My books and me..

Here’s a tag for all book lovers! Slightly too long, but it is about BOOKS!!
1. Favorite childhood book? I guess it’l have to be Enid Blyton
2. What are you reading right now? Eat, Love Pray
3. Bad book habit? Falling asleep while reading a book. :) But I love when that happens
4. Do you have an e-reader? No. As if I already don’t spen enough time on computers.
5. Do you prefer to read one book at a time or several at once? One book at a time.
6. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog? Not really, infact I have started appreciating good novels
7. Least favorite book you read this year (so far)? It was so boring, I’ve even forgotten the name.
8. Favorite book you’ve read this year? Jeffery Archer- The Winner Stands Alone
9. How often do you read out of your comfort zone? Rarely
10. What is your reading comfort zone? Depends on my mood really, from mushy romantic novels to high packed drama to dramatic novels
11. Can you read on the bus? Nope, I feel dizzy
12. Favorite place to read? On a train journey, if I am alone
13. What is your policy on book lending? Should be returned the way it was lent
14. Do you ever dog-ear books? Only during emergencies, but I hate doing it.
15. Do you ever write in the margins of your books. Nope.. no way
16. Not even with text books?Not at all. I like my books clean ( underlines maybe)
17. What is your favorite language to read in?
18. What makes you love a book? If I get so engrossed in it that I loose track of time
19. What will inspire you to recommend a book- If it helps me change something in myself
20. Favorite genre? Nothing specific as such
21. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?) – If I wish I did.. I would
22. Favorite biography- I don’t enjoy biographies, wouldn’t want to influence my life with what others did with theirs.
23. Have you ever read a self-help book? Not really
24. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)-This year I have not been able to spend much time with the books
25. Favorite reading snack? Something where I don’t have to concentrate much on the eating part (popcorns maybe)
26. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience- Namesake27. How often do you agree with critics about a book? No, I like to make my opinions
28. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews? Not bad, its my opinion and I stick to it.
29. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose? Punjabi ( I want to learn it so that I can teach it to m y kids :P)
30. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read? Dr Brian Weiss- Many masters many lives and Sermons from the masters
31. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin? None
32. Favorite Poet? Favorite fictional character? I don’t like poetry, too high fi for me
33. Favorite fictional villain? It would be from one of the Sidney Sheldon novels, they were all too good.
34. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation? Something light and funny
35. The longest I’ve gone without reading I guess the first 4 months of my first job.
36. Name a book that you could/would not finish- The Alchemist by Paulo Cohelo
37. What distracts you easily when you’re reading? Phone calls38. Favorite film adaptation of a novel? Harry Potters, all of them (cant wait for the last two )
39. Most disappointing film adaptation? Shakti, it is an adaptation of ‘Not without my daughter’, couldn’t do justice to the book
40. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time? 500 bucks I guess
41. How often do you skim a book before reading it? I just read its back cover.. always
42. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through? It does not appeal to me, or if I think ‘what crap is this’
43. Do you like to keep your books organized? I would like to, Yes
44. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them? No such hangups
45. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding? Not really
46. Name a book that made you angry. Angry?? Why would a book make me angry (unless it is one of those horoscope books which say I wouldn’t have a good year ahead, Screw them!!)
47. A book you didn’t expect to like but did? Harry Potter, that was a big surprise
48. A book that you expected to like but didn’t? Paulo Cohelo, I really thought I’d like it.
49. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading? Readers Digest, still love it!!

Random!!

I was having lunch at a restaurant today when I saw my phone (Bling!!) lying far across the table and I thought to myself, I should remember to pick it up once I leave, from the looks of these waiters they wont even give it back if I come back looking for it later.

Half an hour later, I had just walked out of the restaurant when a waiter came running after me.. "Ma'am you forgot your phone on the table"!!

God has funny ways of making us realize how selfish we are at times!!

The Big fat Indian Wedding

I know that the first question that will come to your mind after reading this blog is that why did I go to this wedding at all, so I am going to answer that first, it was a dear cousin’s wedding and in my defence, i was not aware of the risks that I was taking.

Anyways, the wedding started with the pre- marital ceremony called “Sagan”. As soon as I entered the Gurudwara I could feel all eyes on me, Ok granted, some of them were seeing me after ages and were actually using all their logics to figure out whose daughter I was. As soon I was seated, conscious that all my movements were being observed, I was pounded upon by the ladies who claimed to be my distant yet concerned relatives.

It took me less than five minutes to make an excuse and get out of there, I decided to go and sit with my cousin (the one who was getting married) who, like me, was trying to avoid the relatives but much to my dismay he was called and we were made to sit in the front. As soon as the ceremony ended and we proceeded for lunch I tried desperately to look for a known face before I could be a caught in a guessing game which my relatives love to play (mujhe pehchana? mein tumhara chacha, bua , tau). Awkward smiles, stolen glances, desperate attempts to avoid anyone more than 80 kgs (for fear of being pounded upon) which, considering it was a punjabi wedding was a cumbersome task.

Then, it started, “so, when do you plan to get married? I thought you’d marry before your brother? Working? In NOIDA?? YOU STAY IN A FLAT?? Considering these reactions, I would have been easily blamed for any stroke they got that day while it would actually have been from all the oily food that they were stuffing in. Again, awkward smiles, and desperate attempts to walk out of there. Somehow, swallowed my lunch and begged my mom to leave so that I could get a few minuted of peace at home but God had other plans. As soon as I settled down to sleep in a far corner of a room, I was brutually reminded that I had come to attend a wedding and apparently, sleeping in a wedding is a punishable offence.

Then started the ‘what they called’ Sangeet, which to be honest was quite entertaining( I an after alll a Punjabi) and I was enjoying all this from a far corner of the room where I was comfortable hiding behind my mom. tThen it started, one after the other my long lost cousins starting pouring in, one of whom was younger to me, with kids in their lap, looking like they’ve just walked out of an Ekta Kapoor serial, their mothers along them with their chest full of pride for their daughters, reason? her daughter became a mother in the first year of her marriage. I am sure she would not have been shocked had I told her that her daughter was nominated for a “Bharat Ratan”. My bechari mom, feeling a little out of place tried to match them by telling me “look at them, they look so well dressed, why don’t you dress up like them, but I subsided her excitement by replying “what about the kids they have? How do I match that?

The night passed somehow and the next morning I was awakened by ladies rushing here and there mostly looking for some thing for their husbands and their husbands looking for them. The wedding.. aah.. even more relatives, more stares making me even more uncomfortable. I tried convincing my dad to let me go but apparently we have the same blood group so none of us gave up till the end, I kept asking him to let me go, he kept ignoring me( Well done Dad). I sat with him for 10 mins, by then he had showed me around 10 people who wanted to get their sons married to me. By then I decided that my mom was a better company and stuck with her for the rest of the ordeal. I also offered mom a drink, told were it would help beat the boredom but she thought I was joking and stared smiling. (What??) I didn’t have the guts to tell her I was not.

I wish my cousin a very happy married life and through this blog I want to tell him, what I had to go through for his wedding!! Buy me a nice gift when we meet next. You owe me one!!

The Mushroom Theory

Assumptions/ Statutory Warnings:

1. To understand this theory you must be or at any given point of time should have been, madly in love.

2. Ignore the fact that this may be pure crap.

3. Will not take credit for this theory when telling your friends about it ( and they are nodding in approval)

4. Leave a comment on this blog( all you need is a gmail id)

Theory:

In every couple , there will be one person who likes mushrooms and the other who doesn't.

Implications:

1. You will never be able to order mushroom dishes in restaurants, because your better half would not enjoy

Results:

If you are in a committed relationship and the above story holds true holds for you then you are made for each other.

Disclaimer:

Call it lack of exposure, but I have been able to test this theory only on straight couples.

Waiting for your feedbacks....

random..

I fall more in love with you.. everyday.. every moment..

Of Old Memories

I’ve never liked dogs. I mean what’s there to like? They are huge, hairy, smelly and worst of all, they BITE. I’ve seen many families who have dogs as pets and not only as pets but as their additional family members. This is one thing that I never understood. I would see them cuddling them, worrying for them, taking them to vets like their own kids. Why on earth would someone like to do that for a DOG??????? Aren’t we already over flowing with tensions of our own?

Then I met him. “Lazor”. He was huge, no doubts about that, hairy.. yeah and smelly..well.. sometimes. I was scared of him at first; actually, petrified is the word. He had fire in his eyes and every time I went to his house he used to come running towards me like a hungry lion running towards his prey. Only when I was assured that he is behind a firmly bolted door would I step into the house. Even then, he would keep barking and scratching at the door asking (read: demanding) to be let out.

And one fine day, we decided to be friends. Don’t ask me how it happened; I’m just glad it did. Since that day, my trips to his house have been even more enjoyable. Even as I’m parking my scooter at their gate I can hear him barking and in a matter of minutes I would see him running towards me only I was not scared of it anymore. I would be waiting to embrace him and I was allowed entry only after his sniffing and my patting sessions were over. Inside the house, he would linger around me seeking attention and once I was comfortably seated he would quietly come and keep his head on my lap.

I don’t know when it happened but I fell in love with him. I would talk to him, pat him, hug him (yeah.. that same old hairy creature). My heart went out to him. Infact, the first thing that I cooked in their kitchen was his lunch. He made me feel special(much more than his master), especially when I came with my friends and he choose to come to me over them and I used to love him even more for that.

He is no more today. To be honest I still don’t believe that he won’t be there when I go to that house again. I push away that thought as soon as it comes. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it. As for now, I just miss him but I’m sure he is there somewhere, making some other family happy.

Rest in Peace Lazor.. Love you!!

Down the memory lane...

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.
You're on your own.
And you know what you know.
You are the guy who'll decide where to go.
~Dr. Seuss

This is the second time I'm leaving college.. leaving Chandigarh.But this farewell is different from the previous one in more than one ways.This time, I'm also leaving my heart behind.

College, they say, is the most important period of your life and I couldn't agree more. These two years have been.. well.. great!! From attending classes to bunking them, from trips.. funcity to bangalore, from fights to friendships.. it has been a wholesome experience.During these two years I've made some close friends, not so good friends, acquaintances, and.. ah.. one special friend ;). No matter what they were, in one way or the other they have had an impact on me. I would like to believe it has been positive, after all,, I like the new me :)

Today, this blog is for them, to tell them that they mean a lot to me and I'm thankful to them for being what they are to me.

It won't feel right if I don't start with the person who has had the maximum impact on me.Mayank is the "ideal man".. well.. he is "MY ideal man". I've shared one of the greatest friendships with him. I've loved him, hated him, scolded him, fought with him and I'm falling short of verbs here. There's a smile on my face every time I think of him. He has always been there for me, in happy as well as sad times, protecting me and more importantly loving me. The the thing that stands out about him is his passion for life, he is the best at whatever he does. Mayank and I are responsible for almost half the revenues of the film industry, a movies had to be really bad if we've not seen it (trust me.. we've seen dashavataram also :P). He is my safety wall, my friend, my guide and above all.. he is my man!!

The next in line is Monica, we call her our Phoebe. She has these weird kinks that any amount of logic and reasoning cannot justify. Monica
is one of a kind and no one even comes close to becoming like her. She is a fun- filled party animal, always excited always smiling. She lives in her own world, where she is the queen. So believe me, if you plan to have fun, she is the one to look out for. She is my sweet little Monu!!

Aveo, as he calls me, Ravish is our " Mr Sensible" (for crying out loud!!). He once told me that when he first met me he though I was arrogant so he used to avoid me. I don't know what made him change his mind but whatever it was I'm glad it did. He likes to pull my leg and the sweet guy that he is, I let him do it :). He is the epitome of simplicity also the promoter of our UBS community and can go on and on about how we should stay in touch and help each other. Can't promise about UBS but I will definitely stay in touch with this guy!!

Our funfilled chatterbox Akash is " stupidity personified " ( is that a phrase?? ). If you see anything stupid happening around you, expect her to be nearby. I can recall a lot of my mornings starting with her loud and happy "WASSUP" !! greetings.She is a little kid inside and you just can't help but love her for that !!



Ah.. Ahem.. Well.. thats out Pankaj. He is known for the way he speaks and rumour has it that he can clear a GD even if he does not know zilch about the topic. Yeah.. he can talk crap in style. He is our sportsman, be it badminton ( well.. we know who is the champion there ;) ), football or poker. For him, life is a party and we are always invited !!

Shahi is our troubleshooter. His is the first name that comes to your mind when you are in a fix.
He is a tech- freak and his ipod has helped me through a lot of boringg classes in college. He is an ever smiling cute little kid and you just can't be angry with him. Shahi is one person I'm sure will do well in life and my best wishes are always with him!!

They call us Tom and Jerry. Can't blame them, Anjuly and I have shared a relationship which is quite similar to those cartoons. We have fought, but in the end we have been friends. she is one person I have spent entire weekends.. just talking. We had similar tastes, be it TV shows, beverages, food.. monthlies.. .. I can proudly say she is responsible for the few extra pounds that I have not gained :P. If you are looking for an honest opinion on how you look ask her, she'll make you hate yourself because you can never be slim as per her standards. She is AJ in her own style!!

"Painfully sweet" is what we call Mallika. You might have heard people go out of their way to help others but this girl will go the opposite way if that is what is required. She is full of patience, soft spoken and well.. my extreme opposite but still we've shared one of the greatest friendships and I trust her for keeping it going!!

Rubina is our magpie, its like someone hit the play button on her and forgot all about it. She always has a story to tell. Very few people in this world talk more than me but I will have to admit she is one of them. In addition to that she is our encyclopedia. Trust me, if you want to know the answer to a question you did in class tenth, ask her, she might just know it.


This has been my world for the past two years, each one is very special to me and I'm going to miss them all a lot. But as they say..

Don't be dismayed at goodbyes.
A farewell is necessary before you can meet again.
And meeting again, after moments or lifetime,
is certain for those who are friends.