House to Home

S and I recently came back from the US where we were for the last 6 and 4 years respectively. We landed in India and moved to namma Bengaluru after a short attend-weddings-at-home stint. S had come down to B'lore 2 weeks before N and I landed and zeroed in on a place to rent. I had no clue and no choice but to trust S' judgement and choice. And it did turn out to be great :)
The apartment we are currently in is a new construction ( I love that part) with beautiful mini-green-areas, well maintained lawns & colourful flowers. Oh yes there are walkways, a play area for the kiddies, swimming pool, lawn tennis and badminton courts, a clubhouse, gym and sauna among the other things thrown in by the builders to charm people.
We are in a rented place. And are swinging between the decision to buy vs not-buy in Bangalore. But that doesn't stop me from dreaming!!
:)
So I go around window shopping for all the stuff that would be in my dream house. If all that furniture and home decor found their way into my dream house it would resemble a storage place rather than home. Will update this space soon with all the stuff I would love to have some day.

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Busy...

Life has been crazy busy with so much happening and its fun! 
An exhibition happened last weekend and one more is coming up this weekend. New friendships have been formed, family re-unions are waiting in the wings.
Oh and burger loving fans - there is the Legendary Burger Festival going on at Hard Rock Cafe! I am going to try that soon.

The holiday season is almost here and I can feel the carols in the air!

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N saw a huge christmas tree in Leela Palace and he has been asking for one ever since. He has also been singing "Jingle bhell Jingle bhell" and "Rudholf the redd nosed deindeer" much to our amusement.

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Perfect!!

There are some days when everything goes just as planned. Today was one of those days - just perfect! :)
It was a foggy, grey winter morning today. The ones where you feel like being bundled up on the couch or day-bed near the window with a hot cuppa coffee - something like this -

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N was supposed to go to school early starting today. That would give me more time and flexibility to work. So off he was and I caught up on work - had the cup of coffee I was yearning for too. No lovely-by-the-window couch though :( 
Managed to finish some work and a lot of other stuff too! N came back - unperturbed by the extra 2 hours at school - he seemed happy rather. Had his lunch and dozed off to sleep.

I hope this lasts ... well even if it doesn't there are good days like today always.

BTW, I am looking forward to the OWC Christmas Bazaar on Sat, Dec 4th here in Bangalore.
Check out the Red River blog here for details.

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A new beginning

Any new beginning is like a baby - you wait for it in anticipation, you love and treasure it, you give it all you have, you like to see it grow and prosper and you want the best for it always!
This is exactly how I feel about the RedRiver.
After a year long sabbatical from active work life I have joined the Red River in its goal to make lives better. It is a break away from my field - I was in IT earlier.
The Red River is a mission based organization with socio-economic goals. It was founded in June 2009 by a very dear friend - Kakoli Das. The Red River links weavers of the North Eastern India to sustainable markets, thereby increasing sustainable incomes.
We do home decor & lifestyle products, fashion accessories and corporate gifts.

To find out more about what we do check us out
on FB - http://www.facebook.com/TheRedRiver
or at our website - http://www.theredriver.in/
or at our blog - http://www.onthebankoftheredriver.blogspot.com/

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Social skills!

Why do some people lack basic social skills?
And if they don't have any - why don't they watch and learn.

In my experience the following set of species are the most irritating -
1) The advisor - Shall I add that "unsolicited" precedes advisor? They are usually the unassuming kinds who seem very harmless but with one mighty lash of their tongue they could spoil your entire day. They can dispense expert advice (in their opinion) for anything and everything under the sun! From "why don't you give your child some honey for the cough?" - I just did that lady! to "You shouldn't wear that dress/shirt/top/whatever..." - Did I even ask your opinion. And no they just don't get that "look" you give them.

2) The Ms/Mr take-you-for-granted - These kinds think they can use you for anything and everything - without asking. This could include using your car to make a "quick" trip to the supermarket, borrowing your iron/hair dryer/mixer and not returning it till you go and ask for it after 10 days, or sending their kid over to play with yours every afternoon just when you are about to nap! Ouch!

3) The nosey parker - This species relishes any opportunity to head into your house and update their current affairs knowledge. They know who in the neighbourhood is planning to run off with whom, whose geyser is not working, whose maid steals and who went shopping. They are often found stuck to the keyhole on their main door!

4) The know-it-all - This species considers themselves the Encyclopedia Britannica's of the world. For everything you say they will have something more to add. They always want to have the last word. No one measures up to their strict criteria of "being-perfect" and "knowledgeable". They never lose the opportunity to show off their gathered expertise.

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Talk to me

"Come. Sit. Talk to me. What's your plan today mamma?" - This is what N said to me while gazing into my eyes.
I was surprised, bemused, amazed and laughing out loud - all at the same time.

Apparently this was S's version of man-to-man conversation with N while mommy was out shopping.

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N's bookshelf on papertigers blog

I had recently blogged about the "Around the world in 100 bookshelves" project at the papertigers blog.
N's bookshelf is featured on the papertigers blog - click here to see it!

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