Thaam tharikida THAI!

Aah, the awesomeness that I am. Sitting and composing a post at 3:30 AM. :P I've decided to stick to a lighter tone of subjects here onwards. I'm not going to compose too many personal life incidents and make this place seem like an online journal! Who wants to read the confessions of a 22-year old anyway? LOL!

Okay, moving on. New year 2012 - that had a GREAT start at office. How? My system refused to budge/ start, first thing on 2nd Jan morning. And so, I was asked to wait until R came and checked the issue, and I raised a ticket! Whoa, too cool isn't it? B) Everyone who crossed my desk didn't forget to give me a wicked smile and say that my new year had started on a great note at work. Does this mean that I'll be out of this project soon? Hehe! The weird ways that I think, don't you agree?

We had potluck earlier this week, the one I'd been writing about every single week. It finally happened and it was one feasty lunch worth sitting through. :D I particularly loved my lead S preparation of Fried Rice. She makes the yummiest fried rice I've known! And she was particularly sweet in letting me take the last kulfi of the day. S vaazhga! :)


My new found interest - Terracotta Jewellery. Planning to buy 'em SOON! :D Have a look at the breath-taking art work in Terracotta: (Taken from the official page of Maatikaar Terracotta Jewellery - Facebook)

I'm hoping to purchase some of these beauties because they look so awesome. I found this nice shop based at Delhi which accepts and ships orders to other parts of the country. Maybe they'll do the same and send my package, once I place mine. (and PAY for it, too. :D ) I'm just slightly apprehensive about how long Terracotta jewellery lasts. If it's going to last for a long while, then I'm double okay with spending so much for them! :)

Last weekend was super hectic as I kept running around on both days of the weekend. First day - for a haircut and the next day - to an orphanage. It was silent slap of reality at our egotic and ambitious ways, seeing those orphaned kids being so happy and cheerful with what they've got. They don't complain, they don't whine. They're plain happy with what's in their hands. And they believe the dawn WILL come. If only a few of us could realize this startling truth, there wouldn't be so much of sadness and depression on Earth! (I am definitely included in that list of pessimistic souls)

Townhall's coming up. I'm doing a role in the skit - the lover girl who turns down a proposal AND presenting on two major projects of 2011 which I didn't work for. Two things in one show. Ore kallula rendu mangaaaa!. We're having a mock walk-through of the show on monday. God knows what I'm going to do over there. Must. Prepare.

Apart from all these - I'm still addicted to Askku Laska. I still do read and check out the style reviews in this blog. And I've developed an unexpected addiction to Domino's Pizza. I've started to order something or the other every weekend. Whether it's Khushiyon Ki Home Delivery or not - it's certainly Calories and Extra Flabs Ki Home Delivery. :-P Must come out of the habit of eating so much. CALORIE counter, please do get reactivated! I miss having that ticker ticking within my head. The past week was otherwise as normal. Oh well, we crossed one of those rare occurrences of Friday the Thirteenth, by the way. Another useless update - I've chomped through two pieces of Ferrero Rocher while I composed this article. (haha, I love giving these kinda updates)

To conclude this post, here are some pics that you weren't expecting to come towards the end of this long, non-informative and useless piece of scribble:

Maals!

Domino's

Potluck

Happy birthday to meeee!

Gentle Reminder: My birthday is edging closer. Five more days to go. ;) I'll be going out to buy chocolates for office folks tomorrow. 

Happy New Thai! B-) Iniya Thai Thirunaal Nalvazhthukkal!

Ho Ho Ho!

Merry Christmas, everyone. May the festive season's cheerfulness engulf you now & always. :)

I was honestly pondering upon what to write for a while. And then came the series of updates to share with y'all.

Red Nail Polish

Believe me, it's close to ten years since nail polish touched my long cuticles. And I thought, Hey why not? when I saw the bottles of nail polish resting in the Saravana Stores covers on Tuesday. I have three shades as of now - Deep Romantic Red, a dark shade of brown and a dizzying Pink. I've reserved the bottle of Pink shade for my birthday week. (Oh yeah, my birthday's just four weeks away. Whee :D ) Only after applying the enamel on my nails did I realize what a sticky affair it all is. I mean, I had to wait until it all dried up and that was approximately an hour of waiting without giving any heavy-duty to my hands. The next day morning, I accidentally chipped away a bit of the nail polish when I was pulling my lunch bag from the handle of the seat in office bus. Oh boy, that did irritate me! So much that immediately after entering home, I went straight to the shelves, pulled out my bottle of nail polish and mended the chipped portion. Hehe! It's gotta be perfect, if you ask me. Right now, a lot of it has chipped away from my left hand I'm not bothering to mend it. But yes, the point I'm trying to get through from this update is - My nails look so much inviting and beautiful with a coat of nail polish. I'm loving it! B-) It makes you feel cool/ confident when you swish your hands in the air, trying to make a point to someone. LOL!

Chris-mom Chris-child Update

The festive season has come to an end at office. No more of the beautiful game here on - not for another one year at least. I'd always walked up to the conference room regretting on the large amount of work left in hand and how I'm playing games with so much to do. But no more of it any longer! Gee, I've turned fond of the game after all. :) My Chris-mom S got me a bar of Cadburys Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut for a gift. It was great! I finished the entire bar last night, all by myself. Muhahaha! Maybe I should've saved some for mom, perhaps? ;)

Also, I went upto my Chris-child G and handed her the basket of flowers. She didn't come to office on the concluding day of the game and I gave it a day later. She loved it, so I'm glad. :)

I've befriended a new person - R. He works at Accenture and we met through the office communicator pertaining a request I'd launched. He put up a status on friday - 75. I asked him what's with the unusual number displayed on the status message. He said, he'll be moving to CISCO in another 75 days. I felt happy for his good fortune. Unexpectedly, it triggered a question within me which I'm trying to answer sincerely - So when am I moving from here? Agreed that the organization I'm working for is one of the best in India. And globally. Work level isn't so high (Except for this Feb release I'm working on, which is so hectic!) People are friendly, approachable and all that! But, you know what pricks me? My FA rating is out, though not officially declared. But I know the value - 3.9. It's neither close to 3, nor 4. X-( In our organization, there's an unacceptable policy for rounding to whole number. If it's 3.4 - round it to 3. If it's 3.9 - That too is rounded to 3. :( Can you see what I'm trying to point? It's typically lame. But that's how it works here. And I don't know why it has to be me, WHY ME, oh Lord? After all that I've done for the team, I feel it's not fine by me. But can I argue? Well, no. Just like they can't change anything about the work levels I'm putting for the Feb release, this is also something I can't do anything about. Well, there's a bias that exists. The upper levels of the team work on Process Management issues and don't do much apart. Talk about Corporate Domination. Sounds bad? Will I turn into such person if my career grew here? I'm turning lazy and cozy, in my comfort zone. I need to work on beating that. I can surely achieve more, if I stemmed all my energy in the right direction.

I keep meeting my cousin S (By marriage to my cousin V) all the time at the bus stop here. He keeps giving me tons of advice and tells me what's good and what's not good - from his view. Do I need these lectures? Nope. He can just care about his work, his kids and so on. Why pull me into the picture and try raising the standards of my life? So I avoid sitting beside him if I can avoid it. My dad's family are feuding with us for a long time now. Not that I care too much for them. Just saying in general. How cool would it be, to rise up the ranks and show him a piece of my life? B-) *Aside* Dream on, kiddie!

Talking of office, we had this New Year 2012 Bash at office on thursday - Scintillate 2012. Some DJs came on the stage, mixing peppy numbers and had the crowd dancing to a cocktail of fast beats. :) It was fun being out there. My friend M said there was a Mimicry show before the DJ nite began. I missed that, but tuned in for the DJ Nite. People let their hair down and danced like there was no tomorrow. :D I just sticked to clapping my hands and tapping my feet to the rhythm. My colleague S danced like crazy and some others from our project - M, S, B et al saw her dance. It became a hot topic of discussion temporarily. Hahaha! S is still embarrassed about it though. She said, "I wish you too came along with me and we had stuck together as a group. Then I would've made you also to dance and I would've had company now while they teased." :D Scintillate 2012 - Good work, Maitree! I only wish I was with the right people when I was there. Sigh. Anyway, next year's always there. :)

We're having Potluck on Wednesday. And initially, I agreed to bring 15-20 chappathi for the crowd. But later, the organizing people asked me to bring Veg Biriyani for 6-7 people. Knowing mom and how much trouble I'd put her through for this - I told them this can't be done. So I'm contributing a share of money for the Non-veg Biriyani. Irony, right? Paying for something that you're not going to eat. :P I'm not going to eat anything on Wednesday morning. Just so that I'll be able to eat plentiful during Potluck. Tee hee!

I'm turning mature with time. I've stopped feeling slightly put-off for missing the New Year Getaway. C was pinging me on FChat yesterday, asking me how's work, how's life, Wassup and all that. I kept giving her monosyllable replies, wishing to give nothing more. Looks like I've finally become mature enough to let go of certain things and people in life. I just pray what I've chosen to do is among the right decisions.

My cousin C was going to come pay us a visit today. Cousin C lives and works in Canada. She did her Masters course there. They said they would visit us, but actually never turned up. How rude!!! They should've at least updated us about the revised plans for the day. That too, they didn't do. Mom's pissed off with their attitude. She's planning a getaway next week when they come. Even the old and much wiser parents can get ticked off, I tell you. I'm irritated too, because I got up sooner than my usual time and got ready for their visit. I didn't even go for my evening walk despite the weekend duty that I consider it to be. Okay, looks like the Self-centered, Egoistic family still haven't changed one bit. X-(

To conclude this post, here's a Christian prayer song on a Very Special Day -

(I miss being in Scudder during the fabulous season of Christmas. My school was and is the best!!!)

Silent night, holy night!

All is calm, All is bright

Round yon Virgin, Mother and Child

Holy Infant so Tender and mild,

Sleep in heavenly peace,

Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night!

Shepherds quake at the sight!

Glories stream from heaven afar;

Heavenly hosts sing Al-le-lu-ia!

Christ the Saviour is born!

Christ the Saviour is born!

Silent night, holy night!

Wondrous star, lend thy light!

With the angels let us sing

Alleluia to our King!

Christ the Saviour is here,

Jesus the Saviour is here!

Silent night, Holy night!

Son of God, love's pure light

Radiant beams from Thy holy face,

With the dawn of redeeming grace,

Jesus Lord at thy birth;

Jesus Lord at thy birth.

Merry Christmas, folks. :) Enjoy your time off with family this festive season. God bless.

A movie, a book and life in general.

I did two things this week and I forgot to talk about one of them in the last post. I did the second thing just yesterday. Okay, enough suspense. It rolls out here.

One

I have successfully finished reading the book I too had a love Story by Ravinder Singh. I got it from my friend A about four weeks ago. Since I was not-so-good at managing time and also because I couldn't finish reading it completely till last week, I couldn't go on to give a review here. The story is a different genre, unlike the typical flavor of Indian authors like Chetan Bhagat. We all know how Chetan Bhagat writes. He adds flavor and spice to an otherwise ordinary plot and serves it with action and drama! And most Chetan Bhagat books don't have a sad ending. (Now don't start off about Revolution 2020 - the confused girl kept messing it!) Ravinder Singh has his own unique narrative pattern and whoa, I was hooked to the plot, though I could predict the storyline from the title itself. It's a sad ending types book, with the girl dying in the end. We've all read Love Story by Erich Segal. Somehow, I've never been moved by the book even though I've heard from some friends that it brought tears in their eyes. I too had a love story was one book that made me feel a mixture of emotions for the protagonist Ravin, in the end. It's pretty similar to Love Story, by Erich Segal.

I too had a love Story is a plot based on how an Indian girl and a boy - fall in love by bumping into each other on a matrimonial site. What moves on as a fine romance is interrupted when Fate plays spoil sport in their lives in the form of an accident. I was touched by the sincerity of love and care that Khushi displays for Ravin throughout the book. :) To really understand how it makes you feel, I suggest that you read the book once for yourselves too! My rating for the book - 3.75 out of 5.

Two

I saw the movie 7aam Arivu after having it on my system for nearly two months. The movie came out as a Diwali release much earlier. The plot was quite unbelievable and beyond fantasy. I mean, all that Operation Red, Rupees 300 Crores exchanged with a professor of Genetic Engineering and Chinese Government, the atrocities of Assassin Dong Lee, 6th Century Disease spreading like wildfire in the 21st Century, Genetic Engineering students activating Bodhi Dharman's DNA pattern by suspending Suriya in a fluid filled cage like a dead cockroach was quite bogus. Whoa, wild fantasy does have its limits, Murugadoss sir. The highlight of it all - Nokkuvarmam which Dong Lee kept showing off with such ease. I was rolling my eyes whenever Dong Lee managed to hypnotize someone and bid them to do his will. I mean, WHAT was that all about? The songs were very picturesque - Especially Mun Andhi Chaaral and Yellae Lama. Suriya gets more handsome with each movie of his. :D Shruti Hassan looks charming, but she could've showed more emotions on the screen. The girl can speak good tamil, bless her! :) The life of Pallava Prince Bodhi Dharman (portrayed at the start of the movie) should make every Tamilian feel proud of his heritage. So he was the one who taught Defense Arts and Ancient Medicines to the Chinese, eh? I did a Google search of the same once the movie was over. The movie tries to make us look back at our rich Cultural Heritage that we've conveniently ignored - Thanks to the Era of Modernization. 7aam Arivu is a Message-wrapped movie with a heady mix of Historical Documentation and Impossible stunts. All said and done - Good attempt Suriya. You're the one who holds the entire movie on your shoulders and the audience can't do anything but admire you, as you did that well! My ratings would be a 3.5 out of 5.

Apart from this, there are a few others I'd like to talk about.

My school friends - A, C, D (She's not exactly my school friend. She's my friend's friend. A friend to my colleague M), S and V - have apparently planned an Getaway to somewhere for New Year 2012. Did I see this was coming? Yes. Did I know it was going to happen? Yes. Does it matter a lot to me or sad that I'm not a part of it? No. Am I curious to know what it's all about? Well, partial yes. My school friends have been planning this big meet-up for about four or five months now. Earlier, when it was in its Planning stage I fell sick and got hospitalized - Aug 2011. S and V came upto the hospital to pay me a visit. That's when they told me that they're planning out something and that I should join. I said I would. Later, I turned to become unforgivably angry for being called a 'Psoriasis patient' by V some two weeks after I was discharged. Joke and all is okay only upto a point. When it goes overboard, I cannot remain quiet and tolerate it. Some words, even said casually, can hurt us in very deep ways. It went on to create a ridge on what we've been - Friends. I initiated it, no doubts there. I want to clearly state this before someone screams "You did it. Don't make it look like it wasn't your making!" X-(

I've always felt over burdened by comparisons. C always kept doing that, knowingly or unknowingly. If she was reading this post, she'd probably swear she was never up to all that. Never mind! I've had a tougher walk in life than any of these folks. No regrets there though! What doesn't kill you can only make you stronger. It hurt me (and it still does) that some of my so-called Best friends couldn't make it for Appa's funeral rites. What's in there? All over in a matter of few hours, no? Too bad! I will remember minute details well. Cutting edge memory is one of the gifts that God bestowed upon me when I was born. One guy said he was busy with shifting and moving between Coimbatore, Vellore and Hyderabad to come. Another didn't bother to come and we don't want to know whom it was, do we? Okay.. Let's get back to the point now! So I believe that the one who doesn't share sorrows - doesn't deserve to be your company during the good times too. Off with the burdens. My life is better without such people who make me feel non-existent. I've always felt small and muted, beside these Best buddies. Whether they do it intentionally or not - the constant comparisons and Oh-I'm-turning-so-much-better-than-you-by-the-minute statements they make now and then urges me to do nothing but puke! I don't like it when people who don't mean well take control of my emotions. And yes, so we've split. Four against one. I don't feel bad about it. I like it better this way, than to be an unprecedented prey during the past meet-ups.

Okay, so they've all planned something BIG. I-don't-care-not-being-there. I'm slightly curious. That's it. V wanted to make the big meet-up happen this new year, since he'll be off to the US next year for his Masters. No more of India for another couple of years. So all emotions run free. Yikes! Let's not get into the details. Enough here. :)

Let's move on to another story. We're playing Chris-mom/ Chris-child game at office. Any guesses at who is my Chrischild? The newly-married PL - Mrs G. ;) She was MIA for the past three weeks due to her marriage vacation. Now that she's back, I'm all ready to give her the task. Muhahaha! :D It'll be talking like Ramanaa Vijayakanth and giving project statistics. B-) Can't wait to see that happen. As a part of the tradition, the Chris-mom should gift the child at the end of the season. I just shopped and picked her a gift. I hope she likes my gift - a basket of violet colored flowers. :) I shopped it today because I'll be too tired after office to do it when I come back from work. I wonder who's my Chris-mom! They made me tell a story in Tamil, without inclusion of English words. Yeah yeah, I'm called the Peter Woman of my project. More than knowing my Chris-mom I am waiting for my present. Hee hee! =D We're also going to have Potluck at office next week. I will post more updates when it does happens. I hope everyone knows what's Potluck. It's a tradition in which everyone brings food from home and shares it among their friends. We're planning for one lunch session when we'll all be sharing food made by others' - their moms and family. :) This simple little custom teaches us the art sharing and appreciating what others have. Sounds so beautiful, doesn't it? I'm so excited for it to happen within our project.

Speaking of Potluck and about food, did you know that my lone piece of snacks after having lunch is just a small packet of biscuits? No coffee/ tea also otherwise. Yeah baby, yeah! I'm on diet and it's time to lose all the extra pounds and flabs I've gathered. Some results are already evident and for some others to show up, I need to follow the regime for even longer. I so totally wish I had a Weighing scale at home - to see the peaks and valleys of my weight whenever I feel like it. It'll help me keep track of my weight too. Must buy a weighing scale SOON.

It's 11:45 PM and I think I should wind up now. I've ranted enough for the day. Besides, I have office tomorrow as well. Sigh, the Monday morning blues have already engulfed me. I'll post again, when I have some free time or when its the weekend - whichever happens early. :D

Nos vemos pronto! (Spanish)