My Life, A Cocktail

Lighted trees are everywhere and large shiny ornaments hang down from the ceilings of tall buildings. Snow mans and Santas are inflated to adorn the front yards. Icicle lights through the roof to go with that. Thoughtful gifts are arriving in mounds in Amazon packed boxes. Soon they will be wrapped, ribboned up and destined. Peppermint and caramel are the flavors of the season. People are nicer, more thankful and giving. It’s that wonderful time of the year!

If anyone would ever ask me for advice – Live. Live like there’s no tomorrow. Live every moment like there’s nothing else to do than what you are doing at present. Learn. There’s always something new to learn, each day, every day. Don’t let a single day go by without learning. Coach. Impart the knowledge. Share the glory. No, I am not an expert. But I am practicing. 

I was first introduced to this wonder in Fargo, North Dakota. Interesting selections of ice cream flavors and even more interesting mix-ins. Available in 3 sizes – Like It, Love It, Gotto Have It. Perfectly apt. Of course, now, it's more like a weekly Friday tradition. It didn’t take me long to find the One. It was called “Coffee Lovers Only”. Picture this. Coffee ice cream, at the right temperature. Not too cold, not too runny. Roasted almonds and heath bar crumbs. A nice drizzle of caramel. Lotsa marshmallows. Blended on a stone until they all come together in absolute harmony. Uhmazing! 

Exhausted and tired, I was on my way back on the train after a long week. I decided to read over music. Just as I was getting my book out of my backpack, I heard a sobbing angry voice. I turned and found the girl who was sitting opposite me shouting curses on the phone, tears streaming down her cheeks. She was loud and clearly upset. About something some guy had done. It almost seemed like the big fight after the breakup. The one sided conversation that I was party to, was mostly filled with phrases like “How can he f**k around like this, who does he think he is, who is he bull sh**ting” and other such wonderful gaali galoch, if you know what I mean. Thankfully, the train went through the tunnel and her phone disconnected. I could sense her friend on the other end sigh a big sigh. I am not sure if I would ever react this way in a similar situation, but I am not the expressive kind. My mind formed opinions without knowing anything about her, but that’s what vacant minds d...

It’s time for Halloween! Keeping with our yearly tradition, the spooky ghouls have been brought out, the spider lights have been wired and we have a nice and orange pumpkin carved to be a cute little monster. But this time, I also dared to try something new. Mini pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. They were an absolute treat, and an instant hit with my nieces.  Happy Halloween everyone!

Peeling old walls need repainting. To gain a fresh perspective and rid yourself of single mindedness. As Steve Jobs stated, "The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything*". Strive to be beginners, time and again. A splash of cold water. To stay hungry, stay foolish*. * Quotes from Steve Jobs' speech at Stanford

It was one of those days when I was able to get off work a little earlier than usual. I knew the Giants were playing and the traffic was going to be bad. In order to make it to the train station in time, I decided to take a cab. Boarded the cab and as expected, as soon as I uttered the magical words of “Caltrain station please!” I received a slight sigh from the African American driver. Being the suspicious person I am, I am always wary of cab drivers. Through the 2 mile drive, my mind is usually crafting intelligent rescue plans in the event something unforeseen were to happen. He drove like a cab driver should, he was fast, sharp on turns and cut people in the middle all the time. It took very little time for us to sprint through Market, through some random apartment complex, onto Brannan. I had only started to relax a bit as I alternated between checking a few emails on my phone to watching the wet streets after the rain and the sky grow darker, when I noticed him eye...

Sitting here on the upper deck of Caltrain on a Monday morning, sleepily typing away on my computer, the train comes to a crawling stop at the Menlo Park station. Yes, it’s one of those days again, there’s been a fatality somewhere near Hayward Park and all Northbound trains are stalled. The doors have been opened up for people to roam around and stretch. People are calm, while they assess how to go about their day, deciding between rescheduling their morning meetings and taking the calls from the train. Very few people get out of the train to leave and hitch a ride to work or return back home. Partly because, we are almost half way out from the South Bay to San Francisco, but also because, for most of these people, Caltrain is THE means of transportation on a daily basis. It’s amazing to see even in this fast paced, constantly sprinting world, people take it easy when things outside of their circle of influence go haywire. Some emails and pings later… Just got word that the original t...

I have a thing for soft toys. As kids, me and my sister would yearn for soft toys, while Dad essentially considered them “use”-less. To us, they were such an integral part of our lives, we would celebrate their birthdays and we would fight over what hairstyles we would give them. That obsession still remains. I got a peek into my niece’s stack of soft toys last night and I literally yelled out in excitement. I still continue to buy soft toys coz hubby gives in to my wishes easily. My current diet plan promises me a teddy if I reach a certain goal weight and that alone has been enough to keep me going. I know Valentine’s is just around the corner. Hubby, are you listening?

The relationship rejuvenated. Like Phoenix, it had risen from the ashes and taken a distinct form. Smiles had been exchanged and tears had been wiped off. The road was paved and the journey began. It wasn’t the same old, it wasn’t totally unfamiliar. It was like the best of both worlds; the memories of the past with the opportunities of tomorrow. Purposefully, there was going to be one thing amiss. Life doesn’t give second chances, but when it does, you learn from your mistakes.

It happens often to me. What I think I want is usually never what I actually want. I don't get what I think I want, I get something else. And then I realize, what I got was what I actually wanted.

Birthdays are wonderful. Opportunities for people to remind you how you special you are. It doesn’t really matter even if they are only pretending for that one day and being nice to you. The point is that it gives people the chance to be nice to you for at least one day in the year. The day started with waking up to calls and facebook wall post message alerts. Walking down the stairs I noticed something beautiful neatly arranged on the dining table. Yes, it was a fruit bouquet from Edible Arrangements! Of course, the fruits were all delicious, but the highlights were that it had pineapple carved into a “29” and had chocolate coated strawberries. Yum! Post that, hubby took me out to breakfast at IHOP, after which we went out on a 2 hour drive all the way to Big Sur. Like most road trips, it was all about the journey and not necessarily the destination. We stopped near the Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park to grab some lunch. In the middle of nowhere, there was this cozy little restaurant that...