How not to procrastinate -Just Do It !

Okay here is a big confession - I think I am the biggest procratinator in the world!
I have big plans, tasks, ideas. I also know I am capable of doing them. But then, I just can't get myself to start them, or stop them midway. Even small simple chores.
Distractions. Big time !!
I have to dissect this. At the end of the day the procrastination only leaves me guilty and more often than not disgusted and ashamed at myself.
What is it?

#Does instant gratification score more over long term happiness?
# Self control is below zero?
# Or is it perfection or a fear of failure? Do I expect too much of myself, that I am even afraid to start?

How do I go about tackling this . It is becoming a habit, a whirlpool that I am getting sucked into. Unless I consciously pull myself out of it, I might get sucked in.
Okay, so let me start with a few quick things.

# Set  a miniscule set of goals each day. Could be something like sorting just a small section of clothes (maybe even just the lingerie), or making sure I set aside ten minutes to sow those coriander seeds I have been meaning to forever.
# Break down big tasks into small achievable tasks. That way it seems more doable and less daunting.
# Turn off temptations. Maybe switch off wifi for the amount of time I have set to work. Turn off the notification sounds from all messengers/ social media/ email services etc.
# Some tasks like daily chores which do not require any creativity can be set to a timer. That way I will work to achieve a self set deadline.
# Set reminders and alarms for taking medicines/ exercise or any others however mundane or small, but is getting put off or forgotten
# Do something different in between tasks to set off boredom.

Hopefully these techniques help me. Right now I am happy I wrote this and didn't put it off. Yayy! One goal of the day achieved :-)

For now let me "Just do it, and then sit back and wonder, "how did I manage to do it?" " !!

A Good Day

Mornings - 

Hectic, frenzied, crazy. Bathrooms always occupied. The kitchen warm and smelling of breakfast. Crisp newspaper. Hot tea. School uniforms.Ironed, hot, fresh. Innocent prayers. Bags , shoes, lunchboxes packed. Tears wiped. Smiles. Hugs.Children packed. The husband packed. 

I love mornings. What's not to love about them. Routine- It is comforting.

Silence. Can hear all the voices and noise in the head now.

The wait before the kids are back from school. Till then it's me and the voice. Be kind to me today. My voice. Let's be good to each other.
Make Peace.

Letting go

I have decided to blog often, if not frequently. I am not proud of the way I write and it has taken me a while to actually get to this "task". Yes, as of now, that is how I am going to take it forward. A project in hand. If I don't start today, I am sure a year from now, I going to look back to this day, and wish that I did.
No more regrets. All my outpourings, my blah-blahs, my honest and dishonest opinions, my not so great humorous tales, reviews, and all the dramas of day to day life is going to be all over this page.
I also hope to improve on my articulation skills along the way. But overall, this is going to be my space, where I can just be me.
Take for instance, today I was thinking of how hard it is to let go. Letting go of old habits , a cherished dream or a dear friend. Its always difficult. But I have to overcome the fear of the unknown, and step out of my comfort zone.
There is a beautiful and bright world out there, I'd like to believe. I just wish I can carry the courage in my heart to take that first step. I will know then, even if I failed, I tried. I will pick myself up, and try again.
So here I am letting go of my fear. I will pick that phone up tomorrow and call the car driving school :)

Spring is here again

 I sit here staring at the screen in front of me. My fingers are hovering over the keyboard for quite a while before I start typing some random words into the text box.
This post is not about anything. It is not  enlightening or inspiring or even informative.
It is just a few black alphabets coerced to align themselves to form some semblance of sentences.
The structure is right. The sentences do not deviate much from grammar.Yet, of what use is this?
Does everything need to have a purpose, a deeper meaning? Does every story need a plot? Can't beautiful vivid tales be spun with no sudden twist or turn?
Anyway, this post is for me. These random , arbitrary collection of words have somehow managed to convey a deeper purpose to me. That, I should begin now. A new beginning .I have songs to sing.
I will sing everyday.

Cobwebs

A room shrouded in mystery
The doors have been locked
A long long time
Not a ray of sun, nor a waft of breeze dare enter .
Chaos and clutter everywhere

Here- Rubbish, garbage and filth, fungus and mould.
There- A few uncherished dust coated gems, long forgotten
A fine carpet of dust on the floor
Bears no footprints
Shelves and cabinets -Unmarked and Mislabelled
A pain to wade through

The room cries for attention
 Goes back to sulking, getting none
From the irresponsible home maker.

Today I
Unlock the doors.Draw back the curtains.Throw open the windows.
Soak in the sun
Drink in the breeze.
Throw out the garbage, polish the gems.
Tear down the cobwebs.Sanitize.

Its my mind - my space.
It deserves to be sunny, airy and have lots of room for - ME.

Seeing double ! Photo feature of the week

Captured in a rare moment of  extreme cooperation from Shri. :)

I think, she was distracted by her own reflection, in letting me click away to glory, without a whimper or a scowl! The young lady is quite happy with the results too !!

Navratri Puttu Recipe

Another Navaratri, has come and gone.Not one, not two but nine days and nights of gaiety and piety.
The tastes of the variety of sundal prasadams ,smells of jasmine and the chants from Lalitha Sahasranamam are still wafting in the breeze.
And before they get swept away from my limited memory cache, I want to record this very tasty snack which is usually offered to the Goddess on a Navaratri friday.Its a sure-fire hit with kids and all age groups.

This is my mother in law's version of making the traditional puttu, and it is so wonderful and tasty, that I am here to share the recipe.I will be saying it in as many pictures as words, so you can have a clearer understanding of the process.
Ingredients

• Rice flour - 1 cup
• Jaggery (crushed) - 1 cup
• Elaichi powder - 2 tsp
• Ghee - 1 tbsp
• Cashew nuts
• Coconut grated - 2 tbsp
• Salt - 1 pinch
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp 

Process
1. Dry roast the rice flour in a heavy bottomed kadai , using medium heat( You can also use raw rice, which can be dry roasted and powdered in a mixer) till it turns golden.Allow to cool
2.In a separate vessel boil some water, adding a pinch of salt  and turmeric powder to it.
3.Add the water to the rice flour slowly (sprinking should be enough), stirring all the while.It should result in a damp powder, like bread crumbs. You may find lumps,which can be sieved to give a uniform texture.
4.In a clean muslin cloth ( a south Indian veshti cloth cut to the size of a scarf will do), add the flour, and tie it up loosely like a bundle and place it to steam in a pressure cooker( in idli plates or a steamer) for about 10 mins.Do not use the cooker weight.
5.When done, remove from cooker and decrumble it, remove lumps (can be seived again) and keep aside to cool.The resultant texture is fluffy and grainy.It should flow freely when allowed to fall from the hand.
6.Meanwhile add the crushed jaggery to 1/2 cup water, and heat it till it dissolves.Jaggery usually has some fine grit,which should be removed.Filter the jaggery water, and place it back on the stove.
8.Heat the jaggery syrup till it reaches the required consistency.i.e As the syrup starts to thicken , drop a bit of the syrup into a small bowl of water .The syrup should soilidify and can be rolled into a small ball.Try dropping the ball back into the water, and you should hear a 'clang' sound.
9.Now add the rice flour to the jaggery syrup, mixing all the while.Its better to ask someone to help, in adding the flour while you concentrate on mixing it thouroughly to form a homogeneous mixture.(Before you start mixing, it would be wise to keep some of the syrup aside for mixing later, if required)
10.Fry the cashews and grated coconut in ghee.Add the cardomum powder, cashews and grated coconut.

Delicious puttu is ready.Can be stored for about 4 days.It is extremely nutritious, and very tasty, though it can be quite a laborious process for first timers.
More to come on the Navarthri magic this year.Hopefully I dont get lathargic and do it by the next  year navarathri!

Experiments with the lens - Photo feature of the week

I have been dabbling with the camera ( rather my cellphone flicker!) for sometime now and have decided to post one photo every week, starting today.

Please don't expect any mindblowing shots from a hi-fi camera, and exotic locations.It will mostly feature day to day, ordinary still life, or little Shri in her elements, captured from my perspective with some cooperation from the cell camera.Hope to get better, with the experiments, and have lots of fun in the process !

No, no..That's not the ocean floor and I have'nt taken to scuba diving! Just my collection of sea shells placed in a glass container filled with water.
Here's how..

Mann ka radio - The song in my head today

Mann Ka Radio by Himesh Reshammiya. Movie: Radio (Upcoming flick).

I know, I know..lots of raised eyebrows..What is happening to me? It is an average song by an overrated singer,but it is playing in an infinite loop in my head.
Its that little imp Shri ( my almost 3 year old) who is to be blamed for it..She simply loves it and insists on playing it forever.and infact keeps singing it throughout the day. I guess the song just grew on me!
Btw, Himesh doesnt sound like himself at all..The nasal voice is almost gone..Has he undergone a "vocal plastic surgery"!? In the promos, he looks fitter, and I guess his bad hair days are left behind.
The lyrics of the song are not extra ordinary, but interesting.The song is ruling all the FM stations in Bangalore.(which is quite obvious, given the lyrics)..and I cant decide whether I like the song or not!Sorry people..listen up..

Obsessive Compulsive Quirks

Well I am sure not suffering from any OCDs (Obsessive Compulsive Disorders). You know the kind which makes anxious people repeat a certain behaviour or have recurrent thoughts about them.A very common one being, the "checking if the door is locked" syndrome, where one comes back repeatedl y to the door to double , triple check if the door is locked after leaving the house.And the thought doesnt leave even once he is far away from his habitat.Comes back to haunt him..

Well, mine is the gentler kind..where I have developed certain , how do I call it, "quirks" ,along the way.These quirks mostly acquired , are a result of  "If you do this , something bad will happen" passed on from the previous generation. I am not questioning anybody's intellectual prowess or the ability to reason.There are certain things (in fact a lot of things) which were imbibed by our parents mutely from our grandparents..No questions asked.Why? If you question, you were considered to be utmost disrespectful.
I am sure many a bright eyed child's curiosity of the previous gen fizzed out due to the constant reprimand subjecting them to fit in and not stand out.

Well, I guess our generation is the confused lot, where we were not discouraged from questioning , but still expected to follow many a rule, just because..."thats how it has been for generations, and we never questioned our elders." So we still dont have many answers.

Some of the quirky things I do, mostly out of habit, ..(I am not superstitious..or am I? see the confusion..)..are harmless.Sometimes silly, and many a time, irritating
Some are subject to circumstances, and people around me..In Rome, be a Roman.

1.  I dont pass the salt to anybody's waiting hand. I leave it next to them on the table. (quirk picked up recently..) Why? Giving the salt directly , makes the person develop a lifelong dislike for you..and you also start hating that person.So..if you want to start a fight between two people, just make them handover the salt shaker! Its that simple.
2. I dont ask.."Where are you going?" when somebody is leaving the house ( without telling us where they are headed , of course) Why? You shouldnt ask..Its very very bad.Next time, just try asking, where will you be coming back from? Some nerve I have!!
3. I dont cut any body parts ( for eg: nails, hair) on Tuesdays and Fridays...and it is definitely a no-no after dusk.Why? Tuesdays and Fridays are very special days of the week..there are many a dos-donts for those two days..which can only be matched or exceeded by the other pair of special days..see next point.
4. I dont start anything new or buy anything or travel anywhere on the two horror days..Ashtami and Navami.Why? அது அப்படிதான். This particular quirk is quite a bone of contention between the star tv generation and the doordarshan generation.I am sure there must be a reason..but nobody is telling me :(
5. I really love this one - When my right eye flickers on its own, as it does sometimes..(It is not because some nerve has become excited)..I immediately tell someone, that my right eye is flickering...lest some evil befall.This has many a time, led me embarassing situations in airports or busses or in the office board room, when my right eye suddenly decides to do a jig...and I announce to nobody in particular, about the condition! Well you can do the imagination :)Aaah..and the corollary to the above is ofcourse the left eye flicker.Which is supposed to bring you good luck.So what do I do?Just shut up and dont tell anyone, about my secret..Why not?then the good luck charm becomes null and void..
6. I enter or exit only with my right foot first.When I enter the house,leave the house, get down /enter a car, bus..however crowded the bus may be..I take a sec and put only my best right foot forward..Its Right,Left,Right for me..Why?Well..guess where I picked this quirk from?From the masala saas bahu movies..Havent we heard scores of times "வலது கால எடுத்து உள்ள வெச்சு வா மா".
7. When I do something exceptionally well (thats a rarity) or during a family event like a house warming or a wedding, when you are looking like a happy family and numerous other good occasions ..there is bound to be drishti putting by lot of potential Drishti Putters.Who is a Drishti Putter? Eg: One who looks at your new saree and thinks..wow, that is such a beautiful saree..wish i had one like that..how does she always manage to get such stuff from her hubby? and other such numerous occ. There are many ways such Drishti can be removed...for the various ways in which it can be removed check here.
8. Well..whenever I make dosas, I always make a teeny weeny dosa first and discard it..and then start making the big round beauties..Why?Cos my grandma said so.முதல் தோசை சாப்பிட்ட படிப்பு வராது செல்லம்.
9. I reserved the quirkiest one for the last..why last?because 9 is such a cool number.I didnt want to end with the unlucky 8!(I sometimes feel so sorry for that poor number..) I never look at my refelction in a mirror after applying oil to my face and head..Why? No..not because I will be terrified at the reflection..but because,it will lead me to be born as a lion in my next birth! well..that, I dont mind actually!! ;)

Well there are many more, which I have not listed here,like "dont touch or look at your own shadow..you will lose weight" (If only all the diet watchers and gym hitters knew this simple secret)..If you have any favourite quirks please let me know..also, if you know the reason why you do what you are doing, please share it here.
போயிட்டு வரேன்..one should never bid adeu with போரேன்.

..And the milk boils over.

Again.How many times has this happened to me, but I am one who never learns.
Sample this -
Scene 1

Early morning. I take the milk packet out of the refrigerator, pour the contents into the vessel, and switch on the gas stove.
I keep the stove in sim mode, to avoid ...you guessed right.
I do some mental maths to figure out how many activities can be multi tasked when the milk is simmering.After all it is quite boring to stand there, staring blankly at the white liquid in the vessel, sitting ever so innocently. Calm, placid, with no sign of the erupting volcano..almost teasing me , "aww cmon lady, I am not going to boil over when you are standing there keeping a careful watch on me, am I?"

Scene 2.

• I  fit in  a quick வாசல் தெளிச்சு கோலம் போடல். (customary rangoli on the porch.) ..Check the milk.status quo.
• Decide on the menu of the day.Take out the necessary veggies from the fridge...Check the milk..no change.I wait a second more, scared that the shrewed one will just spring at the opportunity when I turn my back.No..quiet as a sleeping baby.I give it a half smile..and turn to the veggies.
• Chopping of veggies start.An eye on the stove.

Scene 3

The door bell rings.The Martian is back from his morning walk. I rush to the door, knife in hand, and open the latch. I dont even wait to pull open the door, ..I instinctively know..now is the moment..
As I sprint to the kitchen, it seems the longest stretch ever. I can hear the "hisssssssssss" .My sprint is now a wild dash.My heart screaming, "I've got to win"!.
 I enter the kitchen just in time to see the whiteness giving me a wink and a wicked smile ,boiling over,covering everything in the near vicinity,in a frothy white blanket.
Run Out!..
Inspite of my record run outs, I still refuse to use a milk cooker or tetrapaks.The thrilling match continues..only the scenes, and acts differ.But in my defense, I have won many a time too.. :).

The pleasures of gardening

என் வீட்டு தோட்டத்தில் ...

Waking up to this sight in the mornings gives me a beautiful reason to smile..
So sweet are the fruits flowers of labour.

Mars and Venus - 1

Day -- Any weekend
Time -- 3:00 pm to 4:00 om

Venusian girl: I am bored
Martian boy (playing an online game) :
Venusian girl (louder this time): I AM BORED..
Martian(Looks up and turns back to game):
Venusian : I think I am going to waste away my life as a good for nothing.
Martian (still looking at the monitor): What happened now?
Venusian (A relieved look at having elicited a response..some response): I dont know my purpose in life.
Martian (oh-no not again look): Even I dont..and I am not bothered.
Venusian (irritated now): But, I do..and I want you to bother too.
Martian: You want me to bother about my life's purpose?
Venusian: I want you to bother that I am bothered that I dont know my life's purpose.
Martian: ???
Venusian (continues in the same breath): ..and you should bother that I am not bothered to do anything about it.
Martian (totally confused..these aliens..ugh): So....should I bother that you bother or you dont bother?
Venusian (equally tangled in the web of her confusion).: ..uhhh, whatever. Shall we check out the new Forum Mall? S~ says the sale at Fabmart is on.

The song bird has arrived

Flapping my wings, which were tied all these years in self restraint and self doubt.

I have a song in my heart.It may not be the sweetest but it fills me with a sense of joy.
And I am here to sing it full throated.

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." — Anaïs Nin