Tag time 2134

I came across this post on BM’s blog just when I was tearing my hair apart for a post today. She invited all the participants of the blogathon to take this up and I couldn’t thank her more. Here are the questions she put up. Fellow participants, if you haven’t already taken this one up, please do!

What are you wearing?
Well, it is past 11 pm and needless to say, I am in my night clothes. A light blue, worn out tee that has a reclining teddy on it. It says ‘Sleep Well’. That along with these pajamas. Yes, these pajamas are ancient and I embarrassingly acknowledge the visible holes in them. But, I love them and find it too hard to get rid of them. I suppose I will hold on to them till they perish completely.

How tall are you? 
Not a very nice question to ask somebody who is not very tall. Well, I am just under 5′ 3″.

How much do you weigh?
41 kgs. Around 90 lbs.

Any tattoos?
None.

Any piercings?
I have 3 piercings on my right ear. 2 piercings on my left ear (Don’t ask. A freak accident caused the mismatch) and a piercing on my nose.

Favourite show?
Hard to pick, but I’d say Big Bang Theory.

Something you miss?
My grandparents. Daddy. The sight of the gulmohar tree in bloom outside my window in our old house. Pickles that my grandmom made. Songs we sang in the morning assembly in school. The era in which I lived with zero worries. Chipotle. I can go on..

Favourite song?
Absolutely not possible to pick a favourite.

Zodiac sign?
Aries.

Quality you look for in a partner?
Intelligence. A mind that believes in equality. Ability to love passionately.

Favourite actor?
Ummmmmm… I’ll skip this. I don’t think I have any favourties.

Favourite colour?
Lavender and purple.

Loud music or soft?
Depends on the mood, but if I have to pick one, I’ll pick soft.

Where do you go when you’re sad?
Either to our balcony or to curl up in bed. Sometimes I even go to the park to take a walk.

How long does it take you to shower?
I am fully capable of taking 2.5 minute showers when I am in a rush. On average though, my showers last 15 minutes. A hair bath is around 30 to 45 minutes.

How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
30 minutes in total. I can be out of the door in exactly half hour after waking up.

Ever been in a physical fight?
Yes. With Mint.

Turn on? 
Intelligence. Nothing turns me on more than that. And yes, a fresh scent, warm grins, genuine caring.

Turn off?
Wrinkled tees, snootiness of any kind, long toe nails.

Fears?
Ghosts. Losing my loved ones. Being late. Math. Swallowing big tablets and capsules.

Last thing that made you cry?
The BFF leaving.

Last time you said you loved someone?
Today morning.

Last book you read?
Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult.

The book you’re currently reading?
I am not reading any book currently. The next book I will most likely read will be Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult again. The sister is in a Jodi Picoult phase and picked up a bunch of her books. I keep reading the one she finishes. Salem Falls next!

Last person you talked to?
Mint. I just asked him to fill bottles of water after he got done with his call.

The relationship between you and the person you last texted?
A work associate.

Place you want to visit?
Hah, too many to name. I love visiting new places and want to travel the world.

Do you have a crush?
Yes. The model in this Manyavar ad. Isn’t he so damn cute!

Favourite piece of jewellery?
Unquestionably, these earrings.

Last song you sang?
I’m watching Khoon Bhari Maang as I type this post. I sang along to Haste haste, kat jaye raste.

This was fun. Thank you once again, BM!

The Food Tag

I’ve been eyeing this food tag that Vidhya came up with a while ago. And because I want to write a lighthearted post and because food is one of the very few things I am passionate about in life, it seems appropriate to take this up. Here we go. Food makes me ramble on, you are warned..

What is the first dish that you cooked?
Paneer Anardana. It was a delicacy prepared with fresh cottage cheese and dried pomegranate seeds. It was a preparation I saw in a recipe book. I had a lot of spare time after my 10th grade board exams and I was pouring over recipe books. But at that point, I didn’t even know the right way to hold a knife, let alone ‘finely chop’ onions. So the first dish I prepared without any assistance was not exactly spectacular. The onions weren’t browned, all veggie pieces were uneven and the general taste was very blah. I still remember my parents eating it with great relish and making me feel exceptionally proud of my creation.

What is the first dish that you cooked for your better half? (If you are not married, you can tell us what you are planning to cook for him/her)?
The first dish I cooked for Mint was when he was visiting me in UK. Unfortunately, I didn’t exactly know ‘how to cook’ at that time. Every time we wanted a full blown Indian meal, P would cook and I would only assist with the chopping. Other than that, I survived on sandwiches, salads and other packeted pastas and ready meals bought from Tesco.

This is the dish I came up with one time when both Mint and I were sick of eating out and consuming store bought meals at home. I pressure cooked whole green moong dal until it was a soft wholesome mash. To this I added heaps of red chili powder, coriander powder, raw mango powder, turmeric and ofcourse, salt. Then I chopped onions, carrots and cucumbers and tipped them into the dal. We then ate it with store bought chapatis and it was a terrific meal. I have introduced this version of the moong dal to my friends, mom, mil and the entire world loves it. The trick is to NOT COOK too much. Boiling the dal is the only cooking you actually do. The raw flavours of the fresh masalas and the chopped veggies are what give it a kick.

This was quite a fluke invention that happened only because Mint was visiting me at that time, but it has gone on to become a popular meal in our home.

Which food were you reserved to try first but then liked later it since you acquired the taste?
Caramel popcorn. In my head, popcorn was always supposed to be salty and maybe, cheesy. I couldn’t imagine how a sweet flavour would blend with it, so I refrained from trying it for the longest time. Once I did, I really enjoyed the mild sweetness and the added crunch the caramel coating imparts to the popcorn.

What is your comfort food?
Undoubtedly, the toor dal my mom makes, teamed with steaming rice and simple potato fry sprinkled with the fat chunky variety of chili powder.

Which dish of yours you like the best?
This keeps changing. At present, I like the slow roasted tomato and basil pasta I whip up. I also like the peanut noodles and lemon tarts I sometimes make. At one time, both Mint and I enjoyed the dry aloo gobhi and the chole I made. It’s been a long time since I cooked these.

Which dish of yours your family likes the best?
Sambhar. My family, including my sambhar snob South Indian husband, is quite crazy about the sambhar I make. I learnt the procedure from my MIL. And this girl taught me how to make the sambhar podi. It all started with her scoffing at me when I asked her where she sourced her sambhar powder from. When she told me she makes a fresh batch each time she makes sambhar, it was eye opening for me. I was all inspired. I took notes of the proportion she uses and started making fresh sambhar powder each time I made sambhar too. The results are fabulous. Thank you, Revs!

What is your favorite street food?
I usually avoid roadside chaat. The water used in the chutneys makes me a bit unsure. My streetside favourites would include the veg cheese toasts that are sold by small vendors on the streets of Mumbai. These toasts are grilled on smoking hot coal. They are  smeared with molten butter and sev on top. Other than that, I also love the spicy egg burjis and buttered pavs that is a late night, road side speciality of this city.

Tell us about any of your kitchen disaster story.
I stopped cooking regularly ever since I moved back to India. So I do not recall too many recent disasters. Despite that, I have managed to accomplish a few feats. I have burnt the food along with the cooker several times, sometime ago I added lemon tang instead of salt to the noodles I was making.

My favourite one however is the one in which I made the kitchen flood with white frothy lather by adding fabric detergent in the dish washer instead of the dish washer gel. 

Any one or two food confessions 😉 😉
1) When I am hungry, I need to eat something spicy or savory. I cannot wrap my head around eating something sweet when I am starving.

2) I avoid drinking water immediately after consuming yogurt. Even if I end my meal with yogurt, I always have a spoonful of something else and only then drink water.

Apart from basic stuff, like milk, yogurt, veggies what you have in your fridge or in pantry? (Name any 3 items)
Usual stuff I suspect. I quick glance showed me bottles of hot sauce, idli batter, beer, jar of peanut butter, container of mango pickle, cheese, eggs, red garlic chutney, stock of pulses and other stuff I can’t remember.

Any food related or cooking resolutions for this year?
I wish to eat out less. I would like to add more variety to our breakfast menu. I wish to healthify our diet. And oh, I really wish to take to baking. Something I’ve been wanting to do forever, but put off for reasons unknown.

In our custom when you go to Kasi, you need to give up one of your favorite veggie and fruit. So you cannot eat that veggie or fruit from then on. Which one you would you give up? (It should be your favorite one)
Damn, do I have to do this? I most likely wouldn’t. But if I was held at gun point and asked to let go of a favoutie veggie and fruit, I would choose brinjal and litchi. Sigh..

You need to prepare a 3 course meal for a party? What dishes will be there in your menu?
Instead of answering the question directly and stating would I would have on my menu, I will deviate a bit and talk about what I usually have on my menu. Since some of you bloggie buddies have come home for dinner, you will know that I usually lay out some home made dips, either hummus or a hung curd and mint dip. I typically serve this with chips, sticks of carrots and cucumbers and store bought lavash or pita bread. Since we recently bought a tandoor and are trying to not feel guilty about the purchase by making sure we use it enough, I would now try to throw in some tandoori starters. Either paneer, or baby potatoes, or mushrooms or if Mint is cooking, then chicken.

I usually play safe with main course and go in for typical items like a mixed veg pulav, raita, rotis and a paneer gravy. I also like to add a dry dish but more often than not I drop it because of a last minute fight I have with Mint in which he gets mad at me for overdoing stuff. Again,we throw in a chicken /fish curry depending on the food preferences of the guests and Mint’s ability to cook. If the guests are not desi, then it is either a pasta or a bake with a chosen salad and garlic bread. Other than that, I always resort to store bought dessert. Either gulab jamuns or ice-cream cakes, depending on the menu and the audience.

This was so much fun. Thank you, Vidhya!

Liebster, again!

The very awesome TP has nominated me for the Liebster award. Yes! This award comes once again. Thank you very much! I am honoured. Since I have already accepted this one before, I am going to skip copying the image and going through other formalities. Instead, I’ll jump straight to the questions.

1. What made you start blogging?How is blogging different than keeping a diary for you or is it the same?

I’ve answered this one question multiple times in the past I think. Anyway, here we go again. Mint’s blog and him persuading me to start my own inspired me to do it. Back then, I blogged on this site called http://www.blogdrive.com. I wonder if that site even exists now. Must check. That was in the year 2003!   And oh, that little fact reinstates the euphoria. I’ve been blogging for 11 grand years now.

Moving on to the second question. I think a diary is a more private medium as compared to a blog. When I wrote in a diary, I didn’t bother about factors like maintaining my anonymity.  I used real names. I wrote without much restriction. Obviously, I have chosen to not be as carefree on my blog.

2. Do you have a pet? If yes, which one? And if not, why?

I don’t have a pet, but I think I mentioned Mint’s strong desire to have a dog in an earlier post. While I love the idea of having one too, I doubt I am devoted enough to care for one. This is one subject I am really confused about. And ofcourse, my mother who swears to never enter our home if we choose to have a dog only makes matters more complicated.

3. Which city do you think is the best to settle down in India? And why?

While I have lived in 3 cities around the world, when it comes to India, I have only lived in Bombay. So I am not sure I am qualified enough to pick the best city to settle in India. But ofcourse, my heart beats for Bombay. Despite the crammed spaces, the crowd and the chaos, everything and everybody that is precious to me is held by this city.

4. What is the one thing that you ordered in a restaurant and it turned out to be totally yuck and expensive?

I remember craving for good Indian food when we lived in Cincinnati, Ohio. This was ofcourse, before we moved to California, which is nothing short of an Indian food haven. Good Indian restaurants in Cincinnati are rare. We made sure we totally avoided Indian food when we ate out. But this one time, I absolutely insisted and forced Mint to take me for a full blown Indian buffet. I believe the restaurant was called ‘Akash India’. I cannot even describe how awful the food was. The gravies were full of tasteless cream. The memory of that godawful meal has never left me.

5. If you see your enemy (or simply somebody you dislike) in a helpless situation, will you go forward and help them? Or leave them and enjoy mercilessly?

Knowing myself, I will go ahead and help them. And then spend time rethinking and analysing my actions and wondering if they were worthy enough of my help at all. Only to follow it up with a repeat episode of helping them again. And then questioning myself some more. You see, I am certain I will help people in distress, but I am not certain I do it because I am truly altruistic.

6. Have you ever been caught by your parents doing something totally inappropriate for your age?

You want to hear that story again? I am sure it is there on the blog. Anyway, here we go.

Mint and I had been in a very happy relationship for a while when we decided to take it to the next level. We knew my parents would be supportive, while his wouldn’t. We decided to formally tell my parents first, so that we would atleast have them backing us when we had to face his parents. The timing was right because I was visiting India during my Easter break. (Some background: I lived in UK whereas Mint lived in the US back then). So I came to India and told my parents all details about my relationship with Mint and how we were considering getting married. They knew Mint and I were very obviously into each other, but before this I had been very noncommittal. They were just taking in the details of all that I said to them then.

That’s exactly when Mint decided to come down to India for a day to surprise me on my birthday. If you haven’t read that story yet, you absolutely must. Anyway, he was in India only for one night. Since Mint and I didn’t want to stay apart even for a minute of the time he was there, I convinced my parents to allow Mint to stay in our house for the night. They were a little unsure but eventually agreed. We had no spare bedroom and it was mutually agreed that he would sleep in the living room.

The day of my birthday, the two of us got back to my place really late in the night. My were happy, exhausted and highly sleep deprived. My mom set up Mint’s make shift bed in the hall and asked me to go to my bedroom and sleep. And then she went away and the lights were turned off for the night.

Obviously, not wanting to stay apart, I crept back to the living room where Mint was waiting for me. Who planned to sleep when we had just one night together? The lights were out so we would remain unseen. In the darkness, we snuggled next to each other. After some intimate nuzzling, we drew in close for a good kiss. And then, in the midst of it, with our lips seemingly locked, with our heads tilting towards each other.. WE FELL ASLEEP!

Ofcourse, you can guess where this goes. My mom woke up in the middle of the night to fetch some water. She was absolutely unprepared to see our faces almost glued together. I can’t tell you how much I squirm even as I type this. The lights flew on. I had an out of body experience for that one second when I realised my mother had seen us in that position. I jumped to the other side and offered the most lame explanation on this planet. My words were, ‘We were just chatting’. To add to my horror, Mint let out an audible laugh when I said that. My mom was silent.

I could see she was quite shaken. She told me in a very stern voice to go and sleep in my room immediately. I was so embarrassed, I considered jumping out of my balcony. Suddenly I was very thankful I was returning to UK in two days. Mint pulled over the covers and slept. The next morning, my parents were up quite early and since Mint was sleeping in the hall, he was very unsure of how to face them. After all, they had just met him for the first time the previous day. And had just been made aware of our relationship officially. What would they think? So he made sure his face was covered with the blanket and he didn’t have to meet their gaze.

The moment he could, he ran to my room to wake me up. I will never forget his words. “Can you please wake up right away? I am feeling just too awkward being with them on my own”. Well, I was so conscious myself, I didn’t know how to face my mother either. Anyway, I have to give my mom some credit for never bringing up this incident with us. I don’t even know if she spoke to my dad about it. I never want to find out. We were both so very flustered back then. But when we think about it now, we can’t stop laughing at all. Being caught in such situations is the worst thing to happen if you have an Indian parent, I suppose. Doesn’t matter how cool and unconventional they are. It just is awkward.

From then on for us, the word ‘chatting’ has gone on to become synonymous with something very different from its original meaning. Whenever Mint looks at me and asks, ‘do you want to chat?’, it makes me break into fits of giggles. He never got over how incredibly lame my response was at that time.

7. What is that one thing that you criticize publicly, but do the same in private?

I don’t think I do this.

8. Do you like water sports? Which one?

I can’t swim and a near drowning experience has filled me with deep fright. Despite that, I have so far had the opportunity to jet ski, para sail and go for an ‘easy to medium’ grade of white water rafting. If I had to pick one, I’ll pick rafting. I am waiting to experience more. I have promised myself I will learn swimming one day and combat my deep rooted fear of water.

9. Have you ever thought (or actually did ) of harming somebody very badly in order to get back at them? How?

I have murdered a thousand people in my head, a thousand times altleast. If you believe it is possible to murder a person only once, you are obviously wrong.

10. Do you fart and behave like the other person is guilty of the crime?

I barely ever fart. Honest. I don’t seem to have too much of a gas build up in my tummy. But if I were to fart in front of people, I’d have no reservations owning up.

11. Have you ever been caught by the police ( or worst locked up)? For what reason?

Locked up? No. Only Mint has such interesting experiences. I have only been caught by the traffic cops, either because I unintentionally ran a red light or because I was talking on my cell phone while driving. Boring, I know.

Awards and Tags

Much to my delight, I’ve been given several awards in the past few months. Some I remember, and  some I am trying to recall. Please do forgive me if at all you’ve sent an award my way and I haven’t acknowledged it yet. Do let me know and I will fix it right away. Meanwhile, here we go. I am taking the liberty to bend the rules, or partially follow the rules, as usual. I have only done the tags in parts.

Bhakti passed on this ‘Wonderful Team Member Readership Award’ to me.  Thank you so much Bhakti! Awards are always a source of joy!

*****

Sometime ago, Smita gave me the ‘One Lovely Blog’ Award! Thank you Smita.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This one comes with the same tag that we’ve all been doing forever. I have to jot down 8 things about myself. I thought of cheating and linking back to earlier posts, but then decided to be honest and put up some new points here. After all, I am quite the narcissist and I love talking about myself. So here are 8 things you absolutely don’t care to know about me.

1. Each time I see a very rounded and stout water tap/faucet, I feel like winking at it. Insane urges, I know.

2. I used to paint fairly well as a teenager. I had a book that contained some really good paintings of mine. They were made under the guidance of my brilliant art teacher.  When we moved homes, I misplaced that book. Shortly after, I quit painting. I deeply rue the loss of that book. I still dream of showing Mint my old and if I may so myself, ‘impressive’ artwork.

3. About two decades ago, the sister and I threw a kitchen strainer at a crow that was annoying us by its persistent cawing as it stood near our window still . It pecked our hands in return. Well, my hand to be precise. The sister fled from the scene as soon as it came close. Till date, this incident is discussed in our home.

4. I feel most hungry at around 6 in the evening. I’ve tried to understand why my hunger pangs at that hour are so uncontrollable. I am never that hungry during breakfast, lunch or dinner, but when it is time for an evening snack, I feel ravenous. Mint knows my timing by now. So do my parents. They know they need to place some food in front of me at that time or be prepared to face my fury.

5. I began reading The Famous Five series at the age of 8. Till date, they remain my most treasured books.

6. I’ve lived and experimented for 28 years, but I am still trying to find a shampoo that perfectly suits my fine-brittle-oily scalp-but dry hair.

7.  Elephants are my favourite animals. This happened shortly after my encounter with a darling baby elephant in Thailand. I really wish I could raise one.

8. When I was born, my parents chose to name me ‘Rashmi’. The name was almost finalised. And then they were made to change their mind because the letter ‘R’ is not considered auspicious by my extended family. I don’t believe in that bullshit at all, but whatevs!

*****

Next, is the Leibster Award. Once again, thank you so much for sending this my way, kind people! I feel elated.

 

This award was presented to me by Chipmunk, Aarya, and Princessbutter. I will however answer the 11 questions put up by Princessbutter.  Here we go.

1. What is the significance behind your blog name/title and the name you have chosen(if) for yourself.
Ah. Good question. I used to blog under another name until one day I thought of having a name that I can connect and match with my partner’s. Like two pieces of a whole? I hit upon PepperMint because both Pepper and Mint are very different from each other when seen individually, yet together they form a widely known distinct flavour. Just like us. Or so I believe.

I remember telling Mint one night while we spoke on phone, “You know, I am thinking of changing my blog name to Pepper. And I will refer to you as Mint. Together, we’ll be Peppermint. Isn’t that cute?”. I swear I could *hear* his eye roll. It is cheesy, I know. But I chose to ignore the smirks. I know people still smirk at the cheesiness. I continue ignoring them. I know many others who love our blog names. Heck, I love you guys, okay?

2.  What inspired you to start blogging?
Mint. Or rather, his blog. He inspired me to do it.

3.  In your list of pictures, how many are selfies?.
A big whooping zero! I don’t recall having a single selfie. To double check, I rummaged through my gallery, only to confirm what I already knew – I don’t do selfies.

4. Name a place in India and one abroad that you really would want to visit or re-visit.
Okay, I struggled with this question for over 30 minutes. Typing something and then changing it the next instant.I give up now. Picking just one destination in India and one abroad is almost impossible for me. Because I ‘really’ would want to visit more than a 100 places. There is so much in this world to see.

5. What is your daytime job when you are not moonlighting as a ‘city vigilante’, err, or a blogger? (Sorry, just saw Spiderman2)
Business development in the atomic energy space. Have I told you I love my job? When I am not stressing over it, that is.

6.  What is the most amazing thing and the most annoying thing about yourself?
I am amazed by my own capability to love. The people I love, I love madly. This amazes and scares me at the same time.

Regarding what the most annoying thing about me is, I guess this would be best answered by people around me. If you were to ask my sister, she wouldn’t be able to pick. I can’t live without slapping her ass, squeezing her fingers, pushing pencils up her nose and ears and more. The other day, I tried spraying some colin on her. What fun!

If you were to ask Mint, he would have another long list. My compulsive need to have atleast 6-7 hours of sleep even when we are out on vacation, the fact that I nag him without much reason (as per him, ofcourse), my undying need to be in control at all times (read that as being given prior notice and being aware and mentally prepared for any upcoming events) and more. I guess nobody will be able to pick ‘the most’ annoying thing about me. I am a very annoying person in general, or so I am told.

7.  What is the most amazing thing and the most annoying thing about the opposite sex?
Now this one is a toughie because it forces me to generalise. So here is my disclaimer. These are solely my opinions and they may not necessarily hold true for everybody endowed with the Y chromosome.

Most amazing thing I find about guys is their ability to bond with just about anybody. Put a new guy in a group of guys who are old pals and you will notice no sign of awkwardness. Only comfort that comes from inclusion. Soon, they will all be on backslapping terms. Girls on the other hand feel awkward being in new company a lot more easily. Probably because the girls around them are not very inclusive. Most girls have a specific ‘group’ of friends and even that group generally has a sub group.

I am going to skip the ‘most annoying’ thing about guys because I really can’t find one annoying trait that I believe would fit most men.

8.  Everyone asks about love. I want to know how important do you think lust is in a relationship?
Oh, a very interesting question. How important is lust? I don’t know. For me, love and lust run parallelly. My head is wired to lust the one I love. So the presence or absence of lust is not something I have worried about, because it is a given. A constant.

9.  What is your biggest guilty pleasure?
Reading late into the night when I know I have a long day ahead.

10. How much time do you take to get ready for work?
“Precisely 15 minutes. Breakfast is not a constant in my life. On days I make breakfast a part of my morning routine, I add another 10 minutes to my total time.

11. Last but not the least, where and how do you see yourself in ten years from now?
As much as I would love to say I see myself heading some kickass company, or chasing my kids or managing a posh home, I won’t. Because the sorry truth is that I can’t picture a future at all. Life is too unpredictable and my mind feels blank when I try to peep into my coming years. I have no idea of what is in store and I am not attempting to find out. I only hope I am able to live a happy life in the present and make each day count.

This was fun. Sorry for bending the rules and also for not passing on these tags and awards to other bloggers, but I hate playing judge. So I will excuse myself.

Tagging along..

It has been a wonderful day. No stress, no anxiousness, no exhaustion. Nothing. Just a big smile on my face,  peace and lots of gratitude. And I am talking about a weekday. Oh, I have updates about my job. Happy updates, but let me save that for another post. Today, I feel like writing, but don’t have anything in particular to write about. So I will steal this tag from Pixie. Just because I was reading her responses and thought the responses and questions were fun. So here we go.

1. What curse word do you use the most?
Since you asked, I’ll say it. I say ‘fuck’ quite a lot. My most common reaction when I am bewildered or angry is ‘What the fuck?’.

2. Do you own an iPod?
Sigh. Not anymore. The one iPod I had, I lost when my bag got stolen. Now I keep borrowing the sister’s iPod. It was a gift given to her by Mint and I on her 16th birthday.

3. What person do you talk to on the phone the most?
Close tie between my parents, sister and BFF. I don’t talk to Mint on phone much now a days. At one time, I had a reputation of being on phone with Mint 24*7. That was during our long distance phase. So now it is just the family and the BFF. Thankfully, I meet all of them almost everyday, so I don’t really spend too much time on the phone.

4. Do you still remember the first person you kissed?
Ofcourse.

5. Do you remember where you were on 11/9/01?
I was in school. In 9th grade. I remember being home late in the evening that day, watching news while having dinner.

6. What was the last movie you watched?
Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. No, I didn’t think it was great. Just about okay. And too long.

7. Has anyone ever called you lazy?
This has to be a joke. There are few who haven’t called me lazy. Tales of my laziness have spread far and wide.

8. Do you ever take medication to help you fall asleep?
Err, no. On the other hand, I should probably consider taking some medication that will keep me awake for longer durations. I can sleep all the time.

9. Has anyone told you a secret last week?
Last week? Nope. But somebody told me a scandalous secret in the past month. I generally end up knowing a lot of secrets and I am happy to note that people around believe their confessions and secrets are safe with me.

10. What is the first thing you notice about the opposite sex?
First thing? Probably the face. Nothing interesting, I know. A warm grin and a fresh scent will make me really notice you.

11. What are you looking forward to?
A well brewed coffee, a good book in this beautiful rainy weather, a hot oil massage given to me by momma, a cheese omelette by papa,  a bollywood trivia quiz with the sister, seeing Mint at the end of the day and so much more. And the fact that I am only moments away from experiencing all of the above makes me so happy.

12. Do you own any band t-shirts?
Nope, but Mint does. And I do steal his tees every time I want to climb into something loose and comfy.

13. What will you be doing in one hour?
Grocery shopping. I can hear fresh veggies calling out to me already.

14. Is anyone in love with you?
Yes. Very much. I see it everyday.

15. Last time you cried?
Day before yesterday. For a ridiculous reason. I was alright the next instant.

16. Are you on a desktop computer or a laptop?
Laptop, although, I do use a desktop in my parents’ home.

17. Are you currently wanting any piercings or tattoos?
Maybe. I have three piercings in one ear, and two in the other. A horrific incident that happened some years ago, caused some acute damage and the hole on my ear lobe closed. I am always tempted to redo it and get back my 3rd piercing.

18. Would you ever date anyone covered in tattoos?
I doubt it. I dislike the very idea.

19. What were you doing before this?
Restoring the beauty of my feet (hah!)  by using some foot scrubs and exfoliating gels. Okay, I hate the shape of my feet, so I try my best to atleast keep them supple and clean.

20. When is the last time you slept on the floor?
In beloved California. When we had sold all our furniture just before we moved. The last few days still remind me of the awful butt ache I had.

21. How many hours of sleep do you need to function?
8. I can function with less than 8 hours, but I’d certainly not call it smooth functioning.

22. Do you eat breakfast daily?
Sigh. I rarely eat breakfast.  Lunch is usually the first meal I have. In the mornings, it is only tea or coffee. I really want to change this and have been trying to think of  good breakfast ideas. Idlis, dosas, parathas, upma, poha and the usual options are too cumbersome to make, not to mention time consuming. I like the sound of cereal, but cereal in cold milk doesn’t go well with my hot mug of tea/coffee. Very rarely, I smear some cheese spread on bread and eat a sandwich, but other than that, everything seems like too much effort. Any ideas for an instant breakfast?

 

For the year gone by..

So we have been tagged by her. Thank you, Subs! I know I already did a post that detailed the events of the past year, but here is one more. This one is more condensed.

1. What did you do in 2012 that you’d never done before? 
I jumped out of a plane.
I traveled all alone, to another city, in an overnight train journey. Multiple times.
I managed a bank account in India, all by myself. I even put some money in an FD.  On my own, with no assistance!
I drove my car into a ditch on a dark, rainy night.
I participated in a fashion show and actually walked the ramp.

2. Did you keep your new years resolutions, and will you make more for next?
I don’t remember having made any resolutions last year. That should tell you how seriously I take my resolutions, if I do make any.

3. What date from 2012 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? 
21st March. It signifies a new beginning. It is the date we moved back to India.

4. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I managed to live without Mint around.

5. What was your biggest failure?
Failure? Well, I really wanted to learn Tamil. But there has been no progress this year. My small vocabulary showed no signs of expansion. I blame Mint. The guy is too lazy to teach me. He is comfortable speaking to me in Hindi and English. Anybody willing to teach me Tamil? My inlaws will bless you.

6. Did you suffer illness?
I have lived with acute pain in my neck and shoulder area. It has really hampered my life style. Some days are good. Some days are awful and unbearable. Doctors say nothing is wrong, but the damn pain returns every few days. I don’t know what to do.

7. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed? 
My boss’s. She appalled and depressed me beyond words.

8. Where did most of your money go?
Eating out. Our bank account wouldn’t have been this injured had we not spent such obscene amounts on food.

9. What did you get really, really, really excited about? 
Our European holiday. Spending Diwali and Christmas in India, with my family around. Experiencing the Mumbai monsoon after years.

10. What song will always remind you of 2012?
I can’t choose. Forgive me.

11. Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?
Happier, definitely. This time, last year, we were in the US. Confused and stressed out. We are confused and stressed out even now, for other reasons. But last January was very exhausting.

12. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Blogging. Calling my extended family. Organizing my wardrobe.

13. What do you wish you’d done less of? 
I wish I had spent less time aimlessly floating around the world wide web.

14. Did you fall in love in 2012?
Yes, very much.

15. What/Who was your greatest musical discovery?
Nothing. Nobody. I just stuck around to listening to the music I have always been listening to.

16. What did you want and get?
A chance to live at home with my parents and sister. A new job. A holiday in Europe.

17. What did you want and not get?
A job that makes me happy. Clear skin. Savings. More time with Mint. Certainty.

18. What was your favourite film of this year?
I am not passionate about movies. I liked a few films I saw this year, but I won’t go through the effort of evaluating them and picking a favourite.

19. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I did the usual. Cut a cake, went out for lunch with friends and dinner with family. I turned 26.

20. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Having a job I liked. I do realise I am being repetitive, but this is true. Not hating my work environment would have made a world of a difference to my emotional and mental well being.

21. What kept you sane?
Meditation. Cups of tea and coffee. Mint. My family. This blog.

22. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2012.
You can’t have it all, and that is okay. As long as you know to choose well.

23. Which new places did you visit in 2012? 
Ahmedabad. Prague. Paris. Amsterdam. Brussels. Venice.

24. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year
Bhag bhag DK Bose! The year rushed by, and each time the speeding events would make me sing this song.

Tagging along!

This time, it is a tag that comes from R’s Mom. It couldn’t have been tougher for me. This is what it is all about:

To unite bloggers (from all sectors) in a joint endeavor to share lessons learned and create a bank of long but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again.Rules:

1) Blogger is nominated to take part

2) Blogger publishes his/her 7 links on his/her blog – 1 link for each category.

The links are:
– Your most beautiful post
– Your most popular post
– Your most controversial post
– Your most helpful post
– A post whose success surprised you
– A post you feel didn’t get the attention it deserved
– The post that you are most proud of

3) Blogger nominates up to 5 more bloggers to take part.

4) These bloggers publish their 7 links and nominate another 5 more bloggers

Maybe that sounds simple. All we really got to do is dig out and link up 7 posts that we think are worth rereading. However, you have to know me in person to understand the extent of my misery. I wrote the first post on this blog in the first half of 2008. It’s been close to four years. From then to now, I have about 210 published posts. Asking me to chose 7 out of 210 means asking me to choose 1 post out of every 30 posts. I have stated this before – ask me to choose between A and B and I will be miserable. Here I have to pick one out of 30. Imagine 30 choices! And I have to do this 7 times! Gulp! Moreover, only a small percentage of people will actually bother to click on the link of the post I have so painfully selected. I don’t blame them. Most of us are lazy buggers. But I wonder if my efforts are really worth it.

Other than that, I don’t know if either of us can judge our own work without biases. Imagine an artist, a painter at an award’s ceremony announcing, “I am pleased to declare this painting of mine as ‘The most beautiful’ one from my collection”. Sounds stupid no? I mean, who is he to judge and then crown himself as the winner? I feel mighty stupid selecting a post from my own blog and calling it the “Most beautiful” one. I think the creator of this tag got it all wrong. I think the person who tags you should go through your blog themselves, and choose the winning post under each category and then present it to the world. Asking the author to choose from his/her own work is just , funny, to say the least.

Anyway, enough said. Let’s get down to business. I will follow the rules of the tag, without “twisting it” for a change.

“Your most beautiful post”
– Hmm. I went through my entire blog, twice. I really don’t know which post of mine qualifies as the most beautiful one. To start with, I tried to define ‘beauty’. For me, the people in my life and my relationship with them is what is truly beautiful.

This is the post I wrote for my papa on his birthday. While there are other posts I have written about dad, this one is particularly close to my heart.
This is the post I wrote when mama was here. It spoke about role reversal and how I treat her like my little baby.

There are other posts I have written about Mint, the sister and Oregano that are beautiful in my eyes. I won’t be linking them here because as per the rules, I can’t choose multiple posts. I already did break the rules by choosing two, however, I think I should stop there. If you do want to read more about the people that make my life beautiful, you can read posts that fall under ‘Meet the family” and “Splashes of Mint” category.

“Your most popular post”
– Sigh. What defines popularity? Comments? Readership? Number of hits you receive? Honestly, I think the concept of popularity in the blogworld is quite meaningless. It doesn’t take much to be popular. The more you blog hop and leave comments on other blogs, the more regularly you write, the more readers you will have. Of course, if you do write well, your readership will expand. But the truth is, some genuinely good writers have zero readers only because they live in isolated worlds. They do not comment on other blogs, therefore do not have readers themselves. And some very mediocre and average writers who visit every known blog have high readership. Other than that, the more you post, the more addicted people get to you and your writing. It doesn’t have much to do with how well you write. Just the fact that you give the world a regular dose of your life is enough to keep them coming back for more. Ofcourse, once you establish yourself as a good writer, things change. But what I say is applicable to most bloggers. With these views, I find myself in a fix when I am asked to choose my most popular post. I don’t feel like using the number of comments and hits as a judge.

Since I have to pick, I will choose a post that a lot of people could relate to. The post in which I tried to reevaluate my life. I wrote about how I lived on impulse, how I didn’t give much thought to moving to the US on a dependent visa, despite it taking away my chances to work for sometime. The number of emails I got from unknown readers who were in similar situations because of being on a ‘dependent visa’ amazed me. So many of them wrote in expressing their anguish, telling me how they overcame it, thanking me because my post made them feel more united. I felt happy I could strike a chord in so many people.

“Your most controversial post”
– Not too hard, this one. Opinions create controversies and I am quite opinionated on my blog. I will pick two posts.
My views on the “La Tomatina” fest in India.
The second and the most controversial post on my blog would be North Indians Vs. South Indians. This one I put under lock and key. It is password protected and no longer accessible. The comment section here drove me batty. The unending aggression got me mad. I thought the only way I could put a stop to it was by bringing down the post, and that is exactly what I did.

“Your most helpful post”
– Wonder what post of mine really helped someone. I would have picked the one in which I posted all the Maggi recipes I had tried and tested. And then I remembered an email I got from a reader, who after reading the letter I wrote to Mint on our first Anniversary, was inspired to give her own deteriorating relationship a new chance. If something I wrote helped even one person realise the worth of what they have, then I know what I have written is more than worth it.

“A post whose success surprised you”
– I would pick the letter I wrote to my mother in law. I wrote about our struggles and our relationship with such honesty. It was deeply personal. I didn’t think an outsider would be able to relate to it too well. The overwhelming response was a real surprise.

“A post you feel didn’t get the attention it deserved”
– Now this is hard. I blogged in isolation for the first part of my blogging journey. I lurked on other blogs and wrote in my own private world. None of my initial posts got any attention at all. Not that I am complaining, it was a choice I made at that time. But if you ask me to pick one, I am clueless. So let me choose something randomly. Here is a post that depicts my love for Chinese food available on Indian streets. This is one time, on a cold, wintry evening in UK, I sat in my lab, researching for a paper I had to write, craving for greasy Chinese food.

“The post that you are most proud of”
– Easy! The only post written by Mint on this blog. The one in which he talks about me, in a very flattering way. I can’t be more proud. My favourite – Mint speaks.

Phew. I am done. What a relief. I will cheat a little and not tag people individually. However if you want a chance to dust the cobwebs and bring out some of your old posts, do take this one up.

Award with a twisted tag

Stuti presented me with this award more than a month ago. This award, like most other awards comes with a tag. The “tell me about yourself” tag.

I have done these tags way too many times. The last one was wasn’t even done too long ago. So I really didn’t want to ramble about myself anymore. I kept thinking of a way in which I could give it a twist. Finally, I thought of writing about Mint instead of myself. I write about him on this blog so often, I thought it made sense to focus the spotlight on him this one time and give people a chance to get to know him better.

So here we go. The rule is to state 7 facts about yourself. Like I said, I am twisting it to my convenience and writing about Mint instead. As usual, I’ve tried getting as random as I can.

1) He loves mustard seeds. If I am cooking, I make it a point to add in an extra spoonful of mustard just for him. It’s a joy watching him pick out the mustard from the gravy and eat it with relish.

2) He keeps pulling out the skin from the sides of his nails. He is so addicted to it, it gets me really mad. He has been doing it for years. You can see patches of torn skin around his thumbs. Each time I see him pulling out the skin, I give him a thwack and ask him to stop. He says “sorry” and lets go. Only to do it again without realising it in the next few minutes. It really worries me and I don’t know what to do.

3) He is incapable of taking a shower that lasts lesser than 30 minutes. Every morning is a mad rush because he refuses to come out of his shower. He will skip breakfast and will run to the car, but he won’t shorten his shower time. Not even by 2 minutes. He says hot water pelting his face and body for a long time is the only thing that truly wakes him up.

4) If a driver in another car slows down for his sake or allows him to change or enter into a new lane, he makes it a point to raise his hand and signal a “Thank you”. Every single time. It’s something I forget to do if I am driving at times.

5) He will spend hours organising the book shelf in an alphabetical order. He will hang (and wear) his jackets and sweatshirts in a particular order that follows a pattern chosen by him. Considering how messy and unorganised he is in general, such organised behaviour of his confuses me.

6) He has the most perfect feet I have ever seen. The shape of his toes is ideal and they can’t be more aligned. I even told my MIL this time, that I think he has amazing feet and I am quite crazy about them. She just laughed.

7) He eats just about anything. Really, I have experimented. Place any kind of food in front of him, and his reaction is to pick it up and put it in his mouth. It may or may not be edible by normal standards, example, raw potato, freshly kneaded dough, etc. It doesn’t matter. Just place any kind of food in front of him and watch.

8 ) He has been arrested once, for over speeding. Not just ticketed, but arrested.

There. Done. I was supposed to write 7 points. I dislike that number, so I wrote 8. The other part of the award says I need to tag 15 other people. I am not going to do that. But it would be fun if you take it up and write about your partner if you have one. We have the entire blog revolving around us. The partners are often overshadowed and don’t get their share of  limelight. I would love to know more about your other halves. If you do take this up, leave me the link in the comment section and I will follow you.

What women should have and know

Revs passed this tag to me a while ago.  It’s time I do it.

This one talks about what every women should have and know. My response is in line after each point. Let’s get to it!

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …

– enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to.
I think I have rambled enough about this. I don’t exactly have a job today. I might have one tomorrow. Irrespective of that, we’ve had and will always have joint bank accounts. So I don’t know how to answer this question really. Yes, I do have enough money “within my control”. But no, right now that money is not earned by me. Does it matter? I wonder.

– something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour 
If my employer asked me out, I would politely decline. I don’t think I like the idea of dating my employer. If there is no dating involved and he wants to see me for another reason, I would stick to something basic. Something like a crisp, semi casual white shirt and blue jeans maybe? Part two has me sighing. I am dreaming of Brad Pitt wanting to see me in an hour. Or John Abraham. I have a very healthy passion for clothes and know I will have more than a few options to choose from. And that would be a problem. Multiple options confuse me. But yeah, I think I have an interesting collection to pick from.

– a youth she’s content to leave behind 
Oh yeah. So far my life has been exciting and interesting. As well as smooth and hassle free. Touch wood.

– a past juicy enough that she’s looking forward to retelling it in her old age
I already have an endless supply of juicy stories for my grandkids. Like the one in which my mom caught Mint and I kissing, when he was nothing more than my boyfriend. Or the one in which I was accused of being drunk and was thrown out of a nightclub. Or the one in which I nearly drowned in a sea in Thailand. Oh, I can go on…

– a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra
Yes for all. But Mint and I bought the tool box together. So I jointly own the screwdrivers and drill with him. That still counts right?

– one friend who always makes her laugh… and one who lets her cry 
Yes. Thankfully I have a few of both.

– a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family
Yep, the furniture we bought hasn’t been owned by anybody else in my family, but I suppose it has been owned by somebody else’s. We’ve bought a lot of good stuff from Craigslist. So does this count or not?

– eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems 
Nah. I wouldn’t want to own those now. I will make sure I have those when I own a home. That is when I will have expensive dinner ware, fresh orchids in crystal vases, soft rolls of hand napkins in the bathrooms and other such things. Right now, we enjoy a low maintenance life. Convenience is all that matters. Seriously,  right now, I don’t think Mint or I would care if we had to sip exotic wine out of steel tumblers.

– a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored
How am I supposed to decide that? I believe I am an average cook. Sometimes somethings I cook turn out great. Other times they turn out not so great. If I had people coming for dinner at short notice, I would have a hurried date with Mr. Google in which I would zero in on what I think would be the winning recipies.

– a feeling of control over her destiny
I haven’t fully understood the concept of “destiny”.  But, I don’t feel like I have too much control over the direction of my life, especially in the coming few years. At times its scary and at times its thrilling, with all its unpredictable turns.

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…

– how to fall in love without losing herself 
I know, now. Unfortunately, I think I lost a little bit of myself when I was with the ex. But, lesson learnt!

– how to quit a job 
Sure.

– break up with a lover
I did it. So I can safely say I know how to. But I believe it took me too long to do it.

– confront a friend without ruining the friendship 
This doesn’t sound hard at all.

– when to try harder
I need to learn this. I give up too easily, mostly because the achievement in question doesn’t seem important enough to me. I am too laid back a person. Other than my people, few things matter to me. But when it matters, I give it my all.

– when to walk away
I learnt this the hard way. I truly regret not walking away from MB earlier. An abusive relationship can rarely be repaired. I lived on false hope for too long. The sooner you learn to deal with reality, the better it is for you. Well, at least I know now.

– that she can’t change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents
Nah, I wouldn’t want to change either of those.

– that her childhood may not have been perfect….but its over
I think I have had the perfectest childhood ever. Even today when I space out, I see random flashes of my happy childhood that make me smile. For this I always thank my parents. Their efforts and attitude have shaped me as a person.

– what she would and wouldn’t do for love 
Yep.

– how to live alone… even if she doesn’t like it 
I did it, and yes, I really disliked it. The silence in the house each time I turned the key in while walking in would remind me of the emptiness. The dark home would make me a little sad. I’ve been so used to a warm and excited welcome each time I rang the bell after getting home while living with my parents. But then, living all alone was a learning experience and now I know can do it if I have to.

– whom she can trust
I know, quite well.

– whom she can’t 
Not so sure about this.

– why she shouldn’t take it personally 
I need to learn this one.

– where to go, be it to her best friend’s kitchen table or a charming inn in the woods when her soul needs soothing 
Oh I know where to go. Neither of the 2 BBFs live close to me. So going to their kitchen tables isn’t an option. Neither do I have easy access to charming inns in woods. To sooth my soul, I visit book stores, coffee shops and take long walks all alone.

– what she can and can’t accomplish in a day, a month and a year
Oh yes. I don’t set my targets too high. I know myself and my laid back attitude. Like I said, I don’t care to be too much of an achiever.

Go ahead and take this one up if it interests you.

Tag time returns..

This one has been passed on by Darkcomedy. I saw this doing the rounds a while ago, but at that time you had to complete the phrase with a single answer. This one requires three answers and I spent a reasonable amount of time thinking. In her comment section I told her I would read her answers only after I did the tag myself. Because I know how I operate and I know reading it would mean allowing that subtle subconscious influence to take place. My answers would then be tainted by her thoughts. But I needn’t have worried. There is no way I can be as articulate and insightful as her. So here, I present the tag, with inanity underlying every answer of mine, as usual.

“Every phrase needs to be completed with three answers about yourself”

I am

• Forever confused.
• Very fascinated by aliens.
• Imaginative.

I want

• To know what I really want.
• To be able to speak Tamil fluently. Soon.
• To have my family close to me at alll times.

I have

• Empty mugs of coffee lying on my side table almost all the time.
• Strange urges that make me want to thwack random people on the road for no reason sometimes.
• The best family in the world, or so I think.

I wish

• Dinner would self cook.
• I had a better sense of direction.
• Good chocolate wasn’t so expensive.

I hate

• Having to decide.
• The smell of the fruit Chikoo/Sapota. It makes me nauseous.
• Wet bathroom floors.

I fear

• Trigonometry.
• Strange shadows cast on the wall.
• Old age and everything that comes with it.

I hear

• Voices in my head all the time.
• The same song on loop and rarely get sick of it.
• Imaginary sounds if I am alone at home at night.

I search

• For the house keys in my hand bag for at least 3 minutes before I can open the damn door.
• For my size of jeans in every store I go to. Nothing ever fits a person with a 24 inch waist.
• For people I can call friends.

I wonder

• Why dogs feel threatened by passing cars and why they chase them like their life depends on it.
• What a piece of the sky would taste like.
• What the purpose of life really is..?

I regret

• Tolerating so much abuse and not ending it with MB (the ex) earlier than I did.
• Choosing to do my Masters in UK instead of USA.
• Not calling my elderly relatives enough.

I love

• Very intensely.
• Unexpected surprises like finding a pack of spicy aloo bhujiyas next to my bed when I am hungry (Yes I eat in bed, ok?) , a sudden unplanned drive to Khandala in the rains (oh the days), finding my missing earring somewhere and finally putting the pair together, and stuff like that..
• Annoying my sister.

I always

• Wait for the very last minute.
• Hold the mug with two hands. I have been trying to use only one hand forever, but i don’t succeed. Mint finds this habit cute.
• See both the points of view and confuse myself.

I ache

• When I see old people living alone, longing for their kids who are far away.
• For Bombay rains.
• When I see homeless children on the road, selling something, taking on responsibility and having lost a childhood.

I usually

• Forget to put the left over food in the fridge, and thus end up wasting it.
• Suck at saying ‘No’ to anyone for anything.
• Sleep quite late at night.

I am not

• Creative.
• Easily accessible on phone. I am trying to change that.
• Courageous enough to undertake new challenging tasks. I am too afraid of failure and always prefer security to excitement..

I dance

• Only when I manage to let go of my inhibitions. Usually happens with some alcohol in me.
• Mostly while jumping down the stairs if I am all alone.
• To any kind of music if it has a fast beat.

I sing

• In the background when I am happy.
• Songs in my head during stressful situations, like writing exams.
• Some songs even though I don’t like them at all.

I never

• Say no to chocolate.
• Am able to use force with my left hand to do anything. I guess I have no muscle strength. I only use my right hand at all times
• Voice my judgments. (Excluding the blog of course)

I rarely

• Forget.
• Try as hard as I should.
• Eat a proper breakfast.

I cry

• When I get too angry for words.
• In front of very few people.
• Rarely but endlessly when I do. I always give myself a headache after that.

I am not always

• Rational.
• Insane. At times I can be quite solemn and sane really.
• Agreeing to disagree.

I lose

• Mostly because I don’t care to win.
• My cool more often than I would like.
• My hair clips and bands all the time. I suspect it is the ghost again..

I’m confused

• About where life is heading right now.
• Whenever I am asked to make a choice.
• About which confusion of mine I should mention here. Oh I am confused a lot..

I need

• To talk to my family at least once a day.
• A good amount of sleep everyday. Lack of sleep for me is fatal for people around me.
• To check my mail every few hours, or I get restless.

I should

• Try and wind up with dinner by 9 pm.
• Spend less time online.
• Excercise.

I dream

• Of a time where I get to be with Mint and my family, together in one city. I dream of living in Bombay with Mint, close to my parents and sister.
• Of finding a job I love that also pays me enough to live a very indulgent life.
• Of living happily in my own big, elegantly done up house with a private terrace.

And we’re done! How about some of you taking this one up? In particular, Chiquita, Ajay, R’s Mom, Sig and Scorpria. And of course, anybody else who is willing to contemplate and share their thoughts. Leave behind the link.