Things that pep me up when I got the blues...

I started the day by listening to Billy Joel on my office computer... She's always a woman to me... And realized its a song I used to often listen to when down and out while in college. And somehow it always brought a smile back to my face.

So I decided to pen down some of things that pep me up when I got the blues.

So here goes...

- Looking at old pictures of myself and my sister. The crazy fashion statements we made at that point in time. And the equally weird hair-do's we sported!

- Leafing through birthday cards I have received over the years.

- My high school 'slam' book. It has tufts of hair of my friends stuck on to some of the pages!

- A good hot water shower followed by slapping on oodles of perfumed body lotion. Somehow smelling good always chases away the blues!

- A packet of greasy calorie laden chips munched down while watching old re-runs of 'Friends'.

- Calling up my sister and dumping my problems on to her and getting her all bluesy:)

- Lighting up incense cones.

And how can I not mention the bestest way to chase away the blues...

A big bear hug from my teddy Mr.G!!

And so we turn one.

Time indeed flies. It still feels like yesterday but today Mr. G and I celebrate our first wedding anniversary.

And I have decided to dedicate this post to Mr. G.

For not only has he filled my life with laughter and love but he's also taught me so much.

So this is for the man who's my 'Rock of Gibraltar'!


You're Still the One.

When I first saw you, I saw love.
And the first time you touched me, I felt love.
And after all this time, you're still the one I love.

Looks like we made it.
Look how far we've come my baby.
We mighta took the long way.
We knew we'd get there someday.

They said, "I bet they'll never make it".
But just look at us holding on.
We're still together.
Still going strong.

You're still the one I run to.
The one that I belong to.
You're still the one I want for life.
You're still the one that I love.
The only one I dream of.
You're still the one I kiss good night.

I'm so glad we made it.
Look how far we've come my baby.

Food smells that make me go mmmmm....

WritehandDrive... I stole the heading of your post. Is this blogger plagiarism?

I thought I would add to your long list with some of my own. And hey you gave the leeway to keep the list on. So here goes my list of food smells and some other smells that make me go mmmm...

Be warned that some of them might be an overlap to your list.

- Tea brewing with mint leaves and freshly ground pepper.

- The smell of ginger pounded in a pestle and mortar.

- Fish frying in mustard oil.

- The smell of fresh coriander sprinkled on hot spicy chicken curry.

- The smell of 'hing' sprinkled into pot of boiling sambar.

- The aroma wafting around the 'Cookie Man' outlets at malls.

- Fresh corn being buttered.

- The various aromas floating around the 'Lush' stores.

- The smell of woollens when they are taken out for the winter months.

- Aahhh the smell of kerosene and 'rubber solution'.

- And how to forget the smell of mud rising up from the earth after the first rain showers.

- Garlic pickle in brine... mmmm

- The smell of 'curry leaves' crackling in hot oil.

- Crackling jeera and chili powder in ghee poured over hot and steaming dal.

- The smell of dogs (this is for all the dog lovers) soon after a bath.

- Fresh paint and varnish.

Hmmm... can't think of any more. Mr. G look forward to you adding or rather making a list of your own.

For all those who want to check Writehand Drive's list... here's the link - http://writehanddrive.blogspot.com/

Gastronomical Sunday!

The morning started with Mr. G on an expedition of his own. I strongly believe he was building up a hearty appetite for all the food to come. Full of energy and enthusiasm he cycled all the way for his classes. He reached there dragging his rubbery legs. very bravely shook a leg (and eyed the girls I'm sure for the next hour!!). And then... Mr. G I applaud you for this... "It was great show that you came back cycling' (Way to go)

The rest of Sunday was a pure gastronomical trip for Mr. G and me. What else would you expect when 6 foodaholics get together.

We had Abi and Basil chopping away furiously at some tapioca in our kitchen which they claimed they knew how to make. I figured somewhere well into the furious chopping that ...ahem They had made it once three years ago!! There was a huge pot of Kerala Fish curry and some Beef curry simmering away on the burners and (if I may say so myself considering I made those) smelling divine.

Vidya was busy in her kitchen upstairs cooking up a storm. And the delicious smells of appam batter and Vegetable stew wafted below to tantalise my nostrils.

Soon all the foodies had assembled. There was a fridge full of cold chilled beer. Which I eyed greedily!! But settled for glass after glass of chilled Guava Nectar. There was friendly banter and jokes being cracked. Beer being gurgled and Guava Nectar disappearing faster than the beer. Abi and Basil by then were keeping Vidya company and cooking up another storm in our kitchen.

Finally all the food was ready, all the beer and Guava Nectar guzzled down. The food was like a spread for the Gods. The mallu Gods that is! It was almost like Coconut grove being transported straight into our home:)

Kappa, Kerala Fish Curry, Beef Curry, More Curry, Bullet Rice, Vegetable Stew, Appams and Inzipulli! For all who know their Kerala cuisine... you sure know what a spread that is. Almost like a Mini-Sadya!!

So by 5 we all were stuffed and ready to sack. Which is precisely what Mr. G and I did till our slumber was broken and we were invited for an evening party.

So off we went for another round of food and drinks. The company was eclectic, there was good wine and booze which I again eyed greedily and then stuck to some Lemony Tang. It was a motley bunch of people comprising flight trainers, pilots, flight instructors, air-hostesses, mall managers and the like. Really enjoyed the night with good conversation, good tang(phew) and another gastronomical trip.

Steamed and fried sausages (they were the amazing crumble-in-the-mouth variety), coriander rice, chicken curry, exotic vegetables in freshly ground pepper, Prawns masala and creamy raita.

All polished up with some gooey-sinful gelato!

The night ended for us at 2 am(and on a Sunday night too). But a lovely Sunday nevertheless. Not so lovely on our poor tummies. But all the yummy food was well worth it!

So here's to more hedonism on Sunday's to come!!!

Object D'Art!

Walk up the Dom Joao's lane towards Ronils and on your left is this small 'tattoo parlour'.

Run by a Kashmiri chap who insists on speaking in English and doesn't seem to understand if you try Hindi on him. He's got this Japanese lady who works out of his parlour and does some amazing body art. She doesn't speak much English except for a 'Yes' and a 'No' and 'Ooh it pains'?

But she works magic with her hands, her pins, needles and various inks and transforms simple sketches and tracings into wonderful and amazing pieces of body art.

So like each time, along we trudged to pay her a visit. Mr. G went back again and again. Till I suspected if it were the tattoo's or the lady he was interested in!

But sweet Mr. G like always gave me an option to choose the design. But not the object d' art since that was fixed, set and sealed in his mind.

Now since I knew fuming, fretting, huffing and puffing and threatening to hold my breath till I die were ploys that would not have worked I relented and picked up the design for him.

So the next evening with his mission clearly defined, out he set for his date with the Japanese lady. After an hour of seething I finally decided to pay him a visit which lasted all of 2 1/4 minutes. I hate the sight of pins and needles and decided to make myself scarce before I did something as stupid as swoon!

Hate as much as I do to admit it... well the object d' art is well...nice...Ok...Ok...It's actually very nice. And well I married one didn't I?? So I got to like it:) No love it:)

I have the picture of Mr. G's tattoo up. Do let me know what you think.

Tripping on Goa!

This is going to be a detailed post on the eateries we haunted this time in Goa. And also some inane stuff I thought I should mention.

I have always binged on the food in Goa. Not because its a gourmand's delight but because just like Goa makes you thirsty for beer it also gives you hunger pangs at regular intervals.

This time since I had to curb the thirst pangs and satiate it with repeats of soups I made sure I compensated that with all the food I could get into my tummy.

- Lucky Star: Our favourite haunt though this time we didn't hang there as much as previous times. The Nepali waiters there know us by name and Mr. G loves speaking with them in Nepali and doing some serious bonding. Though I am yet to see it translate into some serious discounts for us. Lucky Star dishes out some yummy Butter Garlic Calamari and Squids which is Mr. G's staple diet whilst in Goa. Try their Manchow soup its yummy (can't beat the Kings though!). Also their Tandoori fish is nice with the yummiest salad served along with it. Evenings at Lucky Star are swell. Comfy chairs by the splashing sounds of the ocean. And Himesh Reshammiya competing with The Black Eyed Peas! The music is not worth writing about and its seems to be headed the 'party-sharty way'.

- Mambo's and Titos are best avoided. The Titos lane has lost its charm of being a beachy shacky by lane in Goa and has been transported straight into some by lane in 'the dilli'.

- Brittos is a lovely place to pig out on some scrumptious 'English Breakfast'. Greasy sausages and bacon. Stiff toast with sunny side-up eggs and a cool refreshing tall glass of Orange Juice. The latter being served in a jiffy and the former seems to take forever (almost like the cook has to catch the eggs as soon as its laid)!

- Walk down Brittos to our fave haunt this trip ' Athens'. Thanks to S and the oh-so-typical place he would frequent. The first day they killed us with some 'Fisherman from Goa' songs. Almost like an album made by them. But yes they did play some good Eagles and Don Williams after we made our displeasure clear. The cold coffee is to die for and the wood fire pizzas are outta this world. A must try is the Hot n Spicy pizza. The King Fish with Rechardo sauce is yummy by the beach at night. And not to forget the Goan fish curry and rice.

- Electric Cats. A small shack down Dom Joao's we discovered the last time round and into which we initiated our friends this time. Run by a small stocky ever-smiling Mallu chappie. So unassuming and you wouldn't believe that he owns four such restaurants in Goa. The Prawns and Calamari looked yummy enough to eat. But since I didn't want my tongue curling or me breaking into a rash I avoided those and stuck to (believe it or not) Dal and Roti. And Mr. Mallu sweetly gave me a Manchow Soup (Do I hear a not again!) on the house.

- Lousy Food and Warm Beer. A new place at Candolim run by some friends of S&S. Gavin with his sweet smile and lovely music. Zeereen with a constant cigarette dangling from her lips and her sweet chatter. Its was a lovely place. One that made you feel oh so welcome. I lived up to my oddities and had some palak paneer and rotis. Before I hear an 'Ugh!!' let me tell you that all would vouch that the palak paneer was simply delicious. I danced to some amazing retro that Gavin played a bit too loud and Savz did a crazy jig too.

- Do avoid Mike's hideout unless you fancy some hard-as-rubber Beef Chilly and runny soup.

- The best thing at La Calypso's Water-front was the mouth watering Nougat Butterscotch Cake. It was even yummier since it came complimentary for G's birthday. Its a lovely place but what makes it oh-so-sad is Himesh Reshammiya blaring out at you all the time in his nasal voice!

- The best part about Goa was sitting at the balcony at Dom Joao's bonding over endless cups of tea. Or just staring out into nothingness.

Thanks to all who joined us on this trip. It was great and the Goa hangover is yet to go!

It's a Goa state of mind...

We are back. The holiday is over but for me its still a Goa state of mind.

I can never have enough of Goa though this time round we were on a longer stay.

Goa... Goa... Goa... It was such a blissful, relaxing and rejuvenating holiday. We did absolutely nothing! And the feeling of 'doing nothing' surpasses everything.

No beds to me made, no breakfast to be made, no rushing in the morning to get to work, no meetings to attend, no calls to take, no briefs to be written, no egos to be massaged, no deadlines to be met, no groceries to be bought, no dinner to be made, no instructions for the maid to be left, no household chores to worry about... no nothing to be done!

Savz, Sushim, Nealesh, Lata, Salman, Sangeeta, Mr. G and me...

Brittos, Athens, Lucky Star, OPM, Electric cats, La Calypso, Lousy Food and Warm Beer...

Fish, Mussels, Calamari, Squids, Prawns...

Beach beds, massages, tans and sunscreens...

Gossip, gossip and more gossip...

For them Breezers, Kings, Fenny, Bacardi, Wine, Gin...

For me the soups after soups!!

A lovely birthday for Mr. G with all who love him around him.

A lovely holiday for us.

Viva la Goa - esa!

Yessssssss... its finally here!!

We are off to Goa tomorrow to soak up the surf, the sea and the sand. A break Mr. G and I both have been so looking forward to.

And then ofcourse Goa is our fave holiday place and oh-so romantic.

Write hand drive joins us on Thursday. My soul sista always brings a smile to my face.

So I am going to be taking a hiatus this week from blogging.

But I'm going to be back come Monday with loads of pictures and our holiday diary.

Until till then Viva la Goa-esa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Devil Wears Prada!

We finally caught this movie two nights ago on DVD.

A dishy comedy with an even dishier Simon Baker playing the role of the novelist with romantic ideas for Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway).

The movie is based on the novel by Lauren Weisberger who incidentally worked for sometime with the editor of Vogue. And some say that this book is her revenge!

A comedy with the boss-from-hell routine and a babe in the woods trying to find her footing in the world of New York publishing. Andy feels that working at Runway under Miranda Priestly will give her the experience to finally work at the New Yorker.

Meryl Streep is brilliant in her portrayal of Miranda who runs Runway like Pol Pot. I guess the movie would have sunk without her.

And the clothes in the movie are worth dying for. I loved the movie for its clothes and of course Meryl Streep.

A nice enough flick for a quiet weekday evening.

Strange Ways!

There are some things which in retrospect I find so intriguing. I was reflecting back to five years.

Year 2001. Sometime in August. I am not sure of the date but yes it was a Saturday. If I knew then that, that day would be of monumental significance to me, I am sure I would have etched the date in my mind for posterity sake.

That was the day I met Mr. G for the first time.

A Hi, I am Deepti and a Hi, I am Gaurav kind of meeting.

Who would have known then that our paths would intertwine and we would be together forever.

Though from after a week of having known each other, I considered me being his and he being mine. Nothing was said or assumed. It was like karmic destiny. And things just fell into place slowly and over time.

Today when I think of that night in 2001 and to today when we are expecting our baby... I can only say... Strange ways!