Party Time

An indulgent lady asked Anush " Is that a flower or a butterfly?"
She said " A cartoon butterfly tattoo aunty"

Colour seems to be the dominant theme this week with Anush getting a tattoo at a bday party which was so much fun. They had a magic show, a cotton candy stall, a balloon maker, a pop corn stall, the bouncing castle and a heavily participative audience. All this for a one year old who also did not wail even once through all the fun and noise

Moral stories voicebank

The colouring genie at home did this and I took time to realise that it was not the print but her handiwork!!

When I explained to Anush that she should write only on paper and not on the bed, she added "not on walls because walls will become sad" if she were to dirty them.

Any "advice" to her turns into a little "story" which she keenly listens to and bobs her head in agreement to. She also calls for the "story" from time to time- so we now have the bed story( that she should not eat /draw on the bed), the wall story( that she should not use it as a chalk board) , the vehicle story( watching out for vehicles while crossing) the traffic story( not opening car doors while on the move) , the squirrel/ pigeon story( since she is sacred of them) , the chappal story .....you get the drift

The little drama queen that she is!! But it sure is a better reception to learning than being adamant / throwing a fit etc...

Colour Prism or Prison

Harvest green, Sanddune yellow, Signal red

I have been through so many shades/ tints/ tones , these hues will now enliven our new home
Asian Paints has an enchnating collection of shades and an even better repertoire of names to go with them.

Buying the paint is exciting too- A coffee dispenser like machine gives you the shade of your choice as you key in the colour code into the computer. It has multiple options as in the qlty of paint , qty of paint, price, etc- very cool.

Anush's room is a pale blue and yellow combo with a decal of a ship and fish running right through the centre of all the walls.....

3 non mistakes

Pics courtesy net

I finished My 3 mistakes by Chetan Bhagat and found it a very easy read. Almost as good as his first book and way better than his second one.

Took Anush for a kid's movie finally. " I enjoyed Ghatoj-kaj!Only a little scared I was, no problem" she told her grandparents once we returned home. She even wanted to see it again. Maybe we will get her a book or a CD when it gets released.

An interesting movie which uses modern song- dance sequences to perfection. Navy mentioned it was an animated & condensed version of an old movie Maya bazaar( i have not seen that one). Only 3 mistakes here too- the sidekick elephant did not grow in pace with Gadothkaj, the older Ghadotkaj could have been more endearing, the end was abrupt and that is putting it mildly.

Landmark has brought Jeffery Archer to India and the guy is so quick witted in person as well - if you caught him on the NDTV prgramme. Did I mention it before, I loved his latest book, Prisoner of Birth- just as I liked and grew up on all his other books.

Loo matters

Anush dropped me off at work today- once a week ritual- till her school reopens.

En route I checked if she needed to use the loo.

Once I reached office, she turned to me and said" Anushka do "su-su" in office and then go home, okay?"

Studio Shot

I wonder if the girl in the picture ever thought she would become Anushka's maternal great-grand mother. Any family resemblance?

Of Ideas and habits

Anush to me: " Amma don't lie down on appa-nooooooooo- not a good habit!!"

Anush to her dad:" Appa don't tickle me- not a good idea!"

Anush, when she was feeling lazy" Anushka too small to do XYZ...very difficult."

Chalo, tteekh hai , okay?

2 and three quarters

Anush is just 3 months away from being 3 today. Now she has to say and does say it with ease " I am 2 and three quarters"
She amazes me

She dropped me at work with her thaathu for company and asked me to " Take care and come home soon " as I got off the car.

Anush knows our phone number by heart and converses with her dad and then hangs up saying " okay, chalo theekh hai"

Me: Anush this clock has a face and two hands- one is the minute hand and the other is the hour hand....Anush :" This is our hand amma!" (pointing to her hand)
She amuses me

" Amma I am not at all listening - so many times you are saying- I do not want to listen ma"
" Please can have some cold water amma- MAYBE?" just after she has been refused by her grandma...
She manipulates me

" Amma- can I give you some konji ( pampering)? "-
She loves me

Thanks baby for making me feel so wanted. And I love dancing to Nannare from Guru with you.

Serviced

Karadi Tales was really accommodating and prompt with handling my complaint
I had got the Wrestling Mania cd and found it defective- the new copy is on its way home already!

Higgnbothams has a children's book exhibition on- nothing very radically new but you can still pick up some CBT and Ladybird series books. The counter staff was very polite despite the quantum of work they were faced with

Sundari Silks T nagar has a person who ushers you in and out with an umberella to shield you from the sun. I find it very ugghh ...

BSNL broadband connection was also a pleasant example of prompt customer service.

I went to Parrys to pick up some mirrors for the new house and found it so similar to Crawford, crowded, dirty and oh so exciting. It is also very primitive the methods used to transport glass... when labour comes cheap and is available is such large numbers i suppose one just continues with such methods.

"Sightings"

Met Minka- this time a planned encounter with her adorable kiddo. Anush was rather quiet but he did enough talking for both- a real sweet heart. among other things, it was surprising for me that Minka and I had such similar tastes when we ordered our sandwich.

Saw Bhootnath which was a little senti post interval but overall a thumbs up from me. Not as sensitive as Taare Zameen par but it is after all about a rather indulged child. Has its share of fun moments...

Happy Mothers' Day to all.

Some Kicks are nice

My first conversation with him was " Just how tall are you?" He turned out to be over 6ft tall , dark, bespectacled and attractive with a good sense of humor and a great way with me. He fit my dream guy criteria( still does) except that I was already with someone else.

During the packing up operation recently I found a " rose day" card he had given me in college in 1994!! I lived our entire friendship again as I read it...

Kicks this is for you-
On your birthday- May all your dreams come true this year and forever. In eternal hope of getting the promised microwave ... Love, Piggy.

Tell me why - part 3 or 4

Drive In Woodlands is on the verge of being a lost legend. While I felt the quality of food had deteriorated, the experience was still one to savour- the huge parking lot, the crowd, the fun of it all .....

Saw Tashan last week and I thought it was funny and silly, slightly over the top spoof of formula films. Then I realised that had inadvertantly happened.:-))

I cant understand why there is so much ado about Kareena's new dimensions- her sis Karishma and Amirta Rao & in fact so many others are leaner than her.

Anush cant stop asking me why I had a hair cut ( last Sunday)
It began as a smart blunt but ended up extra bouncy
Anush did not like it and repeatedly asked the question. I did the unpardonable- sheer ( shear) desperation made me say " Because I wanted to look like Dora"

Now she tells everyone who wants to listen" Amma cut her hair. Like Dora?"

Bed Fellows

Pic from Teak Heirlooms

Choosing a mattress can be a pain but it is better than suffering pain all through your sleep life( which is a good 1/3 rd of your life, if not more)

There is ample to choose from- cotton, coir, foam and rubberized coir and various combinations thereon. You can indulge with a spring one though the back may be more relaxed with rubberized coir or a ortho approved mattress . I am not even stepping on water( beds) yet.

Just as i began to feel that I should sleep on the floor befitting any Indian living in humid weather, I saw this. .... BTW I am yet to decide which mattress to opt for.

This is my 350th post and I can see my readers are dwindling sharply, given tha number of wishes I got on my Bday from the blog world. :- ((

When I am 64

My birthday morning conversation with Anush after she had wished me-
Me: "Anush! Amma is 32 today."
Anush" I am 2 and a half"

In school , my birthday fell in the summer vacation- so I hardly celebrated it in the typical" party" style. We were on vacation to some exotic place or at my grand ma's =-s o that was a different kind of fun

In college all the Taureans would get together to give a treat to the rest of the gang and that would be a dance party that lasted all day long and end with a movie or something.

Post marriage Navy and my family make it special for me apart from a few friends.

This birthday I received the millennium Amar Chitra Katha collection, Haroum and the sea of stories and 3 bouquets. Had dinner at the rooftop restaurant in Raintree- awesome ambiance with good food with the people who matter most to me. Also managed to get the surprise in the form of the most elusive Vetiver blinds that I had been looking for the new house. While we did not get tickets to the movie ( Santosh Subramaniam or Kururvi), Navy used the opportunity to just drive me on ECR to the Casuarina trees I just love.

Also despite my age, as Anush wisely highlighted, most dear ones called up. Blog friend who called - hihphopgmom!! all the way from Jamshedpur!

The post title is a really cool song from the Beatles and I am half way there.

Hafta end

Some pics from Blore trip

A very eventful weekend. . . in no particular order

Got a better raise than expected( thank God my boss does not read the blog)

Made sandwiches road side style in a "hand toaster"

Inaugurated the crate of Alphonso mangoes from Mumbai- the first of the season

Anush exclaimed Amma I am very excited now'", just as we were leaving for a drive.

She also said " Umaachi wearing dupatta " at a temple"

Luggage from Mumbai arrived and shifting the Chennai luggage to the new place will be a WIP.

Anush was bathed by her Appa single handedly for the first time ever

Navy's paati passed away this Monday morning.

Am off to Coimbatore trow on work trow.

Yeh tera Ghar, Yeh Mera Ghar

We had the house warming/ heating ( with all the smoke and holy fire) ceremony - Grihapravesh today. Sans Navy's parents ( who are in Boston) it was rather incomplete, but my paati and parents were there to wish us well.

Anush was the second "lady" holding the aarti along with my mom for want of anyone else. She took to the role rather hesitantly but did it well.

She joined us in doing namaskaram each time we did.

She insisted on wearing a garland as well and had a fun time.

Cool to note that spilling kumkum is auspicious - so I was told when that happened. How so , I wonder....

Now the quest for a new name for this home begins-
The first flat was called Varnam. We could call this Varanam to include Anushka's initial
Dakshin/ Dakshini/ Dakshina ( to cue the South Indian amalgam that both our families are)- only problem with the latter is that they sound like eateries

Srishti or South end ( mine and Navy's ideas respectively)

Return to Childhood

Bangalore was so hot!! Was there for a family wedding.

We met/ to be precise, saw, Navy's paati who has gone into coma. It is sad to see active people lose out in so many ways in their old age. ( I hope I have a quick and easy death. )

At the wedding, Anush had a wonderful time and enjoyed the multiple dress changes and the rituals and the conventional music. She went off by herself, tailing a couple of cousins and being the centre of everyone's attention.

I noticed that
- she looked taller than the rest of her age group
- she was pretty self reliant while having food
- she has developed a South Indian sing song tone to her English while asking questions: -)

We introduced Anush to those stick on (freebie) tattoos, South Indian mehendi ( marudaani) and gold fingers ( light & crisp, tubular yellow fritters that adorn your fingers before you munch them up)

Together we discovered some exotic fruit called Panneer or some such, which reminded me a little of rosewater and had a beautiful round marble sized seed inside.

Again missed meeting a couple of friends, blogging and otherwise.

Back to Chennai now and my family has arrived from Mumbai. Welcome appa and paati.

Fun with Art

Did you notice the new 5Rs coin? I do not like them at all. You can no longer distinguish the coins in your jumble inside the purse, by feel or weight. They have done away with the paddy/ maize stalks as well.

From penny wise to pound foolish- here are some must do shops for home decor , yours or mine ( in case you decide to gift me something since my bday is drawing near)
I must warn you the websites do not really live up to the real stuff

For the kid's room : Peek a boo- very over priced but excellent concepts and wall paper and patchwork available for kids of all ages

Artquest: For pepping up your space with a twist in the tale or table

Hobby ideas: I first saw it in Inrobit mall a year ago. Anush and I did the Suncatcher clock this time. Oh what fun! You may object to the classification "Boy craft" though :-))

Boxed in

Have begun packing. Am pleased that I have not accumulated too much garbage over the years but am at a loss as to what to do with my very huge audio cassette collection, which I have hardly been using since CDs and Worldspace entered home. Also I have a couple of old steel trunks ( pure nostalgia value) that I need to find use for. Maybe paint and use them as seating outdoors?

Did you know raddi-second hand cardboard cartons/ boxes for packing are available by unit price in Mumbai and by weight in Chennai. So a similar carton in Mumbai costs Rs 35 a piece and Rs 30 in Chennai. Either way, resale to the same raddiwala will fetch you half the price. Not bad , huh?

Anush's take on packing-
" I want to help/ write/ pack/ stick tape" or" Teach me how to sort Books/ cds /XXX" or" Let us count the boxes " and end with different numbers each time. Thank God she is not the assessor for the packers and movers!

When I am lifting something heavy:
"Very difficult for amma that box? " More than what Navy does . . .

When I mark the contents on sealing the box:
"Why are you writing on this ma? Write only on slate or on paper"

Keeping up with the Times

The Times of India has come to Chennai finally but I find the paper and photo quality really bad versus The Hindu. The style is of course more reader friendly but the content well . . . it will be fun to see what happens anyway. They chose to launch around Tamil New year and meanhwile Karunanidhi dismissed the whole concept of the mid-April Tamil New Year. Though I am not so sure if religious fervour at an individual level would have diminished due to a politico's stand on the matter.

We saw Krazzy 4 and despite all the negative publicity about plagiarism of the story/ music, I enjoyed it but for the completely unnecessary item numbers by Shah Rukh and Rakhi Sawant. Also, Juhi could have sued them for the bad make up in the last few scenes though.

We saw this movie at Sathyam after a long time and strangely had no trouble/ delay parking. Also had a chance to see the innovative and almost eclectic menu of the French eatery there. Did not have the time to mouth even a small morsel though.

Swingers and Shiamak both have summer dance camps in Chennai this year.

Anushka is 2yrs and eight months today. I am making an effort to not make a big deal on monthly bdays- but i cannot resist a mention.

Latest words/ phrases being used accurately - disappeared , enjoy yourself, You are angry?, Don't be sad, okay?, I will reduce the volume, this is boring, property, restaurant, next week, tomorrow (in English) and lots more in Tamil

Latest friends- 2 Imaginary characters- Gunnu and Kishore

Latest Idols- A Thaathu and H Akka from Blore, followed by K Athim

Latest tune on her lips - Lakdi ki kaati

She is completely potty trained and wears diapers while travelling more because we may not find clean loos. She misses school due to the vacation and she has complete conversations on the phone. She has begun enjoying milk and often demands more than a glass full. She had a very prolonged cough- cold ( over a month) and has finally has gotten rid of it.

As we were going out and my mom decided to stay back at home, Anush turned to her paati and said " Enjoy yourself! I will go out and come okay."