Recycle tragedy!

Light refreshments!

IPL started with the usual pompousness and had a rather anti-climax! Inspite of my efforts, I just got sucked into the IPL quicksand! With every household suffering hours of power cut in TN and through out India(and some getting to enjoy it for the first time!), cricketers and spectators sweating it out in flood light matches, ennatha solla? Whatever the significance of 108, 1008, almost all TV shows, music competitions, cricket matches in India have that many rounds to reach a semi-final round! Good summer vacation entertainer for the kids!

"Ennach..." everytime reminds me of Vijay Sethupathi's dialogue in "Naduvule konjam pakkatha kaanom" whenever I start to say it now! Really? It is based on real life incident? Unbelievable!! A little dragging but a nice entertainer! Kudos to the NKPK team for believing in their script(Enna theiriyum oru song kooda sorugaamey!)! The climax was fantastic! Another entry in my light entertainer category is "Marina", especially the Sivakarthikeyan comedy scenes! ROTFL in that birthday gift scene!!

Watched the annual Vijay awards. Annathey Kamal has become their aasthana Chief guest! Chevaliar Sivaji award for SRK, really? Varalakshmi Sarathkumar for debut female actor, really? Google, google best song, really? But the nomination list for best debut director, director, screenplay showed a real tough competition and reflected the healthy trend in Tamil cinema now! With Gopinath(paavam Maddy, he was just a oppukku chappani) in his sundara tamil and the awards themselves are exclusively for Tamil movies, why-o-why do they still cling on with the "the nominees are" accented voice over!

Consultations from teachers and librarians about checking out books from teen section for my voracious Tween reader, resulted in my trying out some books (though I could never keep up with her)! It started off with "Matched" which was a page turner but the subsequent parts were super boring. "Saraswati's way" was too much even for me to handle!

For some light listening....

Moongil thottam
Innum konja neram
(Sounds similar?)

(Y)Enge!

Engeyum

Engenge

Enge enadhu

Enge sellum

Enge nimmadhi

and

Behti hawa sa tha woh

Revival

Yesterday was one of my friend's daughter's birthday but my friend was busy with her younger one's activities that the older one got upset! Quite a familiar situation in most households including ours! In all this tug-of-war, my other child, my blog is the easily sacrifice-able!

After many attempts to watch a meteor shower, atlast hit jackpot in December with the Gemind meteor shower! Though the happiness was short lived with all the horrible events in the following days! And I thought seeing shooting stars was good luck! 

It is 200 years since the publishing of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice! With the way, A1 devours books, though she is still stuck on mystery and magic, I am sure the day is not far away when both can discuss Darcy and Elizabeth! 

Hinglish Vinglish dekha but paarkanam Tanglish Vinglish! As part of vacation homework(!), A2 had to watch  "Children of heaven"!  It indeed was wonderful movie and true to the words of her teacher, "it beautifully emphasizes on sibling relationship, sharing, goal setting + determination and (above all) cherishing the little things in life"! IMO, It was a bit too much for 4-5 yr olds but it touched & affected me and A1. The movie helps with the things I am struggling to teach my kids in the land of plenty! A1's only peeve was the subtle ending! 

Choice

Choice, such an adorable, favourite word! Be it in exams(especially), in menu, in clothes, in transportation. Though in those good old days, choices ranged from synthetic or pattu for Deepavali, Science or Commerce group in +1, Masala dosai or channa batura, cinema or beach, bus or train, Ilayaraja/SPB or others, Kamal or Rajni. In most cases, with some clear favourites the choice was always easy. Life was too! Nowadays, in the name of choice comes so much confusion. True, variety is the spice of life but which variety of spice to choose is the question!

When I have some time in my hands, I spend or rather waste time wondering which genre books to pick, which blogs to browse, what cuisine to try or what type/language music to listen to. Especially the Indian music industry has grown tremendously in the last decade with so many talented singers, music directors that it has been hard to have any one particular favourite. But for now, Karthik's out of the world voice is my choice!

Kaatril eeram

Vizhigalile

Nee korinal

Ennodu vaa vaa

Iravugalil

Behne de

and
Mokka manusha
(not a melody but chumma for fun! The credit shows Karthik, is it really him or someone else?) ;)

Expectations!

Even if 'millions' and 'kodis' are getting seepattu-fying in all of the available media in today's world, everyone's "if only I had a million dollars/oru kodi rupees" is a big dream. For a Math project, when A1 had to pretend to spend a million dollars, I didn't think it would be too hard. But with parents like us, poor thing, she was buying $10 tops, $20 bags and stuff. Even after buying a house, a car, TV, iPad, kindle and other basic necessities(!) she was struggling to spend the entire amount! Guess, dreams may be hard to handle in reality!

A very good friend of mine has this bad habit, punctuality! She is always on time or before time everywhere! When she was carrying her second child, I consoled myself, once the baby arrives, then she will become like me. But now that the baby is born, even now she is on time or before time. Enna manushanga pa! 

In this brammanda Universe, are we just an accidental speck of dust or are we the unique special living creature?

Ada Pongada!!!!

As it is it is sooooo hard to set a good example to follow a healthy life style for the sake of children in this kali kaalam and then comes researches after researchers everyday like these....

Organic - worth the price?

Fat and fit!

And chocolate it is...

P.S. - Coincidentally, I just finished reading the chapter from Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" where the State Science Institute issues a vague inconclusive caution about the use of Rearden metal! Enattha...!!!

OMG!

During early childhood, like many others, I have also gone through the terror after swallowing fruit seeds, praying that plants don't grow from my inside and elders laughing & brushing aside that fear altogether.

But now....

Pea plant grows inside man's lung

Oru Pada Paadal - Kovil Pura

On the amazing Amazon found this. I have not seen the picturisation of many 70s, 80s Tamil film songs. Now with Youtube zeeboombaa, that wish gets fulfilled! That's the story behind today's oru pada paadal** - Kovil Pura. Not sure if these are the only 3 songs in the film but all honey! May be this was IR's trial run before "Kaadhal Oviyam". 


Vedam nee


Sangeethamey


Amudhey tamizhey


**In the 80s, during the D(oor)D(arshan)only days, in the weekends, after "desiya nigazhchigal" takes over it was time for Vivid Bharathi station on the radio. After a thodar drama, there will either be audio trailers of new movies or oru pada paadal(all songs from one movie will be played). The radio will remain on or switched off depending on the movie announced!

M&M&Ms

Math(s), Music and Motherhood
- Love, adore, crazy about ....
but untameable, unconquerable and "pidi pada maaten"-able
to me!

Mar(s)ch madness

Some days turn out better unplanned(those days are very rare with me around!). We were headed to the museum and landed at the planetarium. Even more surprising, we were on time for the Mars quest show! Not too fascinating to a 4 year old and the big sis had 1001 questions throughout the show but best part was the news that Mars, Venus and Jupiter are visible in the night sky this month. All this happened a day before the clocks sprang forward and so got to see and wonder at the mysterious sky with all her diamonds!

The Mars show was about past(how ancient cultures saw the red planet), present(the information we have now with all those satellites) and future(the day man hopes to touch the Mars surface!). That water flowed on the planet long ago and that Carbon dioxide makes up its atmosphere now led my imaginations go wild. May be Mars was an earth like planet before and (Ma(rtia)n-made or whatever) climate changes has turned Mars into what it is today? Anyway, with no oxygen and only CO2 in the red planet, every Mars bound astronaut should take a potted plant(which will take in CO2 and give back oxygen) in addition to the oxygen tank with them when they land there! Eppadi ipdi, illey? :)

On an unrelated(to Mars) and related(to madness) note:

Already good, kind and gentle people go levels after levels of self improvement courses

Already health conscious, fit people exercise more, eat healthy etc.

Already intelligent people read more and store more in their brain

AK turned AK47!!

Para(web)sites

Last Saturday was one of my friend's birthday and I meant to send her a wish all weekend, only I never got around to it. On Monday morning I was greeted by a thank you msg from that very same friend on facebook and I was wondering if I sent her the wish after all or does facebook even read my mind?! After probing my facebook page, I realised when I accepted a greeting card from another friend a while back, that greetings app(or whatever!) had got stuck to my page and sends cards on my behalf!! Phew!!

Youtube is my best friend now! Any old, new, in-the-middle song, show or any audio/video of the past, present or future I just go scratch the youtube genie and lo! Recently I found a song so divine that I picked up courage to hit the 'like' button! The next day all our hotmail inboxes had extra junk mails! I was like "How?"(like Varun(Nagesh Kukunoor) says with a stress on the "H" in Hyderabad blues!)!

My latest research... Extroverts have twitter accounts and post one liners all thro' the day. Introverts have blogs and write paragraphs after paragraphs! You ask what about people who tweet as well as blog? I am working on that for my PhD!

Almost!

Almost is an often heard word in our household. "Are you done with your food?" "Almost" comes the reply regardless of how much food is left over in the plate. "Is your TV program done?" "Almost" hands still meddling with the remote. A2 has gone a step ahead in this. She used to show four fingers to anyone who asked her her age even before she turned 4. When I correct her, she would say "I am almost 4, Amma!" And now that she has really turned 4, she is telling everyone she is almost 5 now!

Some recent movie that made it to my almost list!

1000-il oruvan - Almost good!

Been in my 'to watch or not to watch' list for the longest time! Not a big fan of the director but he needs a pat on the back for experimenting in a genre like this. Like usual, watched it in installments and the first half almost made me change my opinion about Selva but the second half although had more potential than the first was a debacle! Good casting especially Parthiban! Nice songs which blend in with the flow of the movie. This is my first Karthi movie and he is also making his Dad proud! Like "Kamban veetu kattu thariyum kavi paadum", Manirathnam's ex-assistants are also dhool kelappi-ing in acting!!

Oh my friend - Almost better!

My search for some urban jolly movies(*) made me cross border, language to this one! A pleasing to the eyes, youthful and less melodramatic version of "Piriyamana thozhi". This was the first time I was watching Annathey Kamal's varisu on screen! Shruthi seemed an honest and down to earth personality in interviews and I had my fingers crossed for her onscreen performance and She passed in flying colours! Both Shruthi and Siddarth(aww.... such a cute couple!) were a bundle of energy! Their respective pairs were kind of paavam side characters! Except for the cinematic Kochi music competition sequence, the movie was a nice watch! Superb songs!! "Aalochana..." is in repeat mode!

7-am Arivu - Almost best!

Really appreciate A R Murugadoss for his intention and effort. Except for the unecessary and unwanted song sequences and a rushed climax, ARM did better than Ghajini, IMO. Dong Lee(Johnny Nguyen) was superb! Shruthi did well. Even though she is half tamizhachi, the accent didn't go too well especially in the scene where she speaks for the tamil language. Surya odamba pottu ippadi paadu paduthareengaley, ARM!! Surya gave 110% in the first 20 mins itself so he relaxed in the rest of the movie!!

* - Before the release of Kadhalil Sodhapuvadhu Yeppadi. Hope KSY's success brings the romantic comedy genre back to kolly... er, Tamil cinema! Keep up the good sodhappal work, Producer Siddarth!

Footie!

While going through old photos, A1 spotted A2's first day of school picture and exclaimed to me, "You made her wear this shoe with this dress, Amma?"! Thankfully, she didn't go too much further with the photos or she would've found out that I had dressed her up the exact same way on her first day of school!!!

Eons back I was also footwear fashion conscious micro-mini Imelda Marcos of my time with half a dozen pairs of variety footwear, each one for a different purpose(A buckled one for running & catching( a bus!), a hawaii chappal for around the corner(potti) shops, rubber ones for wading thro' the monsoon rainwater, slip-on for a bandha look, a regular one for the traditional outfits etc etc.).

The roadside shops of Pondy bazaar/Ranganathan st. used to be a favourite haunt. The cheaper ones worked for me as it wouldn't last long so I can go get another pair! Though a customary trip to the cobbler for mending the shoes step was done first. Are there cobblers anymore in Chennai? They have been saviours many a time! Their skill have always been a fascinating sight. At times I've felt tempted to try my hand at it too!

Inspite of all the varieties, I had never worn/owned a pair of sneakers before coming here. So, my first purchase of a sports shoe was a big deal and walking in it felt like Neil Armstrong's moon walk! Though after the initial honeymoon, the lace tying became a big nuisance(especially for a person like me who is always running late, rushing out the door)! Until a friend taught me the trick to use the shoes like a slip-on with the lace tied!

With all these varieties for different seasons like flip flops, sandals, slip ons, sneakers, boots, A2 is always so confused at the time of going out as to which pair she should be wearing. One day when I cautioned her against running on the sloped cement driveway, she said, "don't worry, Amma! I am only wearing my running shoes!"

Inspite of learning it the hard way many times that ordering shoes and clothes online is not a good idea, I still get tempted and succumb! But with kids so choosy("ellaam onna maadhiriye" everyone conveniently points the finger at me!), browsing and ordering stuff on the internet seemed better than wading thro' the stores and malls in the busy holiday season. In a latest case. saving a trip and pe... er.. gas didn't happen as we got shoes each leg different size!!

Nerudals!!

On a perfectly ordinary, uneventful day sometimes a teeny tiny insignificant incident happens and ruins the entire day! These nags are nothing serious but yet sits in the back of the mind and rolls to the front of the mind now and then bringing that same sinking feeling that was felt at the time of the incident!

During the Christmas party at A1's school, there was this great(or so I thought!) activity called book exchange. Each kid brought a wrapped book and the class played a game by passing the book right and/or left based on a poem. At the end of the game each child was left with a wrapped book present. All was wonderful until that point. Since each kid's reading level is different, most kids were disappointed with whatever they got. Such a wonderful idea flopping left me upset the rest of the day!

T is A2's best friend in school. She talks about her all the time. Once I met T's mom and during the conversation, my mind went blank and I couldn't recall the name, T! I tried my best to substitute "your daughter" whenever possible but at one point I had to say the name and I just paused and the lady had to fill in the name! And here I was telling how much A2 keeps talking about her daughter!!!

Of the many botherations as a grown-up, the formal, customary chats one has make with some unwanted parties is another big prick. One such sweet talking hypocrite who is ever ready with her "vazhapazhathula oosi" talk wrecks my day almost always! When there are so many kind hearted, genuinely affectionate souls, why-o-why do I have to deal with such creatures!!!

Tis' the season

It was sweetober October! The month started off with a birthday followed by festivals, Navarathri & Deepavali and ended with Halloween! I am not the one to say 'no' to sweets but after devouring all the goodies, handling the guilt part is what I don't like! One plus with October Deepavali is it is still warmer and the fireworks more enjoyable!

One day in a year our household and 'on time' go hand in hand is when the clocks go back for the winter! Or so until last year! Now the kids are adjusting to time changes faster than me! Many a time I have 'polambi-fied' about the day lights saving practice. But if at all the country decides to stop this practice please do not follow Russia's example and stay in summer time foerever! I have come to like the clock change in fall for that one extra hour and I prefer slightly brighter mornings!

P.S. - Even after few days of the time change, not all clocks are adjusted in our house and so everytime I look at the clocks with the wrong time, I get this "OMG" feeling.

Latest favourite melodies

1. (Telugu) Sri Rama Rajyam - Jagadananda

After a long, long time, Ilayaraja & SPB combination! If not for the millenium addition, Shreya Goshal, the song would've been like the IR's golden 80s!! Lovely, lovely song!

2. (Malayalam) Mizhirendilum - Aalilathaliyumai

This Jayachandran gem from the youtube treasure box! Trying my best to learn the tongue twister lyrics! For kannazhagi Kavya(who features in the movie picturisation), I need to do a separate post!

3. (Hindi) Tashan - Falak tak

Aaahh... forgotten how wonderful a singer Udit Narayan is since listening to his tamil songs! Paarka dhaan sagikaley!!

4. (Tamil) Ko - Ennamo Yedho

Still stuck on this song in Tamil.

Any other new/old (listenable) songs out there?

Vadai monster!

Unhealthy was the excuse I used to conveniently escape(most of the time) from making fried foods at home. Also, the left over deep fried oil that I hate to reuse/discard is another bother. And most of all, the perfection that is required for South Indian fried foods like the puffed up poori, crispy pakoda or the vadai with that hole in the center!

Anyway, one day after a stressful vadai episode, I happened to land here which built up my hopes that some day I will get that perfect shaped Vadai. My online quest for a donut maker led me to this(the lazy and stingy metoo!)! And all this resulted in these Vada alphabets!

Reviewers pointed out that the batter needed to be thinner. After years of caution to use less water to make vada batter, I was scared to make it thinner. But it made a fun eat for kids choosing their favourite alphabet/shape!

Ennamo yedho...

Manam oru kurangu.... literally translating, Mind is a monkey!

After roasting 3 hot, hotter, hottest months of summer (same dialogue every summer!), karichu kotti'-fying the weather when atlast (tropical storm)Mr. Lee broke the sun's stong hold and brought in some drizzle, suddenly the gloomy-cloudy weather and approaching fall and winter weather gave me the shudders! Soon I can start complaining about the cool, cold, icy weather!

When cooking for guests I am always jittery about the amount! It's in my genes to cook exactly for n numbers for n number of guests! Unusually my hand became 'dharalam', a couple of guests canceled out and there was quite an amount of left overs during a recent get-together and eating the same for next few meals was no fun! I am going back to my n-n ratio!

After complaining endlessly about kollywood's obsession with running around the trees, unrealistic dishoom dishoom, other commercial ingredients etc., now when realistic movies are taking over, I'm hopelessly digging for chick flicks! Now you know the "ennamo edho" title link! Idhukkaga dhaan indha post-ey! ;)

Tech Takeover

We got a scrabble board game for A1 right on time for the summer vacation. All was well until a cousin introduced us to Word with friends and now all of us are hooked onto it. No set up time, no clean up time and the board game has just joined our "can't throw away - will be of use someday" collection!

Once upon a time, I was the (only)one to surprise, embarrass, torture friends, family, acquaintance with my phone call/email/in person wishes on their special days! With social networking, electronic reminders, now everyone is stealing my thunder! Also, there is hardly any news to exchange these days as it is all posted on the web that I am not able to start any sentence with "theriyuma...."

I bow to the team who uploaded the whole 5 volumes of "Ponniyin Selvan" in tamil on the internet!! Now I join the elite fan club! No doubt that reading the print form wins hands down against the electronic form but I don't know how long I would've had to wait for that to happen.

Like many, Kalki's description of the land and its beauty makes me yearn to visit those places. But I also have to admit that many times I just wanted to skip the descriptions and race through to read what that chapter was leading to! No wonder none stops reading it just once!

I wonder if Kalki named the novel so just because he was the great king Raja Raja Cholan for he hardly qualifies to be the hero! Vandiya devan is a jolly good lovable fellow but it's Aditha Karikalan who really fascinated me! Is Kalki the trendsetter for cinematic situations like the first meeting of Kundavai and Vandiya devan, sidekick Aazhvarkadiyan popping at the right times, twins, look alikes etc.?

Lot of unanswered questions at the end, why? But all said and done, this is my first attempt at a full length novel in senthamizh and my first historical novel. It's helped me get over the mind block I have had against historical novels that I am starting "Sivagamiyin sabadam" next.