out-ing the day with an 8 month old..

We stopped in front of a kirana store (run by a baniya*, people who have moved from Rajasthan to the Marathi-ness of Pune), and inquired about the Sabudana rate. Why ? Because pregnant friend who is now the mother of a 8 month old Avani, thought all the big shops (the marts and all) were making her pay more. Of course there was a difference. Not drastic, but then we could rationalize the extra charges by the marts for packaging and cleanliness etc. The baby got her first grocery lesson.


We moved on to a bigger 'more now' mall. We roamed around, going crazy over all the cutesy baby stuff (we had a baby with us!!). We felt good about a pair of friends having fun with the baby. At the checkout, when asked to fill in a membership form, I promptly showed them the 'now' (then?) distressed and hungry baby and asked if we could skip. We were allowed to. Saved by a 8 month old!

retro baby!!

During a pit stop we also decided that sometimes not-so-educated people are wiser and simpler. About life. You can call this 'randomness in conversation' among friends.


When the outing was about to end, we bought plants from a nursery. We tried haggling and then bargaining. We sucked. But may be he saw it too and to make us feel good, gave away one tulsi plant for free :D


All this while Avani was fast asleep in her kangaroo bag! And we garnered all the smiles from passing by parents,ladies (not the creepy kind) for her cuteness! 


Day outs are fun. Specially with toddlers :)


-nightflier

*Brother asked the boy (I seriously dont know his name :() from the kirana store about school during a home delivery, and thus we got to know about the Rajasthan connections.

The best friend's (II) wedding!! - II

The worst part about any function is it gets over so soon! As in you are busy planning, strategizing, anticipating hiccups and bam its over!


I am in the wedding hangover phase. Considering how I have never liked attending weddings, I suffering a hangover, is an urban myth (:P). Well, I basically dont like the superficial conversations and artificial warmth oozing out of people on such occasions. But I have now grown over it and can actually mingle with loads of people without getting typecasted in the above mentioned evils. Thanks to my improving social skills (in my own way) over time. :D


So apart from enjoying my hot favorites in the entire wedding hungama, mehendi and good food i.e. I did a lot of people watching, as my busy schedule permitted. And since there is a huge possibility that the bride will come to know that I missed being on the stage when the var-maala (wedding garlands ?) were being exchanged, I will confess it in public.


There was lots of running around, search parties for trivial stuff, amends in plans, attending to friends' parents and relatives, where did this go and where did that go crises but the wedding went on pretty smoothly. And since India eventually lost the cricket match on 12th evening (which took place in my home town btw and I was really psyched about missing an opportunity to watch the match sitting inside the stadium) things remained normal in the wedding household. People had given up any hopes they had, after that abysmal batting order collapse. So yes things did go smoothly. ;)


This was my first time at a wedding organized entirely by the bride and groom by sharing responsibilities. Quite a proud moment for all of us remotely involved. And this is my cynical touchstone, when it comes to the concept of weddings inside my head. 


here's wishing them both the very best out of life together :)


~nightflier

The best friend's (II) wedding!! - I

After promising each other unconditional love, support and wait, the better one is leaving me for greener pastures of marital bliss.. Sigh..
(all the drama is quite necessary as it basically revolves around the two of us :D)

Lee and me are a lot alike. Totally unaware of a lot of girly things out there! Though we dream of princes like Collin firths and smirk at overly girly behavior, we are not needlessly called soul-mates by fellow groupies.

So 3 days before the wedding, today was spent in a beauty spa getting all lady like treatment and us behaving in courtesy. Amidst the steam caps, bleach layers, facial creams, moisturizers, toners, lotions and weird hair bands not a single opportunity was spared by the two of us, to wink, giggle, make faces, gush, choke ourselves with sarcasm and laugh inside our heads uncontrollably. We get each other. Totally! And when we don't we make up for it by being there. Life is simple actually :)

It is true that you don't choose your friends, but life chooses them for you. And with those chosen few are formed some of the best memories one can ever make :)

~nightflier

P.S. despite the not so straight undertones of the post we really do compliment each other ;)
And lee I hope you shed some tears if you ever happen to read this post:P

Jab we met !!!

I met him after an year today !

As I parked the activa and went inside, there was slight hesitation in my mind.

Will he recognize me ?

Will it be like the old times ?

Will we meet like kids, without caring for what others think ? OR

Will we meet like two adults who care for what people might think about such public display of affection ?

Will we hug or just pat each other ?

Will he let go of me ?

Will he jump at my purse to see what I have got him ?

Will he scold me with his typical growling voice for not visiting him for so long ?

Will he come outside to say me goodbye, later ?

Well, when we did meet finally, he did not move from his place first. His gaze was fixed on me. Yes, the same heart mending look, which had made me fall for him. My heart skipped a beat, but then he stood and started walking towards me !!! After the initial awkward moments, we let go of inhibitions and met like kids! I patted him and caressed him. He returned it with the heart warming hug. He had not forgotten me at last :)

Well, then I proceeded towards meeting other folks. As the evening progressed he could be seen to be constantly around me. He did everything he could to grab my attention. And I kept on pretending that I was not getting any of those 'subtle' hints ;)

Yes, Bruno still remembered me. Like the old times.

I just did not have any answer for his inquiring gaze, asking me where his real girl friend was ? I just said, sorry dude, she wont be here till December.

And yes, he did come till a very long distance to say goodbye, in his own caring and affectionate way of racing with my vehicle, till he could match with the activa's horsepower.

~nightflier :)

P.S. Bruno is a friend's dog :) And we have our history ;)

count your blessings !!

A friend sent me loads of stuff from India and you won't believe how blessed I feel at this moment.

Even though she does not read my blog that often, I am going ahead and dedicating this post to her.

We have spent 4 years of undergraduate life as roommates, technically seeing each other through the thick and thin of college days, spent away from home. She was the perfect companion. She was always there, understanding, fighting, consoling, teasing, caring, and never giving up on me. We blended so well together that our parents never worried about us. They knew we were in safe (each other's) hands.

As hostelites we had planned to visit every one's hometown at least once during the four years. And this amazing girl bonded so well with all my relations, that they still remember her fondly. 

Her purity and innocence are so soothing, that just talking to her after a very bad day, puts a bright smile across your face.

I remember, we (a bunch of friends) lecturing her about how careless she was with her health and food habits. Now she lives alone in a big bad city independently, taking care of herself, eating the proper foods, exercising regularly and striking a balance with her workaholic ways. And at the end of the day she is a good daughter, a good sister, a good employee and a better friend. I could not have been more proud of anyone.

Call it luck but its a miracle to find people who love you for who you are at every turn of your life. There could not have been anything more miraculous in my life.

And today as I eat the Indian bhel poori (she sent me a bhel poori packet thinking I must be missing out on my favorite snack. Such thoughtfulness, I am touched beyond words..) I cannot stop myself from going down memory lane and getting nostalgic.

You rock girl !!

I loveeeeeee you :) :)

~nightflier

Friendship

I read an article about friendship somewhere. I don't know in which category my friends are.

But I do know that, I "love" them all. 

So no matter how much we fight, what happens between us, if we keep in touch or not, if we get too busy with our lives, if we do or do not meet often, if we don't call each other up every now and then, if we don't talk about what's new and happening in each others lives, if we don't write each other long mails about friendship and love, if we just switch off from the scene for a while, if we do or do not turn up at each others' doorstep in the hour of need, we keep going!!

That's how it has been. I have had them by my side at the greatest and weakest moments (considering I have spent my late teens and early twenties outside the cozy cocoon). That matters for me.

Friends make me feel special in their own way. And yeah, specially on birthdays. It's an unsaid rule of my life, which I am sadly stating in public that, you can not forget to call me up on my birthday. Not all things are ideal in this world !!

Cheers to this weird kind of frengdship !!

nightflier :)

P.S. this blog is dedicated to some special people. Thankfully they know who they are :)

coming around

What do you do when you have had the fight of your life with one of your buddies?

What do you do when you realize how lonely you have become?

What do you do when you realize that you are in the US of A?

What do you do when you are sulking in the remains of a nasty fight?

What do you do when you have not slept properly for the past 3 weeks?

What do you do when sense finally starts prevailing and ego starts shedding?

What do you do when you realize 'Relationships are horcruxes. One should not break away 

from things so easily.' (Someone really sane had told me this once).

What do you do when you realize that you have been secretly brooding over things yourself, and counting on the chances of the other person coming around?

What do you do when the 'other person' actually calls up after all the shit?

What do you do when you start realizing how selfish and small you have been?

What do you do when the better of you, the goodness tells you to forget?

What do you do when the ego tells you that its ok to forget but not so easy to forgive?

What do you do when the void forming inside is too much to bear?

What do you do when you are really down in the dumps and need a shoulder to cry on?

What do you do when the real meaning of friendship starts sinking in?

What do you do when 'it's time to be good and nice again'?

I think, you just dial the number in your phone directory and don't ask so many stupid questions to yourself.

Life is too short to be bad and nasty to people. Friendships are too bigger than ego, to give up on.

Emotions are too complex sometimes, to actually give so much thoughts and energy to.

Life is really easy if you set it straight!!

nightflier !