. This year, getting an internship turned out to be a bit more tough than last year, thanks to the economic downturn! But all's well that ends well - all of us did end up getting one.

So once you find the internship, you have to obviously work at the company and finish your project. Typically, everybody does this over the summer term. And then we present it to the review board at school in the Fall term. So this whole cycle takes almost a year and now you know why I am so glad to be done with it. Everybody say yay! :)

Anyhoo, after my presentation, I finally made my first trip to the grocery store this term and got lots of veggies and fruits. All healthy food, but ended up burning a hole in my pocket too...*guilty face*

After that I ate, I cooked ... and that's pretty much it! Hopefully, I will continue to regularly update my blog. I will try my best, but I don't promise!

Please visit the blog regularly for more updates.

Breaking the blogging fast on a happy note!

Hello guys!

Sorry about the brief (actually not so brief) pause! I am sure many of you would have decided that I am dead by now. Maybe I was, but anyhoo I have sprung back to life now - with renewed enthusiasm! And the reason behind this uber enthusiastic spirit you ask? It’s simple! I am going home in two days. TWO DAYS! yaaaayyy! :D
I have been doing a happy dance in the shower for a week now, smiling everywhere I go and generally sharing my happiness with everybody around! Ten weeks of loneliness has finally come to an end...
Every experience teaches you something and the last ten weeks has made me appreciate my family and friends all the more. Sniff sniff! I am getting very emotional now.
Anyhoo, here's a quick update of what’s been happening at my end:

* Roommate visited me one of the weekends. Had an awesome time with her. Went to Statue of Liberty and Empire State building, Central Park, Wall Street, Times Square. And this time I did go into Tiffany's! Clicked 216 pictures in 17 hours. So that translates to approximately 12 pictures/hour! :D Those interested in seeing the pictures, let me know - I will send you the link.
** The next weekend was spent entirely on shopping. Bought tons of stuff for myself. Wheee!
*** Wrapped up my internship projects. High five!
So those have been the highlights of the last few weeks. You didn't miss much, did you?

Alrighty guys, I am signing off now - next post will be from Kolkata! Woohoo!!

The one in which I blog for the sake of blogging

Have blog. Will post.

P.S This was posted on popular demand only!

M's day out in the city

Finally! So finally I did some touristy stuff after being in NYC for 7 weeks. I could have done it earlier, but I thought it would be best to wait for my camera to arrive so that I could click pictures. Yes dear readers, yours truly is finally the proud owner of her very own digital camera! And this is after months of browsing for deals and talking to a zillion people for advice. Click here for the specs.

Anyhoo, so I took the downtown train straight to Wall Street. Now we imagine things to be in a certain way before we see them, or we imagine people to be of a certain kind before we actually meet them. I often form a mental perception of things. So I had imagined Wall Street to be a crowded, busy place where I would find investment bankers dressed in Armani suits strutting around. Instead what I saw was a narrow street swarming with tourists. Obviously because I went on a Saturday! So I found myself in the middle of Wall Street, with the Trump building and Tiffany’s on either side.





And with the Trump building on my right and Tiffany’s on my left, I caught a glimpse of Trinity Church:



I walked towards it and at the intersection of Wall Street and Broad Street I saw a huge United States flag looming in front of me. And that my friends is NYSE:



And at the intersection, on the left was the JP Morgan building:





And on the right was the Federal hall with a statue of George Washington in front:



I walked further down Wall Street towards Trinity Church on Broadway and I found myself on the other side of NYSE:



I went across Broadway and inside the Church. At the entrance of Trinity Church:



Here are a few pictures that I clicked inside the church:







And this was the cemetery on the side of the Church:



Here's how Wall Street looks from the entrance of the Church:



Doesn't it look really narrow? Sort of reminds me of Burra bazaar in Kolkata. Ok don't laugh. I couldn't help but notice the similarity! After all, both are business districts! :D

And then I marched towards the charging bull - the moment that I had waited for ever since I set my foot on NYC soil was finally here:



I walked towards the WTC site on the other side of Broadway and I saw this cube outside Brown brothers Harriman:



So I had to do this :D



After demonstrating my strength at the cube, I proceeded to the WTC site. I cannot even begin to imagine the kind of panic that would have set in on 9/11 when the two towers came crashing down in the financial hub. Construction of the new towers is in progress:



For a $5.00 student pass, I browsed through the gallery started as an initiative by WTC survivors and families.



Inside the WTC memorial gallery - two guns, both 357 Magnum revolvers, encrusted in melted concrete, were recovered from Federal evidence lockers at the World Trade Center



Photos and puppet salvaged from the home of a Battery Park City resident



An actual elevator sign board from one of the WTC towers



Names of people who died in the 9/11 attacks



Pictures of people who died in 9/11 attacks



This quilt was prepared by young children and became a means of emotional recovery for them and the firemen who received it post 9/11. It expresses their appreciation of things that are important to them in their daily lives. Pretty moving huh?

Oh I also saw the American Stock Exchange:



and World Financial Center:



Waterfront at Battery Park:





The sphere behind me used to be in the plaza between the WTC towers. It's deformed now.



Eternal flame that was lit on September 11, 2002



Then I proceeded to take the Staten Island ferry. It takes you from Manhattan to Staten Island and back for free! On the way I saw this:



That's a real man! He had painted himself. And was standing in that pose for hours. At least I saw him twice in 2 hours and he was in the same pose. And that's how he earns his daily bread. And we think we have a tough job!



Finally saw the Statue of Liberty, albeit at a distance! Here's a view of Manhattan from the ferry:



And one of Brooklyn bridge (Again, it reminds me of Kolkata's second Howrah Bridge!)



and when I got off the ferry, this man was still there in the same pose!



And thus came an end to M's day out in NYC. Oh I forgot to mention that I snacked on a burrito bowl at Chipotle. So at the end of the day, even though my feet ached for a massage, I was one happy soul! :)