Is lying in a corner catching dust. Can't say I am happy about that :(

I am doing happy upgrades in life :-)

First it was job, car, cat and now, an iphone. Being a sucker of white, I ordered a white iphone 4. My car is white too. So is my laptop, so are my lies :P

I am watching curiously as my EMI's are growing fatter. I never knew cat food was so expensive! I will have to pull the breaks hard, if things fumble, but what the hell :P

I adopted a tiny little kitten from the humane society last week. His name is Monkey. D. Luffy. White and golden, very very cute. He is definitely a monkey in that he jumps around a lot and causes a lot of havoc at home. Photos will follow soon :-)

Thanks to a friend, I am watching many classic movies lately. Last night I watched "Million Dollar baby".

Frankie is an old man, has no family, except for a daughter who wants nothing to do with him. Boxing is his passion, he is an excellent boxing coach. His star student ditches him, accusing him of hesitating for too long before letting him play in a "title" match. In truth, Frankie is very protective of his students and scared that they will be hurt.

A middle aged woman, Maggie, works as a waitress, has a family that doesn't care about her, and has nothing else to hold on to in life. She has a dream to become a boxer and asks Frankie for coaching. He is very reluctant, because she is a girl and is too old. And as expected, he does take her under his wing. His first lesson for her: "Always protect yourself". Many follow. Maggie turns out to be a natural. They work wonderfully as a team and she wins every fight she takes up. Frankie develops paternal bonds with her, and gives her a new name, "mo cuishle" meaning "My darling, My blood".

In a match that would give her a million dollars, Maggie fights against a prostitute-turned-boxer, known to have a history of cheating. In the second round, Maggie starts dominating her opponent. After that round, as she turns towards her coach to take her break, her opponent punches her from the back. She falls on the chair that was meant for her to sit on, which Frankie was holding for her. She breaks her neck. She is paralyzed, neck down. After a few painful days, Maggie dies in an assisted suicide, helped by Frakie. Engulfed in grief and guilt, Frankie goes into oblivion.

There are a few things about the movie that are just amazing. First of all direction. And powerful performances from the lead characters. Their characters are flawless, they are both heroes. The expressions on Frankie's face when he watches others fight are priceless. Background score stands out. The sound of breaking neck still rings in my ears. The sound of the ventilator(?) after she is paralyzed grips you. Throughout the movie, the characters say things, that make you anticipate what is going to happen next, and you wait for it, sometimes in fear, and sometimes with hope.

Despite the story being tear jerking, the movie never got unnaturally melodramatic. I did end up with a heavy heart and a lump in my throat all evening. And believe me, that's much worse than shedding a few tears in secrecy. But then, as I always say, suffering is beautiful, and so was the movie! :P

I found this hilarious image on reddit and thought I should share!

Got a sewing machine from my family as my 26th birthday gift. Sewing clothes for barbie has been an old obsession and I got started immediately! Samples of my work :







Went to hobbylobby.com and ordered a whole lot of sheer fabric, buttons, elastic and everything fun! :D

Kodbale!



Crisp, Red, Spicy and damn good :D

Back in the days it used to be a family activity. Everyone gathering around a painfully inadequate kerosene stove, trying to make their spirals better than the others'. First few "obbeys" would get over before they reached the storage container. We used to go crazy with the shapes towards the end - Mickey's face, monkey's face, glucose biscuit hatted man and what not!

There goes another nostalgic post! :D

Am I wasting my energy and time in a smelly gym?

... And then I listened to all the songs of pakeezha on raaga.com .. drifted into the world of endless melody and memories...

Of watching the movie on DD on a sunday evening with Amma, aunt and a little cousin who very smartly observed - "Meena Kumari was very lazy in the movie - always sleeping and sitting, dancing and talking slowly".

Of talking about how beautiful the songs were as they played in a slow moving tata sumo during a family trip to temples in the ghats of south-west india.

Of my dad getting ready wearing his dhoti and shirt and pushing us to speed up - saying "Chalo dildaar chalo!" (meaning to say - Lets go!)..

Of pausing for a second at 2 AM during endless hours of poring over books in exam time panic to listen to Rafi. As he sang the "ohohooo" part in the middle of chalo dildaar chalo, he held my hand and gently veered my mind to imagine going on boat ride in a forest pond on a full moon day.

Of romanticizing train journeys.

Of smiling at the naughtiness and cuteness in "inhi logon ne".

Of humming "mausam hai aashquana" on many many rainy nights . firtein hai hum akele bahon mein koi leley, aakhir koi kahan tak tanhaiyon se khele .. din hogaye hai zaalim ratein hai kaatilaana - incredible poetry there.

Of realizing the genius of Lata Mangeshkar listening to "thade rahiyo"... Especially in the part where she sings "dha-kita-da-dhir-kita - dhadhir-kita " in the middle .. just A.M.A.Z.I.N.G

Of watching Bheja fry with mom and laughing till our stomachs hurt as Vinod Pathak asked ... "chalte chalte mein kitni baar chalte chalte?"

Naushad, Lata Mangeshkar, Mohamed Rafi - they fixed my life - well almost :D

It had been my childhood dream to have a small house and live alone in it. Keep it clean and tidy. Decorate it. Despite feeling lonely at times, I am thoroughly enjoying seeing my dream come true!

Whenever I imagined myself living alone, I always wanted to have pictures of family members on the walls. I am doing all the things I so longed to do while sharing my living space. Not that my room mates would say "No" to me, but just that I never felt that sense of belonging. I just ordered prints of my favorite pictures of mom, dad, my sisters and brothers in law. And of course, one picture of little Adhyeth (my sister's 10 month old son). I also ordered frames for all that. I have a small picture frame with magnet struck to my refrigerator. I will put one of the pics on that too :D

I also ordered two posters of paintings of Van Gogh and Monet. Hope to frame it and put on the living room walls :-) When I have enough money, I will buy paintings on canvas. When I have enough time inspiration, I will buy paint and canvas and try painting myself :P

For now I need to ask someone with car to drive me to hardware store so I can get frames and picture hanging kit.

There are so many things to try and experiment, so many ways to decorate. Curtains, lighting, accent walls, small indoor fountain, window treatment, buying my favorite disney figurines, putting christmas style lights in the porch, furnishing the porch - the possibilities are endless. Just that the minor hiccup of meager bank balance comes in the way ... :P