A city I thought I remembered well

I was in Delhi the last 2 days. I was curious to visit the city I left a few years back.

It is one of my favourite cities.. it has a lot of charm, culture and history associated with it. So I was curious, to know if it was still the same.. the way I left it.

I had visited Delhi last year but I did not get a chance to experience it much - I was pretty much cooped up in the hotel the full 3 days. But this time, I had decided, come what may, I will take some time out for my beloved city.

It was a strange experience to say the least. I had heard about the bedazzling airport.. so I wasnt surprised. I came out of the airport in a daze of walking a million miles.. well you do!! If you land in terminal 3. And if you have a car parked somewhere.. well, what should I say. I just recollect, going up and down several times. Phew.

First thing that struck me.. I could not recognise the road when I got out of the airport. And I used to traverse this road everyday. Everyday .. for how many years I cannot recollect now 3-4 yrs maybe!!! I was disappointed that I could not recognise the road to Palam, the hanuman mandir.. then I was later told this was a new road. Damn!

How I reached Aurobindo Marg without recognising a single sight or sound of Delhi is beyond imagination!!!!

Anyway, I consoled myself with the thought, everything will be fine once I eat Delhi food. So I ordered Chole Bhature as my mid morning snack/ breakfast. Err.. I didnt enjoy it.
For lunch, I had chaat. That was not bad, but I have had better. And for dinner, I ordered daal makhani and chawal. Daal was floating in butter ... not the other way round... and it did not titillate the taste buds.

Somehow any of it.. didnt match up to the Delhi taste. Maybe it was all in my mind.. the breathtaking food perhaps has something to do with the fond memories associated with the city..

And then swanky flyovers and toll nakas and the metro stations that have sprouted everywhere making it totally alien..  To top it all, I didnt even see many sardars during my visit.

All in all.. disappointing, saddening :((

I for one, cannot be Aunt Linnie

For the uninitiated, Aunt Linnie is a character from Enid Blyton's book .. the six cousins and mistletoe farm!

It is a nice book.. takes me way back to my childhood when I used to read Enid Blytons.. the rosy apples, the sparkling streams et al..

This book is basically about a family staying in the country side and are basically into farming. Their "townie" cousins come and stay with them as their house gets burnt in a fire.
And of course the town bred look down upon all farming activities, the chores everyone needs to do around the house etc.

And being a typical Enid Blyton book, both the sets of cousins learn from each other. The townies learn the value of helping out at home while the other learn how to be well groomed and be courteous.

So Aunt Linnie who is the farmer's wife - she is shown to be someone who is always on her toes.. cleans hen house, counts eggs, cleans, cooks, not just cooks meals but makes preserves, makes butter and sews .. you get the picture. She does everything in the house.. doesnt spend a single paisa on herself.. is a plump lady with a face that is always red (because of slaving over stove.. really, thats how the book describes her) .. the last time she got a dress was about 12 yrs back before her 3rd child was born. She whips a giant meal when having a party..obviously everyone loves her, adores her, husband waxes eloquent about her..

And on the other end, is the mother of other set of cousins.. who is only bothered about personal grooming, needs household help and doesnt do much work at the farm.

Both the characters are so starkly painted black and white.. not a twinge of grey.

I assume the times Enid Blyton was in, the "Aunt Linnie" character was what you had to be.. she would be the epitome of a good woman .. a good housewife and a good mother.. a self sacrificing wife..

And I wonder, if this book were to be set in today's context, what would Aunt Linnie be like? What balance would Enid Blyton find her? I cannot imagine a woman in these times to be like this character drawn up - not having a new dress for 12 yrs??????????? And of course the author keeps punctuating the story with things like.. even though Linnie is worked off her feet, her joy is in seeing to everyone.. and it is fine as you must think of your family everytime before you think of yourself. Which actually we all do, but its just that its too extreme!!!

What do you all think?

ps: loved the book. :)

Wake up Sid.. yet again..

And again and again and again. I am watching this movie the umpteenth time.

About 2 years ago, I had written a post on the same movie..  Wake Up Sid, Yawwwn  the title was!! I really cannot fathom why I was yawning throughout or why I called it a movie that college kids would be attracted to. What was I thinking!!!

I am watching the movie now as I speak. And everytime it comes on TV, I watch it. And I have it on my laptop as well.. I watch it when I am feeling restless and dont have anything "feel good" to watch. And like today, I was just channel surfing, came upon this movie and stopped.

I love it every time I watch it. Why you ask - I dont know. Its so refreshing a movie. Maybe in some parts I identify with the independence Konkona displays.. the cooped up feeling that Ranbir talks about.. the idea of being with someone with certain particular traits that all of us dream about and realise that in real life, things are so different.

I like it for the portrayal of love they show in the movie - the warmth and comfort. It is so nice!! Makes me feel very happy..yeah, this movie does.

I take back the critique I wrote 2 years back. This movie should have got and gets 5 stars from me!!!

Running a business is not for the faint hearted

I always knew this.

Starting up on your own is not for the faint hearted.. but I always envisioned the problem to be something else.. getting the business for one.. who will give work to someone wet behind the ears kind of a thing.

Little did I know.

And no I haven't started my own business.. this is like a surrogate to doing so. Need to start something on my own.. but part of an organisation.. makes sense? Starting a branch that is to say.

And I am restless. I hate working from home.. and that is exactly what I am doing. Why? Because I dont have an office here yet.. Why? I am looking for one.. and I suck at it. And its only been a week.. And I hear horror stories of how it took 2 months and more to find a place.

And I am a one man army.. as of now. My team is not there yet.. next month hopefully, it should all be sorted.

There is no one to talk to. And my boss is not bothered about what I am doing with my time.. errr.. yeah you heard me right. I always thought that would be the most delightful thing... the best situation to  be in. Its crazy I know.. but I do start when I want to.. stop when I want to.. and I am bothered by it. God knows why.. but I am.

Years of being monitored I think. Now that I am not.. I dont know what to do.

Basically I am not a self starter. I become restless very quickly.. I realised that every organisation I have been with till now.. I have always come into the middle of a crisis and my first week at work always till date, entailed late nights!!

And now as I twiddle my thumbs .. looking at a blank piece of paper.. thinking of how to start, where to start... trying to do something I have no idea of (finding an office, doing random admin stuff, thinking of expenses).. I realise its tough.

And funnily enough, business does not worry me. It will come.. I know.  It is running an office that is staring into my face. And I shudder to think of how I will run an office!! lol.. yeah, its funny!!! I will probably be crying on the shoulders of all freshers who join me. Poor souls. Hehehe..

A decade of work

I cant believe it. Today was the day, 10 years ago, that a young girl  with rosy view of the world stepped into the big bad corporate world. 10 years ago.

A babe out of the woods.

I used to run scared hither thither at a mere look from my boss. I had no idea what office politics was all about. I didnt know one could say no to work, whether mine or someone else's. All I knew was that I was grateful... someone was paying me to do something. And since they are doing such a huge favour to me, I better work my a** off!!!

I still remember the first assignment my new boss gave me - I had to work on some data.. calculate something.. I had some 10-15 sheets of paper with rows and rows of numbers. And 10 yrs back, we had a limited number of computers. There were about 4 computers shared by some 15-20 of us. And that day I did not get a machine. And I used a calculator.. an actual one (not the PC one) and did about 1000 odd calculations. After all, I couldnt let an excuse like, no machine, be the reason why I didnt complete the first assignment !!!

And in 10 years time... much as I would like to tell you that I have become street smart.. no one can get the better off me ... much as I was prepared to write how have I changed and all that.. very honestly, I am still the same. A little wiser perhaps. But I still, however much I may claim otherwise, am a grateful person, at heart. Grateful and a bit amazed that people actually pay me for what I do!!!

Time flies fast. Indeed it does.