So, another Chiristmas has come to and end at Jubilee Bakery, phew! What a coupla days it has been, but finally the last, tiny jam tart filled with jam with a lil shortcrust cross made on top is perfectly baked and sold to the last restless, agitated customer.
Most people associate Christmas with Santa Claus, gifts, shopping sprees, discounts all that. For me, when u say Christmas, I think cakes, and lots of them, chocolates and fudge lying around the house waiting to be packed in boxes, empty bowls with leftover chocolate waiting to be licked clean :P
It can be quite traumatic actually. A shop full of people, waiting impatiently to be serviced, annoyed customers yelling at you. People running with trays filled with christmas goodies, mom yelling her head off in the bakery thinking it would actually speed up the work...quite a sight i must say!
I dislike Christmas time at the bakery for one reason and one reason only, it is too busy definately, so much so that my family and I really don't enjoy that "joyous feeling" enough. But a week before Christmas, I am given the duty of helping in the bakery while mom, dad and sister are busy back stage. Which means customers that do not get that pack of jam tarts have only one person to get pissed off at...lil old me, who doesn't even call the shots around there. I mean Im just doing what im told to do! Oh well this year was much better, we all found a way to laugh through tired brains and painful feet...
But then no matter how much i dislike Christmas time at the bakery, this is what Christmas is to me. It's busy, crazy busy, it's the house being filled with marzipan, the christmas decorations not up yet and christmas cards not sent yet, it's sitting around the table wrapping chocolates and singing carols with the family (something that gives me immense pleasure, because it's a time when we all bond, each singing his/her part in the carol) So if I was suddenly whisked away to some other place, and all this was missing, all this hulla-bulla, i would miss it. Because this is what my Christmas is supposed to be, hulla-bulla et al :)
The end of yet another busy Christmas season here at Jubilee Bakery, at the end of the day, we all have dinner together and still laugh at how we got through, like we've all just conquered the world, and played our little part in over 100 years of Jubilee Bakery history :D
But i think the best part about it all, happens when Im tired and sleepy at the end of a long Christmas eve, Im going to bed, and mom says, "Thank you for all the help Melanie" :)
PS: Merry Christmas to the world out there and whosoever be reading this, Peace, love and good will to all :)
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Optimistic Idiot!
Hmmm it has been some time...ok a long time since i last blogged. I've been busy studying to be an Interior Designer. Hopefully all these sleepless nights, of watching the sun rise and then catching some shut for a few hours,going to bed, when the rest of the known world is jus waking up..and all that shit, pays off.
The rest of my life, the little thats left of it, is good. At the end of the day, I can't really complain. Everything is exactly how I'd want it to be. There is the occasional day here and there, where the grumpy puss in me refuses to smile or even fake one. But then we're never satisfied are we? There's always a reason to be pissed off and angry at the world, for reasons that most of the time we don't understand ourselves...
I guess it's those rare coffee time conversations, or giggling at how moronic sponge bob square pants is, or hitting that note in an amy lee song, or getting a new lil puppy that keep me from going insane!
The way I see it, my life is what I make it.
So what if these days, my social life is on the brink of extinction, i see my family for 15 mins at dinner everyday, or that i look like Im a picture taken midway while Dr. Jekyll was turning into Mr. Hyde! I believe there is something better to all of this..
P.S Don't u just love the optimist in me :P
oh and HAPPY 18TH MINELLE!! :D whoo hoo!
The rest of my life, the little thats left of it, is good. At the end of the day, I can't really complain. Everything is exactly how I'd want it to be. There is the occasional day here and there, where the grumpy puss in me refuses to smile or even fake one. But then we're never satisfied are we? There's always a reason to be pissed off and angry at the world, for reasons that most of the time we don't understand ourselves...
I guess it's those rare coffee time conversations, or giggling at how moronic sponge bob square pants is, or hitting that note in an amy lee song, or getting a new lil puppy that keep me from going insane!
The way I see it, my life is what I make it.
So what if these days, my social life is on the brink of extinction, i see my family for 15 mins at dinner everyday, or that i look like Im a picture taken midway while Dr. Jekyll was turning into Mr. Hyde! I believe there is something better to all of this..
P.S Don't u just love the optimist in me :P
oh and HAPPY 18TH MINELLE!! :D whoo hoo!
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Life and Love and Why...
Stop me if you've heard this before
"Love is a many splendored thing"
Too late, I already said it. Not that I know what "many splendored" is, but it sounds profound and was once said by a very wise person (Or someone with far too much time on their hands). This thing called love, it's ok though; makes you feel a little giddy, your stomach churns and you break out in a bit of a sweat.
If that's how you feel, you may want to consult a doctor and test yourself for the flu.
But wait. What ever happened to, Love lifts us up where we belong? Love makes us act like we are fools? ALL you need is LOVE?
Im sure there's many of us who think this kinda thing is so cliche and doesn't really exist today. Or does it?
Heck, call me crazy, but Im one of those people who'd like to believe this Love, stereotypical, unaldulterated, easy to believe in, made-in-the-movies, kinda love does exist.
I have this suspicion because, how else would you explain all those love songs? Or love letters, or all those books written on this tiny four letter word?
How else? Unless someone did really experience it?
But then, lets stop by the real world again. A couple I know broke up after 8 years. Yeah, I know that's a long time, but you know what, shit happens, life's like that, blah de blah blah. I'm kind of ok with them breaking up, but what I can't handle is the fact that they STILL love each other.Yup.
Man, these complications almost make me want to quit the human race and apply to be an unemotional potted plant. Just imagine, all the manure in the world, you get watered by your owner (or your owner's dog) and nobody would care if you had sex in broad daylight. Emotions, on the other hand complicate everything.
Can you imagine being with someone for forever? Makes me wonder is it even possible to love someone THAT long?
More and more people seem to break up these days, and it's faster and uglier that too! Claiming "irreconcilable differences", or the simple fact that things change, and hence, so do people.
Can you grow, mature, evolve, have individual personalities and opinions, and STILL be in love?. Can you be two different people, and still be in love?
Why is it that people can't love each other for who they are; here and now.
Not for who they were, who you think they are or who you think you can turn them into? Trust man to screw things up for himself, and then complain that the world lacks that one key ingredient called "Love"
Here's one universal truth that applies to anyone, anywhere.
If you really want to experience true, unconditional I-don't-care-what-you-do-I-still-love-you kind of love, get yourself a pet.
Coz obviously, we human beings don't seem to have a freakin clue.
"Love is a many splendored thing"
Too late, I already said it. Not that I know what "many splendored" is, but it sounds profound and was once said by a very wise person (Or someone with far too much time on their hands). This thing called love, it's ok though; makes you feel a little giddy, your stomach churns and you break out in a bit of a sweat.
If that's how you feel, you may want to consult a doctor and test yourself for the flu.
But wait. What ever happened to, Love lifts us up where we belong? Love makes us act like we are fools? ALL you need is LOVE?
Im sure there's many of us who think this kinda thing is so cliche and doesn't really exist today. Or does it?
Heck, call me crazy, but Im one of those people who'd like to believe this Love, stereotypical, unaldulterated, easy to believe in, made-in-the-movies, kinda love does exist.
I have this suspicion because, how else would you explain all those love songs? Or love letters, or all those books written on this tiny four letter word?
How else? Unless someone did really experience it?
But then, lets stop by the real world again. A couple I know broke up after 8 years. Yeah, I know that's a long time, but you know what, shit happens, life's like that, blah de blah blah. I'm kind of ok with them breaking up, but what I can't handle is the fact that they STILL love each other.Yup.
Man, these complications almost make me want to quit the human race and apply to be an unemotional potted plant. Just imagine, all the manure in the world, you get watered by your owner (or your owner's dog) and nobody would care if you had sex in broad daylight. Emotions, on the other hand complicate everything.
Can you imagine being with someone for forever? Makes me wonder is it even possible to love someone THAT long?
More and more people seem to break up these days, and it's faster and uglier that too! Claiming "irreconcilable differences", or the simple fact that things change, and hence, so do people.
Can you grow, mature, evolve, have individual personalities and opinions, and STILL be in love?. Can you be two different people, and still be in love?
Why is it that people can't love each other for who they are; here and now.
Not for who they were, who you think they are or who you think you can turn them into? Trust man to screw things up for himself, and then complain that the world lacks that one key ingredient called "Love"
Here's one universal truth that applies to anyone, anywhere.
If you really want to experience true, unconditional I-don't-care-what-you-do-I-still-love-you kind of love, get yourself a pet.
Coz obviously, we human beings don't seem to have a freakin clue.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Of Fun and Friendship.....
19th may 2007.
Thats the day we had the last party in Ashish's house. And it was at that time, somewhere between a few of ur being high and happy, some of us being not high, but "TALL" lol, somewhere between Ashish yelling, "YOU'RE DRUNK YOU STUPID ASRE" (yes Ashish is known to be very helpful towards his drunk friends and an expert in dealing with situations like these, so much so that he has been nick-named "PAPA"), between fooling around with the camera, making sure we have a lot of memories of this day, that it hit me...This might never happen ever again....
Have you ever longed to be a grown up? I have. The thought of no school, no boring History teacher, no examinations, being able to sleep at any time you please, not having to close your eyes when "kissing scenes" come up on tv..haha...and above all not having mom picking out what clothes you should wear....it all seems like so much fun...so much freedom...
And then growing up happens, sure it seems good for a while, until you realize growing up is not all it's made out to be. That most of the details were hidden from you, left to you to discover yourself.
It doesn't seem that long ago, when everything seemed relatively simple. It's unfair how fast things change.
Back then the choir was 20 people, instead of 3. Ashish D'mello never worked, and now he's working till 8pm?!!? Entertainment consisted of poking fun at each other (it still does) Back then curfew was 10pm, vodka was unheard of (well atleast to me, considering I was always the "bachaa", the difference now is that Ashish and Victor will not pay 2 rupees, just so that I can pee!!..LONG story, I shall not elaborate further!!)
Not so long ago I remember these people, these friends, the laughter, the tears, the silly jokes, and long hours spent together, even the embarassing moments that we are reminded of over and over again.
Most of my friends are now in different places, in different parts of the world. One more person in search of their dreams, their own purpose in life. And even though these things are supposed to happen, things like growing up, it's sad to think, that there won't be another day, where all of us are just hanging out in Coffee House, enjoying yet another coffee, doing the same crazy things we used to!
And then you think, what if, what if things never go back to how they used to be?....What if little things like choir practise become a distant memory? What if I never want this to end?
And then these memories of Sunday coffee, or dinner at Hot Taste, or long drives, or picnics to Swami's. Barbeque parties and dancing all night. Of drink nights and drunk nights, of fights and arguments, or moments of laughter and those of tears. Of bitching about people and making fun of each other. Become just that --- Memories to cherish always...
I know everyone thinks that their friends are the best, the greatest. And I am one of them too. I love these people, the people I call close friends....
One of my favourite tv shows of all time is "The Wonder Years", that aired when I was a kid. It was about growing up, going where life took you. Kevin Arnold, finally didn't end up with the girl he'd loved all his life, Winnie Cooper. And maybe thats just how life is. Unfair. But most often everyone's story, usually ends with "a happily ever after", even though there maybe a lot of shit in between. This is how "The Wonder Years" all ended, with a grown up Kevin Arnold saying--
"Growing up happens in a heartbeat. One day you're in diapers, the next day you're gone. But the memories of childhood stay with you for the long haul. I remember a place, a town, a house like a lot of other houses, a yard like a lot of other yards, on a street like a lot of other streets. And the thing is, after all these years, I still look back....with wonder."
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
And now we are 18!!!
Ha!...yup officially an adult!....from the 2nd of may,(and hey by the way me and "The Rock" from WWF, happen to be born on the same day......haha there's something you don't know) I shall not be treated as the bachha of the group anymore...na-uh!...All you Victor's out there pay attention!
So How did my birthday begin?...
The whole gang drops by my place at 7 in the morning! and starts to sing "Happy Birthday"
And I woke up! Probably the earliest I've woken up in months! (and mom struggles to wake me up at 10 every morning...lol ;) So after waking me up much before the civilized world awakes..lol...Im forced to get my butt off the bed, and brush my teeth, just so that everyone can wish me!...sigh!
After that of course we moved on to more intresting, not to mention tiring things, like ticking Nicole! (Ha for once Im not the target, everyone most often just ends up ditching me and ganging up on poor old me =( Hot coffee and a good breakfast.....nice beginning to a birthday
Sadly the rest of the day was the usual, my shift in the shop (God know's how much I hate that, but you gotta do what you gotta do, plus mom and dad have to pay me for my services now, coz guess who's 18...haha =)
Dinner was a whole lot of fun, drove down to Dunlop, our favourite dhaba, had big plans, but then a certain younger cousin tagged along, and spoilt all my plans of getting drunk..lol...
Although Scott was a lot of entertainment!....All you need is a drunk Goan at a birthday party, no need for clowns!
So my 18th birthday was....pretty boring actually...lol
Now i can legally drink and smoke ( yea I mean legally, but we all break rules right? ;) I can drive my own car (But owing to numerous accidents, that were not even my fault coz i wasn't even the one driving!....I think I'll stay clear of that), I can vote (*sarcastic* whoo-hoo), and I can get married (but then why settle for one, when you can have many?!?! lol)
All in all, just another birthday, mom still has to pay me though! 10 rupees an hour, 4 hours a day, 6 days a week!....ha!
So How did my birthday begin?...
The whole gang drops by my place at 7 in the morning! and starts to sing "Happy Birthday"
And I woke up! Probably the earliest I've woken up in months! (and mom struggles to wake me up at 10 every morning...lol ;) So after waking me up much before the civilized world awakes..lol...Im forced to get my butt off the bed, and brush my teeth, just so that everyone can wish me!...sigh!
After that of course we moved on to more intresting, not to mention tiring things, like ticking Nicole! (Ha for once Im not the target, everyone most often just ends up ditching me and ganging up on poor old me =( Hot coffee and a good breakfast.....nice beginning to a birthday
Sadly the rest of the day was the usual, my shift in the shop (God know's how much I hate that, but you gotta do what you gotta do, plus mom and dad have to pay me for my services now, coz guess who's 18...haha =)
Dinner was a whole lot of fun, drove down to Dunlop, our favourite dhaba, had big plans, but then a certain younger cousin tagged along, and spoilt all my plans of getting drunk..lol...
Although Scott was a lot of entertainment!....All you need is a drunk Goan at a birthday party, no need for clowns!
So my 18th birthday was....pretty boring actually...lol
Now i can legally drink and smoke ( yea I mean legally, but we all break rules right? ;) I can drive my own car (But owing to numerous accidents, that were not even my fault coz i wasn't even the one driving!....I think I'll stay clear of that), I can vote (*sarcastic* whoo-hoo), and I can get married (but then why settle for one, when you can have many?!?! lol)
All in all, just another birthday, mom still has to pay me though! 10 rupees an hour, 4 hours a day, 6 days a week!....ha!
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Goa...and Good times ;)
So it's around this time that I started to have too much fun, and couldn't update this...
But in the end I did see pristine beaches and gorgeous sunset, stayed opposite the Marriott (sadly not in it =(, joined a salsa class, and even performed at the Kala Academy....
But above all I met some CRAZY people and I do mean CRAZY, but then again they are Goan's after all, what else can you expect?...the 1st time i think that I haven't met too many "Aunties and Uncles" in goa and instead hung out with people my age!....Who else would scream "I LOVE MOUNTAINS"! while driving on the road, or sing La Bamba...and that to not in tune!....
I love Goa for the fact that noone know's me and I can be as insane, "bad" and stupid as I want to be, without bothering about "what will people think" Then ofcourse the other things that Goa has to offer, beaches (and all we have in Nagpur is Telangkhedi lake!!!), Bars ( and all we have in Nagpur are restaurants!!!) Boys ( and all we have in Nagpur are "Horrible and Terrible", only a few know what Im talking about here...haha)
All in all, the beaches, urrak, feni, vodka, beer, garam, salsa, latin american music, goan food, the pee smelling place (lol it did smell of pee), the great place to hang out by the Britsh cemetary haha and the craziest of people that I'll never forget!....AWESOME!
"But all good things come to an end", who even came up with a line like that! No other work in life, than to ponder over lifes sorrows!!! Sad but true, all good things do come to an end. Nagpur, a train ride to Nagpur, and it's 44 freakin degrees outside...again what more could I possibly want!!....Goahhh NOOO..come back, this must be a dream...dammit, no it's not. Oh well atleast Telankhedi lake will still be there ;)
But in the end I did see pristine beaches and gorgeous sunset, stayed opposite the Marriott (sadly not in it =(, joined a salsa class, and even performed at the Kala Academy....
But above all I met some CRAZY people and I do mean CRAZY, but then again they are Goan's after all, what else can you expect?...the 1st time i think that I haven't met too many "Aunties and Uncles" in goa and instead hung out with people my age!....Who else would scream "I LOVE MOUNTAINS"! while driving on the road, or sing La Bamba...and that to not in tune!....
I love Goa for the fact that noone know's me and I can be as insane, "bad" and stupid as I want to be, without bothering about "what will people think" Then ofcourse the other things that Goa has to offer, beaches (and all we have in Nagpur is Telangkhedi lake!!!), Bars ( and all we have in Nagpur are restaurants!!!) Boys ( and all we have in Nagpur are "Horrible and Terrible", only a few know what Im talking about here...haha)
All in all, the beaches, urrak, feni, vodka, beer, garam, salsa, latin american music, goan food, the pee smelling place (lol it did smell of pee), the great place to hang out by the Britsh cemetary haha and the craziest of people that I'll never forget!....AWESOME!
"But all good things come to an end", who even came up with a line like that! No other work in life, than to ponder over lifes sorrows!!! Sad but true, all good things do come to an end. Nagpur, a train ride to Nagpur, and it's 44 freakin degrees outside...again what more could I possibly want!!....Goahhh NOOO..come back, this must be a dream...dammit, no it's not. Oh well atleast Telankhedi lake will still be there ;)
Goa!!!
After all that running around from place to place in Mumbai (although I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it) it’s time to retreat to
No, this isn’t my first trip to
The rustle of the coconut trees and the breaking of the surf on the sea shore…ahh I could get used to this (I’m sure of course in a little while I’d be pretty bored of it all…sometimes Goa seems to be a bit too slow, but maybe that’s only because I’m vacationing) Goa welcomes anyone, everyone, everything blends happily with the sun, surf, sand, and that special feeling Goan’s call ‘susegad’ which roughly translates to, ‘why do today, what you can do tomorrow?’ Pretty sensible don’t you think?
Which brings us to the Goan’s!...they are a CRAZY bunch of fun loving people, in love with life, and all that it has to offer! All they need is some ‘FENI’ (which is
Yes, I myself am a crazy Goan, but my craziness is a bit toned down, being born and brought up in
I’m gonna be staying with some relatives, in a place called Thivim, in the north of
All set and ready to begin!.....
Mumbai reminds me of New York....ummm altho I've never been to New York...haha
Ok so here’s what I thought of Mumbai, it hits you in the face as soon as you enter. You can’t miss it. The dirt, the smell, the pollution, and the people. It’s a city of such paradoxes, you look out the window of a high rise and you see the breath taking Mumbai sky line, until you look down and then see the little huts that dot the ground below. You see a sleek car (pardon me I have no knowledge of cars whatsoever) parked out somewhere, and poor street kids playing around it. Shopping malls and swanky restaurants go hand in hand with slums and extreme poverty.
They say
It’s no wonder that a person like me, from a slow paced city like Nagpur, finds Mumbai way too fast, I mean when do people around here stop and just breathe for a bit? I guess all that their lungs breathe in is smoke anyway so they don’t really mind ;) But ask a Mumbaiite and he’ll tell you that he loves Mumbai just the way it is, the noise, the pollution, the crammed houses and jammed roads, he wouldn’t exchange it for anything. Guess that’s what gives Mumbai its charm and beauty, different people, from completely different places and backgrounds all trying to make it in Mumbai.
Day one...was a lot of fun!
Ok lets start with day one which was the funnest day of all. I We head down to Andheri where we meet Charlene and Trudy(oh sorry I mean Trecia...haha....is that ok Trudy??). And now Im all prepared to enjoy myself, the time has finally come. We take a pukkee bus ride to Charlene's cousin Jenny's house. And we talk and laugh and then, Dominic (Jenny's husband) takes out the vodka!!...whoo hoo!! But Trudy being herself decides to over do it!...actually no it was only 2 small shots wasn't it Trudy? ( By the way for those who don't know, it is long standing rule that Trudy and no other can be the butt of all our many jokes...) You're so important to us Trudy, if not for you, who would we make fun of??..lol...She takes it well though, I guess all that practice most definately makes you perfect doesn't it Trudy??...haha
Anyhow, now picture this, drunk Trudy (for all those who know drunk Trudy this will be very easy to picture..lol)and now after picturing drunk Trudy...lets move on to picturing Trudy puking in the loo...what a pretty sight I must say! So after a whole afternoon of entertainment consisting of helping Trudy puke, stand up and go back to sleep, of making her smell some lime, drunk some water, and eat some food, we have got a 25 mintue video of it all (not to embarass Trudy but just to remember how much fun we had...haha ;)
Trudy I must say though, you're a born entertainer, even when drunk you managed to keep the show going!!...Keep it up I say!
In the evening Dominic paid a 120 bucks for Trudy just to sleep in a multiplex and not actually watch "The Pursuit of Happyness" I’ve never been to Mumbai, and hence I’ve never been to McDonald’s….(no,Nagpur
The next day Charlene decided that we should go down to InOrbit and check it out. And so we did. We (I) was like a kid in a candystore. Yup I have to admit!...and maybe I'll let you in on this embarrassing piece of information...I didn't know how to turn off the taps in the washroom, until I realized that they turn themselves off..Yup there you have it!...silly but true! and now you can start laughing....ok and now you can STOP!!
Then next door we check out Hyper City, and my brother being his usual Bum-ish self, is running late. So we sit outside Hyper City waiting for 3 hours!...Going in now and again to enjoy the AC, buy water, eat icecream, or just get rid of boredom...all thanks to Cliff!! Oh lets not forget random weirdo, desperate to have a converstion with us!!
Yup and then finally Cliff arrives and it's his idea to go to Fun Repiblic, which wasn't so much fun after all coz nothing seemed to be happening there. So we just plonked ourselves on the steps and waited for it to get dark..lol...and then took a one hour train ride to Charlene's place in Nerul! She's admitted that Nerul is pretty boring but has promised to show me a good time!
Nerul according to Charlene was a village, but actually it's not. It's perfect for a family with 3 little kids, coz there's more gardens't here than there are roads. Anyhow we walk the empty roads at 2:00am, which is good, coz in Nagpur we can't do that, lest someone we know sees us and reports it to mommy and daddy!! Thankfully noone knows us here and we needn't be on our best bahaviour...great huh!
So the night comes to and end finally, Charlene falls asleep while Im filling her in on Nagpuri gossip...and it's probably after 15 minutes of talking I realize that she's actually asleep and not really "listening with her eyes closed"...haha....say it Charlene it was all because of "Fuel and leechee" wasn't it!!
Ok ok imagine this, 3 girls, who have nothing else to do, and then Trudy suddenly feels the urge to play "Antakshari", and so there we are singing, "Rukmini, Rukmini, shaadi ke baad kya hua" on the top of our voices and Trudy was well err singing like she always does, but but we have to admit that she was the strongest player there, coz none of us even knew of the songs she started to sing!...she even got patriotic with "Aye mere vatan ke logon" again I say what would we ever do without you Trudy Trecia D'souza!
Now I’m not much a shopper, once I know what I’m looking for, it takes me just a couple of minutes, half an hour max, to pick, choose, try on and buy what I need. So I was kinda dreading what exactly ‘shopping’ was gonna be. It turns out, that when 2 girls get together, with some money and a lot of time on their hands, shopping can be quite a pain in the ass and you end up shopping for your sister more than yourself, and after 2 hours of walking around, you realize your too tired to shop for yourself and end up going home!…
The gate of India, travelling by local, getting gallis from the women coz of my gigantic backpack in the process, all were pretty good in the end and all worth it. Now I can actually say that I've travelled like a true Mumbaite!! Which is really painful but I guess you get used to it right?
My time with Charlene is now coming to an end, Trudy's goin back to Hyderabad, and Im going to be staying with another friend. But memories remain ;) (remember the 25 minute video??...haha ;)
Ok this is day 4, and Im meeting friends that I met at a camp 2 years ago. Im pretty happy to be meeting them again. Esther and Ruth. Esther is pretty sane, maybe a bit too much for me..lol...but she makes a wonderful ballerina..and Ruth, well she's your normal 12 year old, except maybe she's 10 times more hyper, and is able to bend and twist her body in ways that normal people have never known!! (All thanks to gymnastics) I knock on the door, and Ruth opens it, and then screams "YAYYY"...Yup quite a welcome, bear hugs and all. So this should be fun.
Lots of catching up, and so little time to do it. I had a pretty good time. Saw a nice play, got to watch Ruth at one of her gymnastics classes (very impressive i must say), met some nice people....Was taught how to put on makeup by a 12 year old....(yup I'm clueless in that area)....good food, even better company...what else could I want!
My last night in Mumbai was spent seeing the better side of Mumbai, yup we went clubbing, and Im really not the type who likes trance and dance music, but it was "Retro Night" and so the music was a lil better. Cliff and I even started to jive, till we realized that places like these are only meant for jiggying in one place!..Nevertheless it was one beer and a lot of fun!...I arrive home at 3am..and I have to get up again at 5 coz my trains gonna leave soon. Startved of sleep Cliff and I wait at the station, I can hardly wait for the train to arrive so that I can sleep my way to Goa...and there it is....Ahhh Goa is now just 10 hours away....
Anyhow, now picture this, drunk Trudy (for all those who know drunk Trudy this will be very easy to picture..lol)and now after picturing drunk Trudy...lets move on to picturing Trudy puking in the loo...what a pretty sight I must say! So after a whole afternoon of entertainment consisting of helping Trudy puke, stand up and go back to sleep, of making her smell some lime, drunk some water, and eat some food, we have got a 25 mintue video of it all (not to embarass Trudy but just to remember how much fun we had...haha ;)
Trudy I must say though, you're a born entertainer, even when drunk you managed to keep the show going!!...Keep it up I say!
In the evening Dominic paid a 120 bucks for Trudy just to sleep in a multiplex and not actually watch "The Pursuit of Happyness" I’ve never been to Mumbai, and hence I’ve never been to McDonald’s….(no,
Let’s take a look at the menu shall we? Yummy, I say! Now my parents own a bakery, so I’m surrounded by food, all the time..I mean ALL the time (no points for figuring out where those few extra kilos come from), cakes, cookies, pastries and patties do get boring after a while, but in no way do they make any difference to how much I love food!
And finally the night ended at 4am, with Charlene, Trudy and I talking about everything we could think of!
The next day Charlene decided that we should go down to InOrbit and check it out. And so we did. We (I) was like a kid in a candystore. Yup I have to admit!...and maybe I'll let you in on this embarrassing piece of information...I didn't know how to turn off the taps in the washroom, until I realized that they turn themselves off..Yup there you have it!...silly but true! and now you can start laughing....ok and now you can STOP!!
Then next door we check out Hyper City, and my brother being his usual Bum-ish self, is running late. So we sit outside Hyper City waiting for 3 hours!...Going in now and again to enjoy the AC, buy water, eat icecream, or just get rid of boredom...all thanks to Cliff!! Oh lets not forget random weirdo, desperate to have a converstion with us!!
Yup and then finally Cliff arrives and it's his idea to go to Fun Repiblic, which wasn't so much fun after all coz nothing seemed to be happening there. So we just plonked ourselves on the steps and waited for it to get dark..lol...and then took a one hour train ride to Charlene's place in Nerul! She's admitted that Nerul is pretty boring but has promised to show me a good time!
Nerul according to Charlene was a village, but actually it's not. It's perfect for a family with 3 little kids, coz there's more gardens't here than there are roads. Anyhow we walk the empty roads at 2:00am, which is good, coz in Nagpur we can't do that, lest someone we know sees us and reports it to mommy and daddy!! Thankfully noone knows us here and we needn't be on our best bahaviour...great huh!
So the night comes to and end finally, Charlene falls asleep while Im filling her in on Nagpuri gossip...and it's probably after 15 minutes of talking I realize that she's actually asleep and not really "listening with her eyes closed"...haha....say it Charlene it was all because of "Fuel and leechee" wasn't it!!
Ok ok imagine this, 3 girls, who have nothing else to do, and then Trudy suddenly feels the urge to play "Antakshari", and so there we are singing, "Rukmini, Rukmini, shaadi ke baad kya hua" on the top of our voices and Trudy was well err singing like she always does, but but we have to admit that she was the strongest player there, coz none of us even knew of the songs she started to sing!...she even got patriotic with "Aye mere vatan ke logon" again I say what would we ever do without you Trudy Trecia D'souza!
Now I’m not much a shopper, once I know what I’m looking for, it takes me just a couple of minutes, half an hour max, to pick, choose, try on and buy what I need. So I was kinda dreading what exactly ‘shopping’ was gonna be. It turns out, that when 2 girls get together, with some money and a lot of time on their hands, shopping can be quite a pain in the ass and you end up shopping for your sister more than yourself, and after 2 hours of walking around, you realize your too tired to shop for yourself and end up going home!…
The gate of India, travelling by local, getting gallis from the women coz of my gigantic backpack in the process, all were pretty good in the end and all worth it. Now I can actually say that I've travelled like a true Mumbaite!! Which is really painful but I guess you get used to it right?
My time with Charlene is now coming to an end, Trudy's goin back to Hyderabad, and Im going to be staying with another friend. But memories remain ;) (remember the 25 minute video??...haha ;)
Ok this is day 4, and Im meeting friends that I met at a camp 2 years ago. Im pretty happy to be meeting them again. Esther and Ruth. Esther is pretty sane, maybe a bit too much for me..lol...but she makes a wonderful ballerina..and Ruth, well she's your normal 12 year old, except maybe she's 10 times more hyper, and is able to bend and twist her body in ways that normal people have never known!! (All thanks to gymnastics) I knock on the door, and Ruth opens it, and then screams "YAYYY"...Yup quite a welcome, bear hugs and all. So this should be fun.
Lots of catching up, and so little time to do it. I had a pretty good time. Saw a nice play, got to watch Ruth at one of her gymnastics classes (very impressive i must say), met some nice people....Was taught how to put on makeup by a 12 year old....(yup I'm clueless in that area)....good food, even better company...what else could I want!
My last night in Mumbai was spent seeing the better side of Mumbai, yup we went clubbing, and Im really not the type who likes trance and dance music, but it was "Retro Night" and so the music was a lil better. Cliff and I even started to jive, till we realized that places like these are only meant for jiggying in one place!..Nevertheless it was one beer and a lot of fun!...I arrive home at 3am..and I have to get up again at 5 coz my trains gonna leave soon. Startved of sleep Cliff and I wait at the station, I can hardly wait for the train to arrive so that I can sleep my way to Goa...and there it is....Ahhh Goa is now just 10 hours away....
Oh Mumbai!!!
Oh Mumbai!....
So I’ve never ever really been to Mumbai, except for spend a few agonizing hours on the platform of some station (Kalyan, I think), waiting to catch the connecting train to
Goa, by the way, is the next place I hit after Mumbai…..whoo hoo!...but getting back to Mumbai, yes I know it’s pathetically sad, that I’ve seen nothing of it, but this is my chance right?....
I reach Dadar, late, but it’s the Indian Railways, what else can one expect?...
Cliff’s there to pick me up, after the usual, ‘how was the journey?’ and ‘did you get into any trouble?’….(me, get into trouble?...quite possible, yea.. ;) so, Dadar east, west?...who know’s?...I just try to make my way through the crowd, making sure my eyes always stay on Cliff..lest I lose sight of him, and get lost! It’s funny, how Mumbai can turn even a lazy ass, like my brother, into….well a “Mumbaikar” (for lack of a better word..and knowing that everyone will probably understand what I mean by the term)
I’m tempted to look at the chaos all around me. One of the platforms filled with atleast a 100 people waiting to catch the next ‘local’, scheduled to arrive in exactly 30 seconds, vendors, porters, and random people carrying on their day to day business. No one really takes note of you, (unless ofcourse, if you came dressed up as Big Bird) everyone’s too busy with their own lives.
So we plan to meet Charlene, a good friend, also studying in Mumbai, but way out in Nerul, New Mumbai, which she admitted is pretty boring, but she’s promised to show me a good time.
Trudy’s flown in all the way from
Sweet sweet Freedom!
I had said I'd keep my blog updated, but due to lack of a freakin computer, besides the fact ofcourse that I was either too tired, sleepy, drunk or having too much fun to sit in one place and update this thing...
But there were a few times that I tried, in bits and pieces, but they didn't get posted coz Gavin's internet connection put me to sleep every single time man! So here it is, extremely overdue, to the point that some of it may not even make sense.....and now Im jus blabbering...so here even though it comes after all the fun's over and done with....
Ah the taste of sweet, sweet freedom...and now it all begins. Lorraine drops me off at the station, and i almost missed my train..sheesh! After months of begging and pleading, with my expertise in the art of pataoing parents (hey don’t look at me like that, I told you I didn’t know too many “big” words) I have finally managed to be under 18 and still get permission to travel ALONE!!!..... I promise Dad I’ll be careful..and after receiving about a dozen cautions, the train finally begins to pull away from the platform..I wave goodbye, sit down in my seat and think to myself, “Shit! This is gonna be some trip!..by this time tomorrow I’ll be in Mumbai, just 24 hours to go, for fun, food, and blissful drunkenness!” Ha!
But there were a few times that I tried, in bits and pieces, but they didn't get posted coz Gavin's internet connection put me to sleep every single time man! So here it is, extremely overdue, to the point that some of it may not even make sense.....and now Im jus blabbering...so here even though it comes after all the fun's over and done with....
Ah the taste of sweet, sweet freedom...and now it all begins. Lorraine drops me off at the station, and i almost missed my train..sheesh! After months of begging and pleading, with my expertise in the art of pataoing parents (hey don’t look at me like that, I told you I didn’t know too many “big” words) I have finally managed to be under 18 and still get permission to travel ALONE!!!..... I promise Dad I’ll be careful..and after receiving about a dozen cautions, the train finally begins to pull away from the platform..I wave goodbye, sit down in my seat and think to myself, “Shit! This is gonna be some trip!..by this time tomorrow I’ll be in Mumbai, just 24 hours to go, for fun, food, and blissful drunkenness!” Ha!
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Movie time!
So I forgot to tell you what I did with the rest of my weekend.
Sunday afternoon is usually spent at Ashish’s place watching some or the other movie.
The rules:
#1.Nobody is supposed to arrive on time
#2.Not all the movies you watch might make sense, and most usually are a waste of time
#3.Ashish only gets as courteous as offering his guests some water, or if in a good mood, coffee…The dimly lit theatre (aka his filthy room) may sometimes be too over crowded so watch your step.
#4.You are allowed to voice your opinions at any time and may even walk out if you find the movie boring, confusing and/or utterly stupid.
#5.It is compulsory to emit high pitched screams when watching a horror movie, only to add to the effect of nailbiting fear, and when watching a bubble gum romantic comedy, it is absolutely necessary to go “awww..” at all the kissing scenes.
#6।Trying to predict what happens next is the only other entertainment, while watching a boring movie and for those who’ve already watched a particular movie and know how it eventually ends, it is compulsory that they ruin it for others!!
#7।The main idea behind 'Movie time' is basically to waste time and also to make fun of one another (popularly known as 'spending quality time with one's friends' )
#8.At the end of 3 hours if you are still bored, Coffee House is always open ;)
Now that you know the rules…..picture this Ashish, Nicole and I watching “A walk to remember” starring Mandy Moore! (All Nicole’s choice!!) The name Mandy Moore gives you an exact picture of how the movie will be. Mandy will be this ‘sweet lil thing’ and will fall for a guy who’s either the geek, the nerd, the popular guy (of course later she’ll find out he’s not all he’s made out to be, so he obviously she’ll dunp him or for the sake of more drama he’ll dump her) the pretty boy or the bad boy. By the end of the movie, the events that follow somehow manage to transform the geek, the nerd, the popular guy, the pretty boy or the bad boy into a perfect gentleman, and there you have it!!...Happily ever after…..All’s well that ends well!!
But alas this movie turned out to be a let down!. As it started it didn’t even seem like a Mandy Moore, girly chick flick!. It turns out Mandy was the geek and the bad boy falls for her. After hearing that you’ll say, so ok, by the time the movie ends Mandy will be a teen queen and that’s how it’ll end. But it didn’t??..Surprise surprise, in the end Mandy dies and her out law boyfriend, goes to medical school??
What kinda crap is that!...Mandy Moore movies aren’t supposed to end like that!!....What a disappointment!!...
Finally Nicole and I lost all points for not being able to predict the end, and Ashish just kept himself busy by watching the two of us solve the puzzle and getting ready for his next ‘engagement’ of the evening!.....
However in the end rule #8 still applied and Coffee House was still open ;)
Monday, March 19, 2007
The Sunday obligation!
Sunday! As all Sundays begin for me…।get up at 8:30am, be at church by 9, to sing in the church choir (More often than not, due to not enough practice, or just plain laziness on the part of all members of the choir, or maybe because of singing Evanescence songs in an empty church (which sounds awesome by the way) instead of practicing the songs we are actually supposed to)…well blame it on whatever you want, but the Youth Choir somehow manages to make fools of themselves in front of the entire congregation in church almost every Sunday, so much so that we’re all pretty used to it। There are of course times that we sound unbelievably good, but most of the time, it something out of the ordinary if someone doesn’t screw up…।But don’t get me wrong we all the take the choir seriously and honestly make efforts to sound good…Most of the time our efforts are futile…but we are fighters aren’t we??...ok ok lemme just laugh for that last statement back there…
Now this is a ritual, Sunday mass is ALWAYS followed by “Coffee House”…this is a two hour ritual, that mostly consists of a group of about 5-6 friends…all mostly choir members…. ordering a few rounds of extra strong coffee, talking way too loud about everything you could imagine, which includes making fun of the person who screwed up in the singing too, eating some south Indian food (I would marry a south Indian just so that
Which brings us now to Coffee House….
Coffee House is this dingy, old place filled with cigarette smoke and the aroma of south Indian food, that’s been around for about 40 years or more, servicing people and relieving them of their days pressure with some good old caffeine.
I’ve been a frequent visitor to Coffee House for lets see, 6 years now, and it’s like home!! Sure you have your CCD’s and Barista’s but you can’t compare any of these classy not to mention expensive places to Coffee House। I mean where else can u buy a solid strong coffee that costs only 7 bucks!! Where else are you allowed to talk and laugh as loud as you want and nobody gives a damn, or be as crazy as you want, or smoke suttaas and drink coffee, or sit for hours on end entertaining the many people that occupy the tables of a humble coffee shop with amateur music? You’ll find a group of youngsters, a couple old timers smoking their lungs out, laughing about who knows what, or even that quiet couple in the corner over there, hoping to spend some quality time together ;)
Here's something Charlene came up with, just for Coffee House
"Coffee peene ki yaha har kisi ki aukat nahi hoti....
do-teen ghante bekar na ho...to raat nahi hoti...
yeh coffee house hai bhai....
binaa suttaa aur maa-bahen ki yahan baat nahi hoti!!"
That should give you a very clear picture now??...Isn't it?
So now you know my Sunday obligation, that’s as obligatory as going to church ;)
P.S Sorry about the bracket thingy can't seem to get myself to stop that ;)
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Finally!!
Ahh…it’s finally here..
My very own blog….so No, I don’t have much blogging experience, actually none at all, except for the usual school girl “diary” I once owned, if that even counts. This I reckon is much better though, because I definitely type way faster than I can write (thanks to insane amounts of time spent chatting on the internet). But more importantly I get to share it with all you beautiful people out there ;)
“The Chronicles of my life”. I must warn you, it’s not really that interesting, except for the goofy, embarrassing things I do from time to time (read quite often), or the fact that I find my self stuck with a whacky lot of friends….or the outrageously hilarious, extremely fun, obviously memorable things that make life worthwhile. Plus, I have to say I don’t know too many “big” words….but I’ll try to impress you with my limited vocabulary…. ;) I can so hear dad say,” Read more novels instead of ‘Archie and Jughead’ ;)
I have lots of things to say. My mind just isn’t working right now (the effect of extreme lack of sleep caused by the Indian Education system…..or the fact that everyone just studies one day before the actual exam…well almost everyone). Finally done with the 12th grade…phew!.....That behind me. This is my life, my thoughts, my interests, my crazy fundaas that normal people sometimes don’t get…..but hey I’ve got time to try and explain….
So, this should be fun…see ya around the corner
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