SIMPLE SIMON

Whew!!!

Finally back from the much needed vacation, or break if you will,....but wait a minute, did it feel like a break, I mean "The all rest and no work" kind of a break. Well, if there is one thing I did during my so called break, it is changing diapers, washed clothes, was constantly worried anbout whether my baby would be warm or cold which drove me into a manic, incessently removing and putting clothes, sweaters, socks, scarves, caps, on the lil one, and ya not to forget, constantly checking for my baby's poop....in between all this activity, i managed to breathe fresh air, stop and stare at the beautiful nilgiris, appreciate the green tea gardens and have some outdoor fun at Safari rides....

Well, it is funny how the idea of a vacation has changed over the years.....way back when we were kids, a vacation meant going to big cities from the lil towns we lived in and visiting monuments,famous buildings, museums,parks and all the known places...Today going on a vacation translates into hiring a small cottage in a hamlet hill station and enjoying the joys of a simple life amongst nature where no one would be able to reach you, esp colleagues... the urge to enjoy something simple that is so different from our fast paced lives in cities like Mumbai is high on the agenda of a vacation...

Sure I enjoy our weekly visits to the multiplex, grocery shopping in an air conditioned Mall scores above sweating it out at the local vegetable vendor, monthly indulgence to a posh swanky restaurant peps me up, and I love the rare visits to a downtown pub where i can be on my own....so just wanted to spare a thought , can I live without these "Big City things" in a small hill station hamlet with lot of greenery ...and then it hit me, I only enjoy these things coz these are the only vent outs for recreation i have, for example, living in a small town woul have me doing other things which I probably cannot do in Mumbai, for example, i would be cycling among the tea gardens and breathe fresh air, my grocer would be probably a furlong away and i could just walk down for my grocery, life without much Chaos would probably entice me into cooking elaborate meals...can have space for a garden and indulge in rearing flowers, go hiking whenever I feel like, entertain friends who are visiting, have a campfire and a barbecues in the garden ....

Ya life is not just about the lights and glamour, it is about simple things.....

Dilemma

Hey……. Wish you all a very happy new year…… Its been long since I even visited this site leave alone posting blogs…..This new year I have resolved to be more active with my blogsite, as a result of unemployment by choice, (no, I wasn’t given any pink slip)…but inputs might be a little slow coz as unemployed as I maybe, I am definitely not “jobless”….ask any women with a 6 month old toddler to take care of and you’ll know


It is that time of the year again when people make excuses to boost their spirits with “The Spirit”, just because they have made resolutions to abstain from alcohol….resolutions and excuses for reveling because of the resolutions……the promise of discipline to one self gives an excuse for breaking the rules before the pledge is brought into action…..it is almost like last few hours of freedom…..well, 31st December, 2008 was one such occasion for Gans…..Before you jump to conclusions about me policing my husband around with threats of abandon if he doesn’t quit alcohol, let me tell you that this was purely a promise he made to himself and I in this context was merely a witness of sorts to the agreement made by the two parties, my husband and himself……

On the said day, he said to himself aloud….today is the final day…I shall savour the all the joy the cans of beer might bring to my taste buds for in a couple of hours my tongue would be barren of this elixir…..and we went over his friends home for a nice quite private party carrying a dozen cans of the beverage as it was our contribution to the celebration….upon reaching we handed the “the elixir” over to the hosts as one might guess , to refrigerate( Gans likes( oops! Liked) his beer really chilled)…..in the meantime we decided upon putting our respective toddlers to sleep so that we would have no intrusion of toddling kinds ……the task which we hoped to be done with in half hour was a marathon one and apparently took us an hour and a half……finally as the two twits turned into sleeping angels Gans’ friend announced that the beer was waiting to be gorged by Gans…….bringing out the cans one by one I saw my husband downing one can after another….. to my astonishment he was well past his capacity….. “the moment of truth” had come….it was time to tell him to stop…..but he understood my apprehensions and assured me of his sobriety …..he pleaded with me not to ask him to stop as afterall he had only 2 more hours to go before the day ended……I agreed, but not before warning him not to make a fool of himself in an inebriated state……next thing I knew , he was quenching the thirsty saplings outside the house with the water retained in his body that was waiting to gush out with urgency…….I was flabbergasted…….I admonished him for not using the shiny white bowl built for the purpose……but it seemed that my displeasure made no meaning to him, for he continued to prance around in the state of happiness that he was in and out of the blue , he grabbed my arm started waltzing with me to the beats of the music that was playing, embarrassed as much as I was, this sudden display of affection caught me off guard…..and all of a sudden I saw a child in him …the naughty twinkle in his eye…..the endless songs he sang for me, those puppy dog expressions….that adorable tilt of head that exposes vulnerability……that immense love for me in his eyes….and last but not the least the endless attention he was paying me……

The clock struck 12 and we wished each other happiness and prosperity and a few phone calls later, he retired on the top portion of the house where the men has made arrangements to sleep, and I was with the women busy tending to the infants who we had well forgotten for a couple of hours……

At Dawn, we were getting all ready to leave to our respective homes, all somber and fresh….exchanged pleasantries with friends and as we were returning, I told Gans that I had a lovely time last night and wished he would throw me such excess attention once in a while so that I really felt special….he smiled at me and said, “I let go of all inhibitions last night dear, because I let the alcohol hit me. That’s why such public displays of unabashed affection…..but, that doesn’t mean I love you any less, alcohol just lets me express my feelings in a more animated manner….but now that I am letting go of alcohol, there might be little or no occasion where I behave like such a love fool…..”

That made me reminisce……I was so happy with Gans’ resolution prior to last night, but now I do have second thoughts as my need for attention has suddenly become more than his need for “ The Drink”…..You winsome, you loose some…..

PS: Still hoping he gets back to social drinking, and I get my dose of attention once a month at least…..Yes, I am evil!!!!!!!!

Baby highs and lows

It was Sunday early morning 6th of July, , 2008,an emergency , and Meera, my sis,drove mom ,dad and me to the maternity home just 10 minutes away fom home. Reached the maternity home and a few tests and scans later, decided to go in for a C-section at 8:00 am.spoke to Gans who was at mumbai airport boarding a flight for b'lore...he asked me to hold on till he touches down B'lore...I smiled and told him I'll be ready with the gift when he touches down....At 8:12 am, a cute lil Bonny boy was born and half hour later I was shifted to my ward...the nurse brought a small bundle covered in soft white towel and showed the bundle to me...though I was sadeted I could see wide eyes staring back at me and surveying my face closely...I couldnt believe my eyes...this cute package had been creating havoc inside me for the past nine months and now he is finally out in the cold world....then Meera's mobile rang and I could hear Gans scream on the other end "hey I recieved Meera's sms...i am so sorry, I wasnt around for the C-section".An hour later, Gans just appeared from nowhere and planted a kiss on my cheek and cried on seeing our lil bundle....Mom, Gans and Meera immediately got on the job of caring for lil one...I was too sleepy even to keep my eyes open...the baby needed to be fed...the nurses suggested a local dairy's milk to be given fighting protests from mommy and Gans who insisted on either a high quality milk or formula....I tried feeding him the second day but was too sore from my surgery so he had to be given something else apart from mother's milk..and the nurses again suggested the local dairy milk....the next day the bonny boy turned into a bony boy and the weight loss was vey evident.we were worried but the pediatrician assured us that there was no cause for concern as weight loss is common....we werent convinced and meera and gans drove him to a neo natal speciality hospital where upon examinaton he had to be admitted to the ICU.Apparenty t was a severe case of dehydration and bacterial infection due to something he was fed with.The docs sounded the "critical" Alarm....it hadnt even been 72 hours for the lil one and his life was in danger already....of course, these facts were hidden from me for reason that I was under recovery myself...but Gan and Meera ran from pillar to post for different scans and blood tests for the lil one, he was under heavy medication and drips from his third day...the joy we were reveling in two days back turned into our life's biggest nightmare.I was separated from my baby winthin three days of his birth and the lil one stayed in ICU FOR 5 DAYS.Two of which being extremely critical.The day the doc gave us the "Out of danger" sign , we were so relieved we were taking him home afterall....he was going to live...

u can imagine the agony and truama all of us would have been thru...am blogging this really unpleasent episode only to tell all those reading my blog that please take care of ur precious one as soon as he/ she graces this world...if the mother can feed then please go for it the first hour itself and if she is unable to feed for some reason then give him doses of formula only even if the docs insist on some cheaper brand of milk.....coz ur baby deserves the best...

When Big is Beautiful

Well , am finally at the stage where i may have to wait for just 2 weeks for my bundle of happiness to arrive....enjoyed shopping for the lil one , clothes , cradle, toys and all.....

There waz a time when i was getting bigger, I would look myself in the mirror and give a snarl, but the getting bigger in pregnancy makes me wanna show off my bump....the bigger I get the happier i feel and for some strange reason, Gans is also ga-ga over the bump, he looks at it proudly and if I even try and wear clothes that might camouflage the bump, he flies off the handle.....

This is the only time when you are forgiven even if you put on 10 to 15 kgs.....who sayz only small is beautiful......

Maternity excitement

Havent blogged for a while now....hey by the way, thanks Sree for your concern , am doing just fine my dear girl.....its just that the third timester of the 9 and a half month ordeal is taking a toll on my general fitness.....the fatigue and the heaviness...I call it the the 3rd trimester jitters...and also the excitement of the fact that I will be seeing the face of my sweet angel in just 11 weeks......

well, its amazing how the maternity period can be so difficult yet so enjoyable....the heart burns , heaviness, vericose veins, and numerous discomfort but just thinking of the miracle that you will be holding in the end make the effort worthwhile.....

I have only been daydreaming about my baby in the past few weeks....have become such a zombie....but guess this phase is one of the sweetest phase in ones life....Gans is very excited too...and has been collecting info on how hw can help during labor....

A Tale of Two Cities

Am presently enjoying my maternity break at my in-laws place back at Jamshedpur, the steel city. Frankly loving the attention, loving being overfed ( appetite seems to be an unending saga), but just detesting the "much bigger me" and have resolved to get back to my original size at least a month after the delivery.One thing that I am enjoying the most though is the quiet peaceful town that Jamshedpur is.What a respite from the noisy, dust spurning city that Mumbai is.Living in Jamshedpur almost feels as if I have descended onto an uninhabited land, untouched by dust, pollution, crowds most importantly TRAFFIC.

Most People living in Mumbai would surely agree with me when I say the peak hour trafiic in Mumbai in a hot summer day can be equalled to a third degree torture.Ok maybe I was going too far , but definately second degree torture.Waiting on the endless Western Express highway for the antline of vehicles to budge when the suns rays burn your skin, the sweat soils your clothes and the dust and grime makes it impossible for you to convice those nosey parkers that you bathed in the morning.You enter the well lit corporate office and the snazzy rooms with clean walls looking like a drab apology to your posh surroundings(yeesh! how I hate to be in that position). Anyway, bottomline is, Mumbai gives you all the patience you need to live in conditions unsuited for basic comfortable living.The city teaches you to grow up, put up with consistant honking and pan spitting, smell of rotten garbage and sewage, in short , it teaches you to put up with a lot of shit.

Thats why coming to a small clean township like Jamshedpur, you feel as if you have descended in somesort of a luxurious resort.The peace and quiet, the clean roads , non honking and non pan spitting public, and a meagre 4 to 5 vehicles plying on roads canopied by tall green trees seems like such a luxury fit only for the king to enjoy.You hardly find dusty and chipped of concrete multistories huddled with people breathing down each others necks. I have only seen independent houses with beautiful gardening spaces .Looks like everyone here has acquired a flair for gardening. The Roads are lined with tall trees to provide shade when it gets too sunny.And at a given point in time, there are only 4 to 5 vehicles plying on the roads.Inspite of these luxuries that the jamshedpurians enjoy, my ma and pa-in-law say that the traffic is bad, and the dust is killing and pollution is at a rise.

It hit me then" my city may not have given me all the basic comforts required for a peaceful life, but what it has definately given me is the patience to take the discomfort" Since I am not exactly living in the lap of luxury, I am satisfied with even basic requirements for a comfortable living.

In the name of God

Will not feed you with another dose of movie review....but watched "Khuda ke liya" last weekend and simply loved it...words cannot be put to understand the experience ...if you are looking for something sensible , hard hitting and gets you fodder for those thinking cells, "then dont miss it".......