The needle and me

Aaaaand I'm back. My poor baby was sick, so I was on a sabbatical from blogging, work, and life almost.

But since I got some time off the computer, used it for rekindling my old interests... embroidery.

Just finished the neck for a kurta. My photo is not really great. But wanted to share it here.

I just did that simple blanket stitch along the neck...

Still haven't worn this kurta. Am wondering if this stitch is strong enough to bear machine-washing.

Love: Yes/No

Today's post is not going to be a commentary. Just wanted to highlight a topic that Aamir Khan brought up on his popular programme, Satyameva Jayate: about how we do not give our young ones in India the freedom to love. Read his view here.

I wonder how I as a mother would behave in the future when it comes to the topic of my young ones falling in love. Will I try to straitjacket them according to the structure I have created in my mind, or will I give them wings to fly? Only time will tell.

Yawn!

Sleep, glorious sleep. I have always needed lots of it, but how the human being amazingly adapts to situations. I now get by on 8 hours of sleep, which is perfect. During my MBA days, have got by on 3 and 4 hours. Couple that with activity-packed days, and I am left wondering... Why didn't I get headaches then? How does the human being adjust to such sleep deprivation for such a long period? Interesting...

(P.S. This was Thursday's post, which as usual, didn't get published from my phone.) 

No guilt!

I missed one day in blogging! Now I'm not going to beat myself up about it, just going to make a public promise that some day in this one-month trial, I will blog twice! That's that. I'm not going to beat myself up about that.

That brings me straight to today's topic: Guilt. As an Indian living in urban Bangalore, part of the Marthomite community and active participant in family matters, why am I made to feel guilty all the time? We are so good at making those boundaries for others. Oh no, you shouldn't do that, no stepping over this line, I don't like you thinking like this... why are we so bothered about others' actions?

The Bible (and I'm sure other holy writings do too) talks about the taking out of the log from one's own eye before pointing out the speck in another's. My friend Sumana writes on the same topic in her social commentary blog This & That. And those closest to me remind me how every person I judge has their own story.

So before I feel guilty about something, let me remember that I am entitled to my own opinion, action and life. That may sound selfish, but I think it's one of my first steps to freedom! Yoohoo!

My little woman

The rites of passage into womanhood are many. School, college, work, that first crush, the first love, first heartbreak, successes, disappointments, understanding that relationships wax and wane, deciphering your own understanding of time and generations... Each woman writes her own story. And today, as my little N took her first steps into my alma mater, history sighed deeply, and the future smiled. God be with you as you paint your world, find your tune and discover your stars!

Hairy Tales

And this is today's post. Am working from home today because of a strike advisory. And am using the time to also preen myself to attend a cousin's wedding in the evening. What with the abundance of wedding-related events last month, I can now take out all my sarees, see if the blouse fits (which usually requires some amount of dexterity and breath-holding), match jewellery and footwear and handbag, and do something about my darned hair.

Hair has always been my bane. And for oh-so many years, I maintained it in a short (and smart?) style. It was easy to comb out, didn't need accessories or maintenance products and best of all, was never a topic of conversation. Of course, once in a while, I would tire of the style and try and grow it out. But you know what's the problem with my hair? When short, it looks and feel different. As it grows, each hair takes on a mind and ambition of its own. I get totally frizzy, unmanageable hair. And I suffer it for a while, thinking that if it grows out just a wee bit more, maybe it will fall like those lustrous curls I have always wanted, but alas! It curls and curls and remains on my shoulders, and just looks more and more untidy.

The other day, I brushed it out into what I thought was a neater-than-usual style and was ready to leave, when my aunt asks me, "Don't you have to comb your hair?" Grrrrrr!

Tech Savvy?

This is yesterday's post. I typed out this thought from my phone so many times but the darn thing kept hanging, and so here I am today. Still trying to be disciplined.

Who would you consider to be more tech-savvy? A technology professional based in the US, who works with supercomputers, but didnt own a cellphone till just two years back and who only recently discovered Skype, or a stay-at-home grandmom who chats, skypes and sms-es with abandon?