Twenty- five Seven

Why should I be grateful? #GratitudeCircle

February 25, 2016
The whole of last week has been a whirl of activity with Bayda the Bai doing the Bunk. As usual when she goes, I spend the first two days just trying to find my way about my own kitchen. Then I spend the next few days tidying up and taking stock. Add to this doing all the work she normally does and you get a whole load of angst that leaves me wondering.

Why me? I ask myself when tears course down my face while chopping onions early in the morning.

Why me? I ask myself waiting behind five people in the queue for the lift which only fits in four at a time.

Why me? I ask myself when I’m stuck in the traffic, getting late for an appointment with a person who is a stickler for punctuality.

Why me? I ask myself when I toss and turn in bed with GERD after a meal that I had really enjoyed.

Why me ? I ask myself when I have to clean baby poo when I’m dressed to go out.

But last week when I attended the condolence meetings of my friends’ mothers I said ” Thank God it’s not me! ”

I have a tendency to wallow in self pity especially when my bones ache at the end of the day but then I remember all the things I have to be grateful for
- This month I celebrated a birthday with friends and family – two friends made time out of their busy schedules just to give me a birthday hug in my garden. It was a secret pleasure as we sat on the garden bench enjoying the cool breeze that was blowing in Mumbai.
Later in the day I cut a home made cake while my grandson blew out the candles with much gusto. And the best was for the last – a dinner at a restaurant that I was dying to go to – hosted by my daughters.

Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?
- As I hugged my friends who had lost their moms I silently thanked God that I still had mine. They say that you never really grow up till your parents are around. With parents in law and parents both well into their 80’s I must be the only 50+ person in the world who is still a”child”
Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?
- The view out of my balcony is to die for. Our building is one of those few in Mumbai with a garden that is green and lush and well looked after. Currently one lift is closed because it is being replaced which is why there is a wait with the pressure on the single operating one being doubled. But after 6 months, it will be faster and safer to travel in the lift.
Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?
- Unlike most of my friends, I am tied up with baby duty that often has me crawling on my knees to play with them or look for a toy that has slipped under the sofa or makes me bend to pick them up. But this exercise has only made me more supple than I would normally be at this age (yes, despite all the yoga) . Also the babble of baby talk and seeing the world through the eyes of an almost three year old, gives me a fresh perspective on many things.
Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?
- When the days go by in a whirl of activity, I actually relish the few moments of peace before I close my eyes. Despite the exhaustion, there is a sense of satisfaction that I can’t explain.
Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?
- When I’m busy trying to meet deadlines for content creation or articles for magazines that don’t pay me anything, I feel happy that there is someone out there who values what I write. Meeting people in the course of my free article writing is fulfilling beyond belief – an opportunity to meet people I’d have never ordinarily met. A brief encounter with a person who is a mover and shaker is inspiring and motivating.
Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?

Join me and others who share their gratitude with #GratitudeCircle hosted by Vidya Sury. Finally I’m grateful for all those bloggers who constantly support me with their words of encouragement, especially when I’m moaning and groaning and drowning in self pity.

Now isn’t that something to be grateful for?
Skies from this week’s Mumbai

February 23, 2016

Unlike last week , the smog over Mumbai seems to have cleared and we are back to our sunny days. However it won’t be long before the sun is really strong and we look back to these cold days past with longing

Waiting at the traffic lights at Chowpatty . At almost any given time there is a five minute wait at the traffic lights and I always try to capture the scene from this vantage point.

The clouds over Marine Drive. It looked suspiciously like rain and the weather was quite funny – chilly till mid afternoon, then hot and again chilly at night. Luckily, though there were no stuffy noses to deal with!

Jer Mansion is one of the oldest buildings of Bombay and was supposedly very stylish. This building at Metro is now in the process of being pulled down and this is probably one of few photographs I’ll be able to capture before it becomes a pile of rubble.

Anazingly blue sky at Dhobi Talao. The world always looks better through my rose tinted dark glasses but this time I could see this gorgeous sky with clear vision. Amazing sky near the Embarkation HeadQuarters.

A gorgeous sunset from my front balcony. Every day I get the most spectacular sundowners and no matter how many times I see it, I can’t resist capturing it on film. How long, though before the towers get higher and I can only capture a thin sliver of sky?

Catching the sun at Haji Ali. Waiting again at the traffic lights, I saw my favourite Imperial Tower glinting in the setting sun.

Finally, I couldn’t help look up and capture this streak of white cloud in the evening sky.

Somehow clouds make me feel like reaching out and touching them. Does that happen to you?

With the weekend coming up, the evenings are longer and sunsets spectacular. Hope to catch some lovely sunsets this coming week.

Have a great weekend.

Linking this post to Skywatch Friday . Do drop in to see more skies from around the world.
Where have all those Mondays gone? #MondayMusings

February 22, 2016

Today I realised that actually I am a lazy person. I also realised that I only function under pressure and with deadlines – after all I am an Indian and we Indians are like that only. Sometimes I find it hard to write, so I find it easy to stick to a meme, or a blog hop or even respond to a prompt, hence when Corinne announced a weekly post every Monday, I was happy to jump on . Hey! I thought to myself, that’s 52 posts taken care of – if I have to post every Monday. Similarly, I participate in Skywatch Fridays which means that’s another 52 posts taken care of. In addition if I link up to 52 WOW prompts on Blogadda, it gives me a total of 156 posts that I simply have to post.

Now you will probably wonder why I am obsessed with all these numbers. Actually, I am not into Statistics and actually find that numbers do lie. A long, long time ago when we were in college, a friend was given a dismal score of 3 out of a possible score of 100. Naturally we were aghast because she definitely deserved more than that. I remember going with her to the master and heard her plead her case. The master asked for the paper and promised to re-check her answers. A week later he gave it back with a revised score of 6! This time there was a collective gasp from the four of us who had accompanied her to the Staff Room. The master looked at us with amusement and said, ” Well, you can’t complain because your marks have increased by 100%”. Ever since that day, I find that statistics aren’t always true indicators of reality.

geralt / Pixabay

So, coming down to the numbers, I have been tracking my visitors and views and posts etc on Google Analytics and found that January was a good month with increased visitors and views. However, February, which began well soon faced a slump because of Bai problems no less. Suddenly, I found myself inundated with work – baby sitting, housework, cooking, grocery shopping, content writing and absolutely no time to even think, let alone write.

I realised then that 52 Mondays were not happening, nor were 52 Fridays and 52 WOW weekends. I wonder what happened to all those Mondays?

Do you think if I start tagging them with serial numbers they will be easier to keep track of?

p.s. It’s obvious I’m linking this to #MondayMusings