PS - Just wanted to add that I absolutely hate my previous post..I can see myself yawning when I read it..it does NOT do justice to the trip...
PPS - Did I shop? Hell yeah ! handpicked and carefully selected;)
PPS - Souveniers are absolutely the worst thing to shop for..and friends too...guys forgive me if I don't get you anything *warning is better than a beating - I still love you all*
PPPS - No more thoughts..watch out for some more snaps soon..
PPPPS - Yawn..was just reading the post again...
Monday, June 27, 2005
..Auf Weidersehn...
I was going to write this on my way back...but apart from the depression of the end of an excellent holiday, jet lag and the fact that I have so much work when I get back, I couldn't think of anything else that I would be thinking about in the plane. So to prevent this from being an ill written, grief stricken, panick filled, dry old post, I decided to write it now....my last night in NY...[not that I'm anymore happy right now]
Where do I start....
Finally saw the great 60 wall street today..and for those who don't work with me, that's the grand DB office here..and man was that an experience..after 9/11 the authorities are extremely strict so from being let into the building to getting access and sneaking up to a level that I wasn't allowed to go to..it was a ride by itself..and the view...breathtaking! Kind of sad but the no-more-WTC has cleared the view for a whole lot of buildings down there!...and of course the souveniers have depreciated in price..which is probably the only 2 good things which came out of that disaster...for the rest, you can still feel the sting of the 9/11 incident..and the floating tension all the time..and of course it remains a rather touchy topic..and rightfully so..
As for the rest of the days...I did more and saw more than I thought I was capable of. The same things that confused me the first day became a part of my normal conversations from the 3rd day...I even gave someone directions when I was completely lost of where I wanted to go myself...pure shot of luck but well what more can I say...the subway is something that still confuses me..and i managed to go over the Manhattan bridge all the way to Brooklyn today when all I needed to do was take a bus down 4 stops...live and learn I guess....but the bridge was beautiful..so nothing lost...
The city is...hmm in the simplest of words...buzzing and enchanting..I think I did mention this before but I never thought I could spend an entire week...or rather 8 days in a new city all by myself and cover it mostly on foot[ except the last day when my legs have given up!]...I have been to almost every corner...every street..every avenue..every sqaure..every coffee shop..every monument etc etc here..and even repeated a few!! It was a thrilling feeling to stand at a crossing..looking very lost and touristy ..gazing at the high buildings...and when someone asked if they could help me all I said was.." I wish you could but I'm not sure where I wanna go myself..at the moment..am thinking about it though!"..:) and that is something that happened almost all the time...its great to have no agenda...and all the time...to do nothing...in a place where there is always something to do..no matter how long you have lived here...and that is something that can never be explained..but must be tasted....
From street performances to mock-fight dances, from alley markets to green farmer stalls, from organic whole foods to exquisite cuisines, from parties to quiet times, from coffees to wines, from sight-seeing to soaking the atmosphere, from mornings to late-evenings, from shopping to rejoicing, from hand picked strawberries to fried hot-dogs, from friends to colleagues...I had the best blend of everything...and each was served on a platter unique, refreshing and yet familiar...In all I had a great time..needless to say the weighing scale agrees with me on that;)
...this post hasn't turned out half as exciting as I'd hoped it would be..but then, for once in my lifetime I can't put something into words....and I can't show the world my expressions...
It would be right to say...I feel expressively inert...
..But the story doesn't end here...I will most definitely talk about this for a long time to come[beware all those excited to see me again!:P] coz it has tickled me in a lot of ways..and stirred a lot of new thoughts....
..I have my NY thinking cap on...blue stars,red stripes and all...
Where do I start....
Finally saw the great 60 wall street today..and for those who don't work with me, that's the grand DB office here..and man was that an experience..after 9/11 the authorities are extremely strict so from being let into the building to getting access and sneaking up to a level that I wasn't allowed to go to..it was a ride by itself..and the view...breathtaking! Kind of sad but the no-more-WTC has cleared the view for a whole lot of buildings down there!...and of course the souveniers have depreciated in price..which is probably the only 2 good things which came out of that disaster...for the rest, you can still feel the sting of the 9/11 incident..and the floating tension all the time..and of course it remains a rather touchy topic..and rightfully so..
As for the rest of the days...I did more and saw more than I thought I was capable of. The same things that confused me the first day became a part of my normal conversations from the 3rd day...I even gave someone directions when I was completely lost of where I wanted to go myself...pure shot of luck but well what more can I say...the subway is something that still confuses me..and i managed to go over the Manhattan bridge all the way to Brooklyn today when all I needed to do was take a bus down 4 stops...live and learn I guess....but the bridge was beautiful..so nothing lost...
The city is...hmm in the simplest of words...buzzing and enchanting..I think I did mention this before but I never thought I could spend an entire week...or rather 8 days in a new city all by myself and cover it mostly on foot[ except the last day when my legs have given up!]...I have been to almost every corner...every street..every avenue..every sqaure..every coffee shop..every monument etc etc here..and even repeated a few!! It was a thrilling feeling to stand at a crossing..looking very lost and touristy ..gazing at the high buildings...and when someone asked if they could help me all I said was.." I wish you could but I'm not sure where I wanna go myself..at the moment..am thinking about it though!"..:) and that is something that happened almost all the time...its great to have no agenda...and all the time...to do nothing...in a place where there is always something to do..no matter how long you have lived here...and that is something that can never be explained..but must be tasted....
From street performances to mock-fight dances, from alley markets to green farmer stalls, from organic whole foods to exquisite cuisines, from parties to quiet times, from coffees to wines, from sight-seeing to soaking the atmosphere, from mornings to late-evenings, from shopping to rejoicing, from hand picked strawberries to fried hot-dogs, from friends to colleagues...I had the best blend of everything...and each was served on a platter unique, refreshing and yet familiar...In all I had a great time..needless to say the weighing scale agrees with me on that;)
...this post hasn't turned out half as exciting as I'd hoped it would be..but then, for once in my lifetime I can't put something into words....and I can't show the world my expressions...
It would be right to say...I feel expressively inert...
..But the story doesn't end here...I will most definitely talk about this for a long time to come[beware all those excited to see me again!:P] coz it has tickled me in a lot of ways..and stirred a lot of new thoughts....
..I have my NY thinking cap on...blue stars,red stripes and all...
Thursday, June 23, 2005
NY skyline 2
And lastly this is what NY looks from the waters...
Quite nice if I may say so...I;m reallyyyyy impressed by the city...
..of course not coz of this skyline but the city is..ALIVE! everyday makes me wanna be here longer:)
4 days and NOT counting..hehe..
Quite nice if I may say so...I;m reallyyyyy impressed by the city...
..of course not coz of this skyline but the city is..ALIVE! everyday makes me wanna be here longer:)
4 days and NOT counting..hehe..
Here it is!!
Statue of liberty is here:) Dun know what the hype is all about..,but the entire tour was worth it..they sure know how to make something simple vErY interesting!
I'm starting to like these people..hehe..
I'm starting to like these people..hehe..
Empire State Building
Sadly closed for viewing but the building itself is massive...:)
Will open on saturday for the public..but its a minimum 4-5 hour wait..and errrr I just dun have tht much patience:)
Will open on saturday for the public..but its a minimum 4-5 hour wait..and errrr I just dun have tht much patience:)
Monday, June 20, 2005
New York Shew York and all...
...and yes the second day did look up:)!
I walked and walked and talked and talked [ as expected] ran through madison, 42nd and 43rd, 5th and the 14th, Times square, Central park, Union sqaure, Soho..etc etc....dun get caught up in the number jargon..am just pure showing off;) lol...
The numbers here seem to be living..every number has it's identity and everyone seems to understand a simple 'I'll meet you at 14th 5'...which would essentially mean 14th street and 5th avenue...they all run criss cross to each other...and the streets are the bigger ones and the avenues are the small narrower ones...mostly all one ways so you need to know your way around and even the natives get lost..so I have all the excuses in the world to errr...falter..:)
My friend showed me around all day...the lazy slacking silly stupid messy 'girl on the next bed' from school surprised when she told me to put on my walking shoes coz she will tire me out today! Her and walk! ha right....well I sure was mistaken...guess NY changes everyone..and then of course she's married....*grin*..and she's even more whacko now..in a mellowed sorta way but her cooking aloo gobi..something I can't swallow..!hehe
So we galloped and pranced through town and she had more bags than me when we got back home....hmm I need to do something about that so I'm on a mission tomorrow...will shop till I drop...my excuse? I'm on holiday! I was wrong yesterday...NY like delhi...no ways!!!!! How the night gives wrong impressions...Times sqaure has got to be the MOST lively places ever..there were concerts and we had to literally sift our way through roller bladers [I was soooOoo jealous!], shop-o-holics, sunday celebraters, people...regular people..just people people and more people...and then we landed up in the most crazy street fair on the 42nd, with loud eqyptian music..and FOOD...more than you can imagine...from burritos to shakes, from kebabs to thai soups...it was everywhere..and calling out loud and strong..so I did give in...cmon..I'm on holiday;)..**my official excuse for EVERYTHING I do and will be doing for the next week!**..the subway here is allright, of course nowhere near Singapore but then it's a jungle..and how many times do you hear of a train serving animals? Yes sir, it's dirty and confusing and goes levels below the ground..but it serves it's purpose..it's way more efficient than the one in London, and definitely more regular....as for the animals...no comments..they're cute animals though;)
I did wear out my shoes, only to decide that I will use them even more tomorrow..called in an early day coz had to catch up with another friend..it's amazing when you meet the same people you were with in school and feel you just saw them yesterday...when it's been 5 years...I guess it's a good thing:)
Agenda for tomorrow:
Wake up [duhh]
Walk to Union sqaure
Roam around Central park..and have an american breakfast pretzel[ it's a must have]..yumm I can taste and smell it already...lol
Shop..walk around..be a tourist...take pictures..
Meet Anica[a friend] for late lunch or coffee
Take it from there..
On the to do list:
See Statue of Liberty [of course! though Manhattan and Times Sq. is sooo tempting me to forget being a tourist and just bum around and enjoy the city!]
See a broadway show-going for it soon.
Go up the Empire state building
Take a day NY bus tour[maybe-I prefer using my feet for what they're best at..walking]
Times square lunch with friends
Meet colleagues[ahem]
See the Deutsche Bank office in the Financial district
Shop more...yes I'm planning to go bankrupt...so all of you be ready to lend me $ when I'm back;)!
Both the coasts are cultures apart...Seattle was gorgeous..NY is eccentric!
The city is crazy...it's alive..not the people but the city itself! People merely live the craze...
I can't keep up with the pace already...so tomorrow I will start my day early...and hopefully by the time I reach mid day I would have overtaken a New Yorker...
PS- I'm loving it..!
I walked and walked and talked and talked [ as expected] ran through madison, 42nd and 43rd, 5th and the 14th, Times square, Central park, Union sqaure, Soho..etc etc....dun get caught up in the number jargon..am just pure showing off;) lol...
The numbers here seem to be living..every number has it's identity and everyone seems to understand a simple 'I'll meet you at 14th 5'...which would essentially mean 14th street and 5th avenue...they all run criss cross to each other...and the streets are the bigger ones and the avenues are the small narrower ones...mostly all one ways so you need to know your way around and even the natives get lost..so I have all the excuses in the world to errr...falter..:)
My friend showed me around all day...the lazy slacking silly stupid messy 'girl on the next bed' from school surprised when she told me to put on my walking shoes coz she will tire me out today! Her and walk! ha right....well I sure was mistaken...guess NY changes everyone..and then of course she's married....*grin*..and she's even more whacko now..in a mellowed sorta way but her cooking aloo gobi..something I can't swallow..!hehe
So we galloped and pranced through town and she had more bags than me when we got back home....hmm I need to do something about that so I'm on a mission tomorrow...will shop till I drop...my excuse? I'm on holiday! I was wrong yesterday...NY like delhi...no ways!!!!! How the night gives wrong impressions...Times sqaure has got to be the MOST lively places ever..there were concerts and we had to literally sift our way through roller bladers [I was soooOoo jealous!], shop-o-holics, sunday celebraters, people...regular people..just people people and more people...and then we landed up in the most crazy street fair on the 42nd, with loud eqyptian music..and FOOD...more than you can imagine...from burritos to shakes, from kebabs to thai soups...it was everywhere..and calling out loud and strong..so I did give in...cmon..I'm on holiday;)..**my official excuse for EVERYTHING I do and will be doing for the next week!**..the subway here is allright, of course nowhere near Singapore but then it's a jungle..and how many times do you hear of a train serving animals? Yes sir, it's dirty and confusing and goes levels below the ground..but it serves it's purpose..it's way more efficient than the one in London, and definitely more regular....as for the animals...no comments..they're cute animals though;)
I did wear out my shoes, only to decide that I will use them even more tomorrow..called in an early day coz had to catch up with another friend..it's amazing when you meet the same people you were with in school and feel you just saw them yesterday...when it's been 5 years...I guess it's a good thing:)
Agenda for tomorrow:
Wake up [duhh]
Walk to Union sqaure
Roam around Central park..and have an american breakfast pretzel[ it's a must have]..yumm I can taste and smell it already...lol
Shop..walk around..be a tourist...take pictures..
Meet Anica[a friend] for late lunch or coffee
Take it from there..
On the to do list:
See Statue of Liberty [of course! though Manhattan and Times Sq. is sooo tempting me to forget being a tourist and just bum around and enjoy the city!]
See a broadway show-going for it soon.
Go up the Empire state building
Take a day NY bus tour[maybe-I prefer using my feet for what they're best at..walking]
Times square lunch with friends
Meet colleagues[ahem]
See the Deutsche Bank office in the Financial district
Shop more...yes I'm planning to go bankrupt...so all of you be ready to lend me $ when I'm back;)!
Both the coasts are cultures apart...Seattle was gorgeous..NY is eccentric!
The city is crazy...it's alive..not the people but the city itself! People merely live the craze...
I can't keep up with the pace already...so tomorrow I will start my day early...and hopefully by the time I reach mid day I would have overtaken a New Yorker...
PS- I'm loving it..!
Chruch at 5th-NY
My first picture in NY...
A street church on 5th Avenue...one thing the Americans NEVER miss out is their flag..
..dare you forget where you are!
A street church on 5th Avenue...one thing the Americans NEVER miss out is their flag..
..dare you forget where you are!
New york moon
That's the first glimpse of New York from the plane...
..the new york moon...and belive it or not..it was 10 pm:)
..the new york moon...and belive it or not..it was 10 pm:)
Sunday, June 19, 2005
...Seattle-An allergy for keeps...
"Welcome all aboard JetBlue Flight 176 to New York..."
...and I smiled..and mentally checked off a box next to which it said in bold- "Seattle".
I had a wonderful host [hey thanks u:)]..specially coz I landed after a 19 hour flight with no one to talk too..there is limited silence I can take..and boy! 2 words..poor him! I would be scared if I were him coz I think I bored myself talking..lol..nothing new but well...*grin*..
4 days..and was it bliss!!...Sunlight beckoned me, a sure shot relief from the hot and humid everyday story..and I was rejuvinated instantly!...no photographs,vidoes, stories,descriptions,blog entries etc can do it justice...Picturesque, friendly, bright[not always but I was PURE lucky!],swarming with enthusiasm, vibrant....Seattle is all this and more..I didn't know where to start but thoughts started to pour from my ears as soon as the plane took off from the runway..and I penned it down, much to my amazement, probably all I did while I was in air...
Home to Starbucks and Microsoft [now u know why techies need coffee], it is a mysterious city which I mostly covered on foot...hey no ..wait a second..I DID cover it on foot. It has the perfect blend of weather and sights, with mountain ranges and lakes, eateries and cafes, punk shops and elite areas, piercings and fashion, antiques and sophistication, beach and bridges, and the sky scraping downtown harbour area. I ran into places with the most absurd names like 'Mission of life-Bread' which was a bakery, and '65 ways to make my burrito'-Mexican of course..there were busker performances which were absolutely mind blowing, and mostly done for charity. I even did a bit of salsa on the street while a guy hummed some fancy latino music..Was I shy? don't think Seattle has heard that word ever before..and they make sure you leave it at home when you roam the streets!:)..
I can only try and sum up my days as eating or walking, walking or eating or both..I was sleepless, not because I was jetlagged but the enthusiasm, ambience and the long hours of brightness[6 am to 930 pm at least] were responsible for it..of course the gallons of coffee and tonnes of food that was being taken in also added to the bit of insomnia..;)...
Apart from the quaint city environment, another thing that got it big chunky chewy goooey brownie points from me was shopping! Something that is in every girls "must-do-travel kit"...I didn't shop as much as I enjoyed the experience of shopping. The sales people are so fun! Why? coz they talk! and do their jobs with a passion..almost felt like a different continent..eeks it is a different continent..hmmm almost felt like a different planet...hell Singapore could learn some of those skills!
So that was the west coast...and now 2:00 am I sit in the city known as the city of the world..New York...all set to explore and experience more...starting tomorrow I will not give my feet a rest..or my mouth..! specially coz I'm catching up with some of my bessstesssttt buddies tomo..:)..So far so good..caught a glimpse of the much talked about Empire State Building and of course The Statue of Liberty, as we drove down from the JFK airport to Manhattan, via Queens......hmmm and err first impressions..looking around me now I could swear I was in a Delhi DDA colony..
Tomorrow better look up..I didn't pay through my nose and travel half way across the globe to see how you could 'feel at home' in NY....
:)Nitezz.z.z.z..z.z.zZz.z.zZ..z.....
...and I smiled..and mentally checked off a box next to which it said in bold- "Seattle".
I had a wonderful host [hey thanks u:)]..specially coz I landed after a 19 hour flight with no one to talk too..there is limited silence I can take..and boy! 2 words..poor him! I would be scared if I were him coz I think I bored myself talking..lol..nothing new but well...*grin*..
4 days..and was it bliss!!...Sunlight beckoned me, a sure shot relief from the hot and humid everyday story..and I was rejuvinated instantly!...no photographs,vidoes, stories,descriptions,blog entries etc can do it justice...Picturesque, friendly, bright[not always but I was PURE lucky!],swarming with enthusiasm, vibrant....Seattle is all this and more..I didn't know where to start but thoughts started to pour from my ears as soon as the plane took off from the runway..and I penned it down, much to my amazement, probably all I did while I was in air...
Home to Starbucks and Microsoft [now u know why techies need coffee], it is a mysterious city which I mostly covered on foot...hey no ..wait a second..I DID cover it on foot. It has the perfect blend of weather and sights, with mountain ranges and lakes, eateries and cafes, punk shops and elite areas, piercings and fashion, antiques and sophistication, beach and bridges, and the sky scraping downtown harbour area. I ran into places with the most absurd names like 'Mission of life-Bread' which was a bakery, and '65 ways to make my burrito'-Mexican of course..there were busker performances which were absolutely mind blowing, and mostly done for charity. I even did a bit of salsa on the street while a guy hummed some fancy latino music..Was I shy? don't think Seattle has heard that word ever before..and they make sure you leave it at home when you roam the streets!:)..
I can only try and sum up my days as eating or walking, walking or eating or both..I was sleepless, not because I was jetlagged but the enthusiasm, ambience and the long hours of brightness[6 am to 930 pm at least] were responsible for it..of course the gallons of coffee and tonnes of food that was being taken in also added to the bit of insomnia..;)...
Apart from the quaint city environment, another thing that got it big chunky chewy goooey brownie points from me was shopping! Something that is in every girls "must-do-travel kit"...I didn't shop as much as I enjoyed the experience of shopping. The sales people are so fun! Why? coz they talk! and do their jobs with a passion..almost felt like a different continent..eeks it is a different continent..hmmm almost felt like a different planet...hell Singapore could learn some of those skills!
So that was the west coast...and now 2:00 am I sit in the city known as the city of the world..New York...all set to explore and experience more...starting tomorrow I will not give my feet a rest..or my mouth..! specially coz I'm catching up with some of my bessstesssttt buddies tomo..:)..So far so good..caught a glimpse of the much talked about Empire State Building and of course The Statue of Liberty, as we drove down from the JFK airport to Manhattan, via Queens......hmmm and err first impressions..looking around me now I could swear I was in a Delhi DDA colony..
Tomorrow better look up..I didn't pay through my nose and travel half way across the globe to see how you could 'feel at home' in NY....
:)Nitezz.z.z.z..z.z.zZz.z.zZ..z.....
Mt Rainier at it's best-Paradise
...and yessss that is snooowww:)..!!
That's me slipping and avoiding a fall coz all I had on was a windsheeter..whoever thought there could be snow in 'summer'..!!
They call this place the Paradise..and truly so...=)
That's me slipping and avoiding a fall coz all I had on was a windsheeter..whoever thought there could be snow in 'summer'..!!
They call this place the Paradise..and truly so...=)
The insterstate freeway-seattle
It's amazing how a regular freeway [like the PIE] can look so...hmmm..enchanting:)
Drive to Mt rainier-Seattle
That's en route to Mt Rainier, an active volcano near Seattle. The picture does NOT do justice to how exhilirating it actually was:). Sadly my camera died on the way so the better snaps are on the phone..
Saturday, June 18, 2005
Homer
...ahem this one's for Gayatri..!:)
A brave dog called homer who I luckily got aquainted to before I went on top of the space needle..he had had a worse day than I had!..he had been in a 9 hour flight..walked thru seattle..and was going to go up the needle 600+ feet up! poor fella..talk about a high flying dog;)
A brave dog called homer who I luckily got aquainted to before I went on top of the space needle..he had had a worse day than I had!..he had been in a 9 hour flight..walked thru seattle..and was going to go up the needle 600+ feet up! poor fella..talk about a high flying dog;)
Mount rainier-seattle
Been meaning to blog something..but well after 3 days here I have time just for this. This is the view of Mount Rainier (an active volcano near seattle) from top of what they call the space needle observation deck (or the O-deck). Its breathtaking..and brrrrr...collldd..:)
Saturday, June 11, 2005
..Puppy dog love..
I am sure all of us have, at one time or another, got that starry eyed, airy feeling ..the feeling of a crush..a stupid silly teenage crush...crush that disappears just as fast as it hits you...
Along with itself it brings a smile that sits in all its might on the face,and the realisation that it might expose you, does not even help to wipe it...
It's a feeling I can't explain..or don't need to as there isn't anyone who doesn't have their own experiences to share...and their own parcel of grins and chuckles...own little ' I want attention' tactics used from time to time...own stories which take you beyond yourself when you recall them at a later age...own own own list of crushes..a list so long you could read it all day and not find time to blush inbetween...
Love and relationships are nice...but I think the feeling of a crush is superb...it's young, chocolaty, silly, irrationale, short-term, warm, tingly, baseless, giggly...
The best thing about them...theyre nothing! its a feeling which comes like day and is gone with the moon...or a long one would hmm..maybe wait till sunrise...I always thought it was dependent on age...and I was well beyond them...
Well apparently not.....the 'extra effort to laugh at the jokes', 'stand around casually and make conversation', 'try and get noticed', 'Oh i'll help you with that', ' Hmmm what is he talking to HER about'..etc etc peeped at me suddenly...and I didn't feel the pinch till a friend, who turned 23 today[ Happy happy b'day to her..=)!], pointed it out...
..First I ignored it..then I denied it...and as I looked back, contemplated on my actions, did a rewind and play..I finally accepted it...
....feels great! I think I turned 15 with her today....
Along with itself it brings a smile that sits in all its might on the face,and the realisation that it might expose you, does not even help to wipe it...
It's a feeling I can't explain..or don't need to as there isn't anyone who doesn't have their own experiences to share...and their own parcel of grins and chuckles...own little ' I want attention' tactics used from time to time...own stories which take you beyond yourself when you recall them at a later age...own own own list of crushes..a list so long you could read it all day and not find time to blush inbetween...
Love and relationships are nice...but I think the feeling of a crush is superb...it's young, chocolaty, silly, irrationale, short-term, warm, tingly, baseless, giggly...
The best thing about them...theyre nothing! its a feeling which comes like day and is gone with the moon...or a long one would hmm..maybe wait till sunrise...I always thought it was dependent on age...and I was well beyond them...
Well apparently not.....the 'extra effort to laugh at the jokes', 'stand around casually and make conversation', 'try and get noticed', 'Oh i'll help you with that', ' Hmmm what is he talking to HER about'..etc etc peeped at me suddenly...and I didn't feel the pinch till a friend, who turned 23 today[ Happy happy b'day to her..=)!], pointed it out...
..First I ignored it..then I denied it...and as I looked back, contemplated on my actions, did a rewind and play..I finally accepted it...
....feels great! I think I turned 15 with her today....
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
"The morning after"
A day..a regular day...
Tinkle bells & twiddle toes
All left at home sweet home,
Shirts and blazers, hair in place
Time to walk into the 'tune and tough up' zone..
A rush...not an adrenalin rush..
The world outside, chuckling and ridiculing me
Seems too far away,
It's only a window in between, a hands stretch
But it's like tomorrow looking at today..
A void..just a silent void..
I hear voices somewhere, floating around
Like droplets afloat in the air,
I pick on the keywords, fewer than my thoughts
And the rest pass through, unaware..
An interruption..a welcome interruption..
Buzz..buzz..what's that noise? somewhere close?
I search frantically, I'm half asleep,
Suddenly the scene transforms before my eyes
And Dawn is only beginning it's creep..
A pause..a sudden pause..
Never happened to me ever before, a surprise
It's like winning even before placing a bet,
I'm living, already lived, a few terrified minutes
Of a day...that isn't even here yet...
Tinkle bells & twiddle toes
All left at home sweet home,
Shirts and blazers, hair in place
Time to walk into the 'tune and tough up' zone..
A rush...not an adrenalin rush..
The world outside, chuckling and ridiculing me
Seems too far away,
It's only a window in between, a hands stretch
But it's like tomorrow looking at today..
A void..just a silent void..
I hear voices somewhere, floating around
Like droplets afloat in the air,
I pick on the keywords, fewer than my thoughts
And the rest pass through, unaware..
An interruption..a welcome interruption..
Buzz..buzz..what's that noise? somewhere close?
I search frantically, I'm half asleep,
Suddenly the scene transforms before my eyes
And Dawn is only beginning it's creep..
A pause..a sudden pause..
Never happened to me ever before, a surprise
It's like winning even before placing a bet,
I'm living, already lived, a few terrified minutes
Of a day...that isn't even here yet...
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
"Stuck in a rut"
Hot coffee, cold milk
Never understood how it can be had,
A quick gulp, a soggy sandwich
And the days ordeal began..
Room full of familiar strangers
"Hello again, how are we doing today?",
A hug, a shake,kiss with a forced smile
Just something I had to do and say..
A glance around, introductions
And the guy starts to speak,
A droning voice, a sleepy state
My eyes start to feel influenced, and weak..
The breaks take forever to come
And pass away just as fast,
I start to doubt my endurance
Help!he's not funny, and I can't last!..
Catching my neighbour,sneak a nap
I give her a quiet, un-noticed knock,
Realisation dawns, awake with a jolt
She looks at me, wide eyed, in pure innocent shock..
Evening at last, time to let the hair down
A social gathering, no frills
Drinks and food, food and drinks
Ah!this is the part of training that thrills..
Play seems better than work, I thought
And gave my conscience a mighty tug,
I definitely don't have it in me
To be a work-all-day,Mr. straight-face, no-life Corporate Bug..
...and it's only Day 1!
Never understood how it can be had,
A quick gulp, a soggy sandwich
And the days ordeal began..
Room full of familiar strangers
"Hello again, how are we doing today?",
A hug, a shake,kiss with a forced smile
Just something I had to do and say..
A glance around, introductions
And the guy starts to speak,
A droning voice, a sleepy state
My eyes start to feel influenced, and weak..
The breaks take forever to come
And pass away just as fast,
I start to doubt my endurance
Help!he's not funny, and I can't last!..
Catching my neighbour,sneak a nap
I give her a quiet, un-noticed knock,
Realisation dawns, awake with a jolt
She looks at me, wide eyed, in pure innocent shock..
Evening at last, time to let the hair down
A social gathering, no frills
Drinks and food, food and drinks
Ah!this is the part of training that thrills..
Play seems better than work, I thought
And gave my conscience a mighty tug,
I definitely don't have it in me
To be a work-all-day,Mr. straight-face, no-life Corporate Bug..
...and it's only Day 1!
Sunday, June 05, 2005
....Pain comes in multiple packages...
The weekend is here..the one I was dreading the entire week...entire month..in fact for the past 11 months..
Packing has got to be one of the worst tasks that was developed as a result of the want to improve one's livelihood, or due to the dire need to change one's lifestyle....and house...
It's a cumbersome, boring and an extremely tiring job ..specially for women. We tend to have things proportional to the area in which we live. So if there is a bigger room or house, our possessions multiply accordingly. Every-time we go shopping, we unfailingly manage to spot another beauty that would fit perfectly well in a corner that is already blessed with four or five other smiling artifacts..and we then sigh seeing the amount of stuff waiting to be stored away...yet the story repeats..again ..and again...
Also our sentimental nature keeps us from throwing away almost anything..however old, tattered or meaningless..just when you think you managed to do a good work cleaning up, a memory pops up its head, in a form that is no longer treasured or errrmm ....recognizable....
But I've learnt to live with that trait....coz it's complimented with another quality..the quality to plan..not the purchases but organizing the packing..
I made a list of everything which I absolutely and definitely won't need to use immediately, in order of preference and importance, and decided to start packing from the top.
In the process I made an important discovery. The maximum amount of time that I spend with any of the things I own is when I'm packing or unpacking them, for the simple reason that I don't even know I possess them for the rest of the year..there were things from my school hostel, university lab work, old friends, torn phone bills, post-it-notes with shopping lists scribbled on them, pens and highlighters with dried ink [i'm a stationary junkie!], various badges for charity work, little souvenirs and gifts from people which are way too ugly to keep yet again[just to make them happy], calculators [which are now historic and probably have an antique value], empty nail polish bottles, millions and millions of teeny weeny free face creams, masks, body mists, hand and nail creams, face wash, scrubs, toothpaste tubes, etc etc collected over the various shopping trips, which added to the numbers of my other significantly large belongings..
Finally, the boxes were brought out, the bags we pulled out of the storage space..and the long-avoided, much-awaited ordeal began..
I took a deep breath and opened the doors to my treasures...the result....
Whatever was neatly kept inside my wardrobes and drawers now occupies a unique shiny spot outside...in the exact form and pile size as before...
Magic? or did my planning just pinch me hard?
Packing has got to be one of the worst tasks that was developed as a result of the want to improve one's livelihood, or due to the dire need to change one's lifestyle....and house...
It's a cumbersome, boring and an extremely tiring job ..specially for women. We tend to have things proportional to the area in which we live. So if there is a bigger room or house, our possessions multiply accordingly. Every-time we go shopping, we unfailingly manage to spot another beauty that would fit perfectly well in a corner that is already blessed with four or five other smiling artifacts..and we then sigh seeing the amount of stuff waiting to be stored away...yet the story repeats..again ..and again...
Also our sentimental nature keeps us from throwing away almost anything..however old, tattered or meaningless..just when you think you managed to do a good work cleaning up, a memory pops up its head, in a form that is no longer treasured or errrmm ....recognizable....
But I've learnt to live with that trait....coz it's complimented with another quality..the quality to plan..not the purchases but organizing the packing..
I made a list of everything which I absolutely and definitely won't need to use immediately, in order of preference and importance, and decided to start packing from the top.
In the process I made an important discovery. The maximum amount of time that I spend with any of the things I own is when I'm packing or unpacking them, for the simple reason that I don't even know I possess them for the rest of the year..there were things from my school hostel, university lab work, old friends, torn phone bills, post-it-notes with shopping lists scribbled on them, pens and highlighters with dried ink [i'm a stationary junkie!], various badges for charity work, little souvenirs and gifts from people which are way too ugly to keep yet again[just to make them happy], calculators [which are now historic and probably have an antique value], empty nail polish bottles, millions and millions of teeny weeny free face creams, masks, body mists, hand and nail creams, face wash, scrubs, toothpaste tubes, etc etc collected over the various shopping trips, which added to the numbers of my other significantly large belongings..
Finally, the boxes were brought out, the bags we pulled out of the storage space..and the long-avoided, much-awaited ordeal began..
I took a deep breath and opened the doors to my treasures...the result....
Whatever was neatly kept inside my wardrobes and drawers now occupies a unique shiny spot outside...in the exact form and pile size as before...
Magic? or did my planning just pinch me hard?
Thursday, June 02, 2005
"Picture perforated"
I zipped into office
And with the same speed zipped out,
Grabbed my money and keys
And let out a loud shout..
"Clear the way, call the cab"
I must get going fast,can't be late,
Need to make it there by 2pm
And read the writings of fate..
My cab pulled up, huffing and puffing I ran
Stared at the officer by the door,
He just stood there like a dummy
A stiff face, a mere bore..
Determined to make myself heard
I spoke to him loud and clear,
Told him my purpose of visit
Even cracked a joke in good cheer..
"I'm here for collection, coupon and all
As much on time as I can be",
Not seeming convinced, he yawned
So I thrust my watch in his face to see..
Signalling me to pause
No partiality, firm to the core,
He gave me a look absurd, "calm down"
Which planet I came from, he wasn't sure..
A 15 minute wait, finally I was ushered in
Through the many gates of steel,
The ordeal was all forgotten, forgiven
When I saw the exotic ten year deal..
Without a plane ticket in hand
And my holiday still being 2 weeks away,
I soar the skies, no airport in sight
'Coz I got my licence to fly today..
And with the same speed zipped out,
Grabbed my money and keys
And let out a loud shout..
"Clear the way, call the cab"
I must get going fast,can't be late,
Need to make it there by 2pm
And read the writings of fate..
My cab pulled up, huffing and puffing I ran
Stared at the officer by the door,
He just stood there like a dummy
A stiff face, a mere bore..
Determined to make myself heard
I spoke to him loud and clear,
Told him my purpose of visit
Even cracked a joke in good cheer..
"I'm here for collection, coupon and all
As much on time as I can be",
Not seeming convinced, he yawned
So I thrust my watch in his face to see..
Signalling me to pause
No partiality, firm to the core,
He gave me a look absurd, "calm down"
Which planet I came from, he wasn't sure..
A 15 minute wait, finally I was ushered in
Through the many gates of steel,
The ordeal was all forgotten, forgiven
When I saw the exotic ten year deal..
Without a plane ticket in hand
And my holiday still being 2 weeks away,
I soar the skies, no airport in sight
'Coz I got my licence to fly today..
..Whats in a name..
Was in the gym this morning and had a vague thought, while on the run...
What is in a name...?
There was a story I read once based on a chinese folktale, and there was a name in it which I can't get out of my head..Tikki Tikki Tinbo Nosi Nimbo Hoi POi Puski Poi Pando Hikki Pan Pan Nikki Nomi Adam Poi..!
Yes, that was the entire name..and the poor guy almost drowned to death because the gardener took very long to call out and warn him (for obvious reasons)...*giggle*..quite ridiculous come to think of it..but it had a point..
How and why do people chose the names they do, apart from the meaning...?
My name for one has a life of it's own. Till date no-one except my parents (who also have a slip of toungue now and then) have been able to pronounce my name,spell it or call it out properly. I'm so used to it now that I don't even realise the spelling mistakes or wrong pronounciations till someone else points it out! So much so that I've totally given up correcting anyone and I respong almost to any sound I hear...
To list them out, the few famous ones are shu [for ease of simplicity], sushi, suchee, schucchi[ ze germans of course], shushi, shucci, sujee[which time and again is changed to 'rava' for fun!]..and a classic chushi [ talk about role reversal!]...
I have now developed the art to relate to ...
Japanese food ,since my name is mistaken everytime i'm out to eat sushi, with thrilled looks of familiarity on the faces of the restaurant staff...
Chinese names, with the ever frequent mention of shu qi [the famous errrm star!],with a wide grin hanging over the person I'm being introduced to(waiting to break out into a chuckle)...
A german shoe [ since it's called a schuh]....
Shhhh...well for a simple reason that I think someone might be calling out to me....
Ahh..shooo...a sneeze [deliberate or genuine] that fools me everytime!I little far fetched you'd say..but true..
Almost every second word in mandarin since sh and ch are the main syllables in their entire language..so if u find me frantically turnin my head around like a mad cap..don't fret..I'm just trying to figure out who called out to me..if at all..
Whatever meaning my name proudly carried on its shoulders is ruined, smothered, beaten and hung every single day...and I watch it happen without a tear in my eye anymore..
..it was officially declared dead the day I picked up the phone and took 5 minutes just to say ' Hi shuchi speaking'..!
I concluded [ along with my run] that it doesn't matter what you're called as long as you recognise the various sounds, pitches, tones, noises etc etc that could be your name..not something everyone didn't already know..but who said I was on the path to discovery anyway...
was a thought..random...
..just as random as I feel this morning..I need my caffeine shot...
What is in a name...?
There was a story I read once based on a chinese folktale, and there was a name in it which I can't get out of my head..Tikki Tikki Tinbo Nosi Nimbo Hoi POi Puski Poi Pando Hikki Pan Pan Nikki Nomi Adam Poi..!
Yes, that was the entire name..and the poor guy almost drowned to death because the gardener took very long to call out and warn him (for obvious reasons)...*giggle*..quite ridiculous come to think of it..but it had a point..
How and why do people chose the names they do, apart from the meaning...?
My name for one has a life of it's own. Till date no-one except my parents (who also have a slip of toungue now and then) have been able to pronounce my name,spell it or call it out properly. I'm so used to it now that I don't even realise the spelling mistakes or wrong pronounciations till someone else points it out! So much so that I've totally given up correcting anyone and I respong almost to any sound I hear...
To list them out, the few famous ones are shu [for ease of simplicity], sushi, suchee, schucchi[ ze germans of course], shushi, shucci, sujee[which time and again is changed to 'rava' for fun!]..and a classic chushi [ talk about role reversal!]...
I have now developed the art to relate to ...
Japanese food ,since my name is mistaken everytime i'm out to eat sushi, with thrilled looks of familiarity on the faces of the restaurant staff...
Chinese names, with the ever frequent mention of shu qi [the famous errrm star!],with a wide grin hanging over the person I'm being introduced to(waiting to break out into a chuckle)...
A german shoe [ since it's called a schuh]....
Shhhh...well for a simple reason that I think someone might be calling out to me....
Ahh..shooo...a sneeze [deliberate or genuine] that fools me everytime!I little far fetched you'd say..but true..
Almost every second word in mandarin since sh and ch are the main syllables in their entire language..so if u find me frantically turnin my head around like a mad cap..don't fret..I'm just trying to figure out who called out to me..if at all..
Whatever meaning my name proudly carried on its shoulders is ruined, smothered, beaten and hung every single day...and I watch it happen without a tear in my eye anymore..
..it was officially declared dead the day I picked up the phone and took 5 minutes just to say ' Hi shuchi speaking'..!
I concluded [ along with my run] that it doesn't matter what you're called as long as you recognise the various sounds, pitches, tones, noises etc etc that could be your name..not something everyone didn't already know..but who said I was on the path to discovery anyway...
was a thought..random...
..just as random as I feel this morning..I need my caffeine shot...
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