***

Q U I R K Y – Characterized by peculiarity of action, behavior, or personality; mannerism.

Q – Quixotic: Remember Don Quixote? The word quixotic derived from this character is to describe an individual who is an impractical idealist bent on fixing things and performing random acts of chivalry. I feel like Quixote, old and clownish aiming for things far removed from reality.

U – Ubiquitous, that’s me. Trying to do a million things at one time, wanting and stressing me and everyone around me to be everywhere, wishing cloning was legal and available and wanting to pack everything in quick, coz one never knows what’s gonna happen next.

I – Irony. There is a distinct incongruity between what one may expect and what actually occurs. I smile frozen on my face, at the role it occupies alongside of me.

R - Raconteur: I am a storyteller. The stories not necessarily would make sense, or have a vividness to them, at the beginning or end, but I am a rambling raconteur. I know that much.

K – Knucklehead: That I am when sarcasm is used. I don’t get it. That’s how the world is around me. Hence am a knucklehead for all practical living purposes.

Y - Yearn. I believe it will be the bane of me. If there is a God, he better start putting together a bunch of plan B’s, coz I sure could use a few.

***

This time, I’d like to tag all those sweet boy-men who have been judiciously supporting me through the posts, as I run a marathon of 31 days. As a reward and a token of appreciation I tag you with this. I know what you thinking “If this is an appreciation, can’t imagine a rebuke”, but no, I truly mean it. Your everyday presence at the blog commenting and otherwise has goaded me on to stick to something I would have normally given up awhile ago. Of course for the sakes of tagging am choosing the boys, but there are the rest who shall all get their ‘appreciations’ in due time, and not necessarily n the form of a tag. :-)

Max, Stitha, Pavan, Baphomet, Gradwolf and Praveen. Could you please do it guys? It isn’t too bad. Lots of room for humor, fantasy and even some heavy duty serious stuff.

So projecting the shopping days far back into the weekend, let me list where I blew the husband’s hard earned money:

1. Bought Aspirin for mom and a pack of whole wheat mini-bagels on Tuesday. $7 I think.

2. A cold pack for my knee on Monday. $8 or so.

3. Sunday I blew a large amount on the DSP concert, some samosas (which were terrible), and ice cold water (which was heavenly), a tall white chocolate mocha with whipped cream for me and a double choc chip frappucino for daughter at starbucks before the show. Not adding it up as I may not really want to know.

4. Aeropostale has a $20 sale off jeans apparently. It’s tempting, but I shall wait in the hope that I shed a few pounds before Fall hits and then I shall not have to squeeze myself into the size I think I am and actually not!

Care to list and show me how you are living better off than me? Please, make my day! Vicarious living is so much fun, I swear!

So I debated in my head on the whole tagline of this tag. So, jobless me one day decided to backtrack one route of the tag, by hopping from one taggee to the tagged and see where it goes. Guess what I disocvered? The fact remains that the word “secret” got tagged on along the way! Guess there are more freestylers around that I gave credit for. That is so what I’d do. Just to make folks talk I suppose. See how daring one can go.

Are you gonna tell us about your past loves, the time when you actually got caught for cheating, the jilted lovers or how about when you purposely sneezed into your sworn enemy’s food. Oo, how about the time when you spread that nasty rumor on that school friend who stole your position in the basketball team, or better yet the one time when you kissed your best friend’s boyfriend and pretended to care when you are hi-fi’ing yourself secretly or the time when you actually told your parents you were studying at a friends and ran off to watch the latest matinee, or something more naughty?

See, juicy? Very.

This is the kind people want to hear. Right? I know I would. Why’d anyone care if you liked M Rafi over Mukesh or if you grind your teeth when you sleep, or if you like french fries with mustard, or you read the last page of a magazine first? (I do, btw).

Nice, but ordinary. Don’t you think?

Now that I’ve set high expectations, it’s time to bring them crashing down. *wicked evil laugh*

I’ve done a few wild stuff back in the day when the repercussions couldn’t stretch too far and the only person I was answerable to or responsible for were, well, me. I now think back of all the capabilities I secretly hold within me and I occasionally feel twinges of self-pity, but definitely more relief as one can only shudder in horror where and how’d have landed if my parents had given me that freedom. Yes, that’s the kind of faith I have over my decisions!

I really did wish for this tag to be where I could teeter on the line and say it all, but I realize my readership’s increasing and some silent readers could very well be folks who may not look too kindly on my antics. So what do I do with this tag? (I know, ain’t I the girl scout trooper here, taking everything so seriously?! It’s a bane I tell ya.) So, this is how I plan on doing it. I shall tell you something about me, and then I shall take it a step further and tell you secrets I hold within me. These are not necessarily about me, but they are secrets alright. No, am not gossiping, and in any case, if you the reader do not know the person I talk about, it isn’t gossiping. I don’t have a name for it yet, but I surely know it ain’t gossip (and I am sticking to it!).

So, here you go. Remember they are secrets, so shhh:

1. I once bullied this guy on the phone. It was a prank that 2 of my friends and I put together. The said boy was a dork. He bugged us constantly. He kept telling us how he was handsome and a local Romeo and how all girls swooned over him when he, get this, biked (as in cycled)to school. Yeah. So, after a few months of this listening, one of my friends got so riled up and said, let’s play a prank. I ofered to be the voice behind this Juliet who would call him up and tell him how cute and smart he was and then ultimately when he was smitten with Juliet, we’d spill the beans. We were in 8th grade, and it went well. Afterawhile bullying came naturally to me. I was a bully in hiding. Such glee and pleasure I got out of the daily calls. Especially more so when he’d come to us later and with a pompous air declare how he had snagged a Juliet. was so much fun till I grew a conscience. No fun after that. Juliet stopped the calls and she slept better at nights. What an idiot eh?

No one need feel bad for the guy. He I believe married a gorgeous Sindi girl and is now father of twins. I wonder of course what that girl saw in him, but the saying love is blind didn’t just come out of thin air.

2. Was riding back home mid-afternoon once (must have been in 10th grade or so) and I saw my neighbor uncle do some major hand gesturing across the road. Tilt my head and I see this maid/nanny lady in the house across also similarly gesticulating. My very fertile imagination leaped with this spark. The uncle saw me and immediately grinned sheepishly and turned away. That further added chapters to my story.

3. I once tried shoplifting when I was 8 or so. I desperately wanted a set of some fancy colored bobbypins and mom refused. So as she stood and haggled with the pavement fellow regarding something else, I picked these up and held them in my hand, within my fist. The guy looked at me and shook his head. I slowly put it back turning very red in face. Thank heavens he was discreet and didn’t tell my mom. I swear I’d be walking around with a gollywog sorta hairdo with an inherent scare towards anything named ‘pin’.

4. A childhood buddy of mine recently got in touch. Last I knew he married this another friend of ours who was sufficientlys enior to him, married with a kid. Husband had passed away in the military. Commendable, noble gesture and the thing is, I know he truly loved her. Felt very happy. Then out of the blue he starts fessing up to me. He and wife indulge in menage a trois with a rotating 3rd participant. Was a little disconcerting, but as long as they are happy, who was I to judge. He assures me it’s a common happening in India, and I shouldn’t live such a sheltered life staying so far away from deep-rooted cultural restrictions. Ohkayy!

5. Since gas prices are hitting the roofs, I have started filling regular instead of premium into the Acura. Figured I was saving money. Till again, like an idiot, I casually told the husband and got an earful on how I was messing up his car and the performance and the engine’s getting busted etc etc and then he sat me down and did the math. For $1.40 I wasn’t exactly saving the world, the car or our savings. I filled premium this morning. (This was a secret till a few days ago when I got admonished for it.)

6. There was this girl who cheated on her Math exam for her 10th grade board exams. She and the girl sitting in front of her exchanged notes, formulae and read off each other’s papers. I sat in the row next to them and was really upset about it. Especially considering math wasn’t my forte and why should anyone else get more just by copying. Sometimes I wonder why I didn’t rat on them. A few years ago, I heard she was paying taxes on her million dollar home in Palo Alto. Ah well, all those formulae must’ve worked well.

7. I was recently told that if one had a mole on one’s body that one couldn’t see directly but only through a mirror, it was meant to bring fortune. I have a few. Moles, that is. Fortune, am still waiting.

8. I once cut my own hair. I was perhaps, 10 or so, and I hated how my coconut stringy tight curls weren’t as pretty as Pamela’s or Sheetal’s. So in an attempt to look cute, I cut a few stray strands up front in the hope of them magically becoming straight bangs and I’d do a swoosh like them or the female in the LUX or some such ad. Did I say my hair’s curly? Yeah, so you know what happened. Got yelled at nicely and had to further anoint my head with more coconut oil than in the Nadar shop till those strays grew back.

Quite sure I had read the abridged version of Mill on the Floss recently.

9. I can take some pretty mean self-portraits with my itty bitty camera, that have been put to some rather good use meant only for one pair of eyes. Not elaborating further in case I incriminate myself.

10. I secretly think I look like a one-eyed witch in my profile picture.

No more secrets. Am exhausted!

So who’s gonna do a brave tag, and not chicken out by just telling us your favorite authors, foods, or movies? Wait, let me tag:

Altoid, Archana, Booboosmom, Neha, Terri, Lakshmi, SB, Shmetterling, Pavan, Adithya.

1. Tag1: Vijay’s creative find a picture and slogan to define yourself sorta thingy. I know exactly what I am going to do, trick is to find the visual. Maybe I should get ferrari’s or CC’s support here..
2. Tag2: Zhu’s dinner meme. Am sure even she’s forgotten it, but see, this tag is so fun and I am having a good time just scripting it in my head. It’s like those budget-deprived decent movie scripts that lay fading on a dust-ridden shelf in a decrepit old movie houses. I also feel that it’s akin to the saying “the journey counts more than the destination” OK! I am just sugar-coating my lack of initiative, but one of these days, this script shall play itself out!
3. Tag3: I believe I have Nice matters awards to hand out. Ive been a selfish little (ok, big) thing holding onto it. Lakshmi and mayG graciously conferred it and am supposed to continue the chain. I haven’t. Bad me. Need to do pronto.
4. Tag4: Lekhni’s spill a secret. That needs some thought. Digging secrets that can be revealed. Requires some out of the box thinking.
5. Tag5: Munimma’s favorite character tag. Do-able.

Phew!

Now more of the littler important things:

• Am on vacation starting now! so yay!
• Still have stuff to oversee and check on tomorrow. Sucks.
• A cubicle decorating competition that I so badly want to win, but can’t coz of all the work that needed to be completed by today. Am seriously debating on traipsing over Friday and creating a zing around my already quite fancy looking cube(I have red, white and blue themed shoe pictures hung on one wall!). I expressed it out by mistake and a colleague thought I was nuts. I grinned back. Now she doesn’t understand if I was being serious or just joking. Yay.
• Missing a summer potluck at work. I hope they have lots of steak, chicken and beef. Wouldn’t miss a heartbeat on being 500 miles away
• Driving up on Saturday into New England to meet sister after a year or so. Looking forward (or not!) to meeting her extended family. Should be an interesting few days.
• Basement’s getting done, and the house is so cramped. I am jumping through boxes and sharp dangerous projectiles to get from point A to point B, even if they were across the kitchen table.
• Oh well.

I could very well write about the really intense heat that had us stifling, gasping like fish in a dried pond, and about the fact that I roasted myself in a silk sari sitting in a sweltering noisy auditorium, surrounded by disrespectful, loud, impolite desi janta, and about how some idiot brat pulled the fire alarm and made us evacuate and stand for 35 minutes in the 105 weather with 90% humidity until my $40 smooth haircut turned worse than what I’d look if I had a bunch of crazed kittens were let loose on me.

I can also write about how I made a 5 quart bowl of sambar for another annual day event Sunday where again little girls are let loose with absolutely no respect or regard or consideration for folks watching or filming the performances. Seriously, what is with kids these days? More so, what’s wrong with parents, especially moms? No, am serious, some of the women behave like it isn’t their kid at all, while the dad at least pretends to discipline the kid! What’s wrong with the lady who sat next to me allowing her toe-stamping daughter to toe-stamp me every single time – after 6 I lost track – by walking in and out of her seat, while my munchkin sat still enjoying the dances. No, am not saying mine’s the best, but she sure made me proud behaving as I had told her. After awhile I just about had it with this kid and told the mom to hold onto her, and it really wasn’t acceptable to keep doing this. She looked reasonably upset. I pushed past her and occupied her hsuband’s seat while the man took off elsewhere. Now the daughter could toe-stamp her mom for all I care.

I could also write about how the noble king did a valiant attempt at MCing the show. No, he did fine. Except when he started speaking in a language no one could understand. It was cute and novel and the point he was trying to make sailed through just fine within minutes of the evening. Then every few items later, just as a apprentice magician would pull rabbits out of a seemingly innocuous black hat, or even better yet, how the dwindling woebegone sad performances have halftime shows that no one understands or gets or cares to understand or get, he’d have a 2-3 folks dialoging away. Sure, I understood, and so did the husband, but I wasn’t quite sure what the purpose of it all was. Coz, if folks laughed politely, it was more so coz of the gist of what happened over the span of 3 minutes, more than the word comprehension. The guy’s passion is praiseworthy, but as I tried telling him, unless channeled and channeled with the right force and direction, efforts are wasted. Then again, maybe he knows something I don’t.

Oh yes, I swore am never participating in the annual event again, coz if there was an award for the most ridiculously organised evening, the place would have snapped it up without a blink. The height of it all was when dutiful male volunteers stood outside the cafeteria like bouncers outside bars (not that an average desi man could ever pass off as a bouncer unless I was a frail midget, which am not) and ensured that only children according to age, baby children with moms and then moms were allowed to step inside and make a meal out of two dishes. Men were made to stand outside, and were to be allowed inside only after the “the fairer sex” and children were done filling their sacks. This happened as a sudden dawning when some men as a natural line went on ahead anyways. My already frayed patience was torn to shatters after 15 minutes of this circus and I went up to the self-crowned chief volunteer and asked him why men were’nt allowed in?

To which, with a sheepish grin he replied “I don’t make the rules ma’am, let the kids and women eat first!”

Excuse me but which era are we living in? For a second I thought perhaps we were re-enacting the scene of the sinking of the Titanic! I made my displeasure known, and am quite sure I’ve been nicked a few not-so-pleasant monikers. O well.

I also think heat and temperature smokes the Ms. Hyde in me out.

Phew! ..and there’s still so much more to tell! All this happened the weekend of 7th. In a striking contrast June 13-14 was plain awesome. More on that later.

Where were we? O the tag. Yes, here we go. Sorry about the digression Muser, but certainly I needed to provide some entertainment via the sorry social life I lead or this tag would just put folks to death. I mean, what more could I pull up from within I wonder..

***

I am: a rainbow.
I think: in bright bold colors.
I know: there exist different shades of one color.
I want: to be painted in all.
I have: been lucky to be washed by many.
I wish: I could touch more of those illlusionary hues.
I hate: not being able to explain to others the colors I see.
I miss: the innocence of pink.
I fear: an achromate.
I feel: fresh blue droplets around me.
I hear: the sneaky wisps of gray waiting to crown me.
I smell: the crisp tartness of tangerine closing in on me.
I crave: the fresh taste of spring green.
I search: for yellow sunflowers/ dandelions everywhere.
I wonder: if all can experience the clarity of clear.
I regret: gray once pulled me down more than it should have.
I love: black and white and everything in between.
I ache: to feel red.
I care: for every bit of the spectrum.
I am not: an achromate.
I believe: we should move towards “going green”.
I dance: like a sundrop in June.
I sing: when am washed in azure.
I cry: when I see crimson in big fat drops.
I don’t always: like white.
I fight: for black.
I write: in the color of my mood.
I win: in shades of royal purple.
I lose: in shades of earthy brown.
I never: can imagine gray in my closet.
I always: buy more white.
I confuse: folks. Their perceptions of me change colors constantly.
I listen: to my passionate ruby-red heart more times than my clear mind.
I can usually be found: dreaming in pastels and red in turn.
I am scared: of washing the orange away.
I need: my white space around me.
I am happy about: the hues am made of.

***

The tag shall henceforth be passed on to

Kiddo, BPSK (anyone know where he is?), Amrita, Pavan (Another one MIA for awhile!) and booboosmamma

So with all acknowledgments in place, and since this is a tag that encourages folks to pick up another book and read and not to mention the fact that am reading a fine book, I figured, no time like the present to work on the post. Also, I’ve eaten 1/2 sleeve of crackers with spinach dip and hunger pangs are at bay and what with dinner on the stove, I have a few moments before I go running off to the daughter’s chamber Concert.

The rules:

Pick up the nearest book.
Open to page 123.
Find the fifth sentence.
Post the next three sentences.
Tag five people, and acknowledge the person who tagged you

Well, nearest book is a floor upstairs but anything for a good book, so here is the book.

“Tamarind Woman” By Anita Rau Badami (yes, the very same book you see at the top). Ive read this before – a few years before and all I remembered was that it was fascinating, so here I am reading it again. This time enjoying the nuances too..

As we grew older, I stopped trying to show Roopa the hidden worlds that seethed beneath the surface of the ordinary, for it seemed that she had , in her mind, closed the doors that opened into imagination. If she could not see a purple rose on a bush or a peacock on the front lawn, she declared, it couldn’t possibly be there.

“I have rubbed the peel of a ripe Nagpur orange on this card” wrote Ma. “Right now it smells as fresh and tangy as the fruit itself. I hope the smell has not faded by the time the card reaches you. And if it has, all you have to do is imagine.”

I obviously don’t know how to count as I managed to type more than the tag asked me to, but hey, a little insight and some amount of marketing for the book didn’t hurt anyone. It’s a fine book folks, read it if you can.

This time, deviating from the norm of not tagging folks, I shall OD on tagging and here are my 5, of each!

1. Gradwolf

2. Baphomet

3. Anantha

4. Psyriac

5. Naren

6. Sush

7. A-Kay

8. Neha

9. Laksh

10. Mystic Margarita

There, feeling very smug. Now who’s gonna beat me in the turnover rate of doing a tag? *grin

So am sitting here, dinner done, kids fed, not tucked in yet, but in various forms of repose (read: son playing Wii online with a friend, and the daughter making little paper flags for a project with munchkin shuttling between the two) and here I was, browsing around as thats how our lives have become. We browse to unwind, and then I remember that I have a coupla tags pending. The dinner one which I still insist on doing. I have it all scripted out in my head, but absolutely no inertia to type ‘em out. Maybe it’s coz half of the characters in them aren’t around anymore.. ah well.

Then realized Naren’s could be done quite easily. Actually, this is a toughie. No, not tough, but slightly boring for you poor readers to wade through. Folks who’ve been reading me for a month could probably answer this tag better than I can. Frankly, such introspective interview sort tags should be auctioned out. Like accept bids on who’s come up with the most accurate one, and then who’d make it roaring fun sorts, and who’d do a complete mockery of me, and so on. Would be fun?

Ah, okay, don’t fret. Not trying any of the above stunts on you. I’l be good and answer them. Though for fun sakes, I am gonna lie. It’s going to be very difficult lying, coz as I said, I get caught quick. In a heartbeat. I see some of you rubbing your hands in glee. Rads’ lying through these 29 introspective questions and us not smoking her out? This is easier than playing ‘bluff’ . But see, am gonna try hard this time. Am gonna slip the bluffs in as slyly as I can. aha!

( On an aside, am tickled pink with the name under which Wiki has the game under! )

So alright, I am gonna bluff and you can have some fun at my expense. Deal? ;-)

***

1. Last movie you saw in a theater?

• Michael Clayton.

2. What book are you reading?

• Feast of Roses – Indu

3. Favorite board game?

• Scrabble.

4. Favorite magazine?

• Good Housekeeping.

5. Favorite smells?

• Tropical Rain on dry sand, freshly mowed lawns, blossoms at night.

6. Favorite sounds?

• Silence.

• Munchkin calling for me in the middle of the night/ at the mall/ grocery store/when I pick her up at 6pm.

7. Worst feeling in the world?

• Being told that am not fun anymore.

• Being helpless.

8. What is the first thing you think of when you wake up?

• What to pack for kids’ lunch?

9. Favorite fast food place?

• Rads’ Kitchen: Bhel Puri.

10. Future child’s name?

• You mean, as in next life don’t you?

11. Finish this statement. “If I had lot of money I’d….?”

• If I had a lot of money I’d do what I do today. No, not that I have a lot of money, just that I doubt I’d do anything different. Maybe buy more saris, go on a cruise, and then come back home and make bhel and cook puris for the kids. O, maybe I’d get a hammock. I like hammocks. Like them so much I gift them around, despite the giftees having trees or not to hang ‘em. Lay me down just once on a vacation at Gatlinburg, and the feeling was just awesome.
  

12. Do you drive fast?

• O absolutely. Love it. I like the power. Liked it even more while driving the van. Don’t like the car. Feel puny in it, easily crushable. Van just shudders folks off the road.

13. Do you sleep with a stuffed animal?

• Yea, with munchkin, while she holds Dora and me. It’s one big stuffed animal party at night.

14. Storms – cool or scary?

• Cool. Absolutely.

15. What was your first car?

• Honda Civic. Husband’s first car too. Like I have my own…

16. Favorite drink?

• Coffee. Hazelnut.

17. Finish this statement, “If I had the time I would….”?

• Go back in time.
  
• Learn to paint.
• Go back to school.
  
• Visit Alaska and the Amazon.

I still plan on doing them all, just not yet.

18. Do you eat the stems on broccoli?

• Yea sure. Wait. They aren’t all that tasty, but I guess it goes in. It isn’t bittergourd, thank God.

19. If you could dye your hair any color, what would be your choice?

• Once for Halloween, I streaked my hair purple. People thought I looked strangely funny and quite me. So purple’s the royal color, then I’d shampoo it and wear the curls like snakes and freeze folks in their tracks. Medusa style. Fun?

20. Name all the different cities/towns you’ve lived in?

• Madras. Brussels. DC. There end my lofty adventures.

21. Favorite sports to watch?

• Wrestling.

22. One nice thing about the person who sent this to you?

• Just one? Okay. Toughie. See, am trying to not state the obvious here. Should I completely embarrass him, or should I be PC and just let it be. Oh alright, let’s have some fun! Naren’s quite the gentleman. Yea.

23. What’s under your bed?

• Dust bunnies breeding like bunnies should.

24. Would you like to be born as yourself again?

• Yes. I like me. I’ve worked hard (in retrospect) becoming the me I wanted to be, so yes, I’d like to be born as me again. Thank you for asking, now please make it happen.

25. Morning person, or night owl?

• I was a morning person, then became a night owl. Now am a bit of both, owl as a choice and morning without.

26. Over easy, or sunny side up?

• Eggs? Didn’t get the questions – so am throwing it at you the reader. What do u think I am?
  

27. Favorite place to relax?

• Car.

28. Favorite pie?

• Apple pie. Not just ‘coz of the apple, but I was called that some time ago and it was special.

29. Favorite ice cream flavor?

• No favorites really. I like ice cream. It’s a vice.

Isn’t 29 incomplete? It’s as if the original tagger wasn’t quite sure he’d wanted to round it up, or maybe the kid’s diaper needed changing and she stopped mid-way, forgot the 30th and off she posted it. It’s neither here nor there. Kinda interesting a mundane boring 29 has become, don’t you think? Frankly, it could very well be the magic number all us women freeze our ages at. 29 we proclaim. Not a day more. Even Lara Dutta is am sure cursing the pagentry folks for asking her age, and she wishing she didn’t care, but o am sure she does. Women’s lib my foot. She is am sure celebrating it with bold 29 bold colorful candles and has the lone 30th in black and white sitting in a corner on a timeout. Not all welcome it like the way the husband made sure mine happened, spending time with black spiders and over the hill balloons.

So what say I add on a 30? Yeah?

30. Are you the same person online and offline? As in do you transfer yourself fairly well onto your blog?

This one am asking you to answer for me. What do you think? Am I as real as I show on this blog, or you think am faking it?

And o yes, I’ve bluffed twice. Spot it. I shall tag folks after a few days.

The ABC tag.

A -Available?

Me? As in am I available? Eh, let’s define ‘available’!? Oh ok, to talk or chatter or a smile, sure, am available, always!  

B-Best friend:

O Lord, do we have to go there? I am rightly supposed to say Husband, Sister, Mother and then a bunch o names right?  Okay fine. Why disappoint you the reader? Yes, in that order. :-)

C-Cake or Pie?

Cake. Black Forest cake. I can’t bake, but eat I can. Till am blue in the face and the scale tips over dangerously to the high digits. Pies are fun to throw.  At people. They make good missiles. Especially If I baked them.

D-Drink of choice:

Cocktails. All sorts. If I were a free bird and didn’t have to be a responsible mommy and all that heavy stuff on my shoulder, I’d drink like a fish. [Do fishes drink at all? Always wanted to use the line, so there.. ] So let’s be safe and say ‘Coffee’ oh okay, once upon a time it was desi elaichi chai. The funny thing about chai is that it kicks in only when it’s accompanied by one of these: Samosa/bhel, rain or some good light hearted banter.

E-Essential thing used everyday:

Essentials? As in like a deo? Oh okay, lipstick perhaps? The popular essential seems to be the internet, and well, I thought about it and decided all loftily that I didn’t want to say “Yeah, same here. Throw me on a desert island but don’t forget to toss in the wifi behind and you wouldn’t hear a pip from me.”, but who am I kidding!

F-Favourite colour:

How can there be a single favorite color? Don’t colors change with moods? When am feeling adventurous and sultry it’s Red. Not tomato red, but blood red. Maroons. I also feel particularly nice in blacks. In outfits I mean. As for the palate around me, pastels rock.

Added on feb20th:

G-Gummi bears or worms: ugh! I’d say gummi bears as I pop them into reluctant mouths everyday, but worms. They are fascinating. Creepy, but fascinating.

H-Hometown:

Hmm.. how is a hometown qualified? If you stay at a town as long as 10 years, or did you have to be born there? Either way you define I guess I don’t have one. Back in desh – it was Madras, but originally somewhere deep in Andhra, where the jasmines grew and the air smelt of cows and farmlands.

I-Indulgence:

Saris. Can never have enough of them. See, am easy to buy a gift for!

J-January or February: 

February of course! Birthdays and romance. Can’t go wrong there!

K-Kids and names:

I have three kids. If you are reading me for the 1^st time and have swooned, no rush, take your time, am going nowhere. Please don’t bump that head again. My children are named K1, K2 and K3. What? Did we plan it that way? Are you crazy? Hello, do I even look like a planner to you?!

L-Life:

Is what you make it to out to be. I believe in making the most of what’s dished out to you. Changing perspectives helps. Just like with the Starbuck story, there is always a way to make a bad thing good. Staying in the past is just not worth your present. The future would royally be scr*wed over.

M-Marriage date:

6th June . We believe in repeating numbers. 02-02, 06-06..

N-Number of siblings:

One sister. She used to be my little sister I dragged through buses holding her sweaty hands but now she’s much ahead of me in all respects. A total wower.

O-Oranges or apples:

Can I say clementines instead? Apples were juicy and tasty in Europe. They absolutely taste like God-awful paper here. So yes, shall stick to oranges.

P-Phobias:

Heights. Easiest way to get rid of me is to send me up 10 floors and ask me to look down. By the time you say ‘boo’ I’d be on the floor passed out. ..and I thought all the dizziness on Eiffel tower with the dear husband was coz of the tingling and romantic evening he planned out.

Q-Quote:

Quote what, who? Oh, each day a different quote and a different person appeals. Considering what’s running in your head at that time. There are some wise folks out there, witty and make a lot of sense, but you know just as there can’t be one perfect pair of shoes, or outfit or book, or author, there can’t be one quote that I’d like to live my life by.

Metlin has this as his gtalk status: “The future is inevitable and precise, but it may not occur. God lurks in the gaps”. Makes sense for now. Both of us are on either side o the fence though :-)  

R-Reason to smile:

Reason? Why would anyone need a reason to smile? One just smiles coz of the blessed life one is living. I am alive and kicking aren’t I? Oh ok, if you had to have reasons – hmm.. love, to be loved and respected, my kids, my family and the mirror.

S-Season:

Considering all the global warming that’s happening are there even gonna be seasons by the time I am eligible for Medicare? Right now, its Fall/Spring. I love winter for its crispness and the pure air, the summer for the greenery and the games outside. But Fall and Spring rock.

T-Tag three people:

As in put a label on them? :D

What’s the point, I tag folks and nobody cares. So am not gonna tag anyone I know. Yeah. It said 3 people, so am gonna say – Jasmine of Aladdin fame [munchkin's current idol], Obama [coz he is one heck of a dude and very cute too] and Rumi [his poems stir deep emotions in me]

U-Unknown fact about me:

U kidding me right? My blog’s an open book on my life. Don’t be greedy now.

V-Vegetable you do not like:

I am a mom. I cannot afford to not like a vegetable. It’s a rare day when I can open my mouth and give leeway for my kids to say “…but you don’t like this vegetable, so why should I like mine?’ But see, I have an answer for that. I tell them in my best sweet irritating mommy tone ” Who asked you to like it, don’t like it. Please, I implore you. Just eat it!”

Karela. Kakarakaya. Bittergourd. Can’t take it. I cook it to perfection that the husband is my slave for the next day or night [whichever comes first], but you’d have to knock me unconscious to get me to open my mouth even a mere cm.

W-Worst habit:

Not according to me right? I mean, am perfect! One that annoys my neat husband is that I do not return the coffee cup to the sink after draining it. Husband still thinks there’s hope, but the poor man likes to believe his shouts, cajoles and constant nags will make me a better person. It bothers him as much as it doesn’t faze me a bit.

 X-x-rays you have had:

Wonder why anyone would care about this? Only coz there’s no other X to ask about? How about asking if we’ve ever fantasized about being Xena the warrior princess? That would make it spicy. No?  Okay, I’ll be good. X-rays I’ve had. Chest, Ankle, Foot, Mouth. Look closely, and you’d see a pattern. Foot, mouth.. yea.

Y-Your favorite food: 

Good old andhra food. What? It’s comfort food people!! I can go on, but I better shut up, coz I think I speak more about food than Dr. Phil on relationships!

Z-Zodiac:

Aquarian baby! Water sign, Air sign. Free spirit, independent, unconventional, can’t be bogged down by emotion too long, creative[I'd like to think], eons ahead than the rest.. yeah Typical. Very.

Yay! :-)

The rules: Post 5 links to 5 of your previously written posts. The posts have to relate to the 5 key words given (family, friend, yourself, your love, anything you like). Tag 5 other friends to do this meme. Try to tag at least 2 new acquaintances (if not, your current blog buddies will do) so that you get to know them each a little bit better. Now don’t forget to read the archived posts and leave comments.

O alright

1. Family: There’s quite a few of them. I suppose the one that comes to my mind is the really fun vacation we had 2 summers ago at the Smokies. Memorable vacation, and I think it showed in the post

2. Friend: There’s this one friendship from elementary school that’s continued on till now. There’s also the friendships formed after one has become an adult. The harder kind. At least one set thrives on.

3. Yourself: O great! Considering the vain attention-grabbing drama queen that I am, it is hard to narrow down to one, but I guess my tags say it all.

4. Love: Family, Munchkin, and My Fables.

5. Anything I like: There are two: One that took courage to pen down and one that I enjoyed reading, writing and following. There’s one more am especially proud of. Contentwise.

I tag the following ladies. Please girls?

1. Archana and Archana tagged me with 8 things to write about myself. [I am hoping to go through some changes so I can write about 'em ;-) ]

2. Zhu tagged me with the dinner meme. [In the works and will be out soon, I promise you!]

This morning I wake up to see this middle name tag on me. The problem with that is I believe I need to have a middle name to begin with. A couple of things: my current middle name is so spectacularly uniquely identifying, that put that and my blog name together and I can kiss whatever shred of anonymity I claim to hide behind, a sweet goodbye. I can’t use my maiden middle name either coz hey presto, the INS and the family right after the wedding decided to go make that my first name! Can’t use that now can I?

Long story short, I don’t have a middle name.

I could use just ‘RADS’ as some of the others have done, but since I thought I’d put some effort into the situation – I know, I feel quite jobless despite a rush at work, and added to the obsessive fact that I can’t just keep things simple, here’s what I propose doing.
I asked folks around to give me a few options on what would be an ideal middle name for me and these are the monikers they come up with. Of course people went wild and suggested some un-describable and un-true names as well and I understandably had to reject them and keep the ones that I sorta identified with. Things I do to maintain the PG-13 ness of this blog ;-)

So now the onus is on you readers to choose which one you think I should choose. So could you be kind enough to vote. 

Pick one for me?

1. Lakshmi - so darned close to one of the names I was given a longgg time ago, but hardly identify with anyway. I mean, Lakshmi the good goddess and then there’s me…
2. Renee - Has that super cool French zing around it.
3. Scarlett – I sorta like this one, what with the character sketch and how she is made out to be. Sadly haven’t read the original version, just that she’s labeled spunky and I like that! And I do like the shade of red..
4. Giselle - Again French and I like the way your tongue hits the roof of your mouth when you say the name – but no way do I come close to the one who actually made this name famous.
5. Gaia - Terri suggested it, and though am quite sure am saying it all wrong, loved it!  

Shall do the tag once I have enough votes and no ties ;-p