"Captivated by famous people". That is what I am. STARSTRUCK!! :) And the star? A new author (from as much as I know) - Monica Pradhan. For those who are lost, she has written a really cool, contemporary novel about how the ABCDs* are ABC-ed. Actually, there is less of the confusion part and more of the "finding a new meaning to life"- cum -"mid-life crisis"-sort of situations. With mouth-watering recipes thrown in at intervals, this book is a great read. Specially for mothers and daughters. Not that guys are banned from reading it, but well...they are guys! I am not going to review the book here. Making it a 'compulsory read' for Mum, my aunt and cousins is a review in itself! But what I am going to write about is the starstruck part of the entire thing.
Blame it on my efficiency or recession, I found I had nothing to do (work-wise) yesterday morning at work. Since I was reading Meg Cabot's blogs (another fantastic writer!) and was very much into books (when am I not?), I decided to Google Monica Pradhan. Not getting satisfactory information, I FB-ed her. Something got into me and I sent her a message (& a friend request which embaressed me A LOT as I couldn't undo it). But YAYYEE........ she not only replied back promptly, but also accpeted the friend request. So YAYYEE........ again !! And that is why I am starstruck!!
After the initial bubble of excitement ebbed a bit, I decided to blog (Mind you, I am still floating!). But for my initial reactions, read along:
"This is just so cool you know. Because Meg Cabot, J. K. Rowling, and so many other favourites have a huge fan following. They can't really take time out and reply. But this lady is just GREAT !! Besides, you know, I have never joined a fan club or some thing like that. Nor am I a celebrity-worshipper. But this is so cool!! :) She is a proper author and now a 'friend' (YAYYE... :D). And she seems totally cool about adding me as a friend!! And all this is so exciting because:-
1) Most of the authors that I like/love are dead (except the 2 mentioned above and they can't reply for the reasons stated above) so they can't reply as it is !!
2) And this is just so cool...saying "Yeah. Monica Pradhan...nice lady... A friend of mine you know..." (Oh so cool. Sounds super cool when I read it!)"
Can't stop grinning ear-to-ear!! Imagine this: My name has been added to a good author's friend's list on a social networking site !! Wait till I tell Aai.
*American Born Confused Desis.
Friday 21 August 2009
Tuesday 18 August 2009
"Its all about the liquid Ma'm!"
An hour at a beauty parlour is a good way of expanding one's knowledge on a wide range of topics - Bollywood gossip, latest films, household remedies on infinite problems, train crowds and rush hours, latest numbers of piggy-flu deaths, weekly offs, pollution, diseases, latest on the daily soaps and reality shows, scandalous marriages, children, rains or no rains, senior colleagues who are not present, junior colleagues who are present, rising costs, un-availability of vegetables, problems with in-laws, .... and it goes on! During my last visit, little did I expect that I would learn more about biochemistry!
While getting my hair trimmed, the hair-dresser started commenting on greying hair at early ages. For those of you who know me well will know that I have a lot of white/grey hair ever since the last of my school days. Now, this kind lady was patiently explaining that one should not pull out grey hair. I nodded (to the extent possible to let her know that I was listening) thinking, "Of course not! It would hurt a lot!" But she had a different story to tell.
"People always pull out their white hairs Ma'm. But you know Ma'm, it is not good to do like that. You know, there is a liquid at the hair roots (I beg your pardon?). When you pull out you hair, this liquid spreads to the surrounding areas and goes into the roots of surrounding hair (I was silently crying "Miracle" by this time). And they also become white!" (I couldn't control the hysterical burst of suppressed laughter any longer, so I said aloud, "Really? Incredible science!!"
And I was thinking, why do they not teach this at college-level? Its all about controlling the spread of that stupid liquid! I mean, if science can control spread of harmful rays, water pollutants, virus (up to a certain extent), then why not that damned liquid?!
While getting my hair trimmed, the hair-dresser started commenting on greying hair at early ages. For those of you who know me well will know that I have a lot of white/grey hair ever since the last of my school days. Now, this kind lady was patiently explaining that one should not pull out grey hair. I nodded (to the extent possible to let her know that I was listening) thinking, "Of course not! It would hurt a lot!" But she had a different story to tell.
"People always pull out their white hairs Ma'm. But you know Ma'm, it is not good to do like that. You know, there is a liquid at the hair roots (I beg your pardon?). When you pull out you hair, this liquid spreads to the surrounding areas and goes into the roots of surrounding hair (I was silently crying "Miracle" by this time). And they also become white!" (I couldn't control the hysterical burst of suppressed laughter any longer, so I said aloud, "Really? Incredible science!!"
And I was thinking, why do they not teach this at college-level? Its all about controlling the spread of that stupid liquid! I mean, if science can control spread of harmful rays, water pollutants, virus (up to a certain extent), then why not that damned liquid?!
Monday 3 August 2009
Friendship Day & more...
Friendship Day calls for celebrations! And thats exactly what we did yesterday. I was hoping to meet at least 5 of my friends, but managed to meet just 2. But this blog is not going to be about my friends. It is going to be about my parents' friends (who also happen to be my friends' parents!)
Our parents met 22 years ago, when we started school, and have come a long way since then. Hats off to them and long live their friendship! Lately, however, they have started acting like teenagers. I have been the sole witness to this event when we were at Saral, a village near Alibaug. And as if squabbling, arguing and chattering like kids was not enough, they have started planning on watching movies. Just yesterday, at the above mentioned Friendship Day celebration get-together, following was the conversation that had me frozen on the spot with the sambar spoon suspended midair.
सं काका: "ऐका जरा...'लव आज कल' ला जायच का? रात्रि चा सर्वात शेवटचा शो? पीव्हीआर ला जाऊ या."
पू मावशी: "ए हो...आम्ही पीव्हीआर ला गेलो होतो दोघे... खूप छान आहे."
सं काका: "कुठला बार पहिला सिनेमा आपण? हा....'कंबक्त इश्क'. धमाल आहे रे सिनेमा...फुल टाइम पास."
बाबा: "हो. मंगळवार बार पडेल."
शि काका: "मला मंगळवार नाही जमणार. शुक्रवार जमेल का?"
सगळे: "हो जमेल की. मग ठरल तर...ह्या शुक्रवारी 'लव आज कल'."
...............
Moving on to other things, I have started reading Atlas Shrugged, again! And there are so many parts that I did not completely understand the first time I read it, that I am glad I started readng it again :) This is a must read book for all who hate to see ability being wasted.
...............
Coming back to the topic of friends, our parents will be celebrating 25 years of friendship 3 years from now. I wonder how many of us will be there for the "event". It does seem strange that the people because of whom they got acquainted may not be present on that day. I hope at least one of us will be able to make it.
Our parents met 22 years ago, when we started school, and have come a long way since then. Hats off to them and long live their friendship! Lately, however, they have started acting like teenagers. I have been the sole witness to this event when we were at Saral, a village near Alibaug. And as if squabbling, arguing and chattering like kids was not enough, they have started planning on watching movies. Just yesterday, at the above mentioned Friendship Day celebration get-together, following was the conversation that had me frozen on the spot with the sambar spoon suspended midair.
सं काका: "ऐका जरा...'लव आज कल' ला जायच का? रात्रि चा सर्वात शेवटचा शो? पीव्हीआर ला जाऊ या."
पू मावशी: "ए हो...आम्ही पीव्हीआर ला गेलो होतो दोघे... खूप छान आहे."
सं काका: "कुठला बार पहिला सिनेमा आपण? हा....'कंबक्त इश्क'. धमाल आहे रे सिनेमा...फुल टाइम पास."
बाबा: "हो. मंगळवार बार पडेल."
शि काका: "मला मंगळवार नाही जमणार. शुक्रवार जमेल का?"
सगळे: "हो जमेल की. मग ठरल तर...ह्या शुक्रवारी 'लव आज कल'."
...............
Moving on to other things, I have started reading Atlas Shrugged, again! And there are so many parts that I did not completely understand the first time I read it, that I am glad I started readng it again :) This is a must read book for all who hate to see ability being wasted.
...............
Coming back to the topic of friends, our parents will be celebrating 25 years of friendship 3 years from now. I wonder how many of us will be there for the "event". It does seem strange that the people because of whom they got acquainted may not be present on that day. I hope at least one of us will be able to make it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)