Off to School Today

School Bags - Red & Black

Water Bottles- Black

Tiffin Boxes- Steel (Mamma says no to Plastic)

Hand Towels

Bath Towels for Swimming Days- 1 with a tiger print & 1 with fish- we quarreled for the fish- none of us want the tiger

New Undies

New Shorts/ Shirts (Uniform only for 2 days- poor Mamma is cheesed off that she has to take care to find neat clothes everyday- uniforms would have been easier on her)

Hankies

Sandals

All Labelled with Mamma's Golden/ Brown Nailpolish!!

We were more interested in buying toy cars from Lifestyle store but Mamma & Dadda wouldn't let us go - we had to even do a demo of wearing the bag in the store!

We go for an hour today and for 2.5 hours from next week

The school has recommended what snacks have to be given each day. Friday is Mamma's choice snack though!

Birth Announcement- Doing the Doula's Duty

Lavs Baby Boy has arrived- via a planned C-Seec on 10th June around 5 in the evening!
Move over to her place to congratulate the lucky parents!

Ojas Tejas Become Famous

Ojas & Tejas Claim to Fame

Dadda goes to the courier office to collect Js' credit card. The incharge refused to give the card to anyone other than blood relative.
During the course of the argument, the incharge asks him where he lives.
Dadda- K Colony, S apartments
Courier - Oh, S apartments? Which flat?
Dadda- XYZ
Courier- Oh, XYZ flat, where the twins live?
Dadda- eagerly- yes, yes
Courier- oh you are ITW (uses my surname)
Dadda- suppressing his annoyance- no, I am K
Courier- then you can take the courier, I know the twins!
Says who is famous and in which order.



Ojas' Idea of a Joke
Points at Dadda and says- This is Mamma and this is Dadda (pointing at me)
giggle giggle
We retort- this is Ojas (pointing at Tejas) and this is Tejas (pointing at Ojas)
Ojas- No, This is Ojas (pointing at Dadda)
and This is Tejas-(pointing at Mamma)

It Takes 2...

We have 2 dogs in Pondy- Duggi & Huggy

I told Ojas to give huggy to Tejas and demonstrated how to give a hug.

Ojas did so and then points at himself and says- Ab Duggi (Now Duggi)

Problem in Pronunciation
Ojas & Tejas cannot pronounce R or Sh
So they call Rahul as Zahul or Lahul and Shalini as Salini
The other day I imitated them and said Zahul
Ojas corrects me- Zahul nahin - Zaahul (trying to tell me it is R not Z but becoz of his pronunciation problem, ended up saying Z for both)
Then I said Shalni. Tejas tells me- Aise nahin- Saaalinee- giving stress on proper syllables.

Ass Li... err Eater
I was acting as if I am eating their nose, hands etc and then spitting it out and returning them bcoz they are tasting bad.
Then they ask me to eat their bum. I grab a piece and eat.
They say- Aise nahin (not like this)
Then promptly pull down their pants and say- aise (eat like this)

Tejas' believes this is a Pillow ...
in its folded and packed stage.

Touch Me Not

I am putting Ojas to sleep

Tejas- mamma, buttom - meaning Ojas legs is touching his bum

So I adjust Ojas' position.

Tejas- Mamma, ab legs (now legs)

So I again adjusted him so that he doesn't touch his legs while sleeping.

After Ojas is settled to sleep- Tejas promptly jumps on him to give him a foot - massage.

Now what was that about not allow Ojas to touch him?

Clear case of history repeating- My sis used to sit on my face when I would sleep but not allow me to touch her at all! But Scorps behave similarly.

Cursing

Tejas drops a box of chalks on the floor. Guiltily looks at me and I ignore.

Quickly sets to work putting the chalks back into the box muttering all the while...

Baikuff (bevakoof- foolish), gira diya (dropped it), no tuti (don't break)...blah blah blah...

I guess that's how I would have reacted.

Language Skills

In Pondy- Tejas tells me- ghar chale

Turns to Grandma and tels- Vita ke polla

(Let's go home in Hindi & Tamil resp.)

Wonder how they realize who speaks what language

Confusion

Ojas is talking to Mausi on the phone and Mausi arrives at his doorstep while he is talking

Ojas looks into the phone and then at Mausi and says thoughtfully- 2 Mausi

Chicken

I hereby confess that I orkutted. Though I normally don't. But was chicken enough to use a fake ID. I orkutted to check how many of my school friends are active in the circle. What became of them after so many years.
I discovered our school community, discovered that a friend is now a mother of 1. I immediately asked her to get in touch with me using our code language for each other's name. She mailed back saying that she had mailed me the birth announcement at my old office id. So you see, Orkut has its benefits.
I discovered who had got married, who did not (lucky gals!), who is getting divorced, who has become a mom and who is trying to conceive, and who is blogging (albeit irregularly). I re-lived my school days. It was a bitter-sweet feeling- knowing about their lives and all. I wanted to reach out, scrap them or search them out.
But then again, I was unsure of how far I could continue. Would I be able to really carry the friendship further. Would they have changed. Will they be pleased about getting in touch with me and will they want to pick up the phone and talk to me from time to time or will I be the only one calling them up whenever I feel like doing it.
The close circle of friends- I am in sporadic touch with them via mails & phone. We normally pick up from where we began- like I did with this one.
But can I really bare my heart to any of them- No! Can I tell them about my blog? No - atleast not for the moment- I am not ready to become an open book to them yet.
Some in my family & extended family read my blog - that is fine.
Some friends also read and that is also fine. But the communication is 2-way.
Not like sharing my world & myself with everyone out there about whom I do not even know.
Well, that must be an understatement -yet I am not sure whether i want to reconcile my blog persona with my persona of school days and today's persona yet.
Somehow I am more comfortable sharing all details of my life with an unknown audience rather than a known one. Anonimity breeds security?
I discovered a lurker sometime ago via my stat counter. We zeroed down the webpage to the person because he has named it with his real name. We confirmed after he added his photo on his page. Now my fight is that you are reading me, you know me personally, I never invited you so doesn't propriety demand that you mark your presence by leaving behind a comment? Or just go on reading everyday getting all vicarious pleasure knowing whatever is happening in my life. Well, it is pretty much there for everyone to read but if one knows me and discovers me, I would expect a buzz.
My blog is a medium to reach out, to therapy, to record, to share, to connect- most of these which lack in real life. Most strangers will read & form impressions of the persona and will perhaps treat each blog post as episodes. Whereas someone who already know me will get a bigger & complete picture of my life as it is today. I may use my blogger's license to distort or exaggerate just to add a story value. A known guy will take it as real. That is what gives me a discomfort. They will try to unnecessary reconstruct what is happening in my real life basis my blog life. That's my rant.
Now should I go private and send passwords? Will people want to login everytime they want to read me? Will my ego suffer when I see no takers for a password protected blog?

History Repeats Itself

My cousin S at the age of 4 after getting a slap from his mom- Pyar karo (hug/ kiss me)
Ojas / Tejas after getting a whack from me- Hands/ Legs/ Buttom tuti (broken), give Kissie

Parents' Orientation Day at School

We were invited for the orientation day for the parents in the new school.
What was supposed to be for the parents only ended up as a mish mash of audience comprising grandparents & kids of all age/ size causing a general problem of accomodating the audience.
The kids being kids with low attention spans were either quarreling among themselves or crying or blissfully sleeping or locking horns with the not so amused me- pushing her chair into my already bruised knee repeatedly, or resting his shoes on my spotless clothes- funny how my patience level was at an all time low just because I had left my kids at home and was therefore in a good position to judge other kids & their parents.
Well, for parents only should not be taken at the face value. The whole purpose is lost if you have to struggle with your / others kid when you obviously want to know what methods the teachers employ, what curriculum is followed, why, what alternatives are offered.
The orators were the school management staff. Some of them skilled but some were just reading from a prepared speech and really failed to connect with the audience. Yours truly switched off and focussed on the one-upmanship with the child in front.

Tagged to Hate Men

Taking up JLT's open tag obligingly- to talk of 10 things that I hate about Men.

I love this line- All men are the same. They have different faces so that we can tell them apart better.

1. Their believe that when the woman does the cooking/ housework- she is doing her job. When the man does it- he is doing her a favour.

2. When we women plan something with friends - we do it in such a way that it does not clash with our family time. With men they have to do it when they should be with family- late nights, weekends, holidays etc because then it does not clash with work

3. All men want their wifes to be like their mothers- but they do not want to be like our fathers.

4. Their irrational/ misguided belief in their own kin and not the wife.

5. Their complete inability and unwillingness to support and stand for their wife in times of some specific great need when if the wife opens her mouth in defence- it will be seen as disrespect. And their ability to convert anything that is strictly about the husband and wife into an open family matter- but not vice versa.

6. Comparing our cooking with their mother's- no matter how bad their mother's is or how good ours is.

7. Dropping in / Inviting a friend without checking with the wife and inviting the friend to dinner too.

8. Selective amnesia- about bill due dates- some not all.

9. Doing something for the kid only under duress and then making a big exhibition of it and recording it as the biggest job of the day done to help the wife.

10. Expecting the wife to adapt totally to his culture - not otherwise even partially.

11. Their ability to act like the king of the jungle in front of their family- when she wants to feel cherished and loved and an equal- but like a nice cloying and clingy husband in front of the wife's family- when it is most undesirable and one requires her space with her side of the family.

12. Their ability to garner support from all quarters - both their and wife's side during a quarrel with wife.

13. Their insensitivity while getting exactly the same or better sari/ household item/ gift/ jewel/ cosmetic (thankfully not undergarments/ negligee) for their mother and their wife for fear of hurting their mother's feelings.

14. If they have to choose between their family and wife or friend and wife or dog and wife or office and wife- the choice is always- you guesses it right- not the wife.

15. Their ability to take their entire family for any function- which should have been strictly attended by the couple only.

Some GRAS (Generally Regarded as Silly) Issues that become Family Problems on the Men's side-

Let's say one lady does not eat non-veg- will she start eating just because the husband loves non-veg? So why should the DIL in the family stop eating non-veg on particular days just because the husband does that!

Or let's say in one culture it is considered to be rude to cross legs and sit. How will the wife know about it without being told?

If the wife does not want to change her name after the marriage- it becomes a family problem.

If the couple wants to plan a baby- why it has to become a family news? More so all the tests that the wife has to undergo is made public knowledge- but not if men also have to go through it.

Not wearing mangalsutra/ signs of marriage becomes a family issue even if the husband is ok with it

Going on a holiday especially to meet wife's side of the family is a sensation- the dates need to be aggreable by the panchayat

Booked and Hooked

Few advantages other than the obvious of the Rajnikant book-

1. First time in my life I am seeing hubby engrossed in a book- he takes it to the loo (and that is something because he cannot read anywhere forget loo), takes it to bed and reads it by mobile light so as not to disturb the kids
2. Better than TV- atleast hubby is now not glued to the TV
3. Grudging admiration for the star from those uninitiated to Rajni fandom like yours truly
4. Did I already mention - it is kind of nice to see hubby engrossed in a book- for a change?
5. Affordable gift item for Rajni fans (courtsey AD)

My next endevour is to get him inducted to my favourite authors- Sherlock is a start & Archer should follow.. Small doses should do the trick.

Tiny Thoughts- Threat

If you annoy me,
I will blog about it.

Tiny Thoughts- Presentation

Sometimes I take up the entire time slot allocated to me for my presentation.
Even though I may need to prolong it by adding more details, talking slowly, showing commercials or products or provoking the audience by bringing out multiple dimensions to any particular slide.
I do it because I want to give it back in the same coin to all those who do not bother about how boring their talk can become for some of us in the audience. To all those who once get a chance to be on stage, keep talking our ears off with unnecessary data inspite of the given format of the presentation. To all those who cause a meeting to prolong well into the night because they do not know how to keep time.