Mush

"A wedding anniversary is the celebration of love, trust, patnership, tolerance and tenacity. The order varies for any given year."

It's a nice quote to send to someone.
It's even nicer when someone sends it to you.
It's the nicest when the husband writes this on a Happy Anniversary card for you :-)

Result : Jumbo sized smiles :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

Cinemascope

Watched six movies over the weekend.

Jhoom Barabar Jhoom : [Grinn]

Cheeni Kum : [Smile]

Bourne Identity (Repeat): [Ooooh]

The Italian Job (Repeat) : [Ooh]

DDLJ (Repeat) : [Sighhh]

The Simpsons : [Guffaw]

Yeah, complete sac out time.

Keep it simple

When I was younger, a good friend gifted me this poster " Life's little Instructions". I loved it then. Hung it on my wall. Read it everyday. Memorised it.

A few years later, started finding all of it very corny. Moved on. Forgot about it.

Today, as I browsed the net, saw the same poster online and couldn't help smiling. True, some 'instructions' are still quite corny, but certain others are nice, practical and ... nice :-) .

Here is what the poster said :

Sing in the shower.
Treat everyone you meet like you want to be treated.
Watch a sunrise at least once a year.
Leave the toilet seat in the down position.
Never refuse homemade brownies.
Strive for excellence, not perfection.
Plant a tree on your birthday.
Learn 3 clean jokes.
Return borrowed vehicles with the gas tank full.
Compliment 3 people every day.
Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.
Leave everything a little better than you found it.
Keep it simple.
Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.
Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
Floss your teeth.
Ask for a raise when you think you've earned it.
Overtip breakfast waitresses.
Be forgiving of yourself and others.
Say, "Thank you" a lot.Say, "Please" a lot.
Avoid negative people.
Buy whatever kids are selling on card tables in their front yards.
Wear polished shoes.
Remember other people's birthdays.
Commit yourself to constant improvement.
Carry jumper cables in your truck.
Have a firm handshake.
Send lots of Valentine cards.
Sign them, "Someone who thinks you're terrific."
Look people in the eye.
Be the first to say hello.
Use the good silver.
Return all things you borrow.
Make new friends, but cherish the old ones.
Keep a few secrets.
Sing in a choir.
Plant flowers every spring.
Have a dog.
Always accept an outstretched hand.
Stop blaming others.
Take responsibility for every area of your life.
Wave at kids on school buses.
Be there when people need you.
Feed a stranger's expired parking meter.
Don't expect life to be fair.
Never underestimate the power of love.
Drink champagne for no reason at all.
Live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation.
Don't be afraid to say, "I made a mistake."
Don't be afraid to say, "I don't know."
Compliment even small improvements.
Keep your promises no matter what.
Marry for love.
Rekindle old friendships.
Count your blessings.
Call your mother.

My favorite : " Drink champagne for no reason at all." ;-)

Annie Hall

15 minutes into this Woody Allen flick and I was Zzzzzzz ....
It's supposed to be " just about everyone's favorite Woody Allen movie". Ya rrright!

Spoiled a perfect Wednesday evening.

Earlier that evening, watched Tansformers. Now thaaat is a good film.

The Last King of Scotland

A bloody brilliant film.

Powerful, gruesome, nauseating ... it has everything you need to make you sit tight till the end. And then throw up. And even then it's not over. For everything keeps coming back to you.

One friend had to resort to nimbu-namak paani coz she felt so dizzy after it was over.
As for me, I almost threw up, survived cold palms and shudders down my spine while watching this film.

The world inside an i-phone

With all news websites carrying the oohs & aaahs of the i-phone, it was this particular item on Netosphere that had me gawking in disbelief:

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/06/iphone-autopsy-.html

It's not shocking to know that gadgets undergo such autopsy. I have done similar stuff myself with watches, cassette players, computers etc. But this was unbelievable! And within hours of it being launched into the market. It's an *Apple i-phone* for Steve's sake! I am sure they couldn't have done it had they not gulped down a coupla beers :-)

Guess it was i-phone's turn to go oooh & aaah!

[A friend sent me this link : http://www.takeitapart.net/. Visit it to learn more. Yes, there exists a parallel universe :-) ]

Newport, RI

Akshay and I recently went on a weekend getaway to Newport, Rhode Island and we absolutely fell in love with that city. Mansions, beaches, ocean fronts, cruises and not to miss the fantastic food, ample parking space … everything picture perfect and easy on the nerves but what really stood out was the *feel* the place had.

Every part of the city had it’s own story and people were dressed aptly to play their part. For instance, on that street where all the mansions are, you could see the ladies roaming around in pretty dresses arm in arm with their men dressed handsomely ( well, as handsomely dressed as a man can possibly get when he is on a vacation :-) . Also noticed a couple of them wearing those long flowy dresses and looking so regal in them. And just a couple of streets away from these mansions, the contrast was so striking - the rest of the city was dressed in beach wear!

The hostesses at the waterfront restaurants and shopkeepers at the Brick Marketplace , though busy trying to manage large throngs of crowd were always ready with a smile and a joke and you didn’t mind waiting 25-30 mins to get your table. The food rocked. The drinks could have had more alcohol in them for the price at which they came but given the ambiance, it wasn’t difficult to be forgiving.

Everybody looked fresh, relaxed and ‘chilled out’ in the real sense of the word and maybe that’s why I, for once, didn’t feel any depression seeping in as it always does whenever a vacation came to an end.

Our secret Narnias

See that suave man in the lounge, discussing business with another snazzy gentleman ? Or that rustic farmer you met at the harvest festival. Or the Smarty Pants traveler you met on one of your camping trips. And you think there can’t be anything childish about these people.

I'm not sure what your chances are at getting a peek into their bathrooms but if you do, you’ll know how judgmental you have been.

Ducklings, monkeys, Spiderman, Pluto, Shrek, The Simpson’s all come alive on their bathmats, shower curtains and towels ! And tucked somewhere between the Wall Street Journals and Nat Geo’s lie Manga comics and Calvin and Hobbes.

So are bathrooms a man’s Narnia ? The only place he can be the child he has outgrown in public?
Funny or sad, I fail to conclude.

Photons of happiness

Believe it or not , I was cooking the other day. Yes. And my landlord was so impressed to find me in the kitchen that he got me a new apron and a bunch of fresh roses from his garden ! Sweet. And the Biryani turned out fabulous.

A couple of days later when the roses started wilting, I took the petals and put them in the Sangria jug and some in a vase. Not only have those beautiful orange, red, pink and yellow petals brightened up that corner of my house, they work great as pot pouri.

And today when I went to Bed Bath and Beyond, I actually remembered to bring along the discount coupon. This is the first time in all these years when I didn’t walk into a store and slap my head for not carrying a coupon.
(What remains off the record is that I didn’t really need anything but since I was carrying the voucher I ended up making a purchase! )

Not really sure how it works but I somehow feel good about all this. Small nothings, yes that’s what they are but they instill in me a sense of achievement. For now at least :-)

Yes, that explains it all