Trepidation... and Resolution!!

The only constant is change...

After four brilliant, beautiful years full of Tech City's amazing weather, Serenity and Calamity are returning to the City-that-wakes-up-early. So now you know what the title of this post is all about (It was just called 'Trepidation' initially!!). 

I'm thinking there will be more writing and venting once more - Such optimism, I tell you!
So my first innings with the city was an unmitigated disaster... Two and a half really REALLY miserable years - though towards the end, I had learned to suck it up and deal with it (or take it in my stride, if you prefer the sugar coating!)... the bad weather, the fighting with rickshaw guys, the being language impaired... all of it! I was a newly-wed, alone in a city with no family, no friends and not enough work to keep me happy. Freelancing meant working from home, and working from home meant being really really lonely... If I had friends, I think it wouldn't have been half bad.... and I did have friends...by the time we were leaving! But for the most part, it was lonely and sad....
This I began when the move was finalized, but I never got to complete it....
But so much has happened since I last wrote (many many moons ago!!) - Serenity and Calamity acquired a new family member (feline!!!) who we shall refer to as Hilarity - for all the laughs she provides every day! 

Hilarity as a kitten.... Such a pretty girl!

Hilarity today.... Throwing a princess tantrum!

She's a strange girl, loves company, but hates being handled. 

She's happiest sitting around people, but god help you if you approach her! 

So we moved, and Hilarity moved here with us (of course she did!! She's family!)

My second innings in the City-that-wakes-up-early is going a lot better... I have my own friends, I have a better grasp on the language, we live in a beautiful house by the sea, I have work, I have Serenity and Hilarity.... and I am finally happy here. 

The trepidation has been resolved... though it's early days yet, I think it'll be just fine!

....and so will I !!

Conversations....

So what do people who've been married 4 years talk about? If you've been a reader of this blog  piece of verbal diarrhea, you won't have ANY trouble figuring out who's saying what!


1. "So if there's a zombie apocalypse and you've turned into a zombie, will you spare me or bite me too so we can be zombies together?"
(the answer for this became very convoluted - on how zombies are not human and he wouldn't want to make me one etc etc)
2. "Why do you love me?"
    "Because you're special..."
    "Special as in retarded???"
3. "What's the one job you'd NEVER EVER do?"
    "Manual drain cleaner.... and you?"
    "Oh! a butcher! Definitely never a butcher. I like being non-vegetarian."
4. "One super power you'd like to have?"
    Me: Flight!!!
5. "If we were friends, or had friends in common, do you think we'd have still ended up together?"
    "No."
    "Why not?"
    "Because."
6. "There's a 70% off sale at my favourite shoe store...."
    "Are you competing with Imelda Marcos???" *looking exasperatedly at the 2 overflowing shoe racks.*
7. "If I died tomorrow, how soon will it be before you remarry?"
    "Never, I'd miss you too much."
    "Awww.... but you know I'd want you to be happy etc etc"
    "Okay, maybe a couple of years."
    "That's IT?? You'd get over my dying in a COUPLE of years??" *sulk sulk*
    

My Four Year Old...

I have a 4 year old...... which is happy and giggly and bouncy most of the time, and sometimes weepy and sulky and stubborn. No, I do not refer to Serenity. Serenity and Calamity have now been married for 4 years, and the temperamental 4 year old is our Marriage!


How time flies!! We have days and weeks that'll go by in beautiful machine-like precision like a well-orchestrated ballet.... and then suddenly one day, we feel like we're all over the place and then sparks fly. I think the move to Tech City has been the best thing for us as a couple, given the fact that the City-which-wakes-up-early caused me nothing but angst. We're SO much better now (because I am so much happier now!)... happier - which I think is MOST important. 


Yesterday felt like any other day - morning hugs, a working day.... and then in the evening we both got all dolled up and went for a fancy sushi dinner, came home and opened the Ardbeg and sat chatting on the balcony like we used to in the City-that-wakes-up-early. Those balcony chats were always special, sitting in the darkness, having a drink and just talking, talking, talking. It was how we got to know each other - and it was quiet time and it was for us alone. 


Considering how we had a (not so typical) Arranged Marriage, we had a lot of "getting to know one another" to do. The balcony chats were when he told me what irritated him about me, and I told him about the things he did that pissed me off. It was neutral ground somehow, and nothing that was said could be taken offense to (that was one of the ground rules!).... and so over 4 years, we rubbed each other's corners raw, got angry, frustrated and wanted to break things.... and made up....and stayed together. We still fight, of course, but we're a lot better at dealing with it. Serenity has figured how to make a PISSED OFF Calamity laugh in the middle of her yelling and tears.... and then he shakes a finger at me and says "You laughed, so you can't be angry any more!"....and yes, it IS usually left to Serenity to make me laugh, because if Serenity laughs during a fight, you can put money on the fact that I will NOT be calming down - the opposite in fact!!


In our wedding pictures, there's more than one picture where I look worried and pre-occupied, questioning myself whether this was what I wanted - to marry him and move to a city I had no one in.... I look uncertain and scared even. I can confidently say today, I made the right choice. Marriage has been different from single life, but Serenity's been SO good to me, good for me. We've grown into this marriage, like a pair of leather shoes that pinch when you wear them the first time and now just fit your feet like a glove that was made especially for it, it feels sometimes like we've always been together..... and yet, just like those shoes, when you stop and look at them, they look great - a little scuffed maybe, but they make you feel like you're on top of the world and they warm and protect. (God! Typical woman - SHOE metaphors????? - I can SO picture him saying that!)

So yeah, like I said, my "shoes" are 4 years old, scuffed, comfortable and with a LOT of wear left in them - they're my favourite pair in the world !!

Picture This....

So here I was, preparing to leave on a long-awaited GIRLS TRIP to Phuket.... Numerous checklists were made, wardrobe decided etc etc...


On the morning I was supposed to leave, I was enjoying a sleepy morning cuddle with Serenity and he asked me if I had packed my medicines (I am diabetic.. yeah - bummer!) and I, equally sleepy, said "Yeahhh.... I have to go to the chemist before I leave - need to get The Pill also..." Which obviously woke him up good, because he was like "The pill?? For what?!" And because I'm evil (obviously!) I said "Because I'm off to have lots of unprotected sex with strangers!!" And proceeded to explain that I didnt want that time of the month to coincide with my beach holiday!! And then I did a "Gotcha! Didnt I?" on him!!


So then, he left for work etc etc... and I decided to take off my rings (because I didnt want to get mugged / lose them) and I left them in HIS cupboard.... and it struck me much later that he would come home, empty his pockets, take off his watch and find that I've taken off my wedding ring!! :D 


And then... just before I left, I was taking off my gold earrings and I dropped one of the screws into my cupboard. Not having the time to look for it, I wrote a post-it saying "FIND SCREW!!" and put that on my desk!!


While I was sitting in the cab on my way to the airport, I suddenly thought of this whole sequence and laughed my head off!!

Bitten by the travel bug...

I LOVE TRAVELLING!

Destination - not specific, just the 'getting up and going' is good enough for me.
Travel Companion of choice - Serenity
Ideal holiday - hmmm... anyplace that's not freezing, I guess.
I'm planning to give Serenity a holiday this year. Post 6 pm, in between work, its ALL I do these days! Research, research and more research. 
So this here, is my Bucket List - my list of places and things to do before I kick it....
1. The Northern Lights
2. Amsterdam (!!!)
3. Machu Pichu
4. Turkey
5. Greece
6. Spain
7. Italy
8. Morocco
9. Snorkelling (CHECK!!)
10. Cambodia (CHECK!!)
11. Bali
12. Fiji
13. Kenya
14. Laos
15. Vietnam
16. Thailand (this may happen soon!!)
17. Austria 
18. Belgium
19. France (surprise! this comes wayyyy at the bottom!)
20. Basically the rest of the world !!!
21. Take a cruise
22. Actually GO to a freezing place (just to see how long I last before I turn into an icicle!)


So if anyone out there has any suggestions on what corner of the earth I should drag my long-suffering husband off too, please feel free to suggest! 


Constraints - should NOT be wildly expensive!!
Reward - I promise I'll get you a little something from there if I do take your suggestion!!

Three and counting....

Three years since we stood before God and man to become one. 

Three years that have passed like the shot from a gun.

Three years that I've woken up to see your face.

Three years and you've never ceased to amaze.

Lots of tears have been shed along the way

but I still count the smiles at the end of the day.

Three years you've protected, shielded and loved

while I've been frustrated, scared and bowed

by things I could not hope to change

In three years, you've let me find my own way.

Encouraged my growth as a wife, a girl, as ME

What you've seen in me, I could never see.

Togetherness, love, a companion... its all I've ever wanted

you've excelled... in more ways than I could have ever dreamed.

 I will always remember the walk that clinched it for me forever...

few words spoken, but so much said.

You're more than a spouse, you are my friend

and this is one friendship, I hope will endure, never end.

I wouldnt trade you for all of humanity.

My friend, lover, fellow traveller, my Serenity

No one loves you more than your Calamity.

Here's to many more years of discovery, of living, of loving, of travel and togetherness. 

Here's to many more meals cooked and relished together, of whiskeys tasted and getting smashed together. Here's to never being lonely when we have each other, here's to waking up always to sleepy smiles and cuddles from the other. 

Here's to the journey - may it always hold more pleasure for us than the destination.

The Year that was...

Milestones of the year that was....

• Serenity and Calamity celebrated their second year of togetherness. Its been a bumpy road, but we have settled into a much more even pace... We are together, and we are happy and that's more than I could ever have asked for. In a month, we will be celebrating our third year of marriage, hopefully tucked away in some pretty locale!

• Calamity inched closer to the big 3-O... this year seals her fate and puts the awesome 20s firmly into the pages of history! (Which was the main reason Calamity moped and moped on New Years Eve!!) Serenity prays everyday that his (mentally) 6 year old wife will grow up and finally be a responsible adult... to which I stick out my tongue and go PBBBBBBTTT!!! (so much for maturity!)

• Serenity and Calamity moved cities... yup, just as I was beginning to get used to all the idiosyncrasies of the city-that-wakes-up-early! We moved to Tech City, and Calamity has never been happier - I have a lovely home, I have busy weekends, I have a GIRL GANG!! (something I've missed since I moved from the city-that-never-sleeps!)

• We've acquired a couple of adopted teenagers!! (girls from the Girl Gang who're always here when I need them!)

• Arlie, one of my girls from the city-that-wakes-up-early moved here within a month of us moving and has been a steady fixture in our home and in my heart. She's the closest I've gotten to anyone in the recent past, and it just makes me feel so good the way she just belongs! She's stellar, and I love her to bits...my Soul Sister and partner in crime - we stay up till all odd hours, watch Rakhi Sawant and Big Boss together and stress about our weight in chorus!

• Ambils, or Chandu is my other adopted teenager - someone I had met only briefly, she was my first taste of fun in Tech City - we have danced in the aisles of the Spar supermarket solely to relieve the tedium of the ppl watching the security cameras! Arlie and I mother her, boss over her and take her tantrums in our stride! She is the kid sister we now have, and she's a RIOT!!

• The Bangalore Bunch is a bunch of friends Serenity has had since childhood, the parents were friends, and now they are friends... they fill our weekends, the getting together after choir practise... to doing girls night movie with one of the wives...

• Serenity and Calamity travelled to Cambodia... our first trip out of the country together, we fulfilled a dream we've both individually fostered for years. The experience of seeing the sun rise over Angkor Wat is one that I think will stay with me forever. Cambodia was beautiful, awe-inspiring and sad at the same time. Experiencing the ruins of a 9th century civilisation together but with no conversation necessary... Serenity actually excelling in bargaining  - which didnt surprise me, it SHOCKED me! He would wander off in the markets, come back bearing armfuls of great deals and make friends with all the shopkeepers! Our culinary experiments and disasters... all in all, made for a great trip, hopefully the forerunner of many more to come!

• Calamity got sick! :( bleh... what a way to end the year!

• Serenity and Calamity FINALLY got a christmas tree, a star and went carolling! Serenity's sister visited and we all exchanged gifts and had a SUPER christmas, wheezing and phlegm not withstanding! No baking or appams and stew, but we got by just fine!

And now forward!.... The Holiday Season's hangovers are past and the New Year stretches ahead, bright and shiny... Who knows what may come... But in the words of Incubus :

"Sometimes, I feel the fear of uncertainty stinging clear

And I can't help but ask myself how much I let the fear
Take the wheel and steer
It's driven me before
And it seems to have a vague, haunting mass appeal
But lately I'm beginning to find that I
Should be the one behind the wheel

Whatever tomorrow brings, I'll be there
With open arms and open eyes yeah

Whatever tomorrow brings, I'll be there
I'll be there....."


Bring on the lions!! :D 

Tech City Madness!

So the settling in has happened, hounding carpenter to come and put up all my lovely posters has happened.... but before we get into the good stuff, allow me to rant!


Serenity (thankfully!) got a relocation allowance - so we went with a highly acclaimed packing and moving company Aggravating Packers and Movers (get it? I cant take names, very aware of possibility of litigation you see? C.Y.A at all times is the motto - Cover Your A$$!!). They cost us a bomb... and my big 6 seater dining table (thats as old as Serenity) arrived as a tripod!! Yup, table and three legs as one piece, one leg as a separate piece. 2 big beautiful framed posters arrived with the glass shattered, the bed came with a bolt loose that caused it to collapse when Serenity sat on it! (which earned him the nick name 'Palankh Thod' which has its own off-colour connotations!!) Cartons packed by them, which bore their logo and the proud epithet of "Relocation Intact" came looking like a particularly overweight elephant had sat on them. Relocation Intact - HAH! And did they pay for any of this damage? Take a guess, go on.... No F%$^ing way!


So yeah, we got everything fixed, unpacked the zillion million cartons - who knew that in 2 years we had collected SO MUCH stuff... and now we're fully functional! This is a spectacular city - considering neither Serenity nor Calamity has to commute anywhere (Serenity walks to work!) the traffic doesnt bother us that much... and the weather, is TO DIE FOR!!.... Phew! After the city-that-wakes-up-early, its a VERY welcome relief. We spend a lot of time on the terrace, Calamity set up wi-fi so she even works outside! Add to this whole lovely equation a motley crew of friends who we love to hang out with and you have 2 very happy people! Never a dull moment on the weekends... Oh and the two of us have joined the church choir (where Calamity sings like a little mouse in the corner in the face of so much musical talent!) and we're learning the Halleluiah chorus from Handel's Messiah now.... Confronted with sheet music and having to learn the Alto part, Calamity's head swims...So much so that I looked it up on youtube and practise diligently!! Floundering, but ever optimistic we are!


Weekends at home also feature a character from the city-that-wakes-up-early - I have a pair of soul sistahs, and this trio is named in true blue Malayalee fashion (we take great joy in stereotypes!) as Arliemol, Ansiemol (yours truly) and Albiemol. Arliemol comes and visits, calls herself Wife #2 to Serenity and proceeds to be a complete riot! The days she stays over, we sit on the terrace long after Serenity has gone to bed, laugh like idiots and do insane things like splatter red nail paint on my pristine guest room floor and order 5 pairs of shoes online at 3 am... yup, full bundle of laughs! Arliemol was also introduced to our local bunch of friends and it was super cool to see them all get along like a house on fire! Perenially on a diet, on a good day she has 3 cornflakes for breakfast and TOTALLY cheats on her diet around us! Its nice to not have completely lost touch with the city-that-wakes-up-early because this clown moved here around the same time as us. 


All in all, Tech City has been wonderful.... and I'm very happy to be here.

TA DAAAAH!!!

Let the packing begin! After a series of futile calls to a number of packers and movers, I've finally closed the deal! Packing begins tomorrow which means Calamity CAN join Serenity to ring in her birthday! Yayyy!


Simple pleasures of life, I tell you!


Calamity misses Serenity muchly. xoxox

Home, home again...

Home, home again
I like to be there when I can
When I come home cold and tired
It's good to warm my bones beside the fire

Calamity is back... After a hectic 2 weeks of loads of running around, it feels good to be home. Not that the city-that-never-sleeps disappointed me in any way, hehehe, but Serenity left in 5 days and Calamity was just travelling the length and breadth of the city on sourcing trips. Of course, Calamity MADE TIME to shop on the way (how could I resist?!) and tried out lots of eating joints... and took Serenity to eat street food (with the dire warning that he was NOT to let any reports of tummy upsets reach his in-laws!).... also a sushi BUFFET! (awesome awesome AWESOME!). There's this place which has an all-you-can-eat Pan-Asian buffet - (we never make it to the main course) which allows you to bring your own booze! I swear, HOW COOL IS THAT?!! and then pay a minimal corkage on your own hooch! No hefty hooch bills - BLISS!


I love going away, sometimes... mainly because I love coming back to Serenity! I loooove seeing him in a crowd as much as I like looking for him - and then I love to see him smile at me, when I've been smile-deprived for a while! Much before we got married, Serenity gave me fair warning that he was not the OTT Romantic and that I'd be VERY disappointed if that was what I was expecting! He also claims to be zero imagination when it comes to gifts! But over the 2 years that we've been married, the surprises have come... I'm surprised he doesnt take the numerous clothes I leave lying around and throttle me with them! I'm surprised when he doesn't understand blatant hints... I'm always surprised by how he instinctively gets (some) things right when it comes to me!! ... those are the good surprises... like any marriage, we've had the bad surprises too... and the way we've come through those doesn't just surprise me, it AWES me.


But what I was getting to, was how Serenity surprises me with welcome-home gestures that I cannot help but smile at, and sometimes laugh delightedly! Once, I got home after we'd been fighting long-distance to find a BIG bunch of roses on the table.... and lots more in strange places like the fridge, my cupboard, on the laundry chest (I think that was because the clothes needed to be done!!) and even in the loo!! There was a bunch of t-shirts and blouses that the roses led to in the cupboard and the fridge! There was a sweet letter that made me cry - and the man claimed to be a staunch anti - romantic! See? pleasant surprise right there!... Another time, I get back home.... and I'd been whining and whining about my back and how my chair was killing my posture and I walked in to my room, switched on the light and there! There was this huge-ass office chair! 


This morning, before Serenity left for work, he looked despairingly at my desk and said "You should clean your desk, you know?!" To which, I stuck out my tongue! Sitting at my desk for over 3 hours after the man left for work, I had a near miss when I almost spilt a big mug of tea... as I tried to mop up the spill, I FINALLY noticed the Lamy box near my keyboard. I'd said something weeks ago about how all us designer types could never afford those in college and how we always looked at one as a mark of having "arrived"! Serenity, now, owns a Waterman ink pen and a couple of other fancy-shmancies... so he just winced and said "A Lamy? That's all you aspired to?" :) But then Calamity explained and rambled on for a bit and then forgot all about it.... until this morning! 


And as I gleefully scribbled my signature over and over again and read the note that came with it, I suddenly thought of that conversation we had... "So.. please tell me you don't expect flamboyant romantic gestures!" ... and my reaction "Uh...no...I don't expect flowers and poetry, no!" ... And now I'm wondering what romantic gestures I'm missing out on with these "supposedly" unromantic things that he does for me!


Calamity thanks you, dear Serenity... for being the best thing that's happened to me. XOXO

The more things change, the more they remain the same.....

Serenity and Calamity are moving!.... Yes, go on, heave that sigh of relief.... there will be no more ranting about the city-that-wakes-up-early for a while. We're on our way to our next adventure in Tech City. This bodes well for Calamity's professional and social life, definitely... though Calamity is VERY apprehensive about giving away HER house! Serenity, as always, takes everything in his stride and Calamity has to poke and prod him to show some excitement! 


Calamity, today, in the midst of her daily chaos, lovingly sat and wrapped up some of her crystal. (Packed 2 sets and then the heat got to her, so she ran back into her airconditioned den of coolth!!) Well at least I'm getting started with the packing, na? Its a month of travel - Serenity and Calamity take off for the city-that-doesnt-sleep tomorrow. Serenity will be dragged along, kicking and screaming till all hours of the morning to meet with assorted bunches of Calamity's crazy friends... then he gets back, and starts planning the last Boy's Night at Chez Nous! (while Calamity continues on her mad whirl in afore-mentioned city!) Boy's night is usually held at our place, considering Serenity's wife takes off ever so often!! I think Serenity will miss that... though there's another bunch waiting in Tech City for our house-warming pahteee! 


Which brings me to the house! Calamity, though relieved to be leaving this city, has been apprehensive about the "what will we do about this house, what house will we get there" and other such questions! Well, it turns out that the Person Up There wanted us to move too... why else would it transpire that we would fall in LOVE with the very FIRST house our agents took us to?!! Calamity almost danced through the house, while Serenity followed at his sedate pace, not giving away anything. Calamity was like a child in a candy store and tugged and muttered to Serenity every chance she got "Its beeyootiful ! I want, I want, I want!!".... and it turns out that we got it! (just barely, actually! We saw 2 other parties who came there while we were there and they wanted it too!!) But we got it! Yay! And as we settled in to sleep our way back home, we both stayed awake for a long time... just thinking... and I reached for Serenity's hand and squeezed and whispered "I cant believe how lucky we are"... he squeezed back and he smiled. 


So now, we're off on the next leg of our adventure, with another new start in a new place with lots of old friends. Its like a replay of the initial settling down... packing, unpacking, doing up etc etc...


And I squeeze Serenity's hand and he squeezes mine, I smile and go to sleep content.

Months!!

Q: What is a classic example of procrastination? 

A: This post!.... Considering I began writing it on Friday evening and today is Wednesday morning... hmmmm... and so this would be what I wrote on Friday.....

OMG! Its been MONTHS since I spewed on this.... no be my fault,peebles, no be my fault. 

Imagine if you attended TEN weddings over the span of 2 months!! And that's 10 weddings spread over the whole of South India, I kid you not!Okay so since November, I've been to:

Coorg 

Kerala

(Then the husband came back from espana...)

Madras

Kerala

Madras

Bangalore

Kerala

....and yes, ALL weddings !

blah blah blah.... like you would be interested in my social life! (who am I kidding?!!!)

Whatever you give a woman, she will give you back in greater measure. 
If you give her sperm, she'll give you a baby. 
If you give her a house, she'll give you a home. 
If you give her groceries, she'll give you a meal. 
If you give her a smile, she'll give you her heart. 
She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her. (Don't get funny ideas) 
So, if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of the same.

Somebody sent that to me.... actually, my English teacher from school did. 

Okay enough randomness... the work scene is finally looking up, one is oh-so-happy about that!

There's enough work coming in to keep me busy, and leaves time for whatever else I might want to do... started a painting a few days ago, continued it today... F#$@ed it up BAD - also today....

baked (also today).... now off to meet people.... 

wooohooo! the weekend is here! 

Long Live the Weekend!!

Yeah, my least favourite day of the week:

1) Sunday Night

2) Monday Morning

Sunday Night because you suddenly hear the whooooosh! as the weekend flies past... and yes, you have accomplished little of what you could have or should have....if you're away someplace on a weekend trip, this is the time that you head back and the 

and Monday Morning because you can see the whole week just streeeetching ahead of you.. and Friday seems soooo far away! 

(not so far now that we're mid week!! yippeee! the weekend approaches!)

I actually live for weekends, its the only time Serenity and I get together during the week and better part of Saturday is reserved for errands we need to run, groceries we need to buy, (i cant believe how domesticated this wild child has become!) people we need to meet, the weekly visit to the family... and then whatever plans might happen along the way. I missed a play last weekend that I feel quite bad about... looked forward to watching the Madras Players (I've heard they're damn good) but that plan never materialized.... wonder what to do this weekend... aah yes, a visit to the insurance office would be a great idea (more examples of my procrastination!!)

And now, we shall continue this some other time! (Grin!)

Serenity and Calamity.....

So then my Significant Other came up with this title (very original - surprisingly!!) one that pretty much describes the two of us and our states of mind very aptly! As I have mentioned before, the man is Serenity personified and I am a walking, talking disaster on legs! 

In fact, I think I'm going to mention a few notable people of my life in the city-that-wakes-up-early.... and I hereby christen the Significant Other "Serenity".... (which is what he shall be referred to in future posts). 

Blog # 2 has been quiet (re: audience feedback) because I'd kept this one under my hat... but I've decided to come out (grin!) and name some peeble that I know in the blogosphere. One of them is a blogger celebrity - Egg (I'm really hot on privacy, so I shall not name many-who-shall-not-be-named!) and he's on here and yup, I'm super proud to be his friend! The other one is Baby Bump, who I like a lot and her husband Tummy who are frequent dinner companions.  Tummy, Egg, Serenity and me (Calamity!!) have lots of balcony conversations that are usually elaborate leg-pulling enterprises! 

and thus the week begins.....

Breathe.... breathe in the air.....

*siiiiiiiiigggggghhhhhhhhh*
so a long holiday has almost drawn to a close.... and as usual, one has NO clue where these last few weeks have gone! Its just sped by in a flurry of activity, meeting friends, dealing with some red tape and in general enjoying the feeling of being pampered, sleeping late.... being a brat! Its crazy, but this city moves on a rhythm that's so uniquely its own.... everywhere else I have lived, the slowed down pace has only amazed me more about how much more we cram into one day in the city that never sleeps! Some days it seems like the day is over before its even begun! (ahem, maybe that has to do with the fact that on some days I get up at noon!!!)

But yeah, after so many weeks of frenetic activity, it'll be nice to go back.... its been strange not having the significant other around - this is the longest we've ever been away... My very hectic life these past few weeks led him to ask me "Do you miss me only when you're alone?" n the only way I could explain was to say "Maybe I do so many things at a time to keep from thinking how much I miss you"....n I did.... n I do.....

The significant other and I have had numerous ups and downs since we walked into each other's lives...and we have a thread on gmail, that goes back to the very first email he ever wrote me and traces the way our relationship wrote its story... mush, gush and angry flush - its got all the makings of a potboiler!! Last night, I was re-reading some of the old communication, and it struck me that taken chronologically, our communication would make good reading! If it were possible to never EVER reveal identities, I'm sure my devilish mind would do it too... :) but my boy, he's a shy one... :) complete antipode of the dangerous mind.... his mind is as serene as it gets.... no idiot schemes brew in this one. And for his sake, and because I love him, you'll just have to do without! :D

Here's to a quiet thoughtful boy with a big rucksack and a big nose... :) your wife loves you.