Day 924: Absolute Shopping, Absolute Thai!

I went for some shopping today. Not the kinda shopping that arises out of necessity but the kind that you do to pamper yourself! And I hadn't done that in a  really, really long time!

It felt awesome! I bought myself a few nice tops and felt really good about it!

And then the hubby and I had dinner at the very awesome restaurant, Absolute Thai! I can't believe I hadnt written about it here before even though I have been to this place before. The food is really to die for! We had Green Curry Chicken, Stir Fried Prawns in Garlic Sauce, Kailan and Tom Yam Soup in Red Paste and all of them were utterly yummilicious! Probably the best Thai I have had in Singapore!

Absolutely fantastic evening it was, thanks to my personal pampering time with all that shopping and food!

76 more to go.

Day 923: Highest Ever Traffic!

The last few months have been rather eventless, unless of course you count pregnancy as one major event on its own. But what I mean is, I have been feeling like I am not really doing anything with my life. Sure I have a great excuse for it, but still it bothers me. No movie making, no scripting, not much physical activity, nothing but going to office, eating, sleeping, resting, and maybe just a bit of yoga, Da & Di comic strips, blogging, and that's about it. Eventless.

And what's been making this feeling worse is the fact that whenever I sit down to write my blog for each day, I need to really think of what to write because many at times there is really nothing that I myself seem to find fascinating.

Once I complained about this to the hubby and he very wisely said, "But isn't that the point of the blog? To find the beauty in each day even when there is nothing extraordinary happening?".

Ugh. I hate it when the man is right but yeah that was indeed the point. But that was easier said than so done when you suddenly feel like your life has become far less adventurous than before.

But today I feel awesome! Like seriously A.W.E.S.O.M.E!

Because today I realized that in spite of having nothing much to write about, in spite of writing in bulk once or twice a week vs. everyday like i used to do before, this month May saw the highest ever traffic to this blog of mine, much ahead of the historical high 2 years ago!

I had stopped checking the statistics a while ago because the results were bound to be disappointing, but for no particular reason I clicked on the link today and figured this out!

And needless to say, I was very surprised and moreover very grateful! It made me feel productive in a way I haven't felt for some time now! It felt like at least there is some point to this effort of mine, which was beginning to lose its magic in my own eyes.

And that was a boost I very badly needed!

So to everyone who visits this humble blog of mine, a million thanks! You added one awesomely beautiful day to my life!

77 more to go.

Day 922: Loglines!

I had written here that I had a flash of two ideas for short films.

After that, well...nothing happened. I carried on with my life the way I have been carrying on with it these days.

But today two of my friends, both of whom have acted in the capacity of cinematographers and editors with me before, asked me about these ideas, which got me to write Loglines or them. Loglines are short descriptions of the film's plot. I don't usually write one because if I were to write something, it is usually the script itself.

But I wrote both the Loglines and sent to them.

A very small step, but better than none!

78 more to go.

Day 921: Mangoes!

Indians love mangoes. At least that's what I have noticed around me. Mangoes were never a big part of my life when I was in India, but after I got to Singapore I realized that the Indian expats always rave about mangoes - everyone seem to have an opinion about what the best types of mangoes are, what time of the year the mangoes come by, how the mangoes in Singapore never match up to the high Indian mango standards, etc. etc. With these discussions around me, I had grown a considerable interest in mangoes over the past few years.

But I think my fellow Indians may have a point when they seem to be so dissatisfied with the quality of mangoes available here, because in spite of my piqued interest in this fruit and several occasions of tasting them, I had never come across any sample that's made me fall in love with The Mango.

Until today, that is.

Today, I had the most amazing mangoes for dinner! And the best part - my in laws had found them in the wet market right next to my house. In other words, there is indeed something like awesome mangoes and they are available right where I stay!

So here's to the Mighty Mangoes and my new found love for them!

79 more to go.

Day 920: Girlfriends, Canopy, Great Dane!

Lovely Sunday! Totally chilled out after the peaked activity yesterday!

It started with a brunch with my "girlfriends" (basically the two lead girls from Mausams who are my close friends, but I just love the sound of saying my girl friends because it makes me feel so Tai-Tai-ish for no apparent reason), at what seems to be turning out to be our regular hangout - Canopy @ Bishan Park. So in an open air surrounding of thick vegetation, we had a lovely brunch over some lovely conversation. The weather was just perfect for the brunch. Cool, cloudy with a nice breeze! I had the best time ever!

And then the girlfriends left and my in laws and hubby joined for lunch at the same place! In laws hadnt been to Canopy before and they really enjoyed the atmosphere there as well.

While we were at Canopy (which is a pet cafe) I saw the most handsome dog - a HUGE pure bred Great Dane! She was at least as tall as my shoulder level and was like the loveliest thing ever! In spite of her huge size, she was so very gentle. Other dogs in the cafe were completely terrified of her but she was so friendly towards all of them! I watched her for as long as she was around and needless to say, fell in love with her! Sigh!

So anyway, as you can see, it was the perfect chilled Sunday morning - just chatting, eating, watching the lovely Great Dane whom I love!

80 more to go. 

Day 919: Peaked Activity!

It was a Saturday of peaked activity!

Started with a nice long swim. Longest one post being pregnant, at 10 laps!

Then I went into a marathon cleaning spree at home. So many things have been hoarded over the last few years and especially the study was in a horrendous pile of stuff that has gathered over months of film making. With considerable effort for a few hours, the hubby and I managed to clear up everything which made me feel super good.

And then of course, the inevitable happened. I got dead tired. Like, Dead. Tired.

That meant an afternoon siesta.

But activity didn't stop there. In the evening we went to my favourite place Kailas Parbat and had a ton of chaat. Yum!

Then I came back and continued to read my Agatha Christia Omnibus and also managed to get a little bit of office work done.

So there - swimming, cleaning, eating, sleeping, reading, working all in one day. Nothing compared to my pre-pregnancy days but a LOT compared to my average pregnancy day.

81 more to go.

Day 918: One Little Wave!

Had a wonderful visit to the gynae! I was accompanied by the hubby, dad in law and mom in law and together as a big happy family, we made our way for the appointment and had quite an experience. 

During the ultrasound scan, for which the hubby and mom in law were present, we could see that the baby has developed a lot of the bone structure and was moving around pretty actively. At one point in time, much to our excitement, he/she even waved (or at least put a little hand up with fingers wide open which I imagined to be a wave) at us! That was super exciting! 

The rest of the evening was spent on discussing all the details of the visit over and over and over again, both in our home as well as over Skype with my mom who is back in Kerala. Very obviously, parents and grandparents don't tire themselves discussing the activities of their children/grandchildren, in this case the highlight being a little 3-second wave! 

82 more to go. 

Day 917: Baby Names by Da & Di!

Disclaimer: This is a figment of my imagination and is not a true representation of what went through in my household under similar circumstances... just in case the readers jump to that conclusion for no particular reason.

 

 

 

83 more to go. 

Day 916: Two Ideas, One Day!

For a while I have been thinking of what would be a good idea for a film script that requires the least amount of resources to execute. And by resources I mean not just cast, crew and money but also energy. And also lack of complexities such as locations and sets beyond, say, my living room. Given that the pregnancy has brought my energy levels to about 30% of what it used to be earlier, I thought that if there is a film I can shoot with 1-2 people, inside my house itself, that would be the most ideal. I had already given up on thinking of executing the other scripts I have on hand because they are just too complicated at this point.

Sure, but then first and foremost we need an idea for such a film. And none hit me for like the longest time. I had been thinking about this at least for about 3 months now but I got nowhere.

But today, out of the blue, the idea struck! Not just one, but TWO!

What awesomeness!

Sure, for it to actually turn into a film will mean writing the script (just the idea in my head doesn't cut it), casting, rehearsing, shooting, editing etc etc but for today, am super happy that the drought of ideas has come to an end and I have not one but two in my pocket!

84 more to go.

Day 915: My Turn!

As has been made clear on the blog before, I am being super pampered by in-laws who are in town. I get a whole spread of food items to chose from every morning and evening and get to carry so many different dishes to lunch even! I got a small opportunity to cook a little something for them today!

My mom-in-law had expressed an interest in having my favourite (and much raved about by myself on this blog) "Naadan Mutta Roast". Since I was feeling not too weak/tired this evening, I decided to make it for her.

So yes it was my turn to return a teeny tiny bit of that pampering!

85 more to go. 

Day 914: Discussions & Discussions!

Yup, discussions & discussions. Over the phone, at home, over dinner, over breakfast, etc. etc.

About what?

About... whether the kid will be a boy or a girl!

It's totally amusing, really.

It's a topic where each of us - i.e. me, the hubby, parents, parents-in-law, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, everyone has something to contribute. But of course, the most intensive discussions are the ones at home between the four of us (i.e. the hubby, in laws and me) followed by the one with my parents on the phone.

As random as it may be, these discussions are quite fun. Everyone has a "gut", some have a preference, some simply know what it's going to be, some keep changing their minds, some have had a vision/dream telling them what it's going to be (beat that!), etc. etc.

This evening there was an extended version of the discussion and that was super fun also. Of course, there is no unanimous guess on what it's going to be and either which way everyone' gonna be happy about it. But for the time, this excitement is really fun!

86 more to go.

Day 913: The Pool in the Rain!

This evening, mom-in-law, dad-in-law, hubby and I ventured out to the pool again. Swimming is turning out to be a really popular activity in our household! Dad-in-law has picked up swimming while it was mom-in-law's first time to the pool this visit.

As we reached the pool, rain clouds had begun to gather around. But given that there was no thunder or lightning, we spent some time in the pool. It was awesome really! The weather was just perfect, and the water was warm and cozy. After a while the guards came over and asked everyone to be cautious because they feared lightning. So we got out of the pool and instead, had a fun time in the jacuzzi!

Then when it looked like thunder and lightning were a real possibility, we got out of the water and sat by the pool. The very oveercast skies, the drizzle, the breeze, the trees swaying in the breeze and the gentle therapeutic sounds of the water fountains were all just perfect.

The perfect winding down on a Sunday evening!

87 more to go. 

Day 912: East & West!

Pretty nice Saturday.

First, the in-laws, hubby and I had lunch at the hubby's partner's place. Over some great food and conversation, we spent some quality time with his family.

Then in the evening we decided to take it easy and just probably visit Junction 8, the closest mall to my place. There we introduced the in-laws to authentic Chinese cuisine - Dim Sum! We went to Din Tai Fung and ordered dim sum, fried rice, soup, vegetables etc. It was a completely authentically eastern experience for the in-laws, because not just the food but even the atmosphere was 100% Chinese. We were the only non-Chinese people in the super packed restaurant and there were like 2 girls among the 30-odd service staff there who could barely speak any English. In-laws completely enjoyed this truly Chinese experience!

As we made our way back from Junction 8 to our place, it struck me that we could get some coffee or dessert from Dome. The Dome cafe at Bishan is very quaintly furnished in typical English style. Complete with wooden chairs, antique coffee machine displays, carved fruits and flowers on the walls etc., it was really as if we were somewhere in Europe. My in-laws loved the place and we spent some time there chatting away and reminiscing about our trip to Europe together last year!

So yeah, it was a East & West experience for them in one evening. They loved it and I loved it that they loved it!

88 more to go. 

Day 911: One Novel, One Night!

A good wrap of a super hectic week at work!

After enjoying another awesome dinner cooked by my mom in law after the long Friday, I settled down with my new Agatha Christie Omnibus with four of her novels from the 1920s. I had read about 5% of the first novel over the last few days but wanted to do some quality reading, the kind I had not done for a while now.

And so I did my quality reading. I completed one whole novel of about 200 odd pages in one sitting, late into the night!

Loved the novel (really, Brit writing from the 1920s is of a totally different kind and Agatha Christie's work was pretty light, easy and entertaining), and I felt really good about consuming the whole thing in one go!

89 more to go.

Day 910: The Chai Latte Days!

So everyone knows that am an ardent fan of the Starbucks Chai Tea Latte. There was never to be a working day when I didn't pamper myself with a cup of this favorite beverage of mine.

But of course, pregnency made sure that this was on my Things-That-Make-Me-Gag list.

Thankfully that list is now dwindling down to the last few items and I am happy to share that my favorite beverage is no longer part of the list!

So yes, we are back to glorious Chai Latte days! Which is making my work days a lot more fun than they are otherwise! Yay!!!

90 more to go.

Day 909: Full Routine - Check!

There were days when I used to celebrate getting a yoga posture perfectly right and being appreciated by the teacher for it. Of course that doesn't happen these days because I don't visit the studio anymore, but I have gotten a reason to celebrate the day thanks to Yoga again!

I had written before that I have started on pregnancy yoga at home, following a DVD which my yoga studio lended me. Wile this isn't as tiring or strenuous as the Bikram Yoga routine that we follow in the studio, it is still a one hour routine thats fairly challenging under the current conditions. And so far I had not been able to do it from first to last and have had to take breaks in between.

But today I managed to complete the entire routine the way it was done to be, which means I am finally getting used to it! Awesomeness!

Pregnency yoga routine - check!

91 more to go.

Day 908: Night Shift!

It almost felt like I had a night shift today because my work, or the most important part of it, started at 6pm and lasted well into the night. We had a video conference call with different parts of the world for a presentationand this was the time that was the most suitable. So the whole morning I was preparing for the presentation and then in the evening set out to the venue of the call, which happened to be my company's new office in a location pretty much at the other end of Singapore. It is not the first time that am having these late night calls, but it was the first time when work felt like it started in the evening and went for a bit, that too in such new surroundings.

The late night video call in a whole new facility, the trip to a far end of the country for a meeting at that time of the night, being in the new office, etc. were all novelties. So I did enjoy that and oh, the presentation went very well so that was double special!

92 more to go.

Day 907: Invitation vs. Application!

What a fantastic day!

I actually got an invite from a film festival in US that was interested in showcasing both my films - Mausams and Inganeyum Oru Katha! Usually I apply to festivals and a few of them pick me but this time they actually reached out to me! How awesome is that?!

And not just for Mausams but they were interested even in Inganeyum Oru Katha! Like, seriously!

Am still trying to figure out how they came across these films because as far as I know, I haven't exactly publicized them together and it was never my intention for Inganeyum Oru Katha to be on any festival. But anyway that's besides the point, am of course very excited by this!

I must highlight that the screenings haven't been yet confirmed because I need to send them a whole lot of stuff first before it can be finalized. But I guess that's also besides the point!

For today, needless to say, this invite made me super duper wooper happy and I beamed around for the rest of the day!

93 more to go. 

Day 906: Morning Family Swim!

I haven't been out for a swim in the morning, for like.... Ages! And I realize it is such a different and enjoyable experience! It is always good to start the day off with exercise but that's. something that I hardly do, mainly due to my love for oversleeping especially on weekends. But today I was up bright and early, inspite of it being a Sunday and all set for a swim. Sure, the pouring rain did dampen a bit of that enthusiasm but it soon gave away for bright sunshine and I was out to the pool!

And I had an enjoyable eight laps!

It was also fun because both the hubby and dad in law joined me in the pool. While I swam, the hubby taught his dad how to swim and much to all our surprise, he was swimming within half an hour! Mom in law, meanwhile, sat at the edge of the pool and watched our antics and responded to my regular waves and "hi"s to her!

A very nice start to a good Sunday!

94 more to go.

Day 905: Bhakti Gaanangal!

Bhakti Gaanangal basically means devotional songs in Malayalam. And that's what I listen to these days. It's not because I have suddenly found myself spiritually uplifted but because I recently happened to come across a lot of these songs that I had grown up listening to. And listening to them makes me not only nostalgic but also makes me feel incredibly calm and at peace. For the sake of fellow Malayalis, these include songs like "Vadakkumnatha", "Thiruvaranmula Krishna", "Kani kaanum neram", "Harivaraasanam" etc.

This morning, inspite of the fact that it was a Saturday, I was up bright and early and spent a considerable amount of time listening to these songs! A perfect start to the weekend, if you ask me!

95 more to go.

Day 904: Four Days!

Including today, I was at work and productively so for FOUR days in a row! This hasn't happened in months! Of course, I did throw up after I got back home but am finally feeling like I am able to do something with my life which had started to look rather boring and unproductive otherwise. I think things will be far better from here on and that feeling alone makes me feel super good!

96 more to go.

Day 903: In Laws In Town!

After my mom, it's my in-laws' turn to come to Singapore and pamper me, their pregnant daughter-in-law!

And pampered I was!

Within the first evening itself, I consumed like 20 different types of food, everything from snacks to drinks to full meals!

Feeling highly pampered and cared for (and also enjoying the fact that my husband thinks am being enormously spoilt!) Buhahaha!

The perks of being pregnant!

97 more to go.

Day 902: Da & Di, Again!

Here's continuing the pregnancy tales from the Da & Di household...

Day 901: Normal & Complete Working Day!

Finally a working day that felt like a normal and complete working day! I spent the whole day at work without any mishap and I actually managed to go swimming once I got back home! If you are wondering what's the big deal with this, I haven't spent an entire day at work for several weeks now. I last only a few hours after which the nausea drives me home. So this was a big deal! Plus the fact that I was still not tired enough to not exercise made me feel real awesome!

99 more to go.

Day 900: 900 Done, 100 To Go!

My last milestone here before Day 1000.

Enough said!

100 more to go.

Days 897 - 899: A Normal Weekend, Almost!

4 - 6 May, 2012

I was determined to make this as normal a weekend as possible. Reason being that next week am hoping to attend office regularly - the amount of work thats pending is just insane and I cant push back anymore, no matter how sick I am. But it had to start with the weekend - take baby steps of going out of the house, have meals outside, spend more than a couple of hours at a stretch outside, do a bit of shopping etc were all on the agenda.

And I must say I was successful to a large extend. The energy fizzled out by Sunday evening but till then, I managed to keep myself going. Some highlights:

A) Stepping out for dinner outside after a really long time. On Friday dinner was at Shahi Maharani in Raffles City, City Hall. When I stepped out of the cab, I was completely taken aback by the weekend crowd in City Hall! There were just So Many people! I was so overwhelmed and felt a bit lost, even! I couldn't have thought that seeing so many people after being with just my maid and the hubby for so many days, would have such an overwhelming impact! Anyway that was interesting.
B) Dinner at Shahi Maharani was awesome too! Their Biriyani is just way too awesome!
C) Finally watching Avengers!!! What an awesomely entertaining movie! Loved it!
D) Saturday Dinner at Kailas Parbat with my cinematographer and his mon (quite a darling she was!) and the great conversation we had! Oh also the joy of having chaat after so long!
E) Sunday Breakfast at Lakshmi Narasimhan with friends and lunch at dear old Swaadhishth!

And after that, like I mentioned, the energy dipped. On Sunday evening, I was even happily sitting on a pavement and refusing to move because I was certain of throwing up if I did. Anyway, so let's skip that part.

But yay! An almost normal weekend! Feels SO good!

101 more to go.

Days 895 - 896: Aloo Gobi, Chilli Chicken & Szechuan Fried Rice!

2 - 3 May, 2102

That list in the title is not what I ate but what I made in the last 2 days! And needless to say, am super happy about it because the hubby, the only one I experiment these on, gave an excellent verdict on all! Of course the chicken and fried rice are more exotic but you may wonder what's the big deal about this common dish of Aloo Gobi. The big deal is that I hardly come across Aloo Gobi that's made exactly the way I like it, and that includes cooking by me. But this time I got it perfect and of course that's a big deal!

I don't have the picture of Aloo Gobi but I do have a picture of the other two!

So proud!

104 more to go.

Day 894: Da & Di!

It started off as a horrible day. Multiple throw up instances and such. But let's not get into that. Instead, let's focus on the fact that Da and Di are back! They are they same two from the comic strip I had done a while ago.

But this time there is a difference. Di is preggers. "Yay!" you may say. Sure it's Yay stuff but currently Di is facing the not-so-Yay aspects of it, which I thought would be interesting to represent here, in the same comic strip format.

So here we go - Da & Di's Pregnancy Tales: Part 1!

                   

Hopefully I will get down to representing more Preggers tales from the Da & Di household!

106 more to go.