Et Tu, Brute?

A so-called 'friend' takes me for granted....again.

Our Christmas....

.....went pretty well. The kids were up by 7 to open their presents. Lunch was 'Finish-leftovers' special. Sudha and kids came over at around 4 pm. Deepthi wanted to help cook the dinner, so I started preparing after they arrived. It was a totally mixed dinner - we had roast chicken, roast potatoes, stuffing, gravy, rice and sambhar, poori and aloo. The company made the whole thing so special - I had a brilliant time.

Silent Prayer

I remember loving this song when it first came out and having listened to it recently, I realised how much I still love it. What a lovely voice Shanice has! Here's hoping everyone I know has a great christmas.

M-isms

My four-year old said to her brother yesterday,"Anna, are you in the studion union?", where Anna = Big Brother, Studion Union = Student Union.

I'm also learning a bit of Irish from her (probably not a good idea, because when I repeated my new vocabulary to an Irish friend, she didn't quite understand me. Or perhaps the fault lies with me, the student.). She's taking her new job very seriously - 'Amma, after I finish my homework, you're doing yours.'.

The Cosiest Poem Ever...

I don't care what the critics say, this is one of my favourite poems:

The Autumn Song

Reading it makes me want to curl up on a comfy sofa or snuggle up under the duvet.

A Mild Winter

Somebody said to me the other day, "Isn't it great that today's temperature is 14 degrees Centigrade?". This wasn't September or October, it was the beginning of December. And I thought, "Whaaaaaa...? What's to feel so happy about? I'm worried sick here." At this rate we'll be soon having our BBQs out for Christmas, like they do in Australia. The seasons haven't been what they should be in the past few years and from what I gather, it's only going to get worse. What a great legacy to be leaving our descendents. Here's a neat little site to calculate and offset your carbon footprint.

http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx

Older and Wiser?

Three days after my birthday. Am I older? Definitely yes. Wiser? Hmmm....some people I know might want to debate that (and return the unanimous verdict of "Nay". ). All I can say is, I don't feel any different in my head than I did 10 years ago. My daughter asked me how old I was and I told her I was twenty. To her four-year old mind, that's a BIG age, so I knew she couldn't handle my real age (plus I didn't want her divulging it to everyone she met). Yesterday her teacher wished me belatedly on being twenty with a big grin on her face - what's so funny about it, I ask you? Like my 8-year old son pointed out sarcastically, I must have been twelve when I had him. Seriously though, I don't believe in lying about my age. I think we should all be thankful for each year we get to spend on this earth. And call it desperation on my part, but I really want to believe that women are like wine - they only get better with age. I felt really blessed on my birthday* - the wishes were pouring in, I had a surprise birthday party in my honour and a friend I'd lost touch with not only remembered my birthday but rang from Kuwait to wish me. That really meant a lot.

* despite the cruel jokes that were made about my age.

Poet of the Week - Vikram Seth

Wish I could reproduce my favourite poems here, but that would be a copyright violation. I'll have to make do with these links instead.

• All You Who Sleep Tonight (My most favourite - it's even on my kitchen wall)
• From California
• Prandial Plaint

Vikram Seth's Biography

Carl Sagan - My Hero

In my teens, I was a huge fan of Carl Sagan.The more I read his books and watched his TV series, the more I admired his work. The only fan mail I've ever written or will ever write I wrote to him. Yet, to my great regret, I never posted it because I felt a bit silly about it. On this day that lies somewhere between his birthday(November 9th)and his death anniversary(20th December), I thank him for making astronomy so interesting and fascinating for me.

More: SETI

My Daughter Gets to Know Her Hindu Gods

Leonardo Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man came up on our TV screen yesterday. My 4-year old daughter said, "Mum, we have that in our house". As I was wondering where at home she might have seen it - I was pretty certain we had no such thing - she pointed to the copper statue of Nataraja on our mantlepiece. She also sometimes refers to the statue of Buddha in our house as "Buddhu" (Idiot in Hindi).

The Importance of '4' in My Life

• My DOB adds up to 4.
• There is a 4-year difference between my parents' ages.
• My brother and I are 4 years apart.
• My kids were born 4 years apart.
• My home number ends in a 4.
• My phone no. has three 4s in it.
• Seems like my groups of friends come in sets of 4
• The year I graduated from Engg. College (it being a 4-year course) adds up to 4.
• My son was born on the 4th, my husband on the 14th and my daughter on the 24th.
• The accident that changed our lives happened on the 4th.

Coincidence?

Currently Reading...

There was a time in my life when I used to finish reading a book in one sitting. These days I'm lucky if I can read one chapter without interruptions. My goal for the next few months is to revisit the classics and read at least a few books from the Man Booker Prize list. Of all the books in there, I've only read Arundhati Roy's 'God of Small Things'. Right now I'm reading Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani. It's not from the Booker prize list, though. I enjoyed her memoirs in Cooking with My Sisters immensely. I'm only a few pages into Big Stone Gap, but I like it so far.

Ever share a recipe with a friend?

I didn't have potatoes,
so I substituted rice.
Didn't have paprika,
so I used another spice.

I didn't have tomato sauce,
so I used tomato paste.
A whole can not a half can
-I don't believe in waste.

My friend gave me the recipe
-she said you couldn't beat it.
There must be something wrong with her,
I couldn't even eat it.

~ Source unknown

Here's one recipe I never fail to share with my friends. It's fabulous, as is evident from the 700+ reviews.

This is My Little Corner in Cyberspace

A tiny piece of cyberspace to call my own,
To scribble my thoughts when all alone,
To record time as it has flown,
To laugh, cry, muse or moan.