Link I am loving today

Stumbled on this website somehow. Absolutely adorable!

You are my wild

Things that should not be discussed at work

We all know not to discuss religion, sex life, politics, money issues, health issues at work. Imagine my discomfort when I overhear a co-worker discussing bowel movement on the phone! Read on for more details!

I had to go to DC last week for a work meeting. I don't go to the DC office all the time. We have what we call "hotel cubes" for situations like this. So I'm sitting at my hotel cube with some other people that i don't know occupying nearby cubes. This guy starts chatting on the phone with someone. I'm usually very good at tuning out other people's conversation. This conversation however went on for a while and I started paying attention to what is being said. This is how the conversation went down:

Co-worker: "she has been constipated since the weekend! "
........
Co-worker: "no, it's not helping. I was sitting right next to her and I could tell she was in pain!"
Me thinking "TMI to be discussing at work"

Then I got busy with work. In between, I kept hearing "I don't want her to be girly. I want her to be playful"I
Me thinking "oh lord! Is he going to start discussing his sex life now!!??"

Co-worker: "she tries to grab my hand!"
Me thinking: maybe I need to take a walk to the kitchen! Oh I got it! I'll put on my headphone and pretend I'm listening to songs or something!

Co-worker: "love you mom! You should come soon to visit your new granddaughter"
Me thinking: "I seriously need to get my mind out of the gutter!!!!!!!"

Funny Car Sticker

Anyone who knows me, knows I have a weird sense of humor! That weird sense of humor was tickled pink this morning seeing this sticker on the car in front of me ;-)

Calculator Trick

Raffae's class celebrated "Electronics day" the other day - its an incentive for kids to be on their best behavior and being able to bring an electronics to school one day. Sadly, most everyone comes to school armed with a Nintendo DS and spends the time playing with it. Raffae doesn't have a portable game device and was almost in tears that he doesn't have anything to bring to school and no one is going to share their DS with him. He wanted me to give him my iPad which was absolutely not happening! So I thought why not find some cool math tricks that he can use a calculator for and I had a feeling, it would tickle his nerdy side. I found some cool math tricks and showed them to him and he was in heaven! Now what I didn't show him is below! Try it out, won't you!!?? :-) .




(Type all the numbers in the parenthesis on your calculator)

There was this girl she was (13) years old. she wore bra size (84). she wanted to wear size (45). so She went to the doctor and he said (0) take these (2)(X) a day. She took them (4) times a day. and she ended up...



turn your calculator upside down to see the answer. Works best with regular calculator fonts. I know! I have a weird sense of humor! :-)

Lesson Learned

Went to Starbucks this morning on my way to work to get my coffee. I always ask for "Tall, regular coffee with room for milk" and they always give it to me full to the brim. As I was diligently pouring out some of the coffee in the trash can to make room for milk, the barista looked at me and said "Next time, ask to pour the coffee in a Grande cup so you don't have to waste good coffee."

I am in utter shock over all the good coffee I poured out over the years!

Boohoohoo!!!

I ADORE Sarah Jessica Parker, but this article just might have put a chink in the statue.

Sarah Jessica Parker reveals perils of cheap shoes

She can obviously afford the finer things in life, but to talk about it openly while the women going to watch her film is actually wearing the "cheap shoes" she is bad-mouthing - not a good strategy. On the other hand, that explains the sixth toe on my left foot! 

New Project

It is supposed to be a loop scarf. This pic was taken couple of days ago. I have about 2 more inches now. :-)

Ask Who I Am, Not What

Just recently, I had a conversation with a friend who said even though she was born and brought up in USA, she constantly gets asked "Where are you from?", not "What is your ethnic background?". Her offense? The color of her skin. When I heard about the Race Card Project on NPR this morning, I thought of that conversation first. Listening to some of the stories that have been collected over the past two years for the project, I was reminded of this incident. We are lucky that we live in a diverse community and I truly believe no one around me is biased by race, but then there are those little things people say that gets me once in a while. At International Night at kids school, we made a poster for weddings in Bangladesh. Someone asked "Where's the elephant?" Err...not all weddings have elephants! Actually, I dont think I've been to any weddings that had elephants! If you are going to use Indiana Jones movies as your sole cultural reference to South East Asia, I don't have much to say to you! Then there's always the "How did you learn to speak English?" In Bangladesh, by going to school once I was done fetching water and food from the jungle! Thank you very much! How do we break down these cultural barriers? There are people I know who are very interested to know about my background and they are not afraid to ask questions. They are truly the minority. May be its time I volunteer to the PTA and start a open discussion on Diversity among parents. I truly believe its much better with our kids. They are growing up in a multicultural environment and they accept that different people have different backgrounds, stories. Raffae's class just did a project on immigration and I thought that was very cool. We need more projects like that on a bigger scale!




My Six Word Story:



Judge me once you know me

Hairy Situation!

Zoya tells me the other day that she doesn't like the fact that she is the only girl in her class who has hair on her arms! My dad's side of the family is a hairy brood and I guess I have passed it down to her! I alone have kept many a different beauty product companies in business by getting rid of unwanted hair over the years, but she is too young to be starting now! Or is she? I told her she is too young to be starting these type of things at second grade when she informed me one of her classmates gets her hair dyed blonde! Really?!?! Why?!? In second grade?!?! Wow! However, I'm still not budging. I've removed my razor from the shower so she all of a sudden doesn't put two and two together. I don't think she knows about the other products I have under the sink. Lets see how long I can hold her off!

What do you think? Too early? (She is 8) When did you start? (I got my first threading done at 18!!!!) What was the first thing you tried?

And I am back...............

I've been itching to come back to blogging for a while now. Had a little down time today and thought why not start today. Its been a while - some things are still the same, some has changed for the better I hope. The kids have grown into little (pre) tweens, hubby is doing well. I like to think I've matured over the last couple years while I have been gone from the blog world. Celebrated the big 40, feel calmer, very comfortable in my own skin :-), have friends and family I am proud of, reading again now that I don't have diaper duty anymore! A good place to be in and I am grateful for that.

So, if you are a new reader, here's an ABC Meme on myself. If you are a follower/subscriber, here's to refreshing your memory!

A. Age: 41
B. Bed Size: Queen
C. Chore you hate: Tidying up!
D. Dogs: Not a dog fan. Not a cat fan either. Not a pet fan. Period!
E. Essential Start to the day: My cup of tea
F. Favorite Color: Black and White
G. Gold or Silver Jewelry: Silver
H. Height: 5'2"
I. Instrument you play: Does Harmonium count?
J. Job Title: Applications Development Analyst
K. Kids: Two. Son - Raffae. Nerdy, omnivourous reader, cub-scout, video game afficionado. Daughter - Zoya. Drama queen, very good at drawing, future pianist, omnivorous eater, video game afficionado (kicks raffae's butt pretty regularly)!
L. Live: Maryland and love it
M. Movie I last watched - Silver Lining Playbook (in theatre), 5 Year Engagement (on tv)
N. Nicknames: Lubna, Vejal, Buno
O. Overnight Hospital Stays: 8 years ago when Zoya was born. Didn't sleep a wink the whole night cause drama queen was in full blown performance mode!
P. Pet Peeves: When people don't put things back to its original place after using
Q. Quote from a movie: Err...Expelliarmus!!!!!
R. Reading (currently): Swallows of Kabul by Yesmina Khadra
S. Siblings: One. Sister. Canada. Two cute nephews
T. Time it takes you to get ready: Without shower - 10 minutes, with shower - 30 minutes
U. Ultimate Vacation: What can I say. I love travelling. Every time I get to go to a new place and experience the culture is my ultimate vacation!
V. Vegetable you hate: None really
W. What makes you run late: Kids!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
X. X-Rays you have had: Do sonograms count?
Y. Yummy food that you make: Lot of things :-) I'm a decent cook
Z. Zoo animal: Giraffae? Panda? Dolphin? Lion? I dont know. I'm not a pet person, but I like going to zoos!

Learrn anything new? Did any answer surprise you? I'd love to read your ABC meme if you have a blog or you can leave a comment with your answers!

She has a point!

So Zoya doesn't want to shower today. When I told her she doesn't have a choice, she went into the bathroom and slammed the door. I made her open the door and asked her why she slammed the door. Her answer: "I read in National Geographic that you are more likely to be in a bad mood on a Thursday. Today is Thursday. So I must be in a bad mood"! Kids!!!

Leave the girl alone!

Never did I think I'd write about Aishwarya Rai, let alone defend the beauty queen. She had been vilified in the indian press recently about her weight gain during her first pregnancy. I heard there is a video up on youtube with her post-pregnancy images where they used an elephant stomping sound in the back. Really?! I can understand people raising an eyebrow when they see her now, after all, the girl used to look like a goddess!

But to actually call her out in public like that is just shameful! The first days of motherhood is a special time. She should be doting on the gorgeous baby girl she has. If she wants to take her time to lose the weight, leave her alone people! She finally looks human, feels human, let her be human.

Some ranting

I find it hard to accept when I hear someone killed himself/herself. Even worse is when I hear a father killed the whole family and then killed himself. Seriously – what can be sooo bad that you have to take a life/lives? If you have the courage to kill your innocent 4-5 year old kids, what is out there that you can not face? I’ve seen multiple cases recently where the family is losing their homes, losing jobs and then as a last act of desperation, killing the whole family and themselves. Why?!!! Why?? Why?? People get set on a type of a lifestyle and they just can not see themselves living a lesser of a lifestyle. Atleast that’s one reason I see behind these killings. When did we become so vain?

P.S. This and this prompted this post. And I just found this!!! God help us!

Beating myself up

Yet another year went by and I still weigh about the same as I did at the beginning of the year, if not more! No clear muscle definition is visible either! So it's not like I've lost fat and gained muscle! On top of that, Tanveer has gone all out on health and fitness this year! As some of you already know, he did the Livestrong challenge this year. He is planning on doing it again in 09. He is also digging up all these core strengthening exercises from the web and actually doing them! He has made a lot of changes to his eating habit and I can see the results of all these, yet I still am not motivated enough to do those things for myself! How sad is that!? Oh did I mention he actually bought a treadmill for me since I always said that if we had one at home, it will be easier for me to workout? Meanwhile, yet another of my uncles suffered a stroke this year. This one brings the number to FIVE strokes/heart attacks on my mom's side of the family! So I am a high risk too.

I secretly wish for my pre-pregnancy body back. I fantasize about how I will work out, eat healthy and become a size four again, but put any food in front of me and I forget all about eating healthy, getting that body back, let alone be more responsible for my health. I tell myself I'll work out when I get home, but when I get home, I feel too lazy/find excuses not to exercise. It scares me to think what would happen to the kids if I am not there to take care of them, but I obviously don't feel strongly enough to make becoming healthier a priority. What an awful person I am!

I've been soooooo down last couple of days. What can I do that would not let me forget what my priorities should be when there is a box of cookies in front of me? I don't need to go to a body building competition. I don't even need to look good in a dress. I need to be healthy - for myself, for my kids, for my family.

No more sad endings

I have come to the conclusion that I don't ever want to watch a romantic movie that has a sad ending! I watched "Mr. and Mrs. Iyer" last night. If you haven't watched the movie yet, stop reading here. Major spoilers ahead. Why the hell couldn't she go with him? She should have just gone off to the jungle with him and had dinner with him under the moonlight while getting bitten by the mosquitos! AND she would have been happier! Who cares that there is no running water? Who gives a damn that they are from different religions? After all, they are not real! Its only a movie! Just make the audience happy!!!!!!!!!!

Same goes for "Lust, Caution". Its only a movie people! Just let the general save the poor girl and let her wear her quail diamond ring and her nice clothes and let her lust after him. Done. everyone is happy. What's so hard to understand with this concept?

I think I am going to watch more hindi movies from now on. 100% guaratee that the guy is going to get the girl, no matter how many twists there are in the plotline. One movie gives you romance, action, suspense: what more do you want??!!

Life is not fair

We were eating lunch when his phone rang. He looked at the number and excused himself to answer the phone. Within seconds, I could see the smile getting wiped off of his face. He is usually always smiling, somewhat of a goofball. It was really unsettling to see the range of emotions playing on his face, none of them a familiar look on him. Looked like he wanted to cry. After he hung up, he told me his grandmother just passed away in India. He is moving back to India in a week. I spent a lot of my drive home imagining him as a little kid, being spoiled by his grandmother. Hope he is doing ok.

Election Night Tidbits

7:48 pm
It must be surreal for the candidates to sit there and watch the numbers

7:57 pm
I hope and hope and hope that I NEVER, EVER have to see Sarah Palin after tonight. Not even on 2012! Please go away!

8:21 pm
Huffington Post is saying: Obama 103, McCain 34!!!!!!!!!!! :-D

8:47 pm
I want something sweet...

8:55 pm
Was trying to convince Neetha to come over. Didn't work :-(

9:09 pm
Glad to hear that Toot's vote for Obama will be counted :-)

9:26 pm
THANK YOU OHIO!

9:48 pm
Can't wait for Obama's victory speech. I think I'll most definitely cry! :-P

10:01 pm
Found THREE old friends on FB

11:04 pm
HELL YA!!!!!!!!!! OBAMA! OBAMA! OBAMA!

11:38 pm
Proud to be a part of this historical moment in this great country

11:43 pm
What is Anderson Cooper going to do from tomorrow? :-P

12:26 am
(sigh of relief) Yes we can!

My take on Palin

Those who say they are going to vote for McCain because they like Palin, scare the shit out of me. Come on people! Do you not realize that, God forbid, if something happens to McCain, it will be her running the country!?! Didn't we learn anything from EIGHT embarrassing years under Bush?! Come to think of it, compared to her, Bush seems intelligent! She is just too bubbly, too pageant like! I don't want my VP to be an intellectual featherweight! I don’t think I've ever disliked any woman this much without really knowing her! Every time I hear the expression that Palin is "only a heartbeat away from the presidency", my heart skips a beat! God forbid, if they make it to the White House, I’ll have to start praying for McCain’s good health!

BTW, Tina Fey was just ridiculously awesome as Palin! :-P

Holy Guacamole!!!!!!

It just rained over here. Well, there really wasn't any raindrops! It was all hail. This was picked up after another five minutes of rain and still look at the size!

Mosquitoes

I got a chuckle out of this piece as I was listening to it on the radio on my way to work this morning. You could read the article here but I'd say listen to it. It was kinda funny! Or maybe its just my weird sense of humor :-P