Bye Bye 2013 - Happy New Year 2014!!!

Vanakkam 2014! Bye, bye 2013. My first post this year. Awww. Personally, I had a fab 2013 with more ups and few downs. My Father in law passed away this September. Hopefully the downs will erase from memory with time. A great many things happened around the world this year. RG3 benched due to injury, Pope Benedict stunned the world by announcing his resignation, Margaret Thatcher died, the Royal baby was born, Bomb at the Boston marathon killed 3 and injured many, Government Shutdown, Miley Cyrus and her crazy acts, Nelson Mandela died, Devyani Khobragade prosecution and many more evetns. In my very own India, Sachin Tendulkar retired, Uttarakhand flood disaster, Jiah Khan suicide, Movie Chennai Express was a super duper hit beyond belief, Sanjay Dutt gets parole, Arvind Kejriwal is sworn as Delhi's chief minister for his Aam Aadmi party (AAP), or Common Man's party, Gauhar Khan wins Bigg Boss 7, Farooq Sheik died, but the biggest news for me, was the split between Hrithik Roshan and Suzanne Roshan. This shows that life is a roller coaster ride. We have got to be prepared for anything and everything.

 

Leaving you tonight with the Song of the day - an apt first time song for me by Kishore Kumar. This is from the movie Pehli Tarikh in1962.

Folks, it's 3 minutes till midnight. Got to go now. I am watching the ball drop on TV. Lazy night with family. I will try to write more this year. I have so many topics I want to write about. Had gone to India for 2 weeks and collected lots of pictures. Just wondering, by wishing people Happy New Year is their year really going to be happy? Whatever!!!

Airports - Hawai Adde

Hello my friends! Happy Birthday to me! I have mixed feelings about this day. Growing old is not a happy thing, but at the same time, times never stops and a lot has been said and done that made me both happy and sad in the past few months. Wish happy times would stay forever. Looking forward to a brand new 2014! An opportunity to start off on a clean slate. This time, I am making no resolutions, as I was not very successful in keeping the ones I made this year. I have realized that life has to be lived "in the moment". Heard the gorgeous hunk Kushal Tandon, is back on Bigg Boss 7 . I stopped watching this show, as it cost me my computer. Every year around this time, I buy a new computer. These sites that upload these BB7 episodes carry virus and affects my computer. This time I bought a Lenovo computer for it' sleek looks (resembles a mac) and touch screen capabilities. A birthday present for myself. Will be travelling t New York for thanksgiving. So much to look forward to. Life is good. Wish I could share this with some "good" people, who are in my memory for all the good times and bad times we have shared. I truly miss you guys. Friends come and friends go, but memories remain. With that, I post the Song of the day.  Heart touching song. Old is Gold. Really!

 

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Catching an airplane to visit dream destinations can be very stressful, from reaching on time, to the never ending transit to the gate via moving floor escalators, over crowded trams, signs that seem to point you to never, never land, frowning people who seem to always be in a hurry, etc. In spite of all that, I absolutely love airports. Once the baggage is checked in and I am handed my boarding pass, I get an adrenalin rush, just from the anticipation of (finally!) boarding the plane. It makes the whole process well worth it. I usually reach the gate well in advance and have all this time before boarding. My favorite activity is to watch people, while sipping my favorite cup of Joe. I skip eating, what seems like tasty food, even though my stomach suddenly feels pangs of hunger, reminding me of it's existence, when clearly I would have eaten a full stomach, at home, just before we left for the airport. And same goes with bathrooms. Why oh why? Anyway, coming back to observations,  no two people are alike. Everyone is dressed so uniquely, it's feels like I am at a fashion show, where models are doing their catwalk, except that it's free! I observe the way people spend their time. I noticed that the favorite past time of people is to catch some well needed Zzzzs. Good idea! However, I cannot fall asleep, in those uncomfortable, plastic airport chairs or on a plane. Some others read, while others use their laptops. The cartoons are those who continuously talk on their cell phones, like there is no tomorrow. Kids indulge themselves in hand held games. I call it electronic baby sitting. Good help for parents travelling with the otherwise annoying kids, who find that time at the airport compelling to throw tantrums. Sigh! Those are the days that I don't ever want to visit again. International airports also have the upscale shopping, a girl's number UNO pass time. When I get tired of observing people, I occupy myself with some strictly window shopping only. The chocolates make me drool and makeup, jewelry and those sexy attractive bottles of perfume make me feel like I have none at all. The temptation to buy everything I see, is at it's maximum. Luckily the pain in the ears,  announcements that are happening regarding different airplanes landing and taking off, help me stay distracted from the temptations. The stress starts building again when the plane lands. I do not like waiting in airports for my bags. Even worse, I don't like waiting in airports when my bags are lost. Somehow, it always happens to me. It's a miracle then, that I get through all of  that chaos and reach my destination safe to breath some fresh air! Here's wishing everyone a safe journey, for their next travel. With that I will sign off for today. Shub Ratri!

Birthday Prayer
Thank you, God, for giving me another year of life.
Thank you for all the people who remembered me today
by sending cards, and letters, gifts and good wishes.

Thank you for all the experience of this past year;
for times of success which will always be happy memories,
for times of failure which reminded me of my own weakness and of my need for you,
for times of joy when the sun was shining,
for times of sadness which drove me to you.

Forgive me
for the hours I wasted,
for the chances I failed to take,
for the opportunities I missed this past year.
Help me in the days ahead to make this the best year yet,
and through it to bring good credit to myself,
happiness and pride to my loved ones,
and joy to you. Amen.
http://www.beliefnet.com/Prayers/Other/Birthday-Prayer.aspx#
 

Back to school nights

Hello folks! I have got the Monday blues again! I had so much fun over the weekend. Did so many things for the first time. Gave me a sense of achievement. More check mark on my "things to do before I die" list. Celebrated a friend's B'day at a comedy show, downtown. The headliner that day was Gary Valentine form the show "The King of Queens". OMG! he was hilarious. It was non stop one hour of belly laugh. I found out that he shares a B'day (Nov. 22nd) with me. I also watched an Air show for the first time, at the local airport, this weekend. I had seen it in movies earlier. The stunts performed by those pilots were amazing. The one that was unbelievable for me was when a lady hung upside down form a plane when it was high up in the air. The Sunday, ended with a beautiful gift bought by me for me. It was a dream for so many years. I finally decided to spend my hard earned money on it. Although, at first,, I felt guilty indulging, now I think it's well worth it! It's a secret that I will share when the time is appropriate. Till then, keep reading. The Song of the day is Banarasiya from the movie Raanjhanaa. I first heard it in the Gym, in the new Bollywood Jam class. It was so melodious, it stuck with me for some days. The instruments used in this song, automatically take your senses to a rural area in India. And it is no surprise that Shreya Ghosal has lent her golden voice to this song. She is the next Lata Mangeskar in my opinion. Lataji celebrated her 84th B'day yesterday (28th September). I am remembering a soul stirring song "Lag Jaa Gale" from the 1964 classic 'Woh Kaun Thi', this ones probably one of the most romantic songs of Hindi cinema. Sadhana looks gorgeous and Lata's angelic voice only adds to her charm.

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I had a constructive week. Attended back to school days for both kids. Every year I attend these events more out of guilt. I feel by attending these events, I stay involved with what the kids do in school. I blame my "busy" schedule for not being an active volunteer at the school.  The teachers spend most of their allotted time - they're given just 10 minutes per subject, previewing a year of learning. It takes skill to cram so much information into such short time frame. The teachers talk so rapidly and it's hard to retain all that information for parents. By the end of the night, I don't remember the teachers names or which subject each one teaches. The high schools here are so big, I feel blessed to have studied in India. Life is so much simpler over there.The students stay put in one classroom and the teachers do their rotation. It's not until college, that students also get to move around. What I like to watch are the parents who come for these back to school nights. Some of them, are so serious, they come prepared to ask questions and they hold up the teacher form finishing their thoughts. Then, there are some who treat the night as a "time for themselves". They hold hands all through the evening. It's kind of like a date night for them. Then, there those parents who rush from work and somehow make it to the school. They are so confused, that they have to excuse themselves either for coming late, or entering a classroom, that they are not meant to be in. What I find the most amusing are those women, who come dressed to kill! Now, I understand, that they are well maintained and it takes a lot of effort to look like they do, but lets save the "I am hot" look for some other day ladies. And then there are folks, who attend the events just to make sure that they are not missing out on information, where the kids can show extra effort and gain extra points to get an A+ . While there is nothing wrong with that, I feel it's more of the parents interest than that of the students. God help those kids at home, when the parents pressure their children to do better and better at the cost of their kids getting frustrated. Which category do you belong? Do let me know. Shub ratri folks.