Hey You !

This is more or less the result- day -tale in our household !  I live in hope that someday I can  "Caw! Caw ! "and "Crow!"

Funny how I still fall for mush!  Mushy movies, mushy songs, mushy feelings on a sunset evenings !  Somethings do not change with age!  Like Gregory Peck handing over those tale-tell photos to Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday,  Like Robert Redford taking Meryl Streep on that flight to freedom  in Out of Africa,  Like Richard Gere in innumerable films from An Officer and a gentleman(saw that one when Bhaskar was in uniform, during our courtship days) to Pretty Woman to Shall we dance? ....Amitabh B in Abhiman,  SRK in KKHH and Dil toh Pagal Hai ( I always end up crying for the one -who loved -and -was- left- out )  My list is endless!    Missing  my collection of "Love is..." cut-outs suddenly....wonder where I lost them....

Arpi's newborn is such a wonder- brought so much of happiness in their lives -One can feel the happiness radiating in their household! The tiny bundle of joy was mostly asleep and we missed out on the famous SRK dimpled smile ! What a lovely experience it was...especially cos our kids are all grown up now. God bless the proud parents and their little Arit !

Wish Fulfillment Everyday we receive images like this, sms -es, e-mails all promising wish fulfillment of sorts , all promising you of miracles within a specified period if you fulfill the conditions. Each time I receive something like this I promise myself I won't succumb and then I fall into the rut all over again. I close my eyes and mutter a silent prayer that Chibu passes his exams (sigh), that Baba remains healthy(touch wood), that the day goes off without a hitch at work ( hmmm) .....and so many !  I remember Buladidi telling me that if you wish on the moon on a full moon night it comes true...and I looked at the moon and out came the wishes....maybe even the  moon went moony  over them and none came true!!! Buladidi reprimanded , "I said 1!" and  I said "1? Ek se mera kya hoga?" Well , I know I will again forward 12 sms -es tomorrow and  wish on the red mail van and look out for a black car ( black ambassadors are prehistoric now) t...

A song that brews storm in whateva.....in my household....but in the end who cares who sang it......for it's all about .... Hallelujah ! I've heard there was a secret chord That David played, and it pleased the Lord But you don't really care for music, do you? It goes like this The fourth, the fifth The minor fall, the major lift The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Making your parent happy is a happy feeling ! I loved the look of surprise on Baba's face when I got him the LCD TV! It isn't something great , but for him it was something he wanted and didn't get around to buying - and my spur of the moment decision probably made his day. All my life I got my gifts from him -for birthdays, poojo, gifts for all season and gifts for no reason ! So it's my turn.....though I will never ever be able to return what I got from my parents, but these little gestures fetch me my rewards - the smile and the affectionate hug....ohh ! my day was made! These moments                                                                             make life worth what it is!!!

Valentine's day is over and so is our anniversary...27 years together ! Time really flies by..It seems  I met B just the other day...29 years back! Bonnie had brought him along on that afternoon at Outram , for an entirely different reason all together ......and the most   unplanned thing in my life happened- we fell in love and got married. If I am truthful,it  hasn't been all  bliss...nor has life been the way I had expected it to be. I have cribbed and crabbed, had terrible moments of disenchantment, but I always knew he was the anchor- the stabilizing factor in my life....boring at times , but who ensures that I have my vitamins in the morning! That our wallets are not empty, bills are paid and our lives are comfortable, if not plush! Life isn't as romantic as it used to be when he took me on long bike rides to catch the sunset by the river...or when he introduced me to the world of Asterix and brought me my favorite music cassette and we read together...

The Valentine Mania Everyone around me is going  beserk - young, middle aged and the old!! Anji said "Aha re, boyosh hoyche bole ki mone shaad alhaaad nei?"  and we sniggered like teenagers!! But all said and done, despite the overdose and the overdrive, I quite enjoy this day...I like the city being decorated in hearts and swathes of pink. Even noticed a pati paaner dokan having these huge heart cutouts- incongruous and eyesore...but then like Anji said....:)))  And like I said if you don' have someone to love you , love yourself! 14th FEB PS: Spent the evening watching a perfect V day film " Ek main aur ek tu" with friends- candyfloss and Archies n  Betty - sugary sweet  with an imperfect end ....a purrfect end to my V-Day expedition!!!

On my way to work I heard something on the radio , which kinda made sense! Mir said, he never compares his  9year old to what he was when he was 9 himself ! Strange , we all do that , at times.We grew up with " Ami jokhon tomar boyosher chilam...." and we say the same to our children ! I was trying to remember myself as a 20 something...cannot quite imagine Chibu being the same ...cos I married at 21..My choice (the mixed feelings came later). In my class , Hamish commented "Wow! Was it allowed back then?" He made me feel almost medieval! Looking back,our generation had a free life really - of course the curfew orders were there, but I went to clubs, disco nights, movies, had boyfriends and not everything was hush! hush! Looking back ,I feel our generation was more "emo", today's gen is more grounded- more focused- more aware...that' s because of the exposure and the tip-of -the - finger technology of course! Actually Mir is right ! We cannot g...

On my way back tonight I suddenly remembered Chibu's night shirt with an illustration of Esmeralda- It used to be his favorite for a long time till he finally outgrew that set. Funny why should one choose Esmeralda to be printed on a 3year old's Tee !!  I remember reading the story in Bangla long before I read the original. It was an abridged version in Bishwer Shreshtho Goppo- a birthday gift when I was in Class5! I cannot quite remember now if I could decipher the complexities of human relationship- of love, infatuation, lust and despair.....of being ugly and passionate ( disastrous combination). I wonder if Chibu ever read that book and about Quasimodo's obsession and who Esmeralda really was....!!

90 years young...... The 3 generations...   Yesterday was Baba's 90th birthday. An occasion to cherish. The family was around him ....and the children and the grandchildren gathered to make him feel happy and honored! It was indeed poignant to see all the three generations together....... Lipi took the mantle of  cooking the lunch and dinner and Chibu got him a cake on his way back from the college...a gesture which was really thoughtful! Tuli wanted to light a candle , which didn't happen, cos Baba said...90 candles would be more of a bonfire!!  But it was an occasion which got the family together.....Days like this are rare and even if I did not have a camera.....the picture would have been etched in my memory forever!!

Do we bring up our children with a hope in our hearts that one day they will look after us? It' easy  to talk about being a role model- but are we good role models ourselves? While the child is craving to spend time with us  , we are busy...and then in a blink of the  eye the tables are turned..... And we think that our life's investment has crashed....who should we blame?

Excerpt from The speaking tree... They feed on your time and energy, tiring you out, so protect yourself, writes BINDIYA MURGAI. The Buddha said, “Life is a journey and you don’t always choose the people with whom you travel that journey”. You are a pilgrim on a trip called life. Whilst on your path, you will meet people who send you plummeting over an emotional cliff. These people come in various shapes, sizes and forms and are called emotional vampires. They don’t wear capes, fly or grow fangs.  They can come in the form of relatives, friends, spouses, co-workers and bosses. They are the ones that feed on your time, energy and sometimes, your money!  Interactions with them leave you feeling emotionally drained, physically tired, irritable, angry, inadequate, hopeless, trapped or afraid. Your mood nosedives when you are with them. They can affect your emotional and physical health. That’s why it’s important to identify and deal with them.  Such people are often very i...

This is not the original video.... And Lata did not sing the original number, But the pain of separation  of transformation of the mirror telling you  about the cruelty of time..... All reminds me when  I was in love With poetry..... From Pritish Nandy's compilation tranlation by Iqbal Masood..... Waqt ne kiya... The transforming exquisite cruelty of time you are no longer you I am no longer I Our restless hearts have met did we ever part? We walked together a few steps and then, we were lost Where shall we go? I see no path Our journey is uncharted Our quest aimless We fabricate our dreams moment by moment.... Now the original....