Postcards From J

Here's a little postcard from Cafe Mondegar's, or Mondy's as we lovingly call it.  I was there on Friday evening with a great bunch of folks, and guess what? I drank a full mug of beer for the first time ever. Not bad considering I'm not a beer guzzler at all. The artwork on the walls capture the world of celebrated cartoonist Mario Miranda. Absolutely love those drawings. This past week has been excellent. Just three working days, but some great insights are being worked upon. The Diwali holidays helped in relaxing the mind, and meeting a bunch of lovely people at a house party, over coffee/kebabs, over double peppermint chocolate, over beer (!), and at the warm Le Pain Quotidien (photos coming soon)... Ah! So much conversation and laughter with excellent company.  Have a great week, everyone. ~j~

My no-shopping vow has taken a terrible beating the past few months, especially because of the ease and convenience of online shopping. Sample this: a watch, books, a pendant, more books, shoes, silver earrings, a bath towel (don't look surprised; it was from the Wimbledon tennis range), some more books and now... just look at these beauties that I picked up at the Aldo sale:   Even after discount, they cost me quite a bit. But, but, but... look at them. Sexy, no? Now I have to find the perfect outfit to wear them with. Sigh. Don't remind me of my credit card statement now. Please?

All I really want to do tonight is write a long rambling pointless post. Just like that. But I must share... I had such a fun Saturday night - which technically lasted just two hours and the rest of the nine hours were actually part of Sunday (pointless information, I know). There was a house party at a friend's since her folks were off on holiday. And what a partayyyyy it turned out to be! You had to BYOB (bring your own booze). And there was tons of food. Everything was super! But the entertainment that happened thanks to the boys doing a song-and-dance was just hilarious. My jaws were really hurting with all the laughing that ensued. Imagine watching three grown up fellows doing crazy steps to Quit Playing Games by the Backstreet Boys! Yes, exactly my reaction. *grin* Oh, and I made a little experimental chocolate fudge and took it to the party. Most people who had it said it was nice. :) So, I'll try and blog the process in another post and maybe you could try mak...

" Kolkata for Durga Pujo . Shantiniketan. Eden Gardens. Mother Teresa. Puchkas and roshogullas. " Just striking off one teeny tiny thing off my very brief bucket list . I would have really liked to actually go inside the Eden but... next time, maybe. This post will be revised. Watch out.

"Go for hurried baths, and then forget all about hurrying. Take midnight showers. Turn off the light and stand in the water." These words by Natasha Badhwar in one of her parenting columns keep turning up in my head every now and then. Even though I'm not a parent, I love the way she writes and I can still relate to most things she writes about. Coming back to the quote above, I generally end up taking midnight showers because I get home quite late and I quite like feeling clean before I can nod off to sleep. But tonight was only the second time I switched off the lights while taking a shower. The first time, it felt great, peaceful and relaxing. And last night as well. Except that I had an A-HA moment too where I learnt... 1. The darkness reduced the noise which all that artificial lighting brings. The only light I had was the hazy streetlight outside diffused by the frosted glass strips on the bathroom window. 2. I felt more aware of where things were...

A visit to South Park Street Cemetery, Kolkata (estd. 1767) turned out to be a super lesson in history and a serene experience. The pictures below are of actual memorials/graves built as far back as 1768.    More photos and posts later...

Nomoshkar from Kolkata... I really wanted to blog a few highlights of my trip so far, but it has been a bit tiring and hectic. Two days and lots seen/eaten/experienced. I have to run now for another round of pandal-hopping. So, here's a little picture postcard for you. Happy Ashtami, people!