My Take on English Vinglish.

Recently, I watched English Vinglish (Tamil) and I am going to pen (ok, type) my thoughts about the movie here.

The story base is something that can be summed in three lines. An Indian house wife who doesn't know to speak English, is goaded by her family for the same. When she goes to the USA for her niece's wedding, she enrolls herself into English language classes. Does she succeed in learning English and does her family ever change their opinion about her? - is the essence of English Vinglish.

This movie marks the comeback of Sridevi and she does it in style. Her role as Shashi is essentially crisp and precise, typically the housewife, mother cum homemaker of Indian household. I must mention here that it's really hard for one to believe that this is Gauri Shinde's first film as a director. Where had she been for so long? Gauri's attempt at portraying a common situation in India is a success and she scores well in bringing together a string of characters from different nationalities in her Linguistic extravaganza. There's a mom like this in every one of our households. That typical mom who mops, cleans, cooks and does everything for her family and puts herself and her priorities last on the list of things-to-do! The very same woman who cannot speak English fluently and gets goaded by her children and husband for being less proficient ONLY in that one area. I could relate to the daughter character because whenever my mother came along with me for the PTA Meetings in school, she would talk to the teachers in Tamil. I wasn't embarrassed as such because this was normal and accepted in my school. Besides, where would my knowledge be if it had not been for the education she's given me? :) I still remember how she struggled to get an admission in my school (Where I studied all 13 years) and how she abandoned the admission letter from another school even after paying fees there for my pre-school. My English Vinglish proficiency comes from Scudder, where I luckily got a seat. My mom didn't complain about the fee that wasn't refunded by the other school - She was simply happy that I had made it to the Scudder admissions list even though their confirmation letter arrived late. :) And well, did I tell you that my mom went for English language classes when I was in 10th grade? She decided to make her language better and she even took so much effort to see that she could do what she aimed at. See, I can clearly relate to certain instances from the film.

Some of the scenes in the movie are like driving the nail to the wood. Shashi's fear and helplessness when she orders at a cafe in Manhattan, the way she feels little and overpowered by the lady at the counter display the true struggle of a woman in a foreign land without knowing the language. Sridevi is clearly the best choice for the role of Shashi because there is hardly an actress in Indian Cinema who could suffuse life into character like this. Most of our leading ladies prefer lesser emotions and a lot more skin shows, if I can put it the frank way. Shashi's burst of emotions when her daughter casually mocks that she is incapable of reading her scrapbook, when her husband calls her as the one born for making Laddoos, how she carefully refuses to reciprocate the love Laurent develops for her, when she blandly tells Radha that she doesn't want (Laurent's) love, but only wants a bit of respect.. These portions clearly tell us why Sridevi was hailed the best of her time nearly two decades ago. The woman can deftly score a goal in every opportunity. There's a cameo role played by Ajith as her flight companion. His tips to her - asking Shashi to enjoy her time in the USA and to let go of anxieties, makes us wish that we too could get a co-passenger as him. :-D

 In short, English Vinglish is for everyone who thinks that learning and knowing English is a must. The movie does not belittle the importance of the language, but only throws light upon the fact that one must first learn to love and respect the family, before gauging their language skills! It's an irony that one needs to know English to understand this remarkable message lying beneath the plot of English Vinglish. I would suggest this movie as a Must-watch and you would certainly appreciate the small things in life after watching it. :) Definitely Indian household moms deserve respect for all that they do, rather than just for their language proficiency.

SAA

SAA - Shoppers Anonymous Association.

The world is evolving with every minute. Along with it changes the perception of what's right, wrong, easy and difficult. In the E-Age that we live in, a replacement for conventional shopping has been found. :) And that, my dear folks, is Online Shopping. In this article, I'm going to narrate my journey thus far as an E-customer.

A couple of clicks.. And the item is yours!

It must've been some 6 or 7 months ago, that I came across the fan page for Maatikkaar Terracotta jewellery on Facebook. Being bored and having nothing else to keep me occupied, I simply perused the pictures on their fan page. The jewellery collections on their page simply stunned me, with the detailing and designs. Surely, I hadn't seen beauties like this anywhere else. After plenty of hesitation and a lot of thought, I got in touch with Ms. Vasanthi Meattle who owns Maatikaar. There was an online payment which was involved, after which the goods would be carefully wrapped and sent across. And thus landed my surprise a long way back. I wasn't one bit disappointed because my stuff arrived perfectly well, carefully packed and wrapped in bubble-wrap paper for extra safety. :-D I was delighted that such options to buy things existed. Interestingly, Maatikaar operates only through online for its customers. After that one hit with Maatikaar, I let it pass by and got busy with other things in life - mostly depressing.

Lots of offers to see - All from home.

And then came the time when we had to buy gifts for Aarthi's birthday. That's when I used a few other E-portals including FlipKart to make online purchases. But unlike Maatikaar, FlipKart provides an option of Cash on Delivery while buying anything. Perfect! Now that's along the lines no money, no honey! :-P Maybe that sparked my interest therein. I began to diligently follow some of the big names in online shopping and decided to give it a try to buy clothes, accessories, even a handbag and every experience has been something to learn, something to cherish. :) The point I'm trying to draw from this article is that with fast changing trends, there has emerged an option to shop online and the tech-savvy, perennially busy folks are using it to buy whatever they're interested in. The unique feature about buying things online is no hassle and it's not a tiring experience. The products that you order get delivered to your home in a few simple steps. You get to go through the entire website, arrange items in ascending/ descending order of prices to check if its budget-friendly, read customer experiences, compare items and check which one is the best etc. The most ironic fact is that while you are among thousands of people poring over products online, you do not know even one person's face or tastes amongst those thousands. :-D Get it, Shoppers Anonymous?

Online Shopping CAN be fun!

One must admit that over here - You do not get the sense of victory when you grab an apparel/ an item that someone else had already taken/ haggle for an article with the seller or stroll around the shop feeling the material in your hands or smelling the fragrance of clothes. Not to forget the soft drinks that the big apparel shops offer as compliments to the vociferous shoppers. :-D But what online shopping does provide is the convenience of buying products right from home, seated comfortably in your pajamas with your hair an absolute mess! And that's ME exactly. :D It's fun; And maybe you should try it sometime too.

Random Fun Fact: I got mom a new phone yesterday. Nokia C2-01. Sigh, only I can't buy any phone that I'll be able to enjoy. Atleast, let her!

The Book Store by Madley Subway - Part II

It begins there, I said. I haven't read either of the two books completely, till now. I've only completed up to half of Sirpiye Unnai Sedhukugiren. But the developments which happened after the purchase of these two books is interesting. Aarthi's birthday came up in between, and I was going to pick books from FlipKart. I decided to play around on the site (The First-time venturers always do something extra, don't you think?) , thereby placing an order for a few other books which I was planning to read personally. Among the others I ordered were Shiva Trilogy (2 books - by Amish Tripathi) and Chanakya's Chant. (Ashwin Sanghi)

I've finished reading The Immortals of Meluha (First book to the Shiva Trilogy) and WOW is the one word I can sum up for Amish Tripathi's writing. I cannot believe that there's someone who can effortlessly retell the tale of 'Shivapuranam' in an excellent narrative like this. The fast paced story is set in the time of Indus Valley Civilization - 1900 B.C. Amish provides a map of ancient India right at the back of the cover page, much to our relief so that we can follow the journey of Shiva throughout the book in the pace of the author's imagination. The crux of the book is simple - When we say that there's a battle between the Good and the Evil, How do you know which side is Good and which is Evil? Simple, yet brilliant question. I've always imagined Lord Shiva as an angry God, ready to scorch anything around him in his fury and temper. I've grown hearing the adage - 'Netri Kann thirapinum, Kutram kutrame!' in reference to Lord Shiva's third eye which is between his brows. So I have never prayed to him on a personal front whenever troubled thoughts arise in me. Shivan is but the Destroyer, I would think. But here's our man Shiva, portrayed as a passionate lover, a confused individual, a man unsure of what he should do next, a man guilty of his past, as the one who swears retribution for his friend and a clever strategist. Essentially, Amish depicts Shiva as an adult who makes every mistake as us - thereby casting Shiva as human as we are. :)

What a Man!

The first part of the book is full of instances where Shiva unsuccessfully tries to attract a self-righteous and conservative Sati. You cannot help but feel bad when he fails every time. Later on, his vows of undying love for Sati in her death bed simply brings tears to the eyes. The scenes out of Dharmayudh are lively, wholesome and it brings to you what a war scene was, back in time of the Kings. In all, this is one book which you simply cannot put down once you start. I already have a copy of the sequel to this book - The Secret of the Nagas in my hand which I'll be starting soon. The Immortals of Meluha has been a thoroughly enjoyable read. It has opened to me the other side of Lord Shiva and I will stay connected with the Lord now, after realizing how kind and generous he actually is. Apart from this book, I also read Dork - The Adventures of Robert 'Einstein' Varghese by Sidin Vadukut. Very sad, distasteful stuff. I will not bother writing a review for it. Anyway, what is it with IIM Graduates? Every single one of them seems to turn into a writer in their thirties. :-D By far, Amish seems to be the best among them. :) I glimpsed into Madan's Ki Mu Ki Pi and it appears quite interesting. I randomly just read the part about Chanakiyar and how he made Chandraguptha whom he was. :) #Stunned. On a mental note, I must read this book also ASAP.

Being very honest, there is a volley of books that I'm committing myself to finish one after the other. Did I mention? Aarthi has been threatening us to read and give review for the birthday gift we presented - Nora Roberts' Night Series books which is of the Romantic Thriller genre. :-P None of us know how Nora Roberts actually writes. We wanted to gift her a unique book collection and this was it. At this rate, it seems like I can go on by sparing very little or no time for movies or TV shows. It's like my childhood days when books were enough companion for hours at a stretch. It feels as though I've been touching only good books ever since my visit to that book store by Madley subway. It's been more of a lucky charm, really! I can clearly remember even an SBI ATM booth that was near the book store. I'm elated at the prospect of being offered to read so much. Because when you read good books, it essentially transforms and makes you a better individual. I firmly believe so.

Random Life Happenings -

When I was in Fifth grade, my family and I went to a movie theater to watch Jeans. (Shankar directorial, starring Prashanth and Aishwarya Rai) There's a song Kannodu Kanbathellaam Thalaiva, where Aishwarya Rai dances to a classical tune sung by Nithyashree Mahadevan. At the end of the song, a skeleton dances and leaves the stage. :-D The song was SO GOOD that the audience in the theater asked for a repeat of the song once it was done. They yelled and hooted for a second time till the reel operator accepted to play it once more. So yes, we all sang, danced and enjoyed this lovely track again. Aah, Malarum Ninaivul, I say! :)

The Book Store by Madley Subway - Part I

A weird title for the post, eh? :) Just couldn't think of a title better than this. This article is thoroughly going to be a journey of my reading habits and the beautiful relationship that I share with books.

Going back to the time when I was a kid, solely dependent on parents to buy everything - The most vivid memory that I recollect is of the endless trips to Higginbotham's in Mount Road and Yearly Book Fair when we were in Chennai where I nudged, threatened, pleaded and convinced my parents to buy the books that I wanted. More than craving for clothes and dolls at that age, my hands always spiraled upon the bookshelves of Landmark and the likes. You can read more on the Annual Book Fair that's held in Chennai over here. Since both my parents are avid readers, it's no big surprise that the habit eventually came onto me. I still remember how my mom would roll her eyes in exasperation whenever I asked them to pay for original paperback books, because they were costly in Higginbotham's. She would say that I shouldn't buy such expensive books since they're just one-time use, where I'd read and toss 'em aside after I'm done! :-D She considered (and maybe still does!) Fairy Tales and Childrens' books price tags were always biting our budget there. Dad, on the other hand, was very generous when I asked for buying books. Not once had he chided and discouraged me to buy books that I pointed to. Aah, I really miss him now! :) For so many reasons, I wish you were still around, Appa.

Apart from these purchases, I was also a regular at the book fairs that my school conducted grandly on an annual basis. When I walk into a bookshop - I do not walk out empty handed. That's a policy! I remember the boxes at home that literally overflowed with all my collection - novels, cartoon magazines like Archies, Tinkle, Barbie series, Mickey Mouse series, Goosebumps collection etc. I'd also sincerely subscribed to few monthly magazines that arrived from Mumbai. :) Cannot help but smile when I think about Rajappa Mama and the DD's he took for my sake, that were to be sent for the subscription to work. I must say here - My father also maintained a separate treasure trove for all his books put together. My mom is a very random reader, who reads whatever good books comes her way. She is not a finicky reader; Dad wasn't too. :)

What a sight!

Books were a complete companion, friend and protector in my childhood. You could leave me with a few books of my choice and safely assume that I wasn't up to anything for hours except for fervently reading the book(s). Did you know that my grammar has been almost impeccable - which I'm eternally proud of? I'd like to think that it's owing to my school background and the hours I've spent with paperbacks. There was a brief hiatus during my college days when I did not read as much as I expect I should've. Call it general instability or the lure of Facebook, the habit slowly evaded me as I began to devote more hours to my online presence. In fact, I still do! But it's a lot more controlled I would say. So yeah, after college I wasn't able to read at all owing to personal trauma, worries and insecurity. I wasn't adjusted at workplace and owing to daily pressure, I didn't spare a thought to reading books. Guilty me. I think - just maybe - the habit of reading books is back in me again. :) And wow, what a way it chose to reincarnate again.

A few weeks back, I going to T-Nagar, to buy gift for a colleague's wedding. My friend called me as I was traveling, asking if I could pick up a Farewell greeting card. My bad luck, after buying the gift - I couldn't spot even one shop which sold Greeting cards. Exhausted, but determined - I started to walk towards the road leading to Madley Subway from T-nagar the bus stand - in search of shops which sold greetings! After futile exploits of a few shops that sold musical greetings, general stationary etc I hit upon a shop which sold Tamil literature. With no intention to hang in there since they had no greetings, I was about to leave. And suddenly from nowhere I got hit with a jolt. I calmly asked for Ki Mu Ki Pi - by Madan, expecting it not to be there in the small shop. With a flourish, the bookseller picked it from among the shelves and gave it to me. BING! And then, I asked for Vairamuthu's Sirpiye Unnai Sedhukugiren, which he procured within a matter of minutes again. Just as a kid who got candy, I eagerly flipped through the other books on the shelves for some time, but picking none other, paid for the two books and came back - with a spring in my steps. :) True, the store had a lot other notable writers' books, whom I couldn't recognize. I mentally vowed that I would be back to the same shop soon. At the bus stop, my mom was waiting for me, half worried that we would miss the last service of MTC bus back home. It was already 9:15 PM. Smiling like a child, I said "These are for you.. Not exactly a sort of birthday gift. But something like that! Maybe we can read it together." Just like me, even she showed interest when confronted with good books. So now understand why this title for the article I'm writing? :)

Ki Mu Ki Pi - Vairamuthu

.. And there it begins. To be continued.

Ice Age 4: Continental Drift.

Today, my friends and I went for Ice Age 4 - Continental Drift 3D. :) Since I haven't watched the previous three movies, I didn't have any expectations from the plot. The story was a mix of laughter and entertainment all over. It's based on a plot of the breaking-up of continents from Pangaea due to Scrat's hunt for Acorns and how the protagonists survive the catastrophe. Here's a compilation of the characters and what I adored in each of them.

• Peaches who changes for others, and later moves from the so-called 'hep gang' back to Louis, 
• Manny, who is an over-protective and responsible father mammoth,
• Scrat, and his over obsessiveness for Acorns, (he's a funny guy)
• Diego, a rough and tough tiger, who seemingly develops a soft spot for Shira,
• Sid, who is the clumsy, nonsense-speaking sloth,
• Ellie, a loving and caring mother mammoth,
• Granny (Sid's grandmother), and her ever-faithful pet Precious. (a blue whale)

I adored every single animal from the movie! :) I've missed out the bad guys - Captain Gutt, Flynn, Raz, Silas, Squat, Boris, Gupta and the very cute troupe of Hyraxes who help defeat the pirates! I particularly love the tribal dance bit that they do along with Sid. :D Every single character which appears on the screen is pivotal and inspiring.

In all, the movie had been an enthralling meet-up! Later after the movie was over, we went to Rich and Creamy and sat there animatedly talking of who fits which character. :-D From those discussions, Aarthi is Peaches, Madhu is Sid, Deepa is Scrat* and I'm Diego! I feel Aarthi picked the beauty from the lot. :-D I like Diego.. :) He's understanding and gives chance to others. Oh well, he did give a second chance to Shira. Not the exact depiction of my character but a few areas fit in us. I like it that's he's a rough tiger out there.. I'm a tough person too! B-) Or so.. I'd like to think!

* - We think that Scrat resembles Lays better - since she's completely over obsessed about her appraisals. :-P (her acorn!)

Here's a photo from our Rich and Creamy exploits:

Yum yum YUM!

I haven't got much to go on with. Others apart, I've had a hair-cut and bought new slippers yesterday! This has been one busy weekend. :) Welcome Monday morning! (Already?) :-|

Neeya Naana-vum Nandhini-yum!

It was exactly a month back when I went to participate in 'Neeya Naana' show which gets telecast in Vijay TV. Though I've been meaning to share my experience 'in front of the camera' for a long time, I'd been postponing writing this post indefinitely. Now finally, here it is! Happy reading, folks. :)

Nearly one and a half months ago, when I was watching the show, a couple of cell phone numbers flashed across the screen asking interested candidates working in IT field to call if they wanted to feature on the program. I've never watched this show fully, because I wasn't exactly fond of it. My good luck - I was on the channel at the right moment when the numbers flashed. As enthusiastic as I'd been, I jumped at the opportunity and called the number immediately on next day. They just asked me to send them my contact details along with my work experience. A few days later, I was told to send my bio-data. That's it! I didn't hear from the team for a few days after that. I gave up on hearing from them because there had been no response thereafter. A few silent days passed this way. :) On one fine evening, while I was traveling back home from work, I got called from a channel representative named Mukilan, asking me if I was okay with shooting on next Thursday - 21-June-2012. I said I'd be able to come at once. It must be mentioned here that I wasn't intending to get permission at office. I was going, and that was it! :P So without much ado, I'd got my first chance to appear on a world-level channel.

Now, a couple of days before the shoot - I was intimated of the venue, and also there was an inquiry as to what I'd wear on that day. :-D The topic that I'd been informed was 'Mens Accessories vs Womens Accessories'. I was initially a bit disappointed that it wasn't a topic on IT field, because I was mentally preparing to rip the folks back at office through the show. I was told that since they'd already done a show on IT, they were looking for people speaking on this now. This was a Men vs Women debate sorta show. I was asked to wear matching-matching accessories, as the show/ topic was focused on those things. On the D-day, I went as a trio to the shooting spot - me, mom and Madhu's mom. We were there by 8:45 AM, though the shooting started only around 11 AM. :-P

I was made to sit 3rd from left in the last (topmost) row. The coordinators were doing their part well - the participants were seated according to their dressing, their height and colors of their clothes. Though I hadn't met the show director Antony, my mom and Madhu's mom were sitting right beside him. The director instructed Gopinath through a separate microphone line. He provided the sub-topics, gave him cues, and also informed him on who was speaking well during the show and steered through the program from behind the camera. The point is - I've spoken with Antony once over the phone before coming for the shoot. I asked him if any pre-shoot practice was essential and if I must think of points before coming for the show. :-D He laughed a bit, and said this wasn't Visu's Aratai Arangam to prepare notes and arrive at the venue. He told me to speak aptly with what crossed my mind when Gopi poses various questions through the show. :) During the shoot - I spoke, I stammered, I shivered and went through everything that a non-media person experiences when she sits for a national telecast show for the first time. I received a couple of bulbs too, by speaking a few points that Gopi was not looking for. :-D Speaking of Gopinath, he was a warm and friendly person without the ego for being the celeb that he is! Though I never got to take a photo next to him, I was THERE just a few feet away from him during the program!!! And that's all which matters. :) He left almost immediately after the shoot, so none of us got the 'solo pic' chance.

The winner of the best speaker award (from girls) was Srinithi, who was a first year B.Sc electronic media student. She was doing her internship with the channel and due to lack of enough participants, she was made to sit with whoever came for the show. Note - She sat next to me, on my right side during the show. Whoa! The last row always rocks, doesn't it? :D From the boys, it was someone with spiked hair, hair-colored, freaky fellow who won the best speaker prize. Though everyone hated him for the way he looked (Including the boys) - he was the best speaker that there was. We all just refered to him as 'vaalu paiyan'. :-D The support crew were ever helpful by serving us (participants and the technicians working for the show) with drinking water, tea, lunch etc. The shoot happened for roughly 5 hours. They shot in whole parts, without any on-the-spot editing or practiced lines. :) Since it was recorded for so long, we can't guess what parts would escape the editors' scissors. I even made some on-the-spot friends from the shoot, after the recording ended. For rest of the details on what we spoke and if I'd even feature for 30 seconds on that show, you'll have to watch the program when it's being aired. :)

Till now, it hasn't been telecast and I'm waiting just as you are. All my friends keep asking me if I know when it'll come, but I'm clueless too! After the shoot wrap-up, I checked with the crew and they said it would be telecast within a month from shoot. A month has gone past already, but no signs of my show. :( I've been sitting promptly in front of the TV Box on every Sunday night at 9.30 pm - Expecting the day's show to feature me. But alas, it's only been disappointment! For Readers information: I wore a red and white salwar, with red bob-like earrings on that day. :-D That had been my outfit. :) They wrapped shooting only at around 4 pm that day, and I promptly told people at office that I wouldn't be able to make it back after that. (Initially I told them that I'd be at office by 2 pm!) Though I was thirsty and starving for lunch by then, I was like "Yesss, I'm bunking office today!" inside and doing cartwheel inside my head when the shooting ended so late. :-D Now, it's just curiosity and eagerness to watch my show that's burning within me. I've turned into a mini-celeb at office, for featuring on the show. B-)

Like they say - There's no biz like Showbiz! Lights.. Camera.. Action! B-)

After a hiatus.

And so, I'm finally back to Blogging. :) It was a hiatus of more than two months, I guess. Life has it's own ways to throwing challenges and mind blocks along the way to see what you do. It was something that crippled the senses out of me for a long time, the time while I sat wondering what I should do and where I should move next. I read this somewhere: Your career is a long, long journey - longer than you'd ever imagined. So it's okay to make mistakes and to have gleaming patches here and there. The only thing is, you can never feel so optimistic while you're down. I swear, I've been through two tough months.. But things are getting brighter now. Or atleast, it's all in my head.

I remember that in my last post, I mentioned that when we're faced with issues - 1. We must give it a tough fight or 2. Surrender to it. I fought 'my problem' quite well. And quite fiercely too. When I realized that I was getting nowhere, I.just.stopped. Ultimately, I learnt a very valuable lesson out of it. Stinking rotting people are everywhere. Sometimes you get dirt laid on your back and pay a price when you don't deserve it at all. All you can do is scream, cry and bellow "Why me?". But again, how you tolerate and come out of the dumps is entirely class stuff! B-) I've learned to smile fake and act as if I don't give it a damn, like it's alright - what they did to me, in front of those people. But inside, I've turned stronger than I'd thought. I have a couple of friends who've mocked at my situation, ask me how I'm continuing and just let me rot. In fact, they're continuing to do it really well at the moment. To those beautiful and lovely friends, thanks for nothing. I'll show you who I am in a while.

Amritha - If you're reading this, thanks for every bit of your support over the past few months. :) I truly appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. It's just that, things have gone to levels such that, I've stopped trying to get out of where I am. They're not letting me. And I have really lost hopes that I'd be out of the marsh.

Now ending this sombre post with a punch - Tough times don't last, tough people do. :)

Life's harsh realities

This is one of those posts that comes after the philosopher in me awakened. Seriously.. What happens when you face problems or issues? When things don't go as you thought it would? When you're too tired and exhausted, but you should still go on? Would you run away as far as you could from the problem(s) or would you dare to face it straight on the face?

I'm just trying to find out what my course of action should be, facing something like that. You have two options when you're encountered with a crisis.

1. Run away from it/ Pretend like it never existed or came about/ Hope for better things in the future/ Learn from such an event.

2. FIGHT! Whether you win or lose, you fight. The result is not the matter of focus. If it's something worth fighting for and if you've got something that you don't deserve, you definitely have to voice it out.

My course of action is definitely Option # 2. Nobody is going to know what you deserve and what you've got unless you speak it up. Most of the time, they are not going to listen to you and may overpower you with their opinion. But there is nothing wrong in fighting it out. Like a champ. I deserve better. I'm not going to sit mutely and watch the politics and undercurrents involved to thrash me down.

Looking for some inspiration and grit to keep moving in this difficult path. Refraining from posting the "Fine tuned details" over here.

Egypt.

This is one place in the world which amazes me. No, make it - AMAZES me. Who knows? Maybe I've got a previous birth bond with the country, but since the time I can remember I've always wanted to go there. Once, at least. :) It's the Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx which make me go in awe. There's something mysteriously spectacular about the pyramids, the Mummies, the Emperors who reigned Ancient Egypt and the history of this brilliant country. I'm not entirely sure why, but I'm attracted to Egypt like the nettle to light! I've seen this unique destination in movies, I've seen it in Tamil songs like Poovukkul (Jeans) and read about it too. The inspiration and adoration never seems to cease.

I remember that once I had a funny dare with Aarthi on whether Rome was in Egypt or Egypt was in Rome. A bet on something in that effect. I think I said that Egypt was a part of Rome while she said that was not true. Okay, I lost. Rome was nowhere in the map when you're talking about Egypt. The bet was that I had to buy a Falooda for her (and Madhu too, since she barged into the bet just like that!) if I lost, but I never kept it till date. Hehe! :-D Come to think of it, maybe I should visit Rome too, you know. Some day. :-D Traveling around the world (Just a few places) would be something I'd like to do once I've saved enough. I can hear you saying "India laye evlavo places irukku.. Adha vitutu adhenna Rome, Egypt nu scene podra iva?" :-P Well, on an international level, there are a few tourist destinations I'd like to go to, Egypt being amongst those.

Travel Wish-list:
1. Egypt.
2. Rome.
3. Switzerland.
4. Amsterdam, the Netherlands - for The Flower Festival in spring!
5. Australia.
6. Jaipur/ Agra (The Tajmahal) - I've been there already, but wouldn't mind going there once more!
7. Madam Tussaud's, UK.
8. Disneyland, California.
9. Universal Studios, LA
10. Kochi, Kerala.
11. New Delhi.

This is a very random wish-list and more places would surely get added, depending very much on my mood and passion. For now, these are the places that I can think of. :)

P.S.: Dear Future Husband,

If you're reading this some day to know better about me, then you'll know what are the places that your wife would like to visit in her lifetime. Try to plan a get-away/ give her a surprise and she'd be overjoyed. :)

Sincerely,
Your Future Wife. ;)

Quarter Life Crisis.

This is one serious topic that I've been meaning to post about for ages.

Where am I?

Amritha and I have discussed on this so many times. When you're into your twenties, this Quarter life crisis kicks in. This form of living/ thinking etc last only as long as you're in your twenties, I think. If you're unlucky, it might follow you even after that. The cause or source is because of your undecided life. Say, you're in the early 20s and you don't know where you're heading next. By being undecided, I mean - You don't know what sort of universities that your GRE score is going to fetch you, or you haven't got a clue about giving GRE at all. :-D It could also be that crisis moment in your head when you're bored with your work life and you want to do something fresh. It could be that you want to do something more liberating and what comes to you easily, but you can't or won't do it because of 'Society pressures'. Like, you might've wanted to go into Arts line and then your parents came behind you and said "No No No! That's not a fitting thing to do at all. Doesn't sound one bit professional too. Choose something else. We're not allowing you to get into this". So ultimately, all you get to pick is 'CA', 'Engineering' or 'Medicine'. Talk about so much variety of choices being offered, I tell you. :| I'm going through one such quarter life crisis wherein I haven't "decided" what's next in life. I thought I had a decision made, but I'm re-thinking because I think there might be something else in store for me that I'm not aware of. Not yet.

Which one should I pick?

Everyone goes through this phase of life. It isn't unusual. Some people choose to ignore this "gut feeling" that something might be misplaced in their life. They think that whatever they're doing at present is what they were desiring/ meaning to do, all along. Reassuring the self. I wouldn't do that. Yesterday, I had this one-to-one meeting with my leads. They were criticizing me over a lot of points, as I put on the goal sheet. Not that I wasn't expecting to be fried. But there was this one point my PL said, which I felt had a strong point - "You won't be a fresher in this industry another 3-4 months from here. When you look back at what kind of a career you've painted, you shouldn't regret it or think there are a lot of empty patches. Carve the future in such a way that you feel that you've left no options unexplored. This is a competitive world, and every bit of your efforts count." :) I've been thinking that I'll strive and work hard on this. World's mean, after all.

Another point of view to assert on Quarter Life Crisis is how much you suffer at workplace, because you're so new and naive to everything around you. I went through this pretty bad at the start. I didn't know how to talk with whom, and what was expected from me. There were moments when I messed it up very badly at work and received acidic comments from my leads. Well, I've crossed all that now. I didn't know what was expected and that was really difficult part where I was asked/ forced to do things that I didn't know of. This is the phase of life - Your early twenties - when you're tossed around for everything. Your friends give GRE and talk on getting into the Ivy-League set of colleges, some talk to you about MBA and earning big money, some get married, some of those people have kids, post photos on Facebook to prove that their life is quintessentially complete - And you're seemingly confused and feeling the void. You aren't settled in your career.. YET. You don't know if you fit in your team. You aren't sure if you're like what you do at work. People don't explain everything, yet they expect you to understand and deliver seamlessly. You are forever underpaid and over-worked. People with 2-3 years experience look down upon you as a midget. They 'order' you around. Some of them help and understand your blankness. But most of them don't. You're sitting at work for more than 10-11 hours a day when everyone's left already. I've been through most of these situations. Hopefully, the QLC would lift and I'd have a clearer view of the path ahead in a while. Let's see.

To wind up, I proudly state that I'm labelled as a 'Fresher' and a victim of the Quarter Life Crisis. Oh well, this reassures me that I'm young too.

A bubblegum to chew upon.

Excerpt from Preeti Shenoy's 34 Bubblegums and Candies:

I remember feeling alone. For days, I could not sleep. Each day when I woke up, the first thought that would occur to me was that my dad is no more - and it was like someone had slapped me hard. I would often break down and my kids and husband got very used to it. I didn't feel like going anywhere, yet, I so badly wanted to talk about it to people.

People don't know how to respond when someone talks about death. There is usually an uncomfortable silence. Most people don't even want to hear. That was a shattering discovery that I made. Till then, I had had so many friends - I was jovial, funny, smart and great fun to be with. But when this happened, people were seeing a different side of me for the first time - they saw my tears, they saw my pain - and I was totally broken when I discovered that people who usually talked to me were now avoiding me completely. One friend told me, "I am not ready to talk about this. Please don't tell me anything". I could not believe it. This was a friend I used to chat with, laugh with and have hours of fun, when things were fine. For the first time, I realized what a naïve fool I had been. People wanted me only because I was a source of amusement, an entertainment to them - not because they really cared. For the very first time in life, I realized that not everyone who laughs with you is a friend.

I remember waking up and functioning like a zombie, sending my kids to school and after my husband left to work, I would log into the Internet, desperately wanting to talk to someone about my pain. Most of my friends said things like 'You will get over it'. 'May his soul rest in peace' and 'At least he did not have to suffer'. Then they clammed up and suddenly went offline. Laugh and others laugh with you; Cry and you cry alone. I was rapidly discovering that this much-used idiom is indeed true.

 .. And before I knew what this bubblegum was doing to me, tears were rolling down my cheeks.

Appetite. Dieting. Etc.

I'm pretty inspired to write about my dieting story, of all the things I've scribbled upon this blog of mine.

It all started some five or six months ago. That's when I'd gained plentiful weight owing to the medicine I was using to counter my skin allergy. My skin allergy didn't recede as well as we'd expected it to, and along came the obesity. Now when I utter 'obesity', don't go too far into imagination. I'm talking about those extra pounds that start showing up in the form of puffed up cheeks, broad arms that refuse to fit your clothes' sleeves any longer, wider-than-it-was-earlier waist (Sigh, yes!) and the perennial uncomfortable sensation you go through when your clothes don't give you breathing space anymore! I went into THAT sort of an obesity. After a couple of appointments with the doctors in Chennai, I was advised to do regular walking, strict dieting etc and get the weight back to below 60 kgs. Now that was ONE HUGE DAUNTING TASK because I was in the late 70's back then. (brave right, revealing all the details?) I didn't like the concept of 'diet regime' one bit. But did I have a choice? NO. For the greater good some sacrifices had to be made, Dumbledore would've said. :-D

Love your body and care for your health :)

And from there, my routine changed gradually. It chiefly included having all-home-made-food, no-outside-food habit. To control the hunger pangs in the evening, all I had was a small packet of biscuits. This was the phase when having lunch with my office friends turned into an agonizing experience. Not in the serious sense! The food that they used to have and bring would tempt me into having a bit as well. But since I was trying to hold the regime very strongly, I couldn't. And after a couple of days, THEY stopped offering as well. Shucks! I was forced to bid adieu to namkeen that we'd have along with our lunch (Murukku, mixture, thattai, seedai, chips, verkadalai etc. Makes me drooly just by the thought of it.) as side-dish. And yes, how could I forget to mention? I stopped taking the lift as well. It was plain taking the stairs hence forth. I'm still using the stairs whenever I can even now. It's worth my investment and time, because all we do at office is rest and sit in those cozy cushion chairs of ours. Imagine getting all sorts of ailments when you're 30-35 because of your lifestyle now. Spooks me even at the thought of it. :-| The toughest part was following these things at the start, and with time I learned to cope with the miserly eating. Even having cornflakes day after day can get on your nerves unless you're getting used to the idea of having it everyday. Well, I've been there; Done that. Have you?

It's been a long and  painful journey. I'm not entirely sure as to how far I've succeeded. Or whether I succeeded itself! I know I have a long way to go in terms of losing weight. I could lose more, you know! That perspective. But yes, the effects did start to show. And I'm glad. I still feel obliged and grateful to that good Doc who put me on the right path about four months ago. :) God bless.

Persevere. And you shall achieve it. Be it losing weight or getting close to your dreams. :) And count your calories before you eat. Better safe than sorry.

Afresh, Anew and Alive!

Though New Year 2012 started on a very normal note, I vowed somewhere around the time of my birthday that I'll do something new for each month. Not each fresh day, not each week - those are difficult targets to set up for oneself. :)

Whether or not I can tread through this entire year doing new things - I don't know. I am just looking at one month at a time. In case I don't, it's okay. At least, I've tried. There's a guy from office who entered this as his new year resolution and it won under "Most Innovate & Fresh Resolution for 2012" category! Okay, so this post is just an analysis of sorts into the perspective of doing new things. Why, you could ask. Simply put - I don't want to drag through every other day as yet another monotonous day. Okay, I work, I earn and everything. But life shouldn't reach stagnation. I know that I want to do SOMETHING with my life - Not sure what. I'm still undecided as to whether I really want to do an MBA. It's become passé. Weird, huh? After plotting on cracking the CAT for months together - Writing blog posts about "What am I looking forward to next in life? Doing MBA?" etc etc etc, I suddenly feel put-out about doing MBA. No, it's got nothing to do with financial reasons. Almost every person I meet on the street or talk to on phone is enumerating about joining Top B-Schools/ Cracking the CAT XAT MAT SNAP/ Discussing on how little one sleeps or enjoys in order to cope with the unforgiving two-year course and everything. Do I want to endure all this? Am I into some sort of a Comfort-zone that I'm unwilling to step out of? *shrugs and thinks for a minute* 

That's not really me. I TAKE challenges. I stand up to challenges. Heck, I'm not scared. But *yawn*, it's boring. Maybe - JUST maybe - MBA wasn't my thing all along! I've started to think that I've been chosen for something else. Journalism, creativity spouts, teaching - These fields invoke the spark within. Never mind that I never took up the related jobs as career choices sometime ago. It's never too late to become what you might've been! :) Anyway, I won't regret on not being able to decide what I want to do with life standing at the verge of 23. Ever. 

Uh, I guess we're moving away too much from main point why this post was penned! :-D About doing new things. Well, for January I went ahead and ordered Terracotta jewellery from an online store that operates from New Delhi. It was quite risky, but for all it was worth, I got a shipment of the most beautiful accessories I've laid my hands on till now. :) And then I wore a transparent sleeved tops for my birthday - Something that "Sensible and extremely cautious Nandhini" wouldn't have done in a decade! And there was birthday happiness and surprises from a loving group of friends. Slogged more than ever at work, had an office version of potluck, decided that my personal life photos and maximum details wouldn't appear on Facebook (Sticking to it by all means) etc.

February 2012 - A gang of us went to Ampa Skywalk, (Never been there before) I shopped birthday gifts for two of my best friends by myself, went to Marina and met my best friend Amritha and Govind. He turned out to be a very friendly and nice person, though I'd never met or talked to him before. :) Imagine, getting yourself a friend like that out of nowhere. There were a lot of cake cuttings - For Sarasu, =D Deeps and Thala. Then there was the devouring of plentiful cake, as you can understand. He he! 
 

March 2012 - So far, we're only three days across this month and I stepped into British Council for the first time yesterday. #FeltLikeAChamp I've borrowed a couple of books that I'm hoping to finish in three weeks. Not much, this apart. For the very first time, a DSLR Camera picture adores my Facebook display photo. I don't think you'd ever notice - But thanks Govind! Getting a DSLR Camera photo of myself was a long-run wish for me. Oh, did I mention? I got an award from the office team. It's a lovely trophy for Fabulous February Release. Whee! #PrideMoment

I'm pretty sure that I wont be updating more than this here in this post. So whatever happens in March after now and the rest of the year will not be featuring here. But I'll keep plodding on new things for each month. I just hope and pray that whatever I'm destined for unfolds itself soon. And in good time. Amen. 

Found this picture on Facebook. Loved it completely. You might too. Good luck at staying creative, people! =)

Does it really matter?

I was talking with a friend recently and we were touching on some serious (personal) topic when he said, "There exists an age difference between me and her. I'm younger by x months. This wasn't okay."

I decided THAT moment that I want to write upon the issue. I'm not completely sure of what context he meant the "Not okay" part. I think they were okay with it, but both families weren't, despite being the same caste. This is one thing about India. Here, it doesn't work like "I love him. He loves me. Then we're all set to get married." It's a long complicated process. He loves her. She loves him. His family loves her. Her family would love to accept him. Only after this, marriage talks begin. Phew! Not to mention - the well-wishers, the friends and cousins are covered along the way. :-P This aspect of Indian marriages is highlighted in Chetan Bhagat's Two States. The family-accepting-each-other factor. I've also seen this crisis featured in the movie Abhiyum Naanum where Abi's father (a Tamil guy) struggles and faces difficulty in accepting a Punjabi son-in-law. There are more movies which touch upon the age difference - Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya, Engeyum Eppothum etc. Well, just felt like dissecting the debate a bit so that I'll reach a consensus in my own head.

Now, scientists have proven that it's logically and practically advisable that the bride is younger than the groom in a nuptial. Why? Because a girl matures faster than a guy both physically and mentally. So it's better if the one who is marrying her is a little older. I've seen marriages where the age gap is a whopping seven years. (Works either ways - the guy and the girl could be older than the other) Personally, I don't go in favor of such *wiiiiide* gaps, but again - if the couple are comfortable with it then all cool! The age difference plays a role in understanding each other and avoid confusion and soaring tempers around the house. Since the girl is younger, she'd tend to be a bit more wielding and accept the husband's point of view, as it is perceived. I'm VERY clear that I'd like to marry someone who's older than me by at least a day. World's moving, opinions changing, rules are relaxing - I know I know. But when it comes to my choice - this is how it is. AT LEAST A DAY and so be it! AND taller than I am. Six feet tall fellows sure do interest me for reasons that I'm not clear of. (I'm an average 5'5" tall - Just saying. :-P ..)

Anbil Avan..

I was pondering on whether the age difference really does matter to a couple who are in love with one another and are willing to accept the age gap just as they accept each other. It actually doesn't. Let's face the fact - It doesn't. It's quite an embarrassment when couples find this to be "the odd factor" that stands in the way of getting married to each another. We love watching and witnessing the marriages of Star couples having the age difference. Examples of real-life couple are Aishwarya-Abishek, Sachin-Anjali, Dhanush-Aishwarya, Farah Khan-Shirish Kunder - to list a few of them! But when it comes to kids from our very own household getting married - there's so much hue and cry upon the topic. It's truly sad for those who are in love and unable to look at the age difference as a denial factor. It actually isn't such a taboo after all. At least when the couple themselves have accepted mentally. 

Marriage is a long journey of togetherness. And trivial details like these are best ignored and accepted.

Thrilling Thursday!

This is a tale spun around Niharika's visit to Marina beach on a random Thursday evening.

Niharika works for an IT company located in the extreme end of the city outskirts of Chennai. One fine day, she has to go to the beach because her best friend Anjali has come to town from Andhra Pradesh. Why the beach, specifically? Since Anjali will be in Chennai only for two days, meeting up before she leaves is important to Niharika. And besides Anjali loves the beach. So why not there? And that's how they fixed up on where they'd meet on the Thursday. Okay, 5:00 to 5:15 pm - Pucca, they mutually agree. Anjali decides to come along with her best friend Gautham to the venue at the above decided time. Gautham lives close by where Anjali stays.

~ Flashback ~
So how do Gautham - Anjali - Niharika know each other? It all started long ago, maybe around the middle of 2008. That's when Anjali and Niharika came to know about each others' existence through a site which is now dead and gone - called Orkut. They've met only once before now and that happened over two years back. Gautham and Anjali got acquainted with one another through the same dead site which was once known as Orkut. But then, Anjali is the common person for the other two. Niharika and Gautham don't know each other well. In fact, Niharika had noticed that Gautham's height was half of a palm tree's, only while meeting him in person on Thursday! :-D

The Three Musketeers!

~ Present ~
As planned, Niharika comes on an early shift to office, talks to her leads and obtains permission to leave office early. She's off at 3:40 pm and everyone who's been to the outskirts of the city where she works knows it takes nearly 90 mins to reach Marina from there. That's with no traffic and on a clear weather day. Niharika arrives early and she waits for nearly 50 minutes at the beach waiting for the duo to arrive. A lot of patient waiting, one angry bird SMS and one sukku kaapi later, they arrive. Nihu is irritated to the core, and she shows it in her eyes when Anjali walks up to her and says she's sorry about the delay. Gautham parks his car and arrives where they're standing and quite unexpectedly, they begin to walk towards the waves and the water. Nihu wasn't expecting this to happen. Anyway, she's the one who tells them to take off their footwear and feel the specks of sand on their feet. :-p

They touch up on a variety of topics while conversing - OI people, OI Cricket club, Facebook, Ratna Cafe Idly Sambar, Coimbatore, Calcutta, Mobile phones, Tambrahmism and non-veg eating, Owning and using a DSLR Camera, keeping the city clean, pollution levels, France, how Gautham badly needs to pick up his glasses and a lot more things. It's difficult to believe that they're all meeting for the first time. :) So that's how the meet up takes shape. They decide they want to have dinner somewhere. Pizza hut - no. Cafe Ashvita - no. HSB - no. where to get Lebanese food - We don't know. So finally they zero in on Eatalica, a small Italian/ American restaurant.

Since we don't want to focus or give priority to the details on food, we're skipping that part. When they're done with dinner and posing for lots of photos, it's already 9:15 pm. Shucks, Nihu is in deep trouble because she's a Tambrahm living in Tambaram. This is where the real story begins. Keep reading. Gautham had already assured that he'd drop Niharika at Mandaveli at 8:15 pm that evening after dinner. Great, they're more than one hour behind schedule now. Together, they start off from the bistro and Gautham drops Nihu at Mandaveli bus stand, after she refuses to go home from Adyar.

It's pretty much a deserted bus stand. Niharika feels scared within, but she boldly bids them byes and gets out from the car. She starts walking towards the bus stop, but she decides to check with a Fastrack car driver on the street before walking up to there. The car driver fellow confuses her - makes her walk into the deserted bus stand - and after hearing from someone else, she confirms that where she was headed first was the right place to go to! Silently cursing the car driver for his bad directions, she reaches the bus stop. There, she almost boards a bus to Perambur instead of Thiruvanmiyur. She doesn't get into it, thankfully. Her route bus arrives, 15 minutes later. There's so much crowd standing inside and she lets her "I will only take a bus in which I'll get a seat to sit in." policy fly in the air while boarding it. :-P There's a missed call from Anjali but she discerns it and makes a call to mom, explaining to her that she's on the way and she'll ensure she arrives home safely. Anjali and Gautham, in the meanwhile, reach their respective home by the time Niharika even boards that bus. The bus journey goes on for an hour and she reaches West Tambaram safe. Rats! No straight bus from there to home in the West bus stand at 10:40 pm. Now, Niharika needs to walk through a subway and an over-bridge - then take another bus after that.

She walks a little way towards the direction of the Subway.. Then decides she'll play brave girl by crossing the road straight and jumping over the barricade separating the two lanes. She gets ready to cross the road when the Auto wallas who have parked their vehicles on the sides of the road yell "No madam, don't cross this road directly. It's very dangerous. Please use the subway. It's just a few metres off from here". She hears their rambling despite having the ear phones plugged into the ears with music on full volume. Did they know that Niharika would gladly cross the traffic/ jump the barricade than to walk through an empty subway at 10:45 pm? Given the situation and the fact that a Traffic constable was watching the GST road silently from a little distance away, she decides to take the auto wallas' advise and starts walking towards the Subway. She calls out to the gods to protect her, makes a Cross across her chest and keeps walking with her head held high. Dhigil only, in all senses! It's a deserted Subway, except for a few people here and there. She crosses it triumphantly and begins to ascend the steps to reach the Eastern end of the railway station.

On the Eastern side now. There's no bus that's ready to depart though. She doesn't risk traveling by a share auto because who knows where they'll take her once she's boarded? After ten minutes of waiting - an MTC bus arrives and almost everyone who's been standing there at the stop rushes to get into it. The conductor takes some time to issue tickets to everyone and then signals for the driver to start off. Niharika looks into the watch, it's 11:00 PM. "Ten more minutes and you'll be home safe, Darling" she consoles herself. She gives one message to Anjali mentioning that she's still on her way. That's the only thing she tells Anjali from the moment they parted. Ten minutes later, she reaches home - as expected. She's invited back home with her mom giving her that smouldering "I could kill you for all this agony you've put me through" looks. She decides to get in without saying much. Her mom locks the doors, walks in and starts giving her a variety of advise. It essentially boils down to this much content: I trust you and that you'll do your best to reach home safely.  But the city is full of rogues. And as a mom, I was scared. Don't put me through this, okay?

Niharika silently gives consent to abide by her mom's request. She informs Gautham and Anjali that she's reached home safe, unwinds to go to bed, sees all the pictures taken that day in her camera once and goes to sleep. "And so I did meet Anjali today! And Gautham too", she tells to herself. And smiles with her eyes closed! :) It's going to be a long day at office on Friday. And hopefully, mom's sour mood would've lifted by the next morning.

P.S: All the characters portrayed in this post are for real. Any resemblance to real-life people is purely non-coincidental. If you've identified all three of them, then I'm pretty convinced that you know them in person.

Spexy Girl!

Top Six reasons why you should try wearing contact lens:
1. 360 degree rotation. You see everything around you clearly, without confining your vision to the edges of your spectacles.
2. No glasses = more confidence. Better looking face.
3. Say YES to sunglasses.
4. No more nicknames like specsy, jishmish (SRK calls Preity like this in KHNH) soda buddi etc.
5. No nose-pad mark on the wedge of your nose, or constantly sliding the specs up and down your nose while you're sweating.
6. You can pose for photos without having to remove your glasses (and hiding it somewhere beyond the frame of the picture) fearing the camera flash will reflect and ruin the picture. Too much personal experience here.

Five reasons why you should probably stick to wearing glasses:
1. No problems such as ensuring not to cross the hours acceptable for wearing lens.
2. Can rub/ scratch/ scrub the eyes without worrying "OMG! I can't do that. I'm wearing lens!"
3. Can sit in any sort of a place with a blast of wind blowing on your face.(Bus window seat, for example)
4. Can walk into a shower without having to remove the lens, scrub and place in their solution. Not to forget, you certainly shouldn't go to sleep wearing lens. (All the rinsing formalities you have to follow before putting it in solution. Phew!)
5. The smallest particle of dust or a pollen grain can give you painful, agonizing moments if it enters your eyes while you're wearing lens.

As you could've guessed by now, this post is going to be about my new avatar - Lensy me! :-D It's not like I'm wearing contact lens for the first time though. It all started in twelfth grade, when I used an year-long pack. After which my power increased by a bit and that alarmed me. So I went back to glasses and it was the specsy-me until third year at college. There was some irregular usage during my college days - Ah, how I'd hurriedly put on the lens in the morning before rushing to catch an auto. I'd be running late already and I'd be counting on my bus driver to arrive after I did. :-D Again, the power went up, contact lens went down. It was history repeating itself all over again.

After nearly two years' worth hiatus I'm back to wearing contact lens. What's so great about it, you may ask. I don't know how to describe the feel. It's as if you're wearing something new amidst the people you work with and you're eager to know what they think about it. Oh yes, it's like going back to the Wrap Around Skirts times. You're wearing something different and people are going to judge you based on that! :) Not that I'm scared or worried about what they'd say. I'm prepared to hear comments like "Oh dear, why did you shift from glasses? This lens-look doesn't look so good on you. Not a bit" / "Your face looks so bloated and different minus the glasses. And your eyes look so sunk-in too". :-P I heard all these reactions at school and college after the change over. Most importantly, their comments isn't going to stop me from wearing the lens unless I'm out of time or interest to wear them to work here on. But I agree, even my face seemed strange to me with the contact lens in place on friday. It was as if I was looking into a stranger in the mirror. Seriously. :-/

I'll get used to it soon. Or atleast, I should! The mental feud on which is more comfy and easy to wear is still raging in my head. I don't think I'll arrive at a conclusion on this EVER! So here begins the legend of lens vs specs mind voices. Either ways, to be stuck without glasses would make an ideal nightmare experience. Well, that's the consequence of being heavily dependent on glasses for everyday life-as-usual to go on! :-)