A friend has a tagline 'You never know how strong you are...until being strong is the ONLY choice you have!'. It so true. I've often wondered how the film stars, sport stars, politicians, singers, social workers are the only women who feature among the woman of substance.

I've met some amazing women, normal everyday women, some educated, some illiterate, some with high paid jobs, some working exclusively for their families, some rich and some not so rich, some happily married, some on the verge of separation, some single and some heartbroken.

The one common thing that makes them amazing is their will to survive against all odds. The way they get up every morning despite all adversities and move on. The way they say no, the way they break down and then stand up again. The way they know that years of their hard work, love just got washed away and they are left with nothing but a battered body, mind and soul but still manage to live.

The courage they have to face the world every minute of the day. And the one thing I learnt from all of them is that sometimes all that matters is to survive, to hang on no matter what everyone says and thinks of your choice, your way of life. And that sometimes you need to flip off the world and laugh at them.

So here's to all those women I meet everyday! We are not super heroines girls, we don't need to be selfless, silent, suffering, kind, well mannered, neat and tidy all the time. Lets just be ourselves and let the ones who matter love us for who we are. The ones who can't and are waiting for us to be a la Tulsi Virani can just take a dip in the Yamuna (that should shut them up, have you seen the color of the water)

Ok MM take a break and go to china!

So now MMs...

Taken to smelling Gpos. He smells like heaven, or heaven as i see it or don't see it..whatever. The point is that Gpos has this cute baby smell, a mix of milk and baby powder and soap and something's thats uniquely Gpos. So i go around sniffing him whenever amma is not looking or she screams at me 'edi avante kavil chadum' (he's going to get puffy cheeks) and stuff.

The poor mite is probably terrified of this wacko woman sniffing around him. So terrified that every time i am near him he either pees or goes potty.

I've also taken to smelling his cute little ganjis and blankies...yeah i am slowly moving towards full senility.

Well thats the story of my life these days....it also includes eating fish curry, doing proposals, drinking some real weird coffee and downloading songs for my bberry.

Nothing earth shattering happening to write about...other than all the steamrolling being done by Jaya amma and Mamta di.

Does anyone watch IPL these days? And is the series supposed to end this century? Every time i see its chennai super kings in their horribly yellow t-shirts playing kochi tuskers in their usilampatti type uniform.

No new movies to watch..i mean Raaz 3d is not a movie. Its torture 3D

MM's ....

Sozzled, super sleepy and there's this buzzing in my brain. Lack of sleep can do that, turn a perfectly normal (ahem) human being into a flower (bees buzzing in my head).

Things one should do while in this state:-

• Stare at the computer real hard. Like you are pondering over a huge existential question. Kuch hoga nahi, you'll be able to convince your boss that you're working. It really works if you keep changing the screen, you know alternate between a word file, an excel file...makes it more realistic
• Think about ex boyfriends. The mind is in such an elevated state at this juncture that you finally realize how lucky you are at having gotten off..so easily. Man..all the time you spent crying over him were pittance compared to the time you would have spent crying if you actually hooked up with him. Very liberating
• Drink lots of water..lots and lots of it and sit in an AC room. Your bladder will fill super fast and then you can take potty breaks every half an hour. Fun na. It works too.
• Sound really low over the phone especially when talking to your folks but keep assuring them that you are fine and all dandy (since they'll be asking you if you're feeling well every two minutes). This will guilt them into coming and picking you up from the metro station/ bus station/ even your office if you know how to play it.
• Dream about the sleep you'll get once you go home. never works that way but hey a girl can dream. You could combine this with the point number one. Dreaming about the much needed sleep will give you mental peace and will put a vapid smile on your face prompting everyone around you to think that you are real pleasant person.

Ok.. I've gotta go..one bio break coming up

Its been so long since i've put down my thots digitally. Not many of those passing across this cerebrum/cerebellum these days. Its been overexcited with the grand arrival of my nephew christened sirimao gundappa moily by his one and only meymaa (me, me , me). His parents are of course looking for more suitable name but there's nothing like the sound of gundaps on the small leaking burping adorable piece of awesomeness.

Potty duty at night, changing nappies, cleaning bottoms..the story of my life these days. Am not complaining mind you, Its just that the moment i pick him up he either poops or pees. i have a feeling that he thinks i am the cleaning crew so he does his bit the moment he sees me. Anyways a girls gotta do what she's gotta do!

Have been travelling too..one city after another, patna, gandhinagar. Buying sarees, bhakarvadis, bells, bags...sadly no shoes.

Is anyone as disturbed with the rising popularity of Dexter? I am. I just can't seem to like the angst and confusions of a serial killer. Its not that i don't like gore and blood in my serials, anyone who can watch Bones has got their share of it. But i just don't get Dexter.

I've taken to reading random blogs these days...and some are superfantabulously funny. Do go through 'the local tea party'. It guaranteed to make you laugh your guts out.

ah the little mite is screaming..let me get my wash cloth and duster

it just felt wrong....

There's a small place next to our office functioning as a 'hobby center' where they teach tiny tots guitar, drawing, singing, dancing etc etc etc. Every evening around 4 you have these little ones with their mothers going up to the center and coming back around 5.30 chattering away to glory and trying to bring the whole building down.

But that's not the issue...yesterday while coming out of the office we saw a 6 yr old boy and his mother returning from this 'hobby center'. They got into the lift with us and the boy had a drawing book in his hand. While waiting for the lift to reach the ground floor he started showing his mother his work of art...green parrots, blue sky, the yellow sun. The mother looks at some of the drawings and points to one and says" this one is not of your standard, this one is OK..but this is definitely not your standard"

I was deeply disturbed. A few things that felt wrong

• Should a boy barely 6 know/ think about issues like perfection and standards?
• Is it really important for a 'hobby' to have a standard?
• Is this what chasing after excellence all about? What about having fun and enjoying your hobby?
• 'Standards'...quickly translates into standards for interaction with other human beings with issues of class coming in.

Maybe I am overreacting, maybe I don't know what it is to bring up a child in this competitive world, but I can't help feeling that something was just so wrong there.

Let me tell you about my mom...

Not a glowing eulogy of course, which has been done to death and ever after by Bollywood (sorry the Hindi Film Industry as a certain shirtless khan wants everyone to say). So its not going to be ‘Mere pass maa hai’…more like ‘sabke ke pass hai, mere pass bhi hai’.

So what’s special about me mommy…nothing…except that she is a sneaky woman who thinks I don’t know when she mixes gheeya with my dal or adds baingan in my sambhar. Imagine the horror of picking out pieces of mashed gheeya and baingan from my food. All because she thinks I have the brain of a two year old who can be fed cerelac with mashed tomatoes (yuck I tell you). She’s sneaky coz I never get to know I’m eating ‘milavati’ dal or sambhar until its half over. Unlike my father who ‘thinks’ he is james bonds and takes pride in announcing that sneaking banned vegetables into an otherwise innocent dish is the way to make children eat (yes he also thinks we have the mental capacity of a two year old. Poor thing, he also assumes we are deaf). So, you see, his plans fail before even taking off. But mom, she is too clever by the half. We never get to know when the bomb drops.

Reason number two- she almost always knows about our crushes. She never lets on, we never share anything with her, but that woman knows. The Libran is a mind reader I tell you. She sneaks into our minds and finds out our deep dark secrets. Scary. She knew about BIL and well other things we never ever talk about.

Reason number 3- she has a brilliant brain. She never lets anyone know though. She doesn’t want dad to get a complex. I am telling you the woman is sharp, irritatingly observant, has the memory power of an elephant. She is also patient and has got fourteen right hands (thank you god, since dad doesn’t know the difference between a hammer and a screwdriver). You wouldn’t believe the things that she has ‘invented’, everyday things but brilliant.

Reason number 4- She is so stubborn. To be Linda goodmanish..she is like a true Libran and can only see her point of view, which annoyingly is more often than not right. I as usual clash with her and my harassed younger sibling in true sunny paaji style ends up screaming “Ma ke saamne awaaz neechi kar daaga”(requested to add the nasal screaming tone)

Reason number 5- I absolutely envy the fact that she is so meticulous about her dressing and style. She has great skin and you would never catch her with a creased salwar or the sari pleat out of place. I on the other hand dress up in whatever comes first out of my messed up wardrobe and have the skin tone of rhino. Well I have also been spotted wearing two different pairs of shoes and ulta pajamas…it’s true I walked into intell land once wearing a bathroom slipper and a sneaker, I didn’t realize it until I stretched my feet. She must have picked up the wrong baby!!

Reason number 6- She puts up with- the pshyco whining, sweater staring, sharp tongued, totally lost and messy, unapologetically selfish and all round pain in the posterior ‘me’.

PS: I am going to write about my Dad one of these days..it will be titled “Who died and made you the monitor of my class”

MM's in Bitchy mood...

So she is going to bitch and complain and crib and sigh...If anyone has a problem ..suck it up

Its probably the cold, or the 2 and 1/2 hr metro ride, or the crazy job hours (including the travel) 6.45 am to 8 pm., or the constant pain I've been having in my back. I don't know. I am just tired and angry and just all around pissed.

- I am sick of the newspaper reports with scam a day. What F**k was this government doing all this while? Is there any place, any agency that is not corrupt in this country?And who are we to complain btw, we cheat on our taxes, bribe the cops and every other government official, drink and drive, honk and drive, we spit and smoke and urinate in public places, we keep adding rooms and verandas to our DDA constructed two bedroom houses making into a 5 bedroom monstrosity, we turn a blind eye to everything and then we complain. Right now i don't know who i'am more pissed at , the sarkaar or me

- They have the nerve to say that to say that they are closing murder case because the evidence was destroyed. I pay my taxes religiously so that they can say this!. and what about the people who were supposed to took the evidence. Weren't they trained enough? Did they just let anyone from the road gather evidence? And why are the people responsible for destroying/ damaging the evidence NOT being prosecuted?

- Why do people have to push and shove while getting into the metro? why can't they just get up on time and get their work done on time. Why does everything have to be last minute rush?

- Why are they not getting the second season of castle back on star world?

-Why is Shahid Kapoor so desperately imitating SRK? Couldn't he have atleast taken the pains to imitate someone who was not a mix of three yesteryear superstars?

- Why am I left with no time to read and relax and dream and sleep and think?

the Whys have left me too exhausted to go on?