gettign ready for the long weekend
Published Thursday, August 31, 2006 by Color/Light/Water.
I skipped work on tuesday, as did the BF. It wasn't really planned, we just couldn't wake up in the morning. Two of our friends (that the BF doesn't like evry much but I do) left for India for a few months. They will probably be married when they are back. So we had a last dinner together and it got quite late that night. Which explains why we couldn't wake up the next morning.
So the BF made me awesome dosas, and called me Stinky as I feasted on them in my pjs and wthout brushing my teeth. That's his pet name for me, Stinky. And I actually lke it, I think its adorable. I do not stink, thank you very much...infact, I smell very good. So while eating the dosas with Mangola, we were flipping channels and end up watching a beautiful documentary on Philadelphia. and my heart burst with the love I feel for this city. It has molded me into who I am today. as I watched the documentary, i realized how little of this city I know. and how much remains to be explored. sigh.
on another note, sometimes, I sorely miss new york. just for the kind of people that live in that city, the kind of things they do, and the kind of conversations they have. I wish Philly attracted such people...I used to feel very lost in new york. its like, i knew teh streets and the subways, but I didn't know the people. in philly, i feel at home with the people here. inshallah, maybe i will return to nyc (and this time LIVE in nyc) in a few years.
the long weekend is creeping up. today is aug 31st and teh chill in the air reminds me that winter is lurkign around the corner. the swimming pool is empty now because it is too cold. we barely had a summer. i'm planning on going to LA mid-nov to attend a non-profit fashion event. the event's organizer and me became friends over an interview and we want to take the event to india. i'm planning on coming to india this dec as well and she'll accompany me so we can scout the scene and so i can show her around bambai. i have two weddings to attend this dec and im super psyched.
nitin is getting married in a place called solan, a hour away from shimla. i have NEVER been to the north of india and i'm so excited. most of our friends will be there and it will be soo much fun! unfortunately R can't make it and it makes me very sad. i will miss him throughout. he hasn't been to his home in kerela in almost 3 yrs now and can't go until next year. some h1 crap.
i love sarees. and im always loooking for an excuse to wear one. and weddings are the perfect excuse to add more sarees to your wardrobe. ive decided though that i will pack very light for my flight to india. nothing but the essentails, i dont really fancy havig my luggage lost or having to drag it around.
so I will spend 3 days in solan/simla with friends and head back to bbay for tina(1)s wedding. she's a bohri and ive heard muslim weddings are a blast. they the food is supposed to be delicious if i remember a certain friends description of a bohri wedding he attended (!) granted, i may not get to spend time with her but she's moving to dubai after her wedding and taht gives me a reason to visit dubai. yay. her wedding will last a few days but since i will be in bbay i will have time to get work done and meet my other friends and family. i will prolly take off 10-12 days from work and it will be a defintie challenge to fit everyone!
in spt. however, another friend and fellow blogger visits new york and may get married here. so i may have to troop down there! growing old is so much fun, atleast for now- you get to witness yoru friends thru the biggest and some of the best moments in their lives.
on another note-- this weekend we are planning to watch the munna bhai part 2. I am SOO excietd. i loved the first part of the movie.
brb
So the BF made me awesome dosas, and called me Stinky as I feasted on them in my pjs and wthout brushing my teeth. That's his pet name for me, Stinky. And I actually lke it, I think its adorable. I do not stink, thank you very much...infact, I smell very good. So while eating the dosas with Mangola, we were flipping channels and end up watching a beautiful documentary on Philadelphia. and my heart burst with the love I feel for this city. It has molded me into who I am today. as I watched the documentary, i realized how little of this city I know. and how much remains to be explored. sigh.
on another note, sometimes, I sorely miss new york. just for the kind of people that live in that city, the kind of things they do, and the kind of conversations they have. I wish Philly attracted such people...I used to feel very lost in new york. its like, i knew teh streets and the subways, but I didn't know the people. in philly, i feel at home with the people here. inshallah, maybe i will return to nyc (and this time LIVE in nyc) in a few years.
the long weekend is creeping up. today is aug 31st and teh chill in the air reminds me that winter is lurkign around the corner. the swimming pool is empty now because it is too cold. we barely had a summer. i'm planning on going to LA mid-nov to attend a non-profit fashion event. the event's organizer and me became friends over an interview and we want to take the event to india. i'm planning on coming to india this dec as well and she'll accompany me so we can scout the scene and so i can show her around bambai. i have two weddings to attend this dec and im super psyched.
nitin is getting married in a place called solan, a hour away from shimla. i have NEVER been to the north of india and i'm so excited. most of our friends will be there and it will be soo much fun! unfortunately R can't make it and it makes me very sad. i will miss him throughout. he hasn't been to his home in kerela in almost 3 yrs now and can't go until next year. some h1 crap.
i love sarees. and im always loooking for an excuse to wear one. and weddings are the perfect excuse to add more sarees to your wardrobe. ive decided though that i will pack very light for my flight to india. nothing but the essentails, i dont really fancy havig my luggage lost or having to drag it around.
so I will spend 3 days in solan/simla with friends and head back to bbay for tina(1)s wedding. she's a bohri and ive heard muslim weddings are a blast. they the food is supposed to be delicious if i remember a certain friends description of a bohri wedding he attended (!) granted, i may not get to spend time with her but she's moving to dubai after her wedding and taht gives me a reason to visit dubai. yay. her wedding will last a few days but since i will be in bbay i will have time to get work done and meet my other friends and family. i will prolly take off 10-12 days from work and it will be a defintie challenge to fit everyone!
in spt. however, another friend and fellow blogger visits new york and may get married here. so i may have to troop down there! growing old is so much fun, atleast for now- you get to witness yoru friends thru the biggest and some of the best moments in their lives.
on another note-- this weekend we are planning to watch the munna bhai part 2. I am SOO excietd. i loved the first part of the movie.
brb
electric blue in me
Published Tuesday, August 22, 2006 by Color/Light/Water.
I've always been fascinated by the word, electric. and more so, electric blue. it sends a shiver through my spine, it makes me feel as though I am at the very edge of a jumping board above a pool and the first few seconds when I take the plunge and am suspended mid-air, a few feet away from the water- are the most exhilirating moments, electric moments.
I was reading a few blogs online today and thinking how my blogging/writing has evolved. It is not the calm, meditative, burning writing anymore. my words don't pierce nor do they inspire pain, longing or nostalgia. my words are, now, electric. I think. they run, they are zagged, with unruly edges and sharp. so today I want to share with you a poem i have loved ever since i first heard it and a poet who i relate to the most at this point in my life. the liquid energy in his writing, the "electric" element, draws me to his words, and i make them my own.
this poem breaks the mold - words don't rhyme here, it doesn't have stanzas and verses. it is, at it is. and that's exactly how i feel at this point in my life -- as i am. breaking the mold, making my own. the poem is about a city i have lived in but not loved as I love philadelphia. but if you look beyond what it is about and feel the energe of the words, you'll know what I'm talking about.
Manhatta - by Walt Whitman
I WAS asking for something specific and perfect for my city,
Whereupon, lo! upsprang the aboriginal name!
Now I see what there is in a name, a word, liquid, sane, unruly, musical, self-sufficient;
I see that the word of my city is that word up there,
Because I see that word nested in nests of water-bays, superb, with tall and wonderful
spires,
Rich, hemm’d thick all around with sailships and steamships—an island sixteen
miles
long, solid-founded,
Numberless crowded streets—high growths of iron, slender, strong, light, splendidly
uprising toward clear skies;
Tide swift and ample, well-loved by me, toward sundown,
The flowing sea-currents, the little islands, larger adjoining islands, the heights, the
villas,
The countless masts, the white shore-steamers, the lighters, the ferry-boats, the black
sea-steamers well-model’d;
The down-town streets, the jobbers’ houses of business—the houses of business of
the
ship-merchants, and money-brokers—the river-streets;
Immigrants arriving, fifteen or twenty thousand in a week;
The carts hauling goods—the manly race of drivers of horses—the brown-faced
sailors;
The summer air, the bright sun shining, and the sailing clouds aloft;
The winter snows, the sleigh-bells—the broken ice in the river, passing along, up or
down,
with the flood tide or ebb-tide;
The mechanics of the city, the masters, well-form’d, beautiful-faced, looking you
straight
in the eyes;
Trottoirs throng’d—vehicles—Broadway—the women—the shops and
shows,
The parades, processions, bugles playing, flags flying, drums beating;
A million people—manners free and superb—open voices—hospitality—the
most
courageous and friendly young men;
The free city! no slaves! no owners of slaves!
The beautiful city, the city of hurried and sparkling waters! the city of spires and
masts!
The city nested in bays! my city!
The city of such women, I am mad to be with them! I will return after death to be with
them!
The city of such young men, I swear I cannot live happy, without I often go talk, walk,
eat,
drink, sleep, with them!
I was reading a few blogs online today and thinking how my blogging/writing has evolved. It is not the calm, meditative, burning writing anymore. my words don't pierce nor do they inspire pain, longing or nostalgia. my words are, now, electric. I think. they run, they are zagged, with unruly edges and sharp. so today I want to share with you a poem i have loved ever since i first heard it and a poet who i relate to the most at this point in my life. the liquid energy in his writing, the "electric" element, draws me to his words, and i make them my own.
this poem breaks the mold - words don't rhyme here, it doesn't have stanzas and verses. it is, at it is. and that's exactly how i feel at this point in my life -- as i am. breaking the mold, making my own. the poem is about a city i have lived in but not loved as I love philadelphia. but if you look beyond what it is about and feel the energe of the words, you'll know what I'm talking about.
Manhatta - by Walt Whitman
I WAS asking for something specific and perfect for my city,
Whereupon, lo! upsprang the aboriginal name!
Now I see what there is in a name, a word, liquid, sane, unruly, musical, self-sufficient;
I see that the word of my city is that word up there,
Because I see that word nested in nests of water-bays, superb, with tall and wonderful
spires,
Rich, hemm’d thick all around with sailships and steamships—an island sixteen
miles
long, solid-founded,
Numberless crowded streets—high growths of iron, slender, strong, light, splendidly
uprising toward clear skies;
Tide swift and ample, well-loved by me, toward sundown,
The flowing sea-currents, the little islands, larger adjoining islands, the heights, the
villas,
The countless masts, the white shore-steamers, the lighters, the ferry-boats, the black
sea-steamers well-model’d;
The down-town streets, the jobbers’ houses of business—the houses of business of
the
ship-merchants, and money-brokers—the river-streets;
Immigrants arriving, fifteen or twenty thousand in a week;
The carts hauling goods—the manly race of drivers of horses—the brown-faced
sailors;
The summer air, the bright sun shining, and the sailing clouds aloft;
The winter snows, the sleigh-bells—the broken ice in the river, passing along, up or
down,
with the flood tide or ebb-tide;
The mechanics of the city, the masters, well-form’d, beautiful-faced, looking you
straight
in the eyes;
Trottoirs throng’d—vehicles—Broadway—the women—the shops and
shows,
The parades, processions, bugles playing, flags flying, drums beating;
A million people—manners free and superb—open voices—hospitality—the
most
courageous and friendly young men;
The free city! no slaves! no owners of slaves!
The beautiful city, the city of hurried and sparkling waters! the city of spires and
masts!
The city nested in bays! my city!
The city of such women, I am mad to be with them! I will return after death to be with
them!
The city of such young men, I swear I cannot live happy, without I often go talk, walk,
eat,
drink, sleep, with them!
helluva week and some learnings.
Published Monday, August 21, 2006 by Color/Light/Water.
Last week was rollercoaster. monday was abi (sis's bf) birthday and we trooped all teh way to new jersey to dine at the mexican food factory. great food, great ambience and everyone showed up. awesome experience! although i cant' rememebr who was sitting enxt to me. i was very tired - getting used to this new routine of goign to bed early and waking up early isn't as easy as I thought it would be.
tuesday was fantastic in every sense of the word. a couple of us went to a Live Indian Ocean concert. R, me and our friend Tina were at a table with two english professors from Penn. such erudite people! the kind of indians I've always wanted to be associated with. we started chatting and I just felt so intellectually fulfilled. the college i went doesn't attract intellectually smart people. not that I am by any means very smart but I sincerely enjoy sparkling conversations and i like to feel my adrenaline rushing and my intelligence quotient rising up. i'm planning on taking classes at penn just so that i can continue my intellectual growth and be in constant company of smart, overachieving indviduals. the profs. we met are moving to london for a year to set up penns south asian program there but i hope it is a connection that will last forever. they were so sophisticated! the husband (husband and wife team) even offered to buy us drinks but we politely declined. and just the tone of their vocies, the confidence infused words -- ahh! I felt so energized that night.
And the concert topped teh evening. I LOVE that band. I remember listening to Kandisa on re-runs as I prepared for my SATS way back in 1999. the group is so chilled out -- we chilled with them after the concert and took pics. even had a drink with rahul, the lead singer! for the first time in my life, i felt that philadelphia had the potential to offer me the kind of life i've alwasy dreamt of. an intellectually and artistically fulfilling one.
then came wednesday night and for the life of me I cannot remember what we did then. but i do know it was something to do with going out somewhere and chilling. thursday maybe was lowkey but friday again was a lot of fun. jolly and me spent the entire day together and just... hung out. it was so much fun.
weekend I finished grocery shopping and my laundry. boring sundry tasks that need to get done. went to barnes and noble, picked up a few books. relaxed... fought with R, made up, chilled some more. actually, we haven't been fighting all taht much now, just friendly fights without which life would be incredible bore.
like this morning! because of my erratic sleep pattern over the weekend, i couldnt fall asleep last night. i tossed and turned and dropped a glass and made a lot of noise in bed and kept waking up R (unintentioanlly!) he wanted to wake up at 5.30am this morning, work out and go to work early, so he could come back home early. but then we both woke up real late this morning. (6.30 am instead of 5.30) and he got pissed off with me and yelled at me in the morning saying, next time if I couldn't fall asleep,I should stay in the living room. I yelled back that if he had such a big problem he should sleep over at his place. he huffed and puffed, i huffed and puffed. we ignored each other and then he took a shower.
but after we got out, we both just looked at each other, mumbled a meek sorry and laughed about it.
i don't get couples that dont fight. how can you not fight? i dont think love can or should be idolized. my test of being in love/ and utterly comfortable wth your partner is your ability to be able to fart and burp infront of them. evn sitting next to them! (not that I condone it and you should fart the next time you are sitting enxt to your beloved) but if you can do that-- then, your relationship is healthy. atleast tahts my measure. also, just coz I'm in love with R and he's in love with me, doesn't mean we have each other on a pedestal. we are flawed human beigns and when in love, our flaws shine out the most coz they actually bother the other person!! my god- how much we fight over my absent-mindedness. the only excuse i ever have which he never buys is : I forgot.
sigh. but i like the little life we've built for ourselves and i hope we can shelter it and allow it to grow.
today i haev some friends over for dinner. am super tierd but really have to feed them. r has to study for his gmats so i wont ask him for help. after this the week should flow smoothly.
workwise- i'm realizing its far more difficult to implement something than to come up with ideas. am learning a lot.. and scared shitless!
inshallah, everything will work out.
familywise -- my kaka, (my dad's elder brother) is very ill. he has only one kidney and it needs a transplant and his wife, my kaki, is going to give him one. financialy, they cannot afford it and the family is going to help out. my family is not super rich and the operation is some 4 odd lakhs ($8000) I told my dad that I'd rather not go to India in dec and offer the money for my ticket for his operation. how can I not? and i dont even feel sad about this option. its not only the right thing to do, but it is the heartfelt thing to do.
my only reason to go to india in dec is for my close friends wedding, but i can always go to dubai and visit her there if i cant make it to the wedding.
i was speakign with karishma (makhtub) and she told me about how she is volunteering at an orphanage. she told me how selfish she felt at the thought of wanting to adopt one of the kids there....she was talking to me how these kids live in the moment and are simply dying for love. i was so touched speaking with her... it reminded me of a part of my life that id simply forgotten about. in my quest to be the number one executive or the most successful woman in america, i had forgotten about giving and loving and being human.
you really need to look beyond yourself sometimes and step back and say, that's enough. which is what i've decided to do now. i am looking for a way to channel this into a cause as well.
today is the first of our eight holy days (Im a jain) and while i am not sure if i believe in religion and it's boundaries, my only prayer to god today is to keep everyone i love and their loved ones safe, healthy and happy. really, that's all i want.
tuesday was fantastic in every sense of the word. a couple of us went to a Live Indian Ocean concert. R, me and our friend Tina were at a table with two english professors from Penn. such erudite people! the kind of indians I've always wanted to be associated with. we started chatting and I just felt so intellectually fulfilled. the college i went doesn't attract intellectually smart people. not that I am by any means very smart but I sincerely enjoy sparkling conversations and i like to feel my adrenaline rushing and my intelligence quotient rising up. i'm planning on taking classes at penn just so that i can continue my intellectual growth and be in constant company of smart, overachieving indviduals. the profs. we met are moving to london for a year to set up penns south asian program there but i hope it is a connection that will last forever. they were so sophisticated! the husband (husband and wife team) even offered to buy us drinks but we politely declined. and just the tone of their vocies, the confidence infused words -- ahh! I felt so energized that night.
And the concert topped teh evening. I LOVE that band. I remember listening to Kandisa on re-runs as I prepared for my SATS way back in 1999. the group is so chilled out -- we chilled with them after the concert and took pics. even had a drink with rahul, the lead singer! for the first time in my life, i felt that philadelphia had the potential to offer me the kind of life i've alwasy dreamt of. an intellectually and artistically fulfilling one.
then came wednesday night and for the life of me I cannot remember what we did then. but i do know it was something to do with going out somewhere and chilling. thursday maybe was lowkey but friday again was a lot of fun. jolly and me spent the entire day together and just... hung out. it was so much fun.
weekend I finished grocery shopping and my laundry. boring sundry tasks that need to get done. went to barnes and noble, picked up a few books. relaxed... fought with R, made up, chilled some more. actually, we haven't been fighting all taht much now, just friendly fights without which life would be incredible bore.
like this morning! because of my erratic sleep pattern over the weekend, i couldnt fall asleep last night. i tossed and turned and dropped a glass and made a lot of noise in bed and kept waking up R (unintentioanlly!) he wanted to wake up at 5.30am this morning, work out and go to work early, so he could come back home early. but then we both woke up real late this morning. (6.30 am instead of 5.30) and he got pissed off with me and yelled at me in the morning saying, next time if I couldn't fall asleep,I should stay in the living room. I yelled back that if he had such a big problem he should sleep over at his place. he huffed and puffed, i huffed and puffed. we ignored each other and then he took a shower.
but after we got out, we both just looked at each other, mumbled a meek sorry and laughed about it.
i don't get couples that dont fight. how can you not fight? i dont think love can or should be idolized. my test of being in love/ and utterly comfortable wth your partner is your ability to be able to fart and burp infront of them. evn sitting next to them! (not that I condone it and you should fart the next time you are sitting enxt to your beloved) but if you can do that-- then, your relationship is healthy. atleast tahts my measure. also, just coz I'm in love with R and he's in love with me, doesn't mean we have each other on a pedestal. we are flawed human beigns and when in love, our flaws shine out the most coz they actually bother the other person!! my god- how much we fight over my absent-mindedness. the only excuse i ever have which he never buys is : I forgot.
sigh. but i like the little life we've built for ourselves and i hope we can shelter it and allow it to grow.
today i haev some friends over for dinner. am super tierd but really have to feed them. r has to study for his gmats so i wont ask him for help. after this the week should flow smoothly.
workwise- i'm realizing its far more difficult to implement something than to come up with ideas. am learning a lot.. and scared shitless!
inshallah, everything will work out.
familywise -- my kaka, (my dad's elder brother) is very ill. he has only one kidney and it needs a transplant and his wife, my kaki, is going to give him one. financialy, they cannot afford it and the family is going to help out. my family is not super rich and the operation is some 4 odd lakhs ($8000) I told my dad that I'd rather not go to India in dec and offer the money for my ticket for his operation. how can I not? and i dont even feel sad about this option. its not only the right thing to do, but it is the heartfelt thing to do.
my only reason to go to india in dec is for my close friends wedding, but i can always go to dubai and visit her there if i cant make it to the wedding.
i was speakign with karishma (makhtub) and she told me about how she is volunteering at an orphanage. she told me how selfish she felt at the thought of wanting to adopt one of the kids there....she was talking to me how these kids live in the moment and are simply dying for love. i was so touched speaking with her... it reminded me of a part of my life that id simply forgotten about. in my quest to be the number one executive or the most successful woman in america, i had forgotten about giving and loving and being human.
you really need to look beyond yourself sometimes and step back and say, that's enough. which is what i've decided to do now. i am looking for a way to channel this into a cause as well.
today is the first of our eight holy days (Im a jain) and while i am not sure if i believe in religion and it's boundaries, my only prayer to god today is to keep everyone i love and their loved ones safe, healthy and happy. really, that's all i want.
fillers
Published Monday, August 14, 2006 by Color/Light/Water.
Indira Nooyi will be the new CEO of PepsiCo starting Oct 1st. I am so inspired. She is obv, incredibly smart and one of teh first desi's to lead a US company of this size. Apart from digging up information about her, I'm super inspired to take my career to new heights now.
In other news, I've decided to brush up and continue learning Italian. I'm also thinking of taking evening classes at UPenn just to keep my intellect jogging and obv. to meet new people. R is applying to schools for an MS program as well. He really wants to get into Carneige Mellon and I know he will. But too much work to do before that and I'll be all alone once he leaves :( We've been fighting a lot these days and sometimes I feel like we are slowly falling apart but then its like, its me and him-- we are meant to be. But those assumptions are illusions. We haven't seen life and I don't know whats in store. All I can hope for is that the love remains, grows and lasts throught the next couple of years as we build our lives independent of each other.
December is going to be a crazy time. A couple of my friends are getting married and I can't miss their weddings! I'm so excited. I also may get a chance to meet my blog friends, my old forgotten school friends and a bunch of us are going together from here so we may all go to Goa as well. R may not be able to come but I'm hoping for a miracle. I'd love to meet you guys too, if any of you are interested in meeting me :)
Btw, in the last few weeks I met so many people on orkut it is ridiculous. I met my school friends I hadn't seen in 8 years. They had a reunion this past weekend and are planning another one when I go back in Dec. Orkut rocks, even though it gets annoying at times.
Back to work now!
In other news, I've decided to brush up and continue learning Italian. I'm also thinking of taking evening classes at UPenn just to keep my intellect jogging and obv. to meet new people. R is applying to schools for an MS program as well. He really wants to get into Carneige Mellon and I know he will. But too much work to do before that and I'll be all alone once he leaves :( We've been fighting a lot these days and sometimes I feel like we are slowly falling apart but then its like, its me and him-- we are meant to be. But those assumptions are illusions. We haven't seen life and I don't know whats in store. All I can hope for is that the love remains, grows and lasts throught the next couple of years as we build our lives independent of each other.
December is going to be a crazy time. A couple of my friends are getting married and I can't miss their weddings! I'm so excited. I also may get a chance to meet my blog friends, my old forgotten school friends and a bunch of us are going together from here so we may all go to Goa as well. R may not be able to come but I'm hoping for a miracle. I'd love to meet you guys too, if any of you are interested in meeting me :)
Btw, in the last few weeks I met so many people on orkut it is ridiculous. I met my school friends I hadn't seen in 8 years. They had a reunion this past weekend and are planning another one when I go back in Dec. Orkut rocks, even though it gets annoying at times.
Back to work now!