Jingle Bells!

How are you all dearies?

Merry Christmas You All..

This Christmas is not really a vacation time for me b'coz of multiple things going on in my life.

So today I really needed a break. I wanted for once to forget the life that I am living. 

But there was time paucity. How do I take a vacation with only half an hour to spare?

I wanted to do something fun and light. I thought of colouring but you know from this blog that I am not very good at it.  

So I decided to watch Mr. Bean Series. It was after a long time that I was doing anything entertaining. And fun it was! I really laughed from my belly. It was a laughing riot of full 10 Mins. I agree he is silly but he does tickle my funny bones. 

Done! 

That was all it took to shift from mindset from that of a worked up housewife to a living and thriving human!

When was the last time you laughed so hard that you had tears in your eyes?

Her first love!

“Oh my God, I so love him”, she gushed 💘

“Really?” I asked, as I had my doubts about his character.

“Really!!!!”, She exclaimed with all her heart.

“I don’t really like him”, I spoke with gumption.

She looked at me like I was crazy to even say that. 🙎

“He is the BEST. I have seen his XYZ movie 150 times. I still remember the first time I saw him at my cousins’. They had newly purchased a DVD player and had got the DVD of film XYZ. The moment I laid my eyes on him, I was all weak with crazy rush of love. And till today I watch all his films, first day first show in a good theater. I have never missed this ritual for last 17 years.”

“Really?” I seemed to be so stunned by this revelation that I could only manage monosyllables. 😵

“Oh yes! When he was arrested, I used to go to the temple every single day to pray for him. I cut a chocolate cake every year on his b'day. Whenever I go to Mumbai, I go to his house!!”

“What?? Have you met him in person???”, I was really curious now.

“Never outside his home or anything. But once when I was driving a two-wheeler in Mahabaleshwar, I saw him in his car. I drove my moped at a speed of 80 KPH just to be able to see him closely. He looked I me from his car window, I waved a ‘hi’. He too waved a ‘hi’. I then gave him a flying kiss and he smiled widely. That’s the first and the last time I saw him”

“Wow”, I was really speechless.

“There is no love like the first!😍” She beamed with an angelic smile. 💓💕💖

P.S 1: I now realize that an actor becomes a star not because of his acting but because of the adulation of countless millions of quintessential die-hard fans like her. 😇

P.S 2: The actor in question has almost been convicted multiple times for multiple reasons but got acquitted in all his cases. I assumed that was because of his clout. Now I think it’s because of all love, positive energy and blessings people like her shower on him!😏

P.S 3: Love can be really drive you crazy 😜

Disconnect

So recently I experienced the following episodes:

1. An old man was standing bang in the middle of the road, squinting and trying to read on his mobile. Fortunately the road was not very crowded so there was no risk to his safety.

2. An old man whose usual dinner time is 8 pm waits for his son for dinner till 10 pm. The son is usually late from his office and eats his dinner alone so the father wants to give him company this day. Unfortunately, when they sit for dinner, the son starts watching some YouTube video and the old man is eating his meal silently. Together they ate but alone they were.

3. I was in a family function. All my cousins were sitting together in a huge circle. Irony of it - all of them were busy looking at their phones. I tried to capture the scene for this blog but everyone realised I was clicking a photo and started looking at me with a huge cheerful smile.

When I had written this blog When you are addicted to technology..., I was going through a phase of realisation that I myself was addicted to the cell phone. So these days I have started to consciously try and find ways to disconnect every once in a while. And it's a miracle when you do it. 

You start taking more interest in the people around you, the life you are supposed to live. It gives you more time for self reflection. You start wanting to do something actively and end up being productive. So for me, these technology breaks work fabulously.

Go ahead, do try to go offline please!

Tale of hope

Hope:

A feeling of anticipation, a yearning for a particular thing to happen.

A feeling of trust, belief that things will turn out ok.

Wanting something to happen as per one's wish.

For me, hope is that feeling I rely on when things in life seem to go topsy turvy. It's my best friend who pulls me out from the despair caused due to life's rigmarole. It's always on my speed dial when I am stressed and need some solace. Past few days have been tough and I realised the only thing I was desperately clinging to was "HOPE".

Hope for better days to come, hope of a better and brighter future.

In parallel, I came across a fellow human being, who was facing a myriad of troubles in her life. She seemed to have given up on a better future and worst given up on herself. I had a tough time seeing her struggle through life.

I was desperate to help but she was totally closed to receive any help. A very difficult situation. For days on end, I would struggle to make her understand that she has the power to change her life. It's just that she had to take the responsibility to make changes for the betterment. But nothing I said or did helped in anyway 💔

And that's when it hit me suddenly, she had lost all hope, all desire to better her life. To want a better future. This really saddened me to a great extent and that's when I researched the below findings:

1. Nurturing hope is a continuous process, it cannot be suddenly called upon when in tough times.

2. You have to cultivate hope in your persona by believing in some supreme power/being, by accepting life situations as they are and cultivating a positive thought pattern for better outcomes in future.

3. Hope is an ongoing process of choosing positive emotions like optimism, devotion, compassion,  trust and self confidence. It requires self-discipline of not succumbing to negative emotions like anxiety, stress, fear or doubt.

Yes. 'Hope' is hard work but then it can be your best arsenal when in tough times!

Wishing you loads of love, happiness and all things good!

Keep hoping for the best 💖💝✌

People and their liking change!

The biggest example for this is me!

As a small kid, I used to hate my drawing art classes - one, because I was not good at it and two, it just didn't interest me at all. 

It was a struggle to sit through an hour long class and see my classmates creating beautiful things - drawing and painting like pros while I used to struggle to get the 'D grade' 😞

The only saving grace was that art class was never a deal breaker for passing and going to the higher standard. There were always 2-3 options in our final art class examinations as below:

1. Still life Painting - Arrangements of real objects which students had to replicate by looking at it. (Horror story if I even tried to attempt it - It never even had a semblance to the objects placed right in front of my eye).

2. Imaginary Painting - A theme based depiction like village life/vegetable market. (Another repulsive story cause my human figures always looked disfigured and ugly)

3. Painting in given geometric shapes - Each year final exam had different geometric shape mentioned and students just had to fill it up to finish the art exam. (Pure savior for me!!) 😇

So I would somehow sail through my art class final exams by always drawing huge hearts and flowers in any geometrical shape that was given and painting it to the best of my abilities.

Who would have thought I would use the same technique to create my blog images 20-25 years later!! 🙌

And the fun fact is, I actually enjoy creating the images, pouring my heart into selecting the palette of my blog images, selecting the font type for the message in it! Still not sure if I am any good at it but who cares? I have had enough 'D' grades to not bother and enough self worth to create things for the love of it.  

Change is the only constant!

Cheers to that ✌

Risen from the ashes...

Hello Dearies,

Looonnnggg Time!

What do I say? 

OK let me start by acknowledging that Mark Twain was really very intelligent.

He just knew me and my psyche. He must have come up with the above thought just so that one day I read it and come back on track.

You see, it's very weird. I treated my blog as a baby for quite some time. Then life happened and somehow I forgot about how important it has been to me. Yes, very shameful but it's true.

It was the festival of Diwali in India in Oct'19. Before the festivities began, I had to be the lady of the house and try to do a thorough spring cleaning. During festivities, I had to travel to be with my near and dear ones, eat awesome delicacies, relax, rejuvenate, so on and so forth.

I know, it may seem very fickle minded of me, to ignore this blog for so long. And the above do seem to be very frivolous reasons for not contributing to the blog. But that's the only excuse I have.

At some random times, blogging did cross my mind but I kept putting it off for another 'perfect' day or a 'perfect' time. But today I suddenly realised I have become a royal procrastinator. Like with blogging, so with life, I have been in a cloud of lazing and blowing away my precious time.

I now comprehend that all good things are created when you follow some discipline. Even if it is something you love doing (writing in my case). It has to be done continually. It has to become a habit. Else one long break and you may find yourself struggling to get back on track like me. Stopping my own progress but helpless to fight back. Also, after a long break, I ended up not finding the required enthusiasm to do what is required: Open my laptop, type out my thoughts, research for new topics to write about. These were 'supposedly' the things I enjoyed doing.

Mind you, Procrastination And Laziness (P&L) are best friends. With time, they suck you in their charm. Unless you are mindful, you won't even realise when you form a trio with them! 

So today I am very glad to have broken up with these two and risen from the ashes!

P.S: What are the things that you are putting on a back burner to be with your 'fake besties', the infamous P&L?

  

A tale of embarrassment

Hello Dearies,

I am back to writing after having this blog page closed for public viewing for last 10 days.

If you have missed me and my blogs then I am really sorry 😓 And you deserve an explanation.

So here is why I have been missing from action:

You see, it was one of those days. I decided to go out in the evening and it started raining elephants and hippos! Not using the correct phrase of "raining cats and dogs" so you get the magnitude of the rains!!

As luck would have it, I had gloriously forgotten my raincoat at home 🙍 I had carried it all summer in my bag pack anticipating this very day. Bummer, I forgot to carry that bag pack. Reached home fully drenched. News flashed all over TV: Flood like situation in my city. It was a rough day because my head (soaking up all the water from the furious rains) was heavy, my mind wandering with many items on my to-do list. 

On top of that, I had a leaking roof which kept flooding my bedroom and which needed cleaning up frequently. But is that a reason enough to stop using whatsapp?? No.. I chatted with multiple people on multiple topics in different windows and managing my chores like a superwoman 😤 Or so I thought about myself!

11 pm: The day was successfully done. I was sooo grateful to crash the bed 😹

2 am: Woke up very weirdly and felt wide awake. So what better way to kill time than to check all the whatsapp msgs.

2.05 am: Sh** Sh** Sh**! I can't believe my eyes 😰 When did this happen? How did this happen?? Now what??

I was not sure if I was feeling hot flushes because of catching fever or because of the acute embarrassment I was feeling.

For no rhyme or reason, I saw that I had erroneously shared this link of my blog page on a professional HR whatsapp group I am part of.  A group which follows a strict, no forward policy. A group which only discusses serious HR issues/policies etc. A group where I am an invisible silent spectator because of having a lack of anything worthwhile to contribute.

And the first time I share something on this group is this, 'Hola Diaries' (Gosh!! Neither does the address sound intelligent nor professional) 🙍😭

So my stressful mind did the best it could think of. I deleted my whatsapp ping (which by then was seen by few group members). It could not be deleted for all but to make me feel better, I deleted it from my phone none the less. I felt like a guilty offender. So to be doubly sure, none of the members read my blog - I made this blog page private too.

Hopefully those who read the blog, I pray that by now, they have forgotten all about it. Indifference is a favourable response in this case.

You may ask, why this sharp retreating reaction from my end? Am I not proud of my blogs?

On the contrary, I am. However it is, good, bad or ugly, it's my baby. And I am fiercely protective about who it is exposed to.

P.S: Even after my hiatus, if you are a reader from that whatsapp group, please note, you are not supposed to be here. But wait, if by chance you like my blogs, please feel free to comment or write to me. Every one on this earth likes to hear good things about their babies ☺💖

When you are addicted to technology..

Your minutes turn into hours,

Your hours into an entire day,

And days into a year!

Hell, If you are not careful,

Even the year may turn into multiple years.

You turn to technological support,

If you don’t know your why,

If you have more doubts,

than beliefs about your future.

But, is it right?

To deaden the reality,

Just to pass by life?

Or is it better to face your fears,

And emerge out of it,

One way or other?

Either ways, you learn,

A better way to deal with life,

And start living,

Rather than being a mere spectator!

H2 oooo

Hola Dearies!

This is bliss, writing to you on a Monday morning!

Designing the blog image for this blog is fun too. I know I always end up using a colour which is somewhere between pink and peach - I love it!!

So overall a very good start to my week and this Monday in particular.

And,this I learnt, is what is called as 'Hygge' (pronounced as hue-guh). It is basically a feel good vibe, the comforting feeling which makes you happy and joyful!

If you are thinking that you have never heard of "Hygge" before, both you and me, have missed the boat of the 'Hygge Hype'!

Recently, I came across a very beautiful picture of a bright colourful knitted scarf which was named 'Hygge Scarf' and was super expensive on an e portal. I thought to myself "wow, this sure is a very expensive brand". 

So, to learn more about it, I goggled 'Hygge'. Got to know that it's not an exclusive woollen clothes line. But a Danish word meaning all things beautiful. A feeling which does not really have a translated word in English.

Ironically, like all things beautiful, this concept too is getting exploited or destroyed by some clever marketers who decided to sell goods by using it to sell their goods at a very high premium.

So this blog is an attempt to put things in perspective:

1. We, the human kind, are constantly in search of getting more out of life and so we fall prey to such hype worldwide. (Confession: When I realised I didn't know anything about this much glorified concept, I felt left out. I so wanted to be a part of this Hygge community, to be happy, mindful and comfortable.)

2. We don't really need academic knowledge or research to make us mindful and happy. Sure, it does give us an impetus to focus on the good life. But remember, it's just a feeling, which can also come from simple things like spending time with someone you love or doing things which make you excited.

3.  Real fun is in practising the beautiful concepts of mindfulness, enjoying the now (with whatever you have, plenty or scarce) even after this media wave of "Hygge Hype" is over.

So here's wishing all of you a more sustaining life of peace and joy!

May you all find your bliss sooner than later!

   

Adios Amigos,

P.S: 1. Yours truly is slowly becoming an international blogger. ✌
Hint: Notice the literature in the blog. Hola, Adios, Amigos - Spanish words.. Hygge - Danish Concept😊😛

2. Blog title:  H2 meant Hygge Hype( in case,you didn't figure it out by now..) And the oooo was just so that I sound scientifically inclined too! 😀

First impressions of an NGO

Recently I happened to get an opportunity to see closely the workings of an NGO. The employees work with so much passion. Their commitment to make the lives of underprivileged better is exemplary.  And to think of it, while they work tirelessly for upping the quality of life for their beneficiaries, they themselves have taken a hit at their pockets (most work for a token salary). Sometimes they work for free as volunteers too.

I have always worked in the IT industry. So for me, the huge salaries, the posh working locations, the free meals and other benefits were like a birth right. Being an HR professional, I have also handled people grievances mainly for salary (even from people who are already earning way too high a salary) just because some of their colleague is getting better salary for the same work.

So this exposure to the working of an NGO actually makes me think long and hard. It feels like the decade that I spent working in the IT sector is a different world all together. People there were so focused on themselves, their progression (even at the cost of having to play dirty politics), their ease and comfort etc. Everyone was predominantly self centric. 

Whereas in this NGO, the field workers seem so driven to work for people and their betterment. It's really heart-warming. The positive change which they bring about is purely a labour of love. Coming from a motivation to do good for others. And I truly feel blessed to experience this at close quarters. 

It kind of restores my faith in humanity.

It makes me realise that there is immense power in love. 

Love for humanity - It's healing and definitely a reminder of the goodness that still exists in our world!

First blog of the month!

So  I am back on this blog after almost a month!

The last time I wrote a quick update about how I was ill for sometime, along with my hubby dear who too was down with viral fever. Bam! After the post went live, I fell ill. Again!!!!!

Caught the viral bug from hubby and was again down for another week.

So technically, I have been facing some bouts of illness for quite some time now and it never feels good. The weakness, being dependent on your dear family and friends for looking after you. But it also gives you the awareness of how fortunate you are to have these dear people,who make you feel special with their love and kindness. And how, in your regular 'healthy' days, you don't really appreciate these people who make your world a very happy and secure place.

Just before penning this post, I was watching a life update video of one of the YouTubers I follow. She too had not been posting videos for over a month and informed her viewers about facing viral fever and other health issues. Our situations were so matching that she really inspired me to get back to my blog (cause she too was back, weaker but with the same zest she always has on her videos).

To make this post a little more authentic, let me tell you something that has recently dawned on me..

I realised that writing is like a muscle in our body. If we exercise it, it will run just fine. But if we don't, it's going to have some hiccups. Today when I write this post, I suddenly have this feeling that I don't have it in me to write. I mentioned this in my last post as well. Let's hope, it's just a slight dip in my blogging and if I keep going, things will fall in place. And that newer blog ideas will come pouring to me 👌 

So looking forward to meeting you more on this space!

Till then hope you have a healthy and happy time! 

P.S: I have really started appreciating Mahatma Gandhi's words, "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver." 🙏

Back Again!

Hello !!

Long time I blogged.

Multiple sickness' to me and mine kept me away from blogging. Also, there is this thing that my emotions were not very upbeat in this past week. So why burden the blogosphere with negativity?

I am also suffering from some weird writer's block. I must have written 3-4 articles in last few days and then deleted them without posting because I thought they were not good enough.

But if my 21 day Blog Experiment has taught me anything, it's that 'Showing up is half the battle' won! 

Even when you feel inadequate or don't feel like it, when you show up, you have achieved 50% of the task. What follows is, you somehow get this momentum which propels you to achieve the required quality as well to complete the task.

Anyhow, I would end this post with some words of wisdom from Ralph Waldo Emerson:

To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people
and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics
and endure the betrayal of false friends;

To appreciate beauty;
To find the best in others;

To leave the world a bit better, whether by
a healthy child, a garden patch
or a redeemed social condition;

To know even one life has breathed
easier because you have lived; 

This for me means a life well lived.

When do we become ready for parenthood?

Maybe my question is wrong..  Should I say, When do we really become adults?

Technically, I know we 'become' adults when we turn 18 and most certainly, we can also birth kids by then..

But this is not about that..!!

This is about the mental aspect of being an adult and a parent. I say this because even in my thirties (early thirties, I am not that old, ok!! 😉) I look up to my parents' help and guidance in things both small and big. If there is something going amiss, they are the first ones I turn to for comfort and I really need them to guide me then on.

And that's what I am trying to point out here.. These days, suddenly, I have started thinking that I have to grow up. Like really grow up. Become an adult and take my own responsibility, as a parent does for a kid. In all aspects of my life.

Like when I was a kid, I would sleep by 10 pm, wake up at 6.45 am. No questions asked. That was the discipline and routine my parents had trusted upon me.  Following it was simple.

Now when I am an adult, I sleep whenever I want, wake up whenever I want. Being a liberated housewife has it's cons. There is no one that I am answerable to and nowhere fixed that I have to report to in the morning. So I am not really 'adulting' myself properly. I am still hung up somewhere in the middle of childhood and adulthood.

I want to become someone I feel answerable to. You know, intrinsically have a radar, to do the right thing from the wrong. Act  and think the right way, always.

And when I become that person, who is acting responsibly in any given situation. Looking out for myself the way my parents would, choosing wisely instead of indulging in self sabotage - That's when I feel I deserve to be called 'an adult'!

I think one becomes ready for parenthood when one successfully starts parenting themselves into doing things they should, even when they don't feel like.

P.S: This blog is an uncensored version of the current state of mind of the author's. The author prides herself to be sincere in this age of social media where only 'perfect' moments, instagram stories are shared by many. This is an attempt to make this blog as candid as the author is ✌😇

So relatable....

Today the world has come to a point where everyone is so busy that they don't really have time for daily socialising. That aside, the long hours at work have also made self reflection a very rare thing. When the weekend comes, there are those household chores to do which were ignored the whole week. The laundry, the cleaning of house, the purchase of groceries etc.

So in all this humdrum, every once in a while there comes a time when you meet someone or talk to someone who really converses with you (without peeping into their phone sneakily). Or you happen to read a blog/book which you  totally relate to. Please. Please notice your sense of fulfilment then.

There is a different thrill to be connected to someone with similar thought patterns or with someone who has something really interesting to share. That sensation really matters cause in the end, we are social beings. 

Yes, even for the introverts who derive vigour by being alone. In fact more in the case of introverts because it is so rare that they connect to people in the first place. So when they do, it really feels good.

Of late, I have been having these wonderful encounters. Either the conversations I have with people are really scintillating or I come across blog articles or YouTube videos which resonate deep within.

And what a genuine thrill that is! 

To know, there are people out there facing similar issues and getting to know their ideas of how to deal with same. Or knowing that somewhere out there, in the far off, is someone who shares the exact same opinion as we do. Or, is going through the same feelings of apprehension or excitement.

Makes you feel a very tiny but inclusive speck in this big cosmos!

Sunday Special

Today's blog is very very special (not only because it is Sunday)!!

Because I realized it's my 50th blog and my blog page has upwards of 1000 views in total till date. 🙌

Thank you my dearies! I take this as majorly your love for me (and minorly for my blogs, some which made sense, some which didn't maybe).

My first ever attempt at writing down my endless thoughts. My first attempt at fiction and poetry too!

This kind of fulfils one of my long cherished dream of being a writer! You know those dreams, which you have while very young and then which fizzle out. Just because you are not really sure, if you are good enough or if it will help you make a living. 

I know that you, my dear family and friends, are the only ones privy to this blog link. So technically, all of you are kind of pushed into being polite and reading my stuff. Who knows if there will ever be any readers who don't know me personally and even then follow my blog! (Also, there is no fixed benchmark set to be able to call oneself an official 'writer')

But that's not the point.

The main thing here is:

•   One kind nudge from a dear friend to not give up on my blog and be consistent.
•   One honest review of how I can improve my grammar and sentence formation.
•   One encouraging but critical view on my blog. 
•   One dearie, who agrees to disagree with my view points and take the efforts to say so on my face.

In today's day, I really value the above because everyone is trying to just be socially or politically correct. It takes real good relations and intentions, to leave diplomacy aside and give real helpful but 'not so pleasing' feedback.  

All these pointers have helped write the 50 blogs and earn the 1000 views. 💕💟

This is proof that sometimes, dreams do become reality. That if we are kind and encouraging to our fellow beings, there may be a small but positive outcome. That one act of generosity and encouragement from us, may lead to a major movement later!

Today you sure make me a Gladie!

In fact, I would also like to share some minor details,

•   I named my blog Gladie Life because I really feel very very grateful for having all you awesome people into my life!
•  When you actually Google the meaning of the name 'Gladie', you end up with various other forms of the word like Gladys, Gladis etc. So it seems like I have picked up a pen name which is very rare these days.
•   If we take into consideration the pronunciation of word 'Glady' (which is also how I pronounce Gladie) and search for a meaning of the word: It means royalty, small sword or lame. (Yeah, very random 😊)
•  Since knowing the above meaning I just seem to think of myself as a 'Princess' who uses this blog, as a small sword, to write about either some deep topics or some lame ones. (Who said royalty can't be deep or lame???! 😎)

Hmmm.  That's all I have for now,

Thank you for all your time and efforts into this blog! 👍

P.S: You make me real proud with your patience to endure all my reflections of and in 'life'....! 👏👏✌

My Power!

I want...

A little sunshine and not the constant rain,

A little pleasant breeze and not the harsh wind,

A few kind words and not the barrage of lines which make no sense,

A warm cup of coffee and not the ice cold water in the tap,

A little source of income and not the constant expenses,

But I am really grateful that...

 The constant rain is helping solve water issues,

The wind helps generate electricity for business' and all,

We have the vocabulary which can help us express our emotions well,

We have water running in our taps, cold or hot does not matter,

We have the capacity to pay for our day to day expenses,

So I deduce,

I have way more things to be grateful for and that,

I am not focusing on the right things,

It's always my choice,

A choice which will differentiate,

How my life is!

I have the power to create my life,

Good, Bad, ugly is just a perception,

The influence to sway it either ways, lies with me!

In your face...!

I have realised whatever you are feeling, where ever you are, however the situation at hand, there is always something good in your situation.

Sometimes you have to search long and hard for the good things. Because the bad is blaring at you.

But you find your ways out.

I think finding humour in my bad situations helps me.   

So here's an example how I do it.

I am a very low maintenance girl. On normal days, the only beauty routine I follow is, washing my face. Applying some face cream, if totally in the mood to pamper myself. That's it.

But on this one rare occasion, I really felt my skin was looking listless and pale. I wanted to see some pink in my cheeks. So I thought, these days organic is the mantra. Why not try a homemade beet scrub..!

I used some peel of beetroot to scrub my face. The plan was to wash it off after some time and then hydrate with some moisturiser. Plain and simple. right??!!

Wrong, my logic totally failed. 

The whole day I was looking like a pink faced Japanese monkey (not even close to the 'healthy flushed face' look I aspired for self). I felt bad on my plan failing but there's some good from that situation.

Every time I happened to see a mirror that day, It really made me laugh on my 'in your face' pinkness. Pun intended. I realised I have the ability to humour myself even in not so ideal a situation.

 Statistics say small children laugh on an average 300 times while an adult laughs only 17 times per day. I definitely laughed more than 17 times that day and that's a blessing, right?

P.S:  For those concerned, the pinkness faded the next day and my face was back to being pale! ☺☺

  

Special Birthday!

I am really the person who will remember my loved ones' birthdays and be excited about it more than the person whose birthday it is.

Like for example, If my sissy's birthday is coming up next month, I'll like to start getting ready right away. I'll want to know, if she has a new dress for the occasion. Or if she has something special planned etc. Even if I am not around for the celebrations, I want it to be special for her nonetheless.

In case, it is my bestie's birthday and I have the privilege to be present for it, I would love to have some quality "we" time with the friend.

For me, It's all about ensuring that the person knows that they are cherished and important for me.

But here comes the tiny glitch!

There are times when I will be super excited for a birthday coming in July, right since Jan, which is the start of the year and then forget about it all together on the day itself. 

Such a bummer! 😢

So picture this:

I have a friend whose birthday I will never forget as we have been buddies since more than a decade now. But I forgot his birthday last year and when I remembered it, It was almost one month late! ONE MONTH..! I know, I may be sounding too melodramatic, may be he didn't really mind me forgetting it.

But I was so disappointed in myself. Wait, oh boy! Was I smart? I had a solution.. I had recently learnt digital art then and made him a birthday card (with one of his photo that was sent to me by his wifey, so that he is surprised by my excellence in art work). I poured by heart to him in this card. Telling him how I can never ever forget his birthday as I was excited about it from one month early on. Yada yada yada.

 I wonder if he was angry or something, cause all he had to say in response to my e-card was two words . " Thank You".

Anyhow, to make it up for last time's loss, I wished him thrice this year!

First time, when I thought it was his birthday according to the lunar calendar, which was a few days before his actual date of birth. (Yay, I totally rock!! ✌) He too responded to my wishes with a  "Thank You".

Oooopppps! Tiny error - I later realised, this turned out to be the wrong lunar day after all! It was not his lunar calendar birthday at all... But he was kind enough not to correct me, poor thing!

So second time, I wished him correctly on his actual date of birth. (Thank God!!!!) His response was the same "Thank You". 👍

After a few days from his actual birthday, his 'correct' lunar calendar birthday came up. So to correct my previous mistake, I wished him again the third time!!! 😇

Mind you, I have not wished anyone sooo many times in a year for one birthday. All because of my stupid memory last year.  Also, the stupidity of me wishing on the wrong day of lunar calendar!!!   

Anyway, his response was, Nooo you guessed it wrong! Not his golden words - "Thank You". 

But blank. 

No response. 

That day, I was very tense, did I really over-do the wishing??? 

Next day passed by with no response again, I was getting worried now. Is it possible to lose a friend if you wish him happy birthday multiple times? I really didn't mean to sound hyper crazy..!

But the third day he responded with one word "Thnx". 

Now, should I be bothered, he did not write the whole 2 words "Thank You"????????? 

Guess not, he is just fine, you know, he is a man of few words. 

Minor point to be made, my buddy has not been talking to me much this year, after all my warm birthday wishes!
Do you think, I should call him and specifically explain about my guilt and the reason why I wished him so many times?
Does he think I'm a bit of a madcap and so he is avoiding me?????

This episode has made my learning curve very steep..!

So these days, I have become much more pro-active. 

Whenever it's a birthday of someone special to me, I start wishing them 3 days in advance or at least start dropping subtle hints like "Your birthday is coming in 3 days, what are your plans??!"

This is leaving some proof that I do remember their birthday all round the year, it's just that sometimes I forget to wish them on their big day. 😉

P.S: Sometimes I think, I tend to over-think. Then get soo bogged down with it all, that I don't think straight. Or do I?

I am Persi!

Day 1

Hi!!

 It's the first time I am about to pour my heart out, to the human species on something called a "blog". I understand that it's a common medium of self expression these days. But being just a small house spider, I was not all that aware of this medium. You can't really blame my ignorance.

So anyway, let me introduce myself. I am Persi. Not that my parents named me that.

In fact, we spiders don't really name ourselves. Because we are busy from the moment we are born till we die, very busy. From our very early days we are taught to start building our home and to earn our bread and butter. It loosely translates to a cobweb and insects in the human world, I believe.

So who named me? Good question.

There is this huge human being, Lady, that's her name.  I understand cause I always hear another huge human being who keeps saying things like "Lady, you have to buck up",  "Lady, you are late", "Lady, the food is tasty today" to her.  I am very sharp and intelligent that ways ☺☺✌

So coming back to Lady, She is very very weird that ways. I can confess to you the first time I spotted her, I didn't like her at all. She saw me, screeched at top of her voice "Oh My God!" and ran off. Coming back in just about a minute with a large broomstick and destroying my house for no rhyme or reason.

Anyhow, I nearly escaped death. When she screeched, I got so nervous that I ran off a small distance but kept a watchful eye on her. Really thankful that the total damage was just 10 hrs of my hard work and not  my life. I can produce silk from my abdomen and create a web again. I am supposed to catch some insects tonight for my dinner. This weird Lady has now made me work double shifts tonight to build another web! Life can be tough for us spiders.  You humans won't really get it.

  Day 2

It's a nice sunny day. Last night I restored both my spirits and my cobweb.  Now looking forward to a day of nice food and relaxation.

Oh God, wait! Is that the Lady here again??! WTF?!

Her voice is not screechy today but she still shouts "OMG, you are persi.... (It was quite a long word, didn't get it totally).. Wait till I get you, this time, for the better."

Her warning was enough to get my flying in the distance.

Murder attempt 2 of the Lady failed. Guess I am too smart!

Day 3

She did it again! Destroyed my web but she couldn't do that with my spirit.

Today I had built a bigger and more stronger web. I demanded my abdomen to produce finer quality of silk this time. But the Lady still destroyed it. I really wonder what her problem with life is.

In human world they say, 'Man always gives what they have'.

So does that mean, someone crushed her house and so she is doing that to me?!

In that case, I should really teach her some spirit! Teach her through my actions, that your massive success is the best revenge for your opponent. 
That's why you have this life. You fall down, you get up.

Someone drags you down, you climb 10 notches higher.

Someone tries to destroy your calm, you gather poise like never before and keep doing your own thing!

Day 4

Morning:

It is bright and shiny.

I am proud of my cobweb.   It's the largest and best that I have built till date. I am in fact looking forward to the Lady to come and visit my piece of pride, my home.

 If she destroys it again, I am fine. But at least she will know, she is just making me better with time!

Her usual time to visit is here but she is not to be seen.

 Evening:

Nope, the Lady still didn't visit. But at least some insects got stuck in the web and I had a lovely dinner!

Day 5

Morning:

I know, I am not supposed to feel any concern for humans in my spider life. But the Lady is not to be seen. Also, I am kind of getting restless to move on in life and build newer homes in some other places.

But I also want the Lady to learn her lesson.

Night :

Finally! The Lady and the other human being are here. She is yet to notice my palatial web.

Yayyyyy! She sees it!

She seems to be unusually calm tonight. She just shows the bigger human my handy work and says," I really learn grit from this spider. I think that's the reason, I didn't have the heart to kill it the first time I saw it. I was supposed to learn from it."

She then looked at me intently and said "You, my spider, are really persi.....".

(Again the same big world mentioned above, don't know what it means but I like the sound of it. So I think I'll accept it as my brand new name!)

In Life

There will be times,

When you will stumble and fall,

But please believe it's not the end of all,

You have to pick yourself up,

Take a review of what you have,

With that, you still try!

There will be times,

When things don't go as planned,

Keep calm, His plan is better than yours!

There will be times,

When you have tried it all,

But the results don't show up,

Inevitably it's just some lesson to be learnt,

Learn and move on!

There will be times,

When everything seems just right,

Enjoy it while it lasts,

Knowing when the day ends,

There sure will come night!

  

What is happening?!!

Today when I saw this poster (advert for a famous automobile brand), I really felt a strong urge to use this platform to voice some of my concerns.

So I happened to go through this particular road twice in 2 consecutive days and the first time I saw the advert, I felt it was odd and then forgot about it within a blink of my eye. The second time I saw it, for lack of anything better to muse on, I took a hard look at it and it really didn't make any sense.

There it was: A huge advertisement hoarding appealing to buy a very famous brand of automobile. 

But they had a very weird thing going for their visual appeal. It was that of a very cute baby (may be an year old, max 2 yrs old) on the steering wheel.

Look, I am not an expert in advertisement or marketing but as a trillion dollar company, I would like them to have some other strategy than to appeal to babies!! Like, really?? 

And if your strategy is to say that, Your brand of cars are so easy that even babies can drive them, then think again. The "adult" prospective buyer who is going to pay for it might feel offended. (I can't drive a car smoothly and I sure would be slightly offended to think I can't do something which a year old baby can!). If I am going to have to pay around $17000 on a car, it better be something, which is more special than a kid's toy.

Also, these kind of advertisements can send out a wrong signal to kids in the world. They might start feeling entitled to drive a car rather than wait, till they reach the minimum permissible driving age.  

**ittt! I am super scared thinking of babies driving around. This visual is not helping me.

I should not even get started on describing the panic I feel when I see adults who follow very wrong driving habits like speed driving, driving while having a tilted head and a phone on one ear.

Phew.. I should definitely stop at this point! And go, get some cool water to drink.

P.S: You guys, please, drive carefully and be safe!

You have to be cool...

So picture this guys: Any tiny scrap of work opportunity comes my way, I go like "Wow, maybe I am meant for this job!".

When they ask me about myself, I am naive enough to tell them, I have had a pretty long career break and keen to start work. I would have thought showing my keenness and sincerity towards the job opportunity would open up the interviewer's heart and doors of the company. But hey, they sure can sense desperation.  And rather than being thrilled about an enthusiastic candidate, it so happens that they actually run far away from me.

This happened multiple times in the recent times. Then I got it! I have to 'act' cool. I have to play it chill. And not only 'act' the part but actually believe it too!

Reminds me of my single-hood days. All my friends were getting married or engaged and I was the only one left behind. So you kind of understand how it can affect your morale. After being rejected or rejecting multiple prospective alliances (who just didn't seem right), I came to a point where I accepted my single-hood as a reality. The peace that came with this, became empowering.

I set out to make my life happening by investing in my hobbies and things that made me happy. I learnt dancing, made a lifelong friend in the process. I was just having an awesome time in life. The fact that I was single no more bothered me.

And lo and behold, there came my hubby dearest! Which just happened accidentally. 

Fate! It's quite funny. When you make peace with the fact that, you would not get what you badly want in your life, It just decides to pop up!