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Somethings 1 to 5 ;)

I’ve had a 9-day-long vacation a week back…and it made me realise a few things.

• Vacations are life’s necessities
• They’re good for relationship building
• They’re good for your health (bad for the fat-hungry cells)
• They’re such super stress busters
• They’re addictive in a good way (makes you want to do it over and over again; makes your life better and healthier ;))
• They’re other uncountable positives 🙂

Anyways, I hit office on Monday morning (after reaching home weary and tired on late Sunday night) and realised that I will NOT get back into the rut of a monotonous life of home-work-home. Bah! [Well, at least not for a while; I say this because it looks like I’ll soon get into an even worse lifestyle :D] I’ll do something about it.

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Something No. 1
I joined for driving classes.

All through the three days at Poovar, the dad-in-law has been motivating us to buy a new car (he even offered to give us some monetary help. Yey! Shameless, I know!). So, in a moment of extreme enthusiasm, I called up a driving school the very Monday that we were back in B’lore. The guy came over on the following Saturday, made me fill a form, took the money and said the class will start on Sunday. I nodded my head so much that I was sure it’d pop off my neck. Woohoo! I never knew I had so much driving spirit in me 😀

He told us it’ll take 16 days if it were half-hour daily lessons; or 8 days if it were one-hour lessons. Of course, I opted for one-hour lessons.

Now, I’m OK about learning, and actually driving a 4-wheeler. It’s impossible to fall from one 😀 But a 2-wheeler is a different issue. He made me test my wheel balance, and I lost my enthusiasm (and all my dignity 😀 I could barely move the Activa without swaying like a coconut on the wall!). I immediately told the husband I’ll learn only the 4-wheeler. He pretended not to hear.

After much whining, he told me to imagine how nice it’d be to swish about in a brand new Activa, with a chic helmet and everything.
I closed my eyes; I imagined: and it was super cool! Wow. I was driving damn well and I was the envy of every girl walking by. The dignity meter hit ‘Max’. Then I opened my eyes, and went back to whining. “I don’t want to learn 2-wheeler driving. Let me just stick with the car…pls pls pretty please, with cherry on top”. He pretended not to hear.

On Sunday, the very first day of class, I bunked. 😀

Oh please. Who’ll wake up at 6.45 a.m. on a Sunday morning!? I texted him saying I had fever and that I’d attend from Monday. He called back, grumbled and said OK. Psst psst: the real reason is not that I didn’t want lose my sleep. The 2-wheeler thingy had drained me off all my enthusiasm…and I wanted to delay it the max possible 😀

Well, I’ve been regular since, and I must admit, it gives me a high to be able to steer a mechanical thing and make it go the way I want it too. Yippee. Wait a minute! I never tried imagining me swishing by in the car!

Wow! It’s super cool! I am driving brilliantly and I am the envy of every girl walking by. The dignity meter is trying to cross ‘Max’.  [Even when the eyes are open ;)]

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Something No. 2
The swimming pool at the resort, like I mentioned here, made me resolve to learn swimming. I’m proud to say I’ve stuck to the resolve. This weekend, the husband and I decided to register for a swimming camp 🙂 Yey! I decided it’s got the “two birds with one stone” benefit. Nah…actually, three birds 😀
1.    I get to be in water!! (the best of it all)
2.    I learn swimming, an important thing in life 😀
3.    I get to tone myself down (it’s the best exercise, without doubt)
Well, the rate chart at the National Games Village Club, Bangalore, said the pool’s open for use for both members and guests. The registration fee for members was Rs 500, while guests had to pay Rs 1625. Hmmm.

Interesting! Which means if there’s a membership, the daily-use fee would also be much lower. “Oooh, let’s get a membership, pls pls pretty please, with cherry on top”, I told the husband. When we enquired about the membership, they said it’s a life-time thingy for a couple, including dependents (parents and kids). Hmmm.

Doubly interesting!! So, we can all come and have a family swim party 😀 The dad-in-law would be extremely happy! We asked about the rate, and the guy coolly said it was ONLY Rs 2.5 lakhs. Hmmm.

Not so interesting, suddenly. 😀 😀 Anyways, we were supposed to go today and make the payment and get registered and everything! Classes were to start either tomorrow or the day after. But when we went there today, the ******* people there said they’ve decided not to conduct classes, after all. Sickos. I’m in despair now 😦 I reeely want to learn! So, we went straight to Koramangala Club and enquired. Apparently, the classes began last Monday. And NO new batches starting. Come next summer, it seems. Grrrrrrrr. I’m big time pissed!!! 😦  Singing “Desperado” now 😥

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Something No. 3
Bangalore is no longer the weather capital of India 😀 It’s been bloody hot this summer. But thankfully, the rains have set in (hope they stay for a loooong time ;)) Anyway, the heat’s been unbearable, esp on the top floor. So, have decided to start some small-scale farming on the terrace. The mother and father have re-located to Bangalore, and she is super excited about farming. So, yea. It’ll reduce the heat flowing down into the room from the terrace…and it’ll give us some free veggies 😉

But well, to go up there and water them every day. To go up there and do ‘gardening’. To go up there and pluck whatever’s grown (if they do, at all).  Mmm. Have to sub-contract it to the husband 😉 😉 Have already complemented the dad multiple times, saying anything he plants just grows and flourishes! 😀

There! It’s halfway through already, then. I’ll probably do my bit by buying the seeds for them 😀

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Something No. 4
Dying to resume training in Carnatic Music. My beginning was while I lived in Guruvayur (1992-94), but the classes were on Sat/Sun, right during the DD2 cartoon hours: and she taught us just sa ri ga ma pa dha ni sa for 5 whole months. I quit!

Had a raging hatred for it for a number of years to come.

Was taken to Perumbavoor Ravindranath Master while in 5th Grade. Learnt for 2 years and almost reached varnams. Lost interest when he began stretching one for weeks, till every kid got it right. I quit!

Was taken to M.G. Radhakrishnan (a close friend of Dad’s) while in 7th Grade. He made me sing a few sangathis and all…and said I  had a lovely voice, superb control over it…and a great future in the music industry :D. Joined class again…but they started right from sa ri ga ma pa dha ni sa again. I quit!

A master used to come home to teach, while in Grade 11. But he always came in the late evening, just when I would begin yawning. Began on keerthanams. But shifted residence in a year…and he quit! 🙄

Finally, became truly interested in learning when I completed graduation. But parents were in the once-a-cat-in-hot-milk-always-a-cat-in-hot-milk mode 😀 They said I could learn music when I learn the value of a god-given gift and of money (paid as fee to these ppl!).

By the time I really learnt them, had relocated to Karnataka. Was thrilled. In the land of Carnatic music. But so far, haven’t located one single person who can coach me individually (or along with a max of 3-4 others).  I do not want to start from sa ri ga ma pa dha ni sa again! Any suggestions, anyone!?

Dying to learn. I’m losing my voice and the control over it, already. Too long a gap from music lessons! 😦

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Something No. 5
Planning the next trip already. Don’t know where to or when, but definitely planning the finances and the leave 😀 Yey!

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Now, isn’t this a good-enough beginning on NOT get back into the rut of a monotonous life? 😉

P.S.: Bangaloreans…I’m dying to learn swimming and Carnatic Music. Any suggestions?

P.S. of P.S.: Koramanagala Club and the National Games Village Club: both suck! Grrrrr!

a strange weekend…actually, two!

No no… I did not disappear again. Had made an impromptu trip to Trivandrum, my hometowncity.

The trip turned out to be one of those “totally unplanned, outright fun” ones! All the cousins and second cousins and uncles and aunts were cooped up under the same roof — and we all had so much fun there! Apart from marriages, Onam, and a once-in-a-while first-birthday party, we don’t get together like this: and I can’t really remember the last time we all were together like this…the last time we all had such fun. About 40-odd people — adults and us ‘kids’. Everyone forming tiny little groups in every single space available and chattering, laughing (and even singing), merry-making…

Occasionally, when our laughter crossed the allowed decibel level, aunts and uncles came barging in, admonishing and ordering us to behave ourselves. Yet, at the same time, we could see the ‘elders’ in the family sitting around and sharing old-time stories…their childhood and their pranks — and laughing their hearts out!

But it was all very strange throughout — this merrymaking in the family; the neighbours must all think we’re a bunch of sadistic, barbaric  tribals! Well, can’t really blame them: because it was not really one of those “planned get-togethers”; and I was not really on an “unplanned, fun” trip. I had hurried off to Trivandrum to attend my grandmother’s funeral…

Grandma’s death was much anticipated…and entirely “prayed-for”, I might say. She was slowly entering a phase of immense suffering…and everyone was hoping she’d be called away before too long. So, in a way, we could defend ourselves, saying we were celebrating her ‘escape from sufferings’ or such crap.

Granma

There! She was the last member of that generation’s lot. Now, apparently, “we all” will never ever get-together like this anymore. Grandma had perhaps been a unifying factor: the reason why everyone got together under that roof occasionally. Now, each to one’s own.

Guess it’s true; four of my cousins are in the middle east; one’s in Delhi; one’s in Cochin; one’s planning to go off soon to Australia; two of us are here in Bangalore; one is off to UK…and God knows when we’ll all see each other again. Unlike those good old days, none of us seem to be really pulled home by force, excitement and urge to attend to weddings and childbirths in the family any longer. We all have our excuses: projects to be completed; horrid bosses who grant no leave; new job, so no leave; exams, so can’t skip school/college; low attendance, will get into the professor’s black list ; out of the country, can’t be bothered to make a presence…and so on. Somehow, a death seem to bring a jolt to each one of us (and to the bosses, teachers and professors as well, God-knows-how!) and everyone turns up somehow or the other.

So, maybe sub-consciously, we all knew it was one of those “this-wont-last-too-long-and-may-very-well-be-the-last-time” times together…and must’ve taken full advantage of it. Bonded with each other asap…sang, danced, wrestled, fooled around, had palmistry sessions, had PJ-sessions…had “tonne kanakkinu fun, fun” (like the tagline of a local radio station goes)!

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Now, its all over. Everyone’s gone back to whatever they were up to before 3.00 a.m. on July 16th!