Welcome To The World - Anhad and Paavaki

Its strange how time flies and how things change. Just like while driving, the landscape keeps changing from one beautiful and picturesque view to another, the situations in life keep changing from one colourful scenario to another. It just seems like yesterday when eight of us used to live together in one flat during my engineering days. We were great pals, eight girls who knew each other's secrets and stories. Each of us went through various highs and lows, saw each other crying and breaking down, saw each other fall in love and moving on, celebrated each other's successes in exams and later in work and so on. A couple of years after graduating some of us got married, some went for higher studies and some continued working. However, now another phase of life has started, another landscape in the journey of life. Ruchi already has a beautiful daughter Pari, who is now 20 months old. Parneet was blessed with a baby girl Anhad, on 29th December and NV was blessed with a baby girl Paavaki, on 13th January. Its almost as if another gang of girls is in the making :-)

ANHAD & PAAVAKI

I used to chat with NV every day for hours. Even when she went to US with her husband our chats continued in the same fashion. It is since the day Paavaki was born that we haven't had a chat even once. She has become so busy with changing diapers, feeding the baby and taking care of her needs that she hardly gets time to sleep, therefore coming online to chat is near to impossible for her. I realise that life has changed dramatically for her and she is struggling to get used to it. I so want to meet Parneet and NV to hold and cuddle their little ones but it's not possible anymore. We are all in different cities and very busy with our lives. We just manage to send mails to each other, share snaps and keep each other updated with the latest gossip and news.

I really wish at times that all of us could be together again, along with husbands and kids. It would be great to have that sort of a reunion sometime. Sigh! Wishful thinking, that's what it is.

What I Have Been Doing All These Days

The holiday season is here and I am in the holiday mood for nearly a week now. I don't want to work at all :-)

I completed my application to Maryland Smith on 15th because it was the last day to apply. My Spanish classes are going on really well. I have taken 5 classes and learnt a lot of Spanish vocabulary. I now know what does Bailamos mean (remember Enrique's famous song?), it means 'we dance' :-). Meanwhile we celebrated Dad's birthday on 19th. It was a nice and cozy family get-together that included a lot of good food, a lot of laughter and latest family gossip. The following day, I took my cousins to a nearby mall where we played video games and tried a game each of Bowling. I have improved since last time, my score wasn't too embarrasing :-)

These days I am frequenting websites of cosmetic brands like Mac, Body Shop, Urban Decay, Sephora etc. Three of my friends are coming from US soon and I intend to mail them each a shopping list, so that they can get me some really good products. I had a chat with NV the other day on webcam and she showed me her entire shopping. I was visibly green with envy and she was delighted with my reaction. She has bought some fabulous boots and sandals and cosmetics. She showed me each lipstick and nailpaint that she has bought, even though the reds looked like black on webcam. I squinted my eyes to make out the shades but couldn't, so had to trust her claim that they were amazing.

Anyhoo, NV looks like she can have the baby anyday now, infact her doctor has advised her to be prepared. It seemed to be an unreal experience looking at her obviously pregnant shape. NV has always been the kid of our group and now she will soon have a baby. Its still difficult for me to digest this fact, even after more than 8 months of her pregnancy.

I was never so thankful of being on Orkut as I am now. I found a long lost friend with whom I have not been in touch for 22 years. Yes, and I am only 25 now :-). Her name is Shany and she was my first best friend and neighbor. Our families were very close, infact Shany's Mom taught my Mom how to cook south-indian food. Her elder brother and sister were very close friends to my sister and we have spent a great time together. Shany's brother found us on Orkut and we are all back in touch after 22 years. It's amazing how much we remember about each other, Shany remembers more as she is 2 years elder to me. She is now an architect working in Dubai. I cannot describe the feelings I had when I saw pics of Shany and her family, it was beyond nostalgia. She is engaged to a handsome software engineer from Bangalore and would soon get married. I already have plans of going to Shany's wedding although the date has not yet been finalised. Shany still looks the same, plump cheeks and dusky complexion, sweetness etched all over her face. We have been catching up on mails, we have a good 22 years of catching up to do. I am glad she has grown up to be a fun loving and totally chilled out girl. She told me of her entire love story with her fiance and I was in splits when I read that story. Wow, its great to know Shany all over again after all these years.

News News News

Gosh! So many things happened since I last posted that I don't know where to start. Let me give the news in bullet points.

* I got a 710 again in my second practice test (Quant 47, Verbal 41).
* NV has gone to US and will have her baby there. (Did I mention that she is pregnant? Well, she is.)
* I bought knee-high boots for winters. Can't wait for the weather to get cold.
* Priya is going to California during Christmas and New Year's.
* Mom and Dad have gone to Sikkim, leaving me alone at home
* I have decided that I will pre-pone my GMAT date to 1st week of November

Whew! I will elaborate now. I downloaded test software from mba.com just to be sure that my score is reliable. I really doubted my last score, but a 710 again has boosted my confidence. What was surprising this time was my quant score. I jumped from 39 in quant to 47, although dropped in verbal from 48 to 41. But I don't mind the drop as long as my points stay in the 40s range. The decision to pre-pone my exam has come after this new found confidence in my preparation.

NV is almost 7 months pregnant and was going to have her baby in Kanpur but suddenly her husband had to leave for U.S. and after much thought she decided to accompany him. The shocking part of the story is that none of us had any inkling that she is leaving for US. Well, I admit we were not in touch with her since something like 15 days. She mailed us all today to inform us that she arrived in Virginia yesterday and will be back in Februray after having her baby in Jan. Now, were we shocked? We felt flabbergasted, thunderstruck and similar stuff. When a 7 months pregnant female suddenly decides to have her baby in US instead of her in-laws place, it's normal to be shocked. She and her hubby will look for an apartment now and for doctors who will take care of her. I support her as always, may she have a baby as unpredictable and daring as she is.

My knee-high boots look sexy. However, I had a tough time buying them. I had no plans of buying any such thing but so wanted to have them when I spotted them at a shop in Janpath (I am an impulsive shopper). I was wearing a long skirt and chappals on that eventful day when I bought my boots. I pointed out around 4 pairs to the shop attendant and said I wanted to try those. Now, I have small feet and always find it tough to find footwear in my size. This shop attendant said he had boots in my size, took out various boxes and sat down to help me try the boots. He took out the first pair and I stepped out of my chappals and sat on a sofa to try the boots. It now occured to me that I will have to pull up my long skirt to my knees to try the boots. It would have been so much better if I was wearing capris or a short skirt. Anyway, feeling awkward I put my leg into the boot that the shop attendant was holding out for me. It fit my foot perfectly. Now the attendant started pulling up the side zipper. Damn!! It was tight, the zipper wouldn't close and I embarassingly asked him to take off the boots and let me try another pair. My sister gave me a laughing look which meant, "You should start dieting". I scowled and tried another pair but the same thing happened again. This time the attendant tried hard to pull up the zipper and even asked me to stand so that the Boots could fit me. I guess he was desperate to sell because the boots in his shop were weird (I am sure the boots were weird and my legs are absolutely fine). I finally bought a bigger size but they fit me well and I will soon post a pic of them.

Accessories - The Right Look

Since I am not an accessory person, meaning I am not great shakes at accessorising my outfits so I asked my friend NV to help me put together some tips. NV is great at picking the right accessories and can carry almost any piece of junk jewellery. She is cute, somewhat plump, and has adorable cheeks. Many a time I jealously watch her shopping for HUGE glares, HUGE watches, HUGE earbobs, and HUGE beaded neck strings. She looks perfect wearing any such thing. Now, the HUGE accessory look doesn't suit me at all. I am the kind of person who looks best while wearing slim strings on neck, delicate watches, sober earrings, and bracelets are not made for me at all. Anyway, here come tips right out of NV's head for accessories:

1) While wearing a Black cocktail dress with your favourite black sandals, simply put on a fab watch, diamond ear studs and nothing else. You can also wear a matching beaded necklace with nothing in the ears and a nice matching bracelet or watch. Carry a good clutch (which goes with your watch and sandals) and the look is complete.

2) With printed tops and kurtis, avoid wearing anything in the neck. Earrings should also be simple. Sleeveless kurtis can be accessorised with matching bangles or bracelets. With plain outfits you can wear long neck strings and junk stuff.

3) It is smart to have a Golden, Copper and Silver clutch or bag. Black ones are too common but they help college-goers a lot. These colors go with many outfits but then remember to have a matching pair of footwear too.

4) While wearing a Business Suit, keep your style statement very simple. The only thing that can do wonders to your simplicity is a pearl necklace in any warm color (green, red, black, coffee). It looks super chic.

5) While wearing a Sari, many women go overboard with their jewelery. Even with a Sari, a nice watch, some sophisticated jewelery, and maybe a bracelet is enough. If you want to wear a nice, huge pair of earrings, then do not wear anything in the neck. Show it off instead (that looks hotter).

6) With Capris, knee or ankle length skirts, you can wear anklets in one leg or both, but they shouldn't be loud. Moreover, sandals and heels don't go with anklets, they look best with jodhpuris or slip-ons.

7) Always match your belts with your footwear and bag. If you want to show off a gorgeous belt, then wear it with plain outfits in colors that contrast with the belt.

This and That

The past few days have been all about visiting friends. I visited my childhood friend Nidhi, who had a baby boy on 2nd July. It was touching to see her with the baby who looks just like her.

BTW I get touched easily and for any reason whatever, which at times is awkward and embarassing. I was fighting back those stupid tears when I clicked Nidhi's picture with her baby. Thankfully, she did not notice. Another episode was when I got tremendously touched at NV's pre-wedding celebrations. NV was all decked up and danced to a traditional wedding song and I had these big tears welling up. Somebody even clicked a snap of that moment where I am standing with my friends with this teary-eyed look like a sentimental old lady. Oh! I hate myself for all such awkward moments.

The dumb teary-eyed look!

Yesterday, along with Priya and Neelam, I visited Pritika who will leave tonight to US for her higher studies (read MBA). I carried my digicam to click pictures with her and guess what, we ended up making Pritika click most of the pictures. Priya acted very greedy yesterday. She will kill me for writing this, but it makes an interesting story. She grabbed a stuffed teddy that was gifted to Pritika by some friend and said that she would take it as a parting gift from Pritika. Yes, you read it right. Priya's reason was that since Pritika is not taking the stuffed teddy to US, it will keep lying useless in her home, therefore that entitles her to take it. Pritika said that she had no intentions of giving away the teddy but Priya is one adamant female and she shamelessly told Pritika's parents that she wants to keep the teddy. They readily agreed and poor Pritika was left with no option. However, after we were driving back from Pritika's place and had driven for about 5 Kilometres, Pritika called and told Priya to come back with the teddy as it was a gift and she was attached to it. We had a good laugh at Priya and drove back to return the troublesome teddy.

Reminiscing about College Days - Part 1

Oh! those were the days. I don't want to sound like someone whose life isn't exciting anymore and keeps revisiting the past to fill the void, because that's so not true. Life has given me bigger and better things but College Days are always remembered, especially when your college buddies were a gang of girls known for being different from other girls. We were 8 girls living together in a flat in our hostel and the flat number was 18A. By the end of our first year, this number held a feeling of notoriety among the girls and warden and one of curiosity among the guys. What's up with 18A??? Why can't they be like the rest???
The simple answer to which was that 18A fortunately comprised of girls with similar mentality and attitude; all of us were thrown together by some strange co-incidence. We were never known for great achievements in studies (though most of us were good at studies and succeded in getting ourselves placed during campus placements). We were known for- untidy rooms, always breaking the curfew timings, loud music, late night parties, being too friendly with guys, never mixing ourselves with other studious girls, and creating other troubles. My hostel days were a lot of fun because of my mischievious friends and especially because of my roomie NV. We managed to spoil each other a lot during the four years of living together. NV was active in keeping the room untidy and I was lazy in tidying up, so the result was a mess to which we got used quickly. The coming of Warden into our rooms was always the time of great frantic activity- stuffing bags and clothes under the bed and in the almirahs, hiding novels and pretending to be in deep concentration over Math books. Once Warden said she would check our rooms before bedtime and we wanted to impress her for once with clean rooms. After dinner NV and I tidied up to the best of our ability and waited eagerly for Warden to come. She came and said, "Your room is very tidy". Both of us smiled from ear-to-ear and said, "Thank you Ma'm". To our astonishment Warden was furious, "Shameless girls, that was meant to be sarcastic" and she stormed out of the room. We looked around carefully, "Shit NV, how could you miss that pile of your clothes visible from under the bed", to which NV said, "And how could you miss the pile of novels on your table with the table-lamp overturned on top of them". To our horror we realized that our eyes had stopped seeing the mess, but we never changed, at least for 3 years.
We shared the same hostel building with male students, which at times caused trouble. Once at night there was a power-cut and instead of studying by the light of emergency lights like the other girls, we were having fun. The weather was hot and we came out of the flat with our chairs and sat there to enjoy the breeze. Our flatmate Plucky was in a jovial mood and started dancing to the song 'Can't get you out of my head' which she was playing on her portable player with batteries. She is a good dancer but that day her moves were particularly provoking and funny, as the light was low and there was nobody around. We watched her as she jumped around, moved her waist, gave arousing expressions and what not. In a few minutes we were laughing hard and as the song ended we heard the sound of clapping from somewhere above us. All of us dashed inside but cautiously came back again out of curiosty. On the floor above us was a bunch of senior guys from MCA and they clapped again as Plucky came out. Plucky was red from embarrasement remembering her dance moves but walked back inside in a dignified manner and slammed the door behind her, following which we heard loud laughter from the above floor.