FreakSpace

…in the ten days that I haven’t blogged. Now being study hols and all that I have a lot more time on my hands than usual. So I’ve been…Actually, wait. I think I’ll do this in bullets, cos they’re so much cooler.

• Went for Photowalk #6 from Madhya Kailash -> NIFT, Taramani w/ Van. Photos here! The heat was insane and I’m happy I haven’t had a relapse of Suraksha v. Sutta Kathrika.
• My niece was in town. Visited her to find that as a result of having spent her entire [one year old] life in Hyderabad, she only speaks Telugu. Very nice. Watched in awe as she ate an entire Idly by herself. Also very amused that she puts her head into the popcorn tub and nibbles.
• Craving Tamizh films/music/anything. Starved for the language. Know not why.
• Watched Santosh Subramaniam - so-so remake of Bomarillu [which I totally liked]. But Ravi is cute!
• Went to Java Green w/ Abhi & Vaish. We were supposed to play Scrabble, but the board was forgotten. So instead we ate like mad and took self-important photos.
• Currently addicted to:
  • Super-strong peppermint. They’re lil white tablets w/ blue specks and totally blow your mind!
  • Telugu film music.
  • Watermelon juice.
  • Lying on the cold floor.
  • Vaseline Aloe-vera lotion.
• Cleaned out my shelves and re-organised whole room. Realized I have embarrassingly large amount of jewellery that I very rarely wear. Bah.

Okay, that’s a lot of things. Besides, I really can’t remember anything else. Except bumming out on my grand parents’ couch and being of no good use.

I love these times, I say!

Quick piece of advice: If you have long-ish hair and if you’re thinking of getting it oiled/massaged from someone recommended by a person who has hair two inches long, DON’T.

May be an update story follows.

The New Indian Express re-launched today. So I got myself a copy and here’s what I think:

1. Better newsprint. More readable design.
2. Okay local/national news.
3. So-so Editorial. Great Op-ed.
4. Good sport coverage.
5. Bad crossword.
6. Indulge [tabloid] is sweeet - Lots of info on city activity there!

There you go. Now I’m looking forward to reading TOI in Madras!

Amrut has a post up on similar lines. Rather succinct.

A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.

- Oscar Wilde

And in celebration, we are going to make flavoured custard w/ slices of apple, banana and chopped cherries. Hee!

Happy Birthday, FreakSpace!

So, I finally got to check out McD @ Ascendas. I got there at 8 and by the time my cousin, sister & I managed to get to the counter, we’d been pushed around hazaar times, come this close to being spilt coke on at least thrice and drenched in sweat! Photos follow! Read the rest of this entry »

This weekend is great! I’m on a total food trip - Been eating out a lot and eating a lot of stuff that I don’t eat normally.

So, family & I went to Main Street @ Residency Towers for dinner on Friday. Checking out the spread, I found nothing on the main course very palatable. Even more so, cos of my newly adopted Vegetarianism. And then I fell in love. W/ the appetizer counter. It had every single thing I wanted - Caesar’s salad w/ perfect juliennes of bell peppers, Russian salad, crusty bread, lil rectangles of Emmenthal & Brie and baskets of Bruschetta. Oh, and dessert - orange ice-cream w/ cherries and strawberries w/ cream. Main Street also serves some of the best coffee I’ve ever tasted. Coffee worth the last rupee in your pocket!

Those who know me in RL probably know that I love Corn Florentine from Eden. And if you haven’t yet sampled it, you’re strongly advised to! This afternoon, dad tried making it for lunch and it came out beautifully - smooth, cheesy and absolutely yum! [Dad, btw, is the Master Chef - a lot of my experimental cooking skill comes from him!]

Ooh, most important food-wise, we finally have a McD in Madras! And the best part is it’s practically in my backyard. Yay! Mum bought me fries from there yesterday and she tells me the crowd there is INSANE! Anyhoo, I’m checking it out tonight. But *sob*, no Chicken McGrill for me. McVeggie, here I come!

You know that feeling when you’re holding your breath underwater, counting, lungs bursting, determined to stay that little bit extra and finally, your lungs give way and you shoot out of the water faint and gasping for air? And in that first breath, as your brain relaxes and vision clears, you feel like a moron?

I do. Literally and figuratively. Realized one of the simplest truths of my life this morning. I don’t remember feeling this light in my mind in a long time. In the span of half hour I find I’m ‘over’ a lot of emotional baggage from the past. Another bad experience, another lesson learnt.

And you know what? Life really is simple. Sunshine and rainbows. There is darkness, but of the good kind. I’m free.

So I was talking to this friend of mine, Tan and…

Tan: Someday, we must both write a book together.
Me: Neat idea. Only, I can’t write w/ discipline and you can’t write at all.
Tan [Ignoring me]: We should have the book split in the middle. I will write the nice half, ‘I Love You’ and you, obviously, will write the selfish half ‘I Love Me’.
Me:

Hmm. I think he meant it. Sure, I’m self-centric. But aren’t we all? And anyhoo, I’m not that bad also, even if I do say so myself!

An attempt at working both this week’s prompts ‘Torrid’ & ‘The Gamble’ at Writer’s Island - Discovered via Chennai Ramblings. [Do check her blog out, cos she writes beautifully!]

Tried writing in a Fibonacci sequence, but changed my mind mid-way and did a natural number progression instead. It’s slightly abrupt but here goes.

Hallucinations

Moonlight
Porcelain trances
A pulsating orgy
Of dangerously dancing flames
Hot cornets and torrid rhythms
Amid fervent voices chanting in sync
Lurking ominously, shadows stretch long and thin
Eyes dart, perched on a Shea tree, waiting
Too late. Foreboding peaks, you realize it’s a gamble
You can never take, an escape you can never make.

Partially inspired by Roots, one of my most favourite books.