Postcards From J

8 JUNE 2018 4.57 PM: It's Friday, and I am looking at my to-do list and hoping the day gets done soon. That I get to go home and enjoy the start of another weekend. One of the WhatsApp groups buzzed. "Anthony Bourdain is dead. Shite." I was the first to reply. "NO". "WHAT?" And then I started to Google with a strange mix of anxiety and sadness.  Say it wasn't true. Bourdain was gone. 61 years young. It was surreal.  I pinged D but knew he would be asleep as he was working the night shift. Gawd, D will be devastated to wake up to this news. My mind was racing. Bourdain would feature in our conversations often over the years and I didn't know anyone who was a bigger fan of the chef-turned-storyteller. Still can’t believe it. People were shocked but I was in another zone. My hands had turned cold and my brain was blank. What the hell had just happened? That it was by suicide was equally perplexing. And v...

Take a chill pill and maybe some of these too! (Image Source: Unknown; Don't sue me!) In no particular order: # Listen to some upbeat music and sing your favourite lyrics out loud. # Or just DANCE - even if you have two left feet like mine. Here's my current jam: # Think of parents, family, friends, just about anyone who loves you - pretty much unconditionally. # Read old, funny IM conversations you've had with your favourite people. Like the ones I have with Lo and DC... So much entertainment!  (Thank God for search functionality within chat apps) # Check out the Instagram 'Explore' tab and discover interesting people and their feeds. Some of the super accounts I follow: mumbaipaused , marsder , petesouza . Go, check them out NOW. # Dream of Japan.  (Insert your own dream destination.) Somewhere along the Hanshin Expressway, Kobe - Japan | December 2015 # Count your blessings. Be grateful. EVERY DAY. # Pray. Without an agenda...

"Your true life exists in between the period of time where you stop being an ass and something kills you. That's your life, and I just started my life." JOHN MAYER *** Honest, candid, thoughtful and positive! These are the words that first struck me after listening to this superb interview of John Mayer by Talia Schlanger. And I've listened to it twice already. Ms Schlanger did an outstanding job of conducting this with class. The questions and prompts were smart and effective. And the best part is she handled some of the obvious done-to-death talking points with such sensitivity that even JM surprised us and himself at the end to round off the perfect interview.  Set aside 35 minutes and press 'play' below to listen:   I have so many favourite bits in it! Listing a few here: On being asked whether he's nervous about his parents hearing 'In The Blood', he goes "Nah!" followed with "A good song explains its...

Mondays can suck. Especially when you're coming back to work after a five-day break. Anyway, if you need a little pick-me-up, here are two videos from the Golden Globes held earlier today. One where Viola Davis pays tribute to Meryl Streep and the second is Streep's speech on receiving the Cecil B. DeMille Award for her body of work over the years. I'm ignoring the hate that Streep is getting for the 'political' slant she took (some of the comments are just vile), but that final Carrie Fisher quote has just become a major inspiration for the year ahead. via GIPHY Take your broken heart, make it into art.  How beautiful! 💔 ~j~

On a day I'm suffering from a terribly upset stomach (what the hell did I eat?), this Eve Ensler quote cheered me up: "Cherish your solitude. Take trains by yourself to places you have never been. Sleep out alone under the stars. Learn how to drive a stick shift. Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back. Say no when you don't want to do something. Say yes if your instincts are strong, even if everyone around you disagrees. Decide whether you want to be liked or admired. Decide if fitting in is more important than finding out what you're doing here. Believe in kissing."  ... "Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back." Ah! Signs.

Looking for inspiration? Or maybe just something energetic to listen to? Here you go. Affirmation by Savage Garden. My ear-worm for today. I chose this video because of the lyrics on display. Sing along. And nod your head to the beat.  I've pasted the lyrics below... and marked in bold the lines I really like. Enjoy! I believe the sun should never set upon an argument I believe we place our happiness in other people's hands I believe that junk food tastes so good because it's bad for you I believe your parents did the best job they knew how to do I believe that beauty magazines promote low self esteem I believe I'm loved when I'm completely by myself alone I believe in Karma what you give is what you get returned I believe you can't appreciate real love until you've been burned I believe the grass is no more greener on the other side I believe you don't know what you've got until you say goodbye ...

The city has been pounded by relentless rain since Monday bringing life to a pathetic crawl. Imagine Goregaon to Andheri by car on the Western Express Highway taking three hours! Yes, three hours. And we were supposedly in the non-traffic direction. But when there's water-logging, it just doesn't matter which direction you're in. It's the famous Bombay monsoon. Hard. Cruel. Unforgiving. Not romantic, these rains at all. (#note2self: sue the movies for making us believe it's so wonderful to get soaked). And it continues to rain as I tap at my keyboard now. Monday was also THE day for an important decision that had to be made. More on that in time to come. Ironically, I had tweeted late Sunday night about wanting to give up something and that I was open to suggestions. Replies ranged from Twitter (hahaha, not yet!) to rickshaws (one day, someday...), from maida to sugar (totally doable, but needs motivation) and from swearing (which I don't do anyway but tha...

Friday. That's when most corporate rats rejoice at the prospect of the end of a work week, or rather at the lure of a two-day weekend. Sadly though, that was not even on my mind. I was upset about something at work that's just refusing to come together. And then all of a sudden I happened to glance at a retweet (i.e., a tweet that's been 'forwarded' to you. You may or may not follow the original tweeter in this case.) by @manimeow which caught my attention. It said "14. And yes, don't forget to giggle ;) #MyNotesOnWorldSaving". Intrigued by the hashtagged phrase, I clicked on it, and it turned out to be 14 points by @NilimDutta with his thoughts on how to save the world. Some very pertinent notes. They made me think, made me smile, and more importantly, made me want to focus. Here they are... 1. When you have this unstoppable urge one fine day, just begin. #MyNotesOnWorldSaving — NILIM DUTTA (@NilimDutta) March 2, 2012 2. Soon enough, ...

If you're looking for some quality reading, here's a recommendation: Zen Habits . Leo  Babauta is the brain and soul behind it, and his writing is simple to understand and inspirational. Do give it a shot. Must read: http://zenhabits.net/best-year/

Someone I admire a lot sent me this thought via sms early in the day: You have not lived a perfect day, even though you have earned your money, unless you have done something for someone who will never be able to repay you. Hmmm... Got me thinking. Have a great evening, everyone! #ABC POSTCARD 16/31

Read this on a colleague's Facebook status: There's always a little truth behind every 'just kidding,' a little emotion behind every 'I don't care,' and a little pain behind every 'It's okay.' True?

I love the Internet. And I love how a random bout of surfing throws up interesting sites. So, I came across this article which talked about free tools that help create infographics , and one of the sites listed there actually helps you create a graphic representation of any text you throw in. Here's what I created using Wordle : Note: This image is a screenshot of the final outcome. The HTML code generated did not work after pasting it in this post. Try it yourself. It's fun! :) PS: If you have a favourite or innovative site out there, do share.

 Take the road less travelled today!  (Pic taken inside Ranthambore National Park - Jan 2009) *** " All the woulda-coulda-shouldas layin' in the sun, talkin' 'bout the things they woulda-coulda-shoulda done... But all those woulda-coulda-shouldas all ran away and hid from one little did."   ~ Shel Silverstein, Author

Thought of sharing this inspiring video... It may have been meant for kids, but I believe it makes sense for grown-ups too. Enjoy! things to learn from Matt Edgar on Vimeo . Have a terrific Tuesday! ~j~ PS: Many thanks to Shalakha who put this up on Facebook for her children.

I love quotes... And I love quoting them. So, once in a while, I will publish a quote that I find interesting, poignant or inspirational. Here goes the first in my "Think About It" series. Hope you like it... "When life is pulling you down, seek inspiration from the duck – calm and cool on the surface but paddling furiously beneath to keep afloat." * *Thanks to HNatarajan for posting this quote. I hope we all can emulate the duck. Have a great week ahead, folks! Cheers, ~j~