And so ..

Here I am staring at the Create Post screen once again not knowing what to write

I could write about the time I gave the mechanic at the Bajaj service station a 100 rupee tip and got back a shiny new bike, cleaned and greased at places which I didn't even know existed.

Or I could bitch and moan and crib about work

I could talk about the one day trip to Bangalore and how I was inside an office for nearly 8 hours without my mobile and ipod and nothing to do.

I could even talk about the interesting phoren gentleman I met during the travel, who was a mathematician and an artist, who sold his paintings for 20000 USD, who was sketching all the while talking to me, with whom I discussed love, life and the unfairness of it all and who turned to be half Indian in the end

I could chronicle my house hunting adventures, miserly house owners and elaborate about how real estate brokerage is a lucrative career

I could announce on a happier note that my parents are moving to Hyd and dream about my idyllic life where I never need to cook again!

I could write about S' engagement and how I missed going to that, M's engagement which I am currently in the process of missing and K's engagement which I am going to miss.

I could rave about my new digicam which I bought in the Thanksgiving sale (thanks S boy) and how it takes the most wonderfullest pics!

Nah! Another day another post :-)

Of Trains Missed and Lovable Airlines

6:00 p.m from Hyderabad station and 6:30 p.m from Secunderabad, and of course the idiot that I am, I try to spend 15 mins extra at work and try to catch the train at Sec'bad. And then the realization that I forgot to pack my charger and so I chose to leave earlier, pick that up (nobody at home uses Moto phones) and then catch the train. And then disaster struck in the form of traffic. S.P Road is really one of the worst when it comes to this. I prayed and hoped and egged the driver on and reached the station 10 mins after the train left. Thankfully I found a Paramount ticket for the next day morning (thanks S) and so managed to spend Diwali at home.

I can't stop raving about Paramount Airlines. This is the second time I am flying them and they only seem to improve with time. They actually have people waiting at the gate to carry luggage inside for Paramount customers. There's access to a pretty comfortable lounge and people escort you to and from it too. The seats were very comfortable with just window and aisle on both sides. And the food they serve is actually edible and I managed to eat most of it. The fare is very reasonable - just 500 more than the budget ones. I haven't flown Kingfisher, but Paramount was definitely a better experience than Jet Airways despite the obvious difference in the fare

* Yes its a new post, you are not seeing things :-)

** I am not going to promise to write regularly. But then I intend to.

*** This post is intentionally short and uninteresting. Baby steps :-)

Top 10 Things to Do During a Boring Conf Call

10) Chew the end of your pen, trying to appear thoughtful

9) Play tic-tac-toe against yourself (Sometimes it can be oddly riveting)

8) Try to flip your pen across your index finger and thumb (Some people do it so effortlessly! I've been trying this unsuccessfully for several years now :-( )

7) Look at people's shoes and judge them (You could notice other things like clothes or hairdo and judge them based on that too, but I have observed that it is easier to look down than up)

6) Observe your reflection on the glass wall and fix your hair (I do this a lot as my hair is generally wavy and is cut in such a way as to fall all over my face. The challenge is do it such a way that people (read smart guys) don't see you do it and think your hair is naturally unwavy and sits quietly on your head)

5) Give missed calls to all and sundry (You might think that you can rather send smses than missed calls, but there is a two fold reason to avoid smses a) To send a sms, you will have to actually look at your mobile and type out the msg. This will take a minimum of 30 secs and doesn't show you in good light if you twiddle with your mobile for so long a time. But sending a missed call requires just a few seconds and can be done without looking at your mobile and the mobile can even be inside your pocket/bag b) Smses cost money)

4) Take your id card apart and put it back together (But remember, id cards cost money. So take care not to break the access card into two)

3) Locate new marker pens in the conference room to flick to your cube (This is a never ending cycle - I flick the pens from the conference room and bring it to my cube and someone flicks it from my cube :-( )

2) Doodle and sign your name all over your scribble pad (If my paintings are ever exhibited sometime in the future, I will publicly acknowledge my company's part in bringing out my sketching abilities)

1) Well, I guess you could try to listen to what is happening in the call and try to chip in with a few ideas. Or you could think of blogging ideas too :-)

** New look, same blogger :-) **

Happeee

:-)

I-Me-Myself Tag

Thanks Jinguchakka for waking me up :-) Here I go

I am thinking about...
taking up swimming lessons every weekend

I said...
"I don't need a home loan" to the ICICI guy who called just now

I want to...
go to Chennai right now

I wish...
I could curl up in bed right now with a good book

I miss...
being an unearning member of the society, when I could guiltlessly let others pay for my stuff

I hear...
my cubicle neighbour's ringtone right now

I wonder...
if I am really as good as I think I am

I regret...
all the things I said about Hyderbad before I came here

I am...
usually a nice girl :-)

I dance...
to my own song when no-one's in the room

I sing...
"I feel pretty, oh so pretty" atleast once everyday

I cry...
when I have not finished things I am supposed to have, but I haven't due to laziness

I am not always...
gossipy, but when I call up N we both talk like a pair of cats :-)

I write...
my name in all possible styles during every boring meeting

I confuse...
myself a lot over silly decisions like where to go for lunch

I need...
an iPod right here, right now :-)

I should try...
to get started on things instead of waiting till the last minute to do so

I finish...
reading the Readers' Digest the very day I get them

I tag...
H
Sandeep
Rohan

Blasts from the Life of Janani Sundarrajan

* I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod, I want an ipod! And I want something witty engraved on it too. Right now I have thought of just "Janani Listens", so people help me here.

* Kiwi cheese cake sucks, bigtime! Note to self: Stick to ordering chocolate variants for dessert

* Moi is planning to start a walking regimen from tomorrow. So wish me luck to wake up at 7 every morning.

* I want an ipod. Have I said that already?

* Mahesh babu rules (even if he does look a tad feminine in Murari)

* It's been more than 2 weeks since I read a book. Now that I have a cool night light and all thanks to dear ol S, I am raring to buy a book. Any suggestions? I am thinking of Shantaram.

* And S, start your blog already!!!

That's all folks! :-)

TOW I Hate USA

* I hate it that all incoming calls are charged

* I hate it for the the different timezones (I woke up my Manni and cousin at 6 on a Sunday morning 'coz I messed up timezones)

* I hate it that thamizh movies are released there but not in Hyderabad

* I hate the fact that though it is easy to send birthday cakes from US to India, it is close to impossible to accomplish the opposite

* I hate the Americans' inability to understand my English

I HATE AMERICA!!!!!

P.S - Seriously I have bigger and better grouses against USA and some NRIs. But that shall wait until suitable time

Yes, It's Me

No, your eyes are not playing a trick. The cobwebs are off and here's a shiny new post. :-)

First things first, Happy Birthday S! Hope you have a blast today!

Since my creative juices are all dried out and this is going to be another the story of my life kinda post.

I suppose I could tell you about this thing that happened that restored my faith back in humanity. I went to this petrol station on my way back home, filled my tank up and then realised my wallet was back in office. Tears threatened to come rushing out and I was wondering which vetti guy to call to make him get my wallet. Apparently my show of histronics talked volumes and the guy there realised I had no money. And immediatly he asked me not worry and come and pay the next day. Relief flooded over my being and I rushed back to office. And I found my wallet on my desk and I sped back to pay my debt. The guy was very sweet again and remarked that I could have come over the next day as it was getting late. And so my gentle readers, it shows that trust and faith still exist in this world. :-)

So I am testing waters now with this small post. And if things go on well, I will be back with a bigger post tomorrow. :-) So long.

Thought for the Week

and for the rest of your lifetime! :-)

Meet the Sitcom Junkie

I have always believed in the magic powers of chocolate when I am down but last night I discovered the depression-relieving powers of sitcoms that can really revive your dead brain and put it back to sleep as you don't have it use it all. I came back from work zonked and switched on the TV and plonked myself on the pile of beds that serves as a couch. "A Simple Life" was happening in Start World, where Paris Hilton and another bimbo try to make some bucks interning. This was followed by the extremely entertaining Scrubs which always reminds me of The Wonder Years because of the voice overs (talking of which, Wonder Years DVDs anyone? Lend it to me please!). Then "8 Simple Rules to Date my Teenage Daughter" came on and I knocked myself out giggling for all that silly humor that I quite like. More giggling followed with Less Than Perfect, The Drew Carey Show (again DVDs anyone?), Seinfeld and Friends. Which makes it three and half hours of uninterrupted TV viewing!

I just lourrrvee these funny shows on TV. Yeah they are shallow, silly but I really like that kind of humor replete with the studio laughs. I think it all started out with Small Wonder - the show about this family with a robot daughter. H and I used to rush home from school to catch it on time. Soon we added The Wonder Years to our routine (this isn't a sitcom, but we loved it anyways). Then there was Blossom, Boy Meets World and so on, but we never liked them all that much. And since we aren't restricting ourselves to sitcoms, do people remember Giant Robot? Giant Robot caught every kids fantasy those days. And the Japanese soap Oashin, if I remember right, they never finished it! :-( Then Junoon, Swabhiman etc happened, but I am not getting into all that. :-)

Then I rediscovered the joys of sitcoms with Full House. All thanks to H who got me hooked! Zee English aired many good ones like Friends, Seinfeld, Mad About You, Three's Company and few others I quite don't remember. I used to watch and watch the reruns also during my vacations at home. Seinfeld was brilliant and I fell in love in Three's Company(DVDs absolutely needed - S, are you listening?). During college my access to TV was limited and we made do with Friends on our computers.

Hyd happened and once we bought a TV I got my roomie also hooked to these sitcoms so that my needs are guaranteed. :-) Friends, Will & Grace and Caroline in the City used to be my staple diet every night. And then the Monday laughs on Star World - Everybody Loves Raymond, Becker, Still Standing, Grounded for Life, The King of Queens etc. And Whose Line is it Anyway and Drew Carey Show make my mornings more eventful. But the schedules keep changing every month these days. Some shows I especially miss are Three's Company, Dharma and Greg(Greg was soo handsome), Mad About You and That 70s Show.

God save the guy who marries me - his TV viewing is screwed! :-)

Of Books Read and Other Trivial Happenings

I finished The Kite Runner last night and I absolutely recommend this book to all those who read. I love the narrative style of the author and it is long since I read a book that actually made me feel. The neat descriptions of Afghanistan, their people and their customs is enough to carry the book totally, but the book also has a great storyline and excellent characterization to boot. So if you can get hold of a copy, please do read it. I wish I had bought this book instead of borrowing from a friend. This book totally lived upto its great reviews. But a book that disappointed me recently is "Catcher in the Rye". This book is on the favorites list of so many people on orkut and blogger and I figured numbers don't fail. But it did and miserably at that. The book that rambles on and on and on without meaning or sense or anything and I really wonder if bad grammar and wild behavior are enough to catapult a book into the limelight!

Today we had a meeting and there was so much nonsense in it that I feel like running away. Maybe developers shouldn't have a say in the requirements, sometimes life is easier if the requirements is just fixed. And when PLs try to prove a point to the manager, it is the rest of the team that suffers.

Last evening I got caught by the Hyderabad traffic police for the first time - for not wearing a helmet. Usually they are a chivalrous bunch and never stop girls and certainly not two girls on a bike! :-) But since my papers were in order I escaped a fine/bribe and was let off with just a friendly rejoinder to wear a helmet always. We were on our way to Eat Street to celebrate a birthday and much fun was had by all. :-)

So long folks.

So How are You All Doing?

Disclaimer: People who look out for meaning or wit or anything of sense in this post can leave right now. This post is just a useless update on my life, which might be repitious if you know me personally or boring if you dont'! :-)

Work has been killer. Lots of minor and major irritants of which I am not going to talk about 'coz people in my company are gradually getting to know about my blog. I don't mind shooting long mails cribbing in detail about my problems though, so leave your email address in the comments box. :-)

To add fuel to the fire, my firefox is acting strange these days. It simply refuses to load pages most of the times. This is forcing me to use IE and I simply hate it. I have a feeling that it might be some extension that is causing this problem, but I have so many that I can't figure out which is playing truant. :-( Anyone else facing problems?

And the songs in Vettaiyadu Vilayadu are amazing to say the least. Especially the number called "Manjal veyil". My only grouse is that thalaivar hasn't sung any song :-(

Ok I guess my life has been pretty uneventful. Wanted to write about the time we went out for lunch and few other things too, but they kinda fell flat when written. :-) So its tata for now!

I Was Away 'coz ....

When I am not blogging I could do a lot many things
Like scour the skies after growing a nifty pair of wings
I could be doing something real too
Like coding and scripting to give my job its due

I could turn to charity doling out care and love
Spreading happiness around like the proverbial dove
May have even found a new hobby like tennis or cricket
Might be spending all my time to learn and excel at that

Perhaps I was bitten by the love bug always doing the rounds
Spending my days with lover boy and domestic bliss abounds
I could be bitten by something else too, possibly a rabid dog
Lying in a hospital bed unable to access my blog

I could have left for a vacation to a far off untold land
Where the internet is unheard of and mails are written by hand
Or could be making a movie on starting a blog and keeping it
My time could be spent on trying to make it a super hit

There could be hundreds of things that I could possibly have done
Like running or working or even basking in the sun
But in fact there is just one reason for the all posts you don't see
I am pretty, clever, witty but also very lazy!!! :-)

It's One of Those Days ...

* When things that were going right take a left turn

* When it is appraisal time and a tiny fear nags you inside

* When you take pains to get your one of your contact lenses replaced and blog about it and your other lens plays truant now

* When your bike keeps making "kch kch kch" noises

* When you just can't get CVS to work with Eclipse

But who cares, I am going home tomorrow! :-)

Back!

After a month long hiatus. No accident this time though - just work that has played a spoil sport! I haven't wished you all for Christmas, didn't ask about your New Year partaay, nor raved about my new mobile that I absolutely looooorve or talked about how I had a week of fun when sistah dear was in town or even our very boring office party. I guess this post is going to be random bits of blogabble things that happened over a month ago.

Blog Thing #1 - King Kong. I saw that movie with H and M and our only motive for choosing that movie was 'coz we wanted to watch a night show and this was the only non Telugu movie in the multiplex. And I was actually entertained by the movie! I am not a sucker for these Jurrasic Park n Anaconda kinda movies, but this movie was better than most in it's genre. Carl Denham was undoubtably the best played character in the movie. His wit and passion carries the movie forward. The huge gorilla is lovable and does everything to make the audience scream, smile and go "awwww" at all the right places. Naomi Watts is charming as usual. And I have just one word for Naomi's love interest in the movie - constipated! The director is determined to give us value for our ticket money and in the 3 hours of the movie we get to see a little bit Jurassic Park, wild savages who appear and disappear suddenly, wild beasts of yore that attack in unimaginable ways and even a little bit of Titanic. Many parts of the movie reminded me so much of our own thamizh/hindi hit movies and in the scene where Kong battles 3 dinosaurs he almost puts Rajinikanth to shame. Thamizh directors - this movie is a must watch for you guys. How can I forget the "punch" dialogue at the end of the movie "It was beauty that killed the beast" - I was laughing all the way home from the theatre. All said, this movie is worth a watch certainly.

I also wanted to blog about these Lawrence and Mayo guys. I had bought my contact lenses from them about 2 months ago and one fine day I discover that my left lens had become frayed in one corner and it started hurting my eye. I paid quite a bit of money for them, being toric lenses and all and I had been assured that they would last for a minimum of eight months. I decided to do something about this and stepped into their showroom gearing myself up for an unpleasant argument. As soon as I reported my problem, I was given the stock response about how I could have torn them by mistake and how this doesn't seem like a manufacturing defect and so on. When I explained and persisted that this couldn't have been my fault, the salesman surprisingly didn't argue and instead asked me to give my lens along with a letter stating my problem. He then asked me for 2 weeks time and without making any promises he just said he would try his best. And bang on 16th day I get a call from them saying I could pick up my replacement lens. This is by far the most pleasant experience I have ever had while reporting any problem and getting it fixed. I was expecting them to refuse to do anything about the lens since 2 months has elapsed and I was mentally prepared to get myself another pair. Not only was I replaced with a good pair, but the manner of the staff was very courteous and very polite. This is one satisfied customer who is going come back in the future. I wish Airtel Customer Care could take a leaf out of their book. And here is a lesson to be learnt for all of us - when something doesn't work right, it never hurts to try and return it.

Lots more things to blog about, but this post is getting too long. So another day another post (hopefully sooner than a month :-) )