The Month That Was April-2021

Image Source

Living life in déjà vu. Last wedding anniversary was in lock-down. With international trips out of question we thought we will travel within the country extensively. Again, we had to cancel our trip due to the weekend curfew that eventually turned into a statewide lockdown. Determined not to be bogged down by this we booked a luxurious hotel within the city to get the much needed pamper and break. Most people don't understand why we had to opt for this when we had all the privacy at home. Everyone deserves to splurge a little on grandeur for exotic experiences on their special day.

I was running fever for straight 3 days without cough or runny nose. It is good to mention I had lost sense of smell and it continued for a month. Since the symptoms were negligible I had not opted for COVID test, but this time I knew for sure it was Corona. According to me I had contracted this virus twice, each during respective waves. No one was prepared for the second wave. This time around it hit closer to home. Uncle D had been tested positive. He just had bypass surgery in January. Entire family was on edge. Fortunately despite being a primary contact Ammamma stayed negative and uncle recovered in no time. Because the trains were operating cousin M1 managed to travel to be with the family even in the middle of lockdown. We heard news of many people losing the battle. The cry for oxygen and hospital beds were terrible. And the elected government continued to disappoint. I know I'm fortunate to have food on the table, roof over my head, means to nourish my mind, and my loved ones safe and healthy. That can't be said for millions of countrymen.   

We had been to native for Ugadi. Mother stayed with us for 10 days before the lockdown. Because of this my reading got limited to only 3 books. They are Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe-Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Beach Read-Emily Henry, and Educated-Tara Westover. Among them 'Educated' impressed me so much so that I went ahead and watched Westover's TedTalk, her interviews with Oprha and Degeneres. 

The movies were Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi (Hindi), Jijo (Malayalam), The Great Indian Kitchen(Malayalam), Madam Chief Minister (Hindi), Love (Malayalam), Kilometers and Kilometers (Malayalam), Uyare (Malayalam), Sudani From Nigeria (Malayalam), Halal Love Story(Malayalam), Jati Ratnalu (Telugu), Pagglait (Hindi), Roohi (Hindi), Tuesdays and Fridays (Hindi). The Great Indian Kitchen is one of the best movies of recent times. In fact it should be made a part academics to sensitize the young minds about gender issues.

Our tryst with Crown ended in the first week. Hippie Sabotage's Devil Eyes video unexpectedly made us to see the Peaky Blinders' version. As crazy as it might sound I was instantly hooked to the swag of Shelby family and dragged hubby to the five seasons of crime drama. My current ringtone is also Otnicka's form of Peaky Blinders. If I could have my way I would have given Hubby a peaky cut, but he vehemently refused the offer. His loss anyways! During the course of this we're saddened to hear the demise of Helen McCrory who played Polly in the same.

One of the best experiences was to watch the iconic drama 'Mukhyamantri', played by Mukhyamantri Chandru. It must have been the 750th show. We all know how Chandru got the screen name, but never thought we will be fortunate enough to see him play the original character. Though little weak and old, on stage he has the same charisma way better than the silver screen. And continued our theater fest with new drama, Matte Mukhyamantri by the same troupe and artists.

April has been kind. Hope for the same in May.

Laundress

Image Source

A large pile of dried clothes is staring back at me to be folded. Another dirty heap is accumulating in the laundry basket. One more lot is drying in the hanger forever. Have you ever hoped the clothes can get folded itself?

I enjoy sniffing the freshly dried clothes. I use generous dose of fabric conditioner just to satiate my sensory pleasure. I don't believe their claim of keeping clothes soft and wrinkle-free. Setting dirty laundry into the washing machine is the only easier part. You need an immense level of patience to entangle them before putting it out to dry. I sun dry only bed spreads, blankets, duvet, towels, and mats. Rest of them will be hanged inside. I wash them in the evening so they will be bone dried by morning. Since the railings are higher I take hubby's help on this particular chore. And I don't forget to mention "couple who dry clothes together stay together".

My extended family is aghast when I told them I wash clothes only thrice a week. Some were very curious about the specifics. It was a sight to behold when I mentioned we put our undies to the machine. Later I was told none of them would put their appliance to such an impiety. Pardon me for metaphorically washing my dirty laundry here.

As hubby wears formals to office, those shirts' cuff and collar needs to be cleansed separately before machine washing. It hardly takes 5 to 10 minutes, but getting to do that needs a herculean will power. No matter who does the chores. We both feel the same.

And most dried clothes stay in the guest room. Since I've the work station there I get to see them continuously. Do you know how much time consuming it is to fold socks, undies, hankies? Since two of us cohabitate the fabric needs to be arranged separately. Sometimes when guests arrive unexpectedly I just grab all clothes and dump in the cupboard. At that particular time this method was life saving. But you will realize the impact of that hurriedness only much later when you try to find a matching socks.

Because I wear casuals to work (pre-corona era) I don't have to iron them. And hubby's clothes are outsourced for pressing. This is the laundry woes of just two people. Imagine the plight of pre-washing machine generation. While conversing about these things Ammamma never forgets to mention we Millennials have easy way out. If this is the smooth sailing what I'm complaining of? Are we inherently a generation of somnolent or is it just me?

The Month That Was March-2021

Image Source

It is exactly a year since Corona wrecked havoc on mankind. Yes, it started way back in December 2019, but we Indians felt its presence only in early March after the 15-days states'curfew followed by unplanned nationwide lockdown. while randomly chating with friends I asked anybody is interested in meet-up. To my utter shock everyone readily agreed. This must be the fastest planned get-together and executed effortlessly. Same goes with meeting one of Hubby's friends and family. This month also marks one in first of hanging out with Y.B and SIL sans nephew A. One notable thing here is none of them tired us with their kids'shenanigans until asked about. Maybe it is a conscious decision on their part considering our childfree status. Or maybe they want to converse something different other than the kids.

Due to the busy social life we could watch only two movies, Act 1978 (Kannada) and The Trail of Chicago (English). And 'The Crown' seasons continued. Exactly a year ago we had to cancel the show 'Pukkate Salahe' due to curfew. Incidentally we started visiting theater for the same drama this month.

The books I've read this month are "A Gentleman in Moscow-Amor Towels, The Beekeeper of Aleppo-Christy Lefteri, Pachinko-Min Jin Lee, Home Before Dark-Riley Sager; and Sparkling Cyanide-Agatha Christie. In the begining of this year I made a conscious choice to pick books set in different parts of the world. There is a famous saying in Kannada 'Desha Nodu Kosha Odu' (Travel the world-read books). Since traveling is restricted I metaphorically transport to these countries to hear about the stories. I've even zeroed down on where to stay when in Moscow. It maybe entirely different establishment now, but since it is functional still why not get a sneak-peak into Count Alexander Rostov's life. My tryst with #christiechallenge2021 continued with 'Sparkling Cyanide'.

 I couldn't give much time to gardening. As much as I love seeing greenery around maintainting plants is a difficult task and it needs constant nourishment, pruning, repotting. The only plants flourishing without doing anything on my part are aloeveras. With little water and more sunlight, they thrive astoundingly. I think I need to learn better time management skills to pursue many unrealistic hobbies of mine.

March has been kind. Hoping for a peaceful April.  

Insignia

Image Source

When I visited the bank last week I had to sign a form for some investments. When I took a closer look three signatures looked completely different from one another. Once or twice my credit card and cheques got cancelled because of the mismatch in inking. And believe it or not I've to practice signing in a notebook to get it right every single time.

When I was young I wanted to have a signature like my father. It was stylish, crisp, and cool. While filling the tenth board examination form I was told what I sign on that would be my ultimate signature and after that I can't change. So, I practiced and mastered a insignia that is nothing but cool or trendy. Over the period of time that transformed from uncool to ordinary. Now, I've a sign that is just my name with hopeless curving in the end. Sadly I remember my failed attempts to achieve that perfect sign every single time.

Adding to the agony is when soft wares of banks and others refuse to recognize my dowdy marking. This makes me wonder why can't we go back to thumb impression? It is unique and no two individuals can have the same print. It can't be forged. Why thumbing is associated with illiteracy? Doesn't cellphones these days sell with fingerprint as key security feature?

Enough with the rant now.

The Month That Was February-2021

Image Source

Two important men in my life celebrated birthday in February. My father would have been 69 this 14th. I miss hearing his reluctant 'thank you'. No amount of emotions or words can bring him back. we could have traveled only that much together. All I have now is memories of him to cherish on his birthday. Pain of losing a parent never subsides. We just learn to live with it.

And Hubby's birthday was a close-knit affair just the way he liked it. Apparently the boy of mine is growing old and I wish nothing but abundance of happiness to this old soul.

Valentine's day befell on Sunday this year. The conversation about being slave to capitalism and love should be celebrated every days is all invigorating. Why assume we don't. Why pull down people who chose to celebrate this day with their valentine? Our day was all mushy, corny, and fun.

With 'The Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia I broke the self-imposed jinx of not reading horror genre.  Other books are The Night Tiger-Yangsze Choo and The Homegoing-Yaa Gyasi. About Karvalo by K.P.Poornachandra Tejaswi, I could not stop gushing about this gem whoever care to listen. It has been a long time since I picked a book of my mother tongue only to realize what I had been missing. Parker Pyne Investigates by Agatha Christie was second in the Christichallenge2021, which was a collection of few stories. So total number 5 looks good on the chart.

Total number of movies were 10 and they are; Tribhanga (Hindi), The White Tiger (English), The Safehouse (English), Sir (Hindi), The News of the World (English), 2 Guns (English), Drishyam 2 (Malayalam), I Care For You (English), Pitta Kathalu (Telugu) and The Girl On the Train (Hindi).

One of the best series we have watched is Chernobyl (Netflix) about the nuclear disaster. We started re-watching Crown Season 1 (Netflix) because we had forgotten most of it.

Attended two weddings on one weekend, both in different towns of Karnataka. The only thing to look forward to these gatherings is food. This is what COVID isolation had turned me into, absolute non-foodie to moderate glutton.

A two-year old Aglaonema withered slowly and died. It was a gift to Hubby for attending an academic seminar in a law school. The cute little pot had no drainage hole and we just let it stay there. It took a major hit during last year's lock-down without water and nourishment, still stayed alive. I, the queen of procrastination put off transferring it to another pot for a long time. Result, completely rotted root killed the plant. Now I know how difficult it is to maintain the teeny tiny garden. I need to have a better plan to manage the time, so that I can give importance to all the varied interests I pursue.

February had been the month of celebration. March be kind.

Bohemian Raspy

Image Source

What is the one thing you want to change in your anatomy or physiology? If this question was asked a decade ago I would answered 'my voice' without batting an eye. I've a vocal with perpetual hoarseness. I may even sound manly over the telephone. However, nobody has addressed me as 'Sir' or 'Mister' yet. I lived blissfully happy life for two decades without realizing how terrible my voice is. To boot I considered myself a good singer with right knowledge of notes. None of the family members or friends dared to contradict this facade. Until Hubby arrived.

He was the first to mention my voice does not compliment my personality. Well, not that I know what my personality is. Still it made me to ponder over the matter. I recorded my voice and played it on loop for several times. And I was heartbroken to know I ain't the proverbial nightingale. The new found observation has not made any difference in my life per se. I was not trained to be a professional singer anyhow.

For the uninitiated I was a choir singer in my secondary school to sing the State song and National anthem every single day for entire three years. Don't ask me how I landed there. Either it must be my overenthusiastic young self that wanted to be everywhere or some naive teacher who delegated the task to me as none of the other students were forthcoming. As it happens I was part of a singing team that went on to perform in Akashavani (Radio), Mangalore. However, I don't remember being it relayed on the station or I would have missed on tuning the channel. So, I was not totally delusional when I said I considered myself a good singer. The whole universe had conspired along with me to believe it.

I squarely put the blame on my father for the terrible voice that I genetically inherit. Yet, he was the one who introduced me to the world of music which is still one of the greatest blessings in my life. Has the dreadful voice stopped me from singling? No Sire. I still sing my heart out to the only audience, dear Hubby. Now he is sweet enough to say I've the most unique voice. Ahem! What I would have done without this wife promoting partner of mine! 

The Month That Was January-2021

Image Source

Curfew from evening 6 to morning 6 on New Year Eve in Bengaluru. We never made any plans to head out. The logic behind night time curfew baffles me. some gentle souls say it is the scare of new strain of coronavirus that has emerged in UK. Okay, understandable.  People are roaming the city during the day without social distancing, their masks below the chin. And COVID is not a monster that crawls out only in the night.

We welcomed new year snuggled inside the quill, guzzling beer, gobbling pizzas, watching 'Soul' and of course midnight kiss. I made many number of resolutions wherein hubby did none. I honestly do not understand the man I'm married to. He is the quintessential list maker of the family. His belief is more time you take in planning less time goes for execution. And he is both great planner and executioner. I, on the other is opposite, unrealistic planning and terrible executing. Still everybody need to have new year resolution.

A health scare in the family. Uncle D had been complaining of giddiness and physicians at Manipal did TMT. He was asked to admit to hospital for angiography. As much as we hoped not to find any blockage our worse fear turned out to be true. He was advised to undergo coronary bypass. Guiding other people about a surgery is easy, but when it is your near and dear ones even I was hesitant. After taking second opinion from cardiologist classmate we decided to go ahead with the operation. The first 3 days were very stressful. After visiting him we sighed with relief. He is recovering well and fast. Cousin M1 handled everything on her own. Cousin M2 could only be there for 3 days as she had her finals. Altogether they shared responsibilities meticulously easing stress off aunt P. And I'm one proud elder sister.

I've read two very beautiful books, The Vanishing Half-Brit Bennett and The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue-V.E.Schawb. As I've decided to take part in #readchristie challenge I picked 'The Hollow' for the month and it was okay. Because of that I'm reconsidering whether I've to continue with this. If I've to continue 12 books will be of her, which will leave me 38 books to pick from the lot. When in doubt stall the decision is the mantra to go. Another book was 'The Switch'-Beth O'Leary, a contemporary romance/chick-lit, it is the genre I try to avoid these days. The reading will be fun, no doubt. As I wanted to move to different genres probably this was not the best pick.

The movies were Soul (English), AK vs AK (Hindi), Double Jeopardy (English), The General's Daughter (English), and Paava Kadhaigal (Tamil).

Among Web Series the best was The Queen's Gambit (English/Netflix). Others are Tandav (Hindi/Prime), Bridgerton (English/Netflix) and The Undoing (English/Hotstar).

The highlight is yet to come. Our short four-day Goan holiday. If having beer for breakfast, lunch and dinner is sin then we've sinned. Beach hopping, lounging on beach chair, soaking up the vitamin sea. I'm sure I had generous dose of vitamin D as well. We swam in the sea (that is untrue because I can't swim, but you get the drift), gazing at sunsets, strolling on the beach late nights, and kissing in the moonlight. None of the city in India has the vibe like Goa. Needless to say we had an amazing time. And in Goa nobody wears masks or follows social distancing. When people were staring at me I was all hoity-toity thinking it was directed at my skimpy clothes only to realize later that I was the only person wearing mask on the entire beach.

 January was good. February be kind

The Year That Was 2020

Image Source

I had cribbed about 2020 like all others due to the obvious. The year 2020 was not a bad year for me personally. Yes, our travels took a major hit as well as outing. Due to the lockdown hubby and I get to spend some quality time together. It would not have been possible otherwise. Working from home is a total bliss. I don't think I'l be able to go out and work again. WFH saves a lot of commuting time. Since I'm not a social animal, I don't have problem being cooped up in the home. It gave me ample of time to read, write, binge watch on awesome shows.

I'm neither a foodie nor a cook. I tried to change that a little with doning a culinary hat. Among the experiences few were hit, few a miss. I (we) started an insta page to showcase the food photography. Hubby was nothing but supportive with these fickle shenanigans of mine. When I scroll down the foodstagram page it gives happiness. We cooked together whenever we can. I can safely say now I've not cooked so much in my lifetime in comparison with what I've done this year. There is little merriment in cooking. Here you create something palatable with raw materials, and the end result is satisfying. However, doing it day after day is tedious. I've a huge respect for all the women  who do it tirelessly without a complaint. I've not seen my mother ever saying 'I'm bored. I don't want to cook today". Same goes to many of older generation. I'm blessed to live in a time and city where I can order food at my fingertips. During latter part of the year we started going out to favourite restaurants.  

Another blog and insta page is dedicated to jot down our views on films, books, TV shows, Web Series, plays, theater and art. That is why you will not see film/book/drama/TV shows updates in this blog. Maintaining three blogs is really tough. Sometimes I feel I've bitten off more than I can chew. But that is what I wanted to do at that point in time. And nobody is going to question me about the consistency. The only person I'm answerable to is me. Sometime that person goes on a guilt trip for neglecting the blogspace. Our poetic journey of 2020 was beautiful.

Our tryst with gardening continued. It is the trial and error method we apply. Though not a green thumb yet, I managed not to kill all plants. Some of them withered and died much to my chagrin. This is the year I learnt about vermicompost, coco-peat, propagating, all and sundry. And harvested many batches of Malbar spinatch, fenugreek, mustard, mexican mint, and lemon grass.  

On the travel front we had gone to Mysore for Christmas weekend. It was a baby step to test the water in terms of travel. Other places were Dodda Alada Mara, Manchanabele Dam, and Hesaraghatta Lake.

Seeing the family was minimal to none due to self-imposed quarantine. Same with friends.    

And most important I've been diagnosed with vitamin D deficiency. From a couple of months I was not in my usual mojo. I had to push myself to do even the small chores. Initially I blamed it on lockdown and the pandemic. But when the push came I had to consult a physician and voila. Along with that some hormone imbalance too, for which medication was prescribed.

What a year 2020 was! Hoping for a better 2021