MY FIRST BADGE :-))))))

Well, here I am, at last with enough time and honesty at my disposal to accept with great humility and happiness the first badge that I’ve been awarded, and that too, by one of my favourite blogolleagues : Discovering M.

Yay !!!!!!!!!!

Dear DM, here’s a big THANKS for the honour and a bigger SMILE for cheering me up with your flowers (for the confused majority, I suggest checking out his comment on my last post) !

I live upto the legacy of my illustrious predecessors by naming 7 honest blogs and revealing 10 honest things about myself :-)

The honest blogs I can personally vouch for are as follows :

Barnali's World

Sunny Days

Crumbs of Life

Buckets of Rain

Just Like a Watermelon

myselfpallavi.com

The City in July

And well, here's a random 10 honest things about me :

1) I’ve a thing for colours. Almost an obsession. I can't function in a room where the colour of the wall jars on my senses.

2) I believe in the supernatural. But I’m not scared of it. Death has always fascinated me. I don’t think I’ll be afraid to die.

3) I can’t be bothered to small talk or go out of my way to try and impress my intelligence on others. You have to draw me out. Lots of people consider me aloof. I think I’m just reserved.

4) I often hate my closest ones as much as I love them. There. I said it.

5) I detest alcohol. In all forms. Even if I happen to say it’s ok to drink socially.

6) My first ever crush was Ajay Jadeja. I even wrote a 37 page romantic novelette starring him and me. Man.

7) I can’t write happy poems. Sadness inspires me.

8) To me, plagiarism, racial discrimination, gender discrimination, war-mongering and snobbery are crimes. When caught, the guilty should be hanged. Well, at least boycotted.

9) I need to learn diplomacy. But using tact somehow makes me feel like I’ve been lying.

10) I’m afraid the Kolkata Metro automatic ticket checking gates won’t let me past some day. No particular reason. I might have an ‘I, Robot’ or ‘Eagle Eye’ hangover, perhaps.

For more on this note, you're welcome to check out a former post that was actually a response to a Facebook Tag.

tada, guys. I'm off to arrange a belated badge-day celebration !

CULINARY CONQUESTS

Let's see :

By Me....

Maggi (don't laugh, mine tastes really good !!!)
Pasta
Ruti
Bhaat
Chnirer polao
Veg Chowmin
Grilled cheese & turkey sandwich
Grilled cheese, tomato & cilantro sandwich
Bread Poha
Sunfeast pasta
Tomato Rice
Mashed Potatoes
Rajma
Moong Dal
Pindi Chana
Pineapple-Mushroom-Capsicum Chana
Garlic Spinach
Dim Pnauruti
Doi Phulkopi
Bnadhakopir Dalna
Bnadhakopir Jungka (supposedly a Goan dish)
Phulkopir Chhnechki
Masala Gobi
Kumror Chnnechki
Shorshe Bhindi
Jhinge Narkel
Doodh Jhinge /Lau
Pepe Ghonto
Begun-Capsicum
Chili Paneer
Paneer Butter Masala
Matar Paneer
Palak Paneer
Chili Mushroom
Aluposto
Omelette
Deemer Dalna
Mixed veg scrambled eggs
Pabda Machher Jhaal
Doi Maachh (Curd fish)
Garlic Butter Tilapia
Dhaniya Chicken
Chicken Chettinad
Chicken Korma
Mild Shahi Korma
Ginger Chicken
Creamed Spinach
Cream-Cheese Okra
Mushroom-Capsicum Okra
Shnosha- Narkel Mixed Veg Curry with Black Pepper
Spring Onions with Tomatoes
Doi Begun
Stuffed Masala Brinjal
Soyabean Curry
Butter Soyabean
Tomato Chutney
Papaya Chutney
Custard
Gajorer Halwa
Fruit Salad
Shimayer Payesh
Coconut Laddoo
Blueberry/Cherry Vanilla Cake
Chocolate Vanilla Cake
Muffins

By K...

Bhaat
Mixed veg Khichuri
Vegetable Fried Rice
Chicken Biriyani
Mooger Dal
Musoor Dal
Chholar Dal
Rajma
Pindi Chana
Keema Matar
Chingri Malai Curry
Tomato Fish
Chilli Fish
Tandoori Pomfret
Machher Jhaal (Mustard fish)
Chicken Biriyani
Chicken Capsicum
Butter Chicken
Masala Chicken
Chilli Chicken
Malabari Chicken
Sweet & Sour Chicken
Tandoori chicken kababs
Lucknow Masala Murgh
Chicken sausage-mixed veg spicy curry
Lamb Rogan Josh
Shorshe Kumro-Phulkopi
Bandhakopi Stir-Fry
Various permutations & combinations of mixed veggies
Shimayer Payesh

Not half bad !!!

Utterly Butterly Disgusting

1) I'm getting the most idiotically irrelevant job responses possible from recruiting personnel who seem to think I'm either illiterate or bankrupt or have been fired from my last job.

2)I'm gonna miss Mitu's graduation fashion show on Wednesday, 18th Feb. One of the biggest events of her life.

3) My parents have forgotten I exist.

4) My friends, thanks to this time difference thing, have practically become reduced to abstract, virtual entities. I keep on dreading I'm missing out on all the happenings that matter in their lives. And some of them are newly married. Damn !

5) K seems to spend more time at office than at home. I feel more like a PA than a wife.

6) I need to lose 10 kg fast. I can't face that hideously plump creature in the mirror any more.

7) I miss Kolkata. Everything about it. Except the heat.

8) The 'What Not to Wear' show wasn't aired as usual on TLC at noon, nor at 1 pm. To think I practically ran home from the library to be in time to watch it. Oh, and the library was closed, today being 'President's Day'.

9)My camera battery gave out just as I was about to upload my newest set of captures to the laptop. Just the sort of thing that would happen to me.

10)I mixed up Moumita-Sabya Da's anniversary date and wished them today instead of yesterday. And to think I'd been so worked up about the occasion from the very beginning of this month.

Moral of Story : I should go drown myself.

Bookworm

I'm going crazy, trying to read several books simultaneously at the moment. I just returned two and took four more. God help me !

Here's the list :

• How To Win Friends And Influence People : Dale Carnegie (to improve my PR skills)
• Creating A Beautiful Home : Alexandra Stoddard (interior designing & decoration)
• The Oxford Book of 20th Century English Verse : Edited by Philip Larkin
• Contemporary Drama, 13 Plays : Selected & Edited by Stanley Clayes & David Spencer
• Blogging For Dummies : Brad Hill (well, I like to consider myself one, floating in the endless sea of knowledge, Newton-style)
• Razor's Edge : W. Somerset Maugham
• Slow Man : Coetzee (just completed it, deserving the name 'Slow Woman' for sure)
• Agatha Christie, 5 mystery novels (just returned it)

Here's a list of what K has been reading :

• Unholy War : Terror in the Name of Islam
• Fugitive From the Cubicle Police, A Dilbert Book : Scott Adams
• "If This Is A Lecture, How Long Will It Be?" : Lynn Johnston
• Calvin & Hobbes, a collection (just returned this one)

Whoa !!!

Adding a couple more :

• The Notebook : Nicholas Sparks
• The Crying of Lot 49 : Thomas Pynchon
• The Known World : Edward P. Jones
• Protect Your Home PC (Hackers, Viruses & Privacy) : Gateway Press
• The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need : Joanna Martine Woolfolk

Facebook Tag II

Answer each of these questions USING ONLY ONE WORD (unless otherwise specified)!
It's really hard to only use one-word answers, but that's the whole point of doing this tag. If you're up for a tougher challenge, try not to repeat a word you've used. Be sure to tag the person you received it from.

Just for the record, Suchismita tagged me this time.

1. where is your cell phone?

Charging

2. your significant other:

Concerned

3. your hair:

Wavy

4. your mother:

Moody

5. your father:

Doctor

6. your favourite thing(s):

Beaches
Books
Blogging
Cartoons
Colour
Dessert
Foliage
Georgette
Music
Silk
Sunshine
Tee-shirts
Walks
Wood

7. your dream last night:

Vivid

8. your favourite drink:

Juice

9. your dream/goal:

Peace

10. what room are you in?

Drawing

11. your hobby:

Writing

12. your fear:

Violence

13. where do you want to be in 6 years?

Home

14. where were you last night?

Bed !

16. muffins?

Blueberry

17. wish list item:

Shoes

18. where did you grow up?

Wales

19. last thing you did:

Deep breathe

20. what are you wearing?

Tee-Tracks

21. your TV:

Hibernating

22. your pets:

Non-existent

23. your friends:

Refuge

24. your life:

Sedentary

25. your mood:

Serene

26. missing someone?

Rashi

27. your car:

Hyundai-Elantra

28. something you're not wearing:

Makeup

29. your favourite store:

Old Navy

30. your summer:

Icecreams

31. your favorite colour:

Purple

32. when was the last time you laughed?

Morning

33. when was the last time you cried?

DBY-morning

34. three people who email you:

Rashi, Ayan, Titai (& Dhrubo)

35. three of your favourite foods:

Omelette, paneer, yogurt (shukto, strawberries)

36. three places you would rather be right now:

Salt Lake
Shillong
Shimla

37. three people you think will respond:

Rashi, Sunayana, Aditi.

Facebook Tag

Here's the latest in-thing doing the rounds on Facebook. I thought I'd share it with the non-Facebookeans too. Basically, someone sends you his or her list, tagging you in the process. You complete and publish yours, tagging 25 more victims, including the person who was (un)kind enough to forward this to you. But I have to admit, it makes for a great read. Not mine, silly. That of others. Sort of voyage of discovery.

Just for the record, Romila tagged me.

25 THINGS YOU NEEDN'T KNOW ABOUT ME

1) I love cleaning and sad music. They act as catharsis.

2) Water drives me crazy. I would willingly drown in a bathtub. I might have been a mermaid some time way back.

3) I’ve a thing for colours. Almost an obsession. Blue, green, purple, maroon are my favourites.

4) Maths helps me de-stress.

5) At various points, I wanted to be a lawyer, a doctor, an interior decorator, a pilot, a tour guide, an IPS officer, a fortune-teller, a librarian, a crime reporter, a politician, a poet, an author. Some of them I’ve given up, some I still toy with..

6) I believe in the supernatural. But I’m not scared of it. Death has always fascinated me. I don’t think I’ll be afraid to die.

7) One day, I’ll publish a book named ‘100 Ways to Make an Omelette’. I hope.

8) I hate waking up early in the morning. I’d rather stay up till 3 am.

9) I often hate my closest ones as much as I love them. There. I said it.

10) I miss sleeping in the sunshine on the JU bridge. Obviously I was supposed to be wide awake and in class at that time. I miss my tutorials with Tintin Da the most. I actually think I had fun.

11) I detest alcohol. In all forms. Even if I happen to say it’s ok to drink socially.

12) I read somewhere that my nature would permit me to murder, but not steal. I still wonder.

13) I always hated sharing everything with my sibling. Especially parents. Nowadays I wish I could share all I have with her.

14) I try not to be but I so am. Possessive about K.

15) My first ever crush was Ajay Jadeja. I even wrote a 37 page romantic novelette starring him and me. Man.

16) I criticize too much. Especially myself.

17) I need lots of space and solitude. The cellphone is a bane that way. There are days when I need to be just left alone.

18) I can’t write happy poems. Sadness inspires me.

19) To me, plagiarism, racial discrimination, gender discrimination, war-mongering and snobbery are crimes. When caught, the guilty should be hanged. Well, at least boycotted.

20) I need to learn diplomacy. But using tact somehow makes me feel like I’ve been lying.

21) No one has a best friend. I realized that recently. We only have friends. That too, if we’re lucky.

22) I’m afraid the Kolkata Metro automatic ticket checking gates won’t let me past some day. No particular reason. I might have an ‘I, Robot’ or ‘Eagle Eye’ hangover, perhaps.

23) I’m capable of watching most Bollywood productions. Good or bad. I even cry at most of the sad scenes. Oh, and the happy endings too. However clichéd they may be.

24) I want to create my own record of having read each and every work of Agatha Christie, Saki, Freud, Rabindranath Tagore, Hardy, P.G. Wodehouse, R. K. Narayan, Shirshendu. There should be some more names, I think, but can’t recall them right now.

25) I can’t be bothered to small talk or go out of my way to try and impress my intelligence on others. You have to draw me out. Lots of people consider me aloof. I think I’m just reserved.

Whewww. I'm weird.

FAVOURITES !!!

OUTDOORS

Sunrise
Rivers, lakes, seas, oceans
Leafy plants
White flowers (rose, jasmine, gardenia, tube rose, magnolia, bel)
Rainfall on a summer evening
Vivid shades of blue, green, purple, yellow, white Climbers like bougainvillea, aparajita, jasmine, lobongolotika etc
Gladioli in every possible shade
Birds in the open sky
Clear blue skies with fluffy white clouds
Waterfalls
Swimming pools

INDOORS

High ceilings
Sliding doors and windows
French windows
Lawns
Table lamps
Large granite basins
Coloured marble floors
Dark wood (mahogany shades) furniture
Cushioned and long-backed chairs
Stark white ceiling fans
Colourful quilts
Chiming grandfather clocks
Raw silk curtains in rich hues
Long winding staircases within the house
Big and spacious verandahs
Gardens all around the house
Big bath towels in pastel shades
Cotton bedspreads in monochrome/ with fine floral prints
Chandeliers with dimmers
Aromatic candles in glass containers/holders
Fish in aquariums
Fresh long-stemmed flowers in elegant vases in each room of the house
Fluffy pillows and plump cushions
Sunken bathtubs
Floor length window drapes in pristine white/subdued shades of blue/violet/green

APPAREL

Monochromatic T-shirts and long/A-lined skirts
Scarves in interesting designs and bright (but not gaudy) colours
Interesting caps and hats in monochromes
Block heeled open toed footwear
Jackets in single/double tones
Trackpants (dark with a single coloured streak running the length of it)
Linen trousers
Silk, satin, georgette, chiffon and crepe fabrics
Gowns
Long coats
Churidars
Silk sarees in dual colours with minimalistic print/embroidery
Kashmiri embroidery
White/black shawls
Striped shirts and vertical designs in other garments
Fine floral prints
Glass and slim gold/silver bangles
Danglers (earrings) but not the gigantic and ostentatious ones
Golden chains with a single locket
Tiny diamonds in ornaments
Nail polish in unusual (not garish ) hues
Long nails on the left hand of girls/women
Handbags in neutral colours
Black kajol
Brown lipstick
Liquid lip colours
Black hair which shows a hennaed sheen in the sunlight
Conditioners
Herbal sindur
The traditional white sarees with red borders
Bindis, particularly red and black ones, circular or tear drop shaped

CULTURAL

Books (except the sordid dark novels that pose as modern fiction and excessively pornographic literature)
Minimalistic cartoons
Romantic comedies
Agatha Chrisitie’s crime fiction
Novels by Thomas Hardy, Charles Dickens, A.J. Cronin, the Bronte sisters, Jane Austen, A. C. Doyle, Shorat Chondro, Bonkimchondro, Shorodindu, Bibhutibhushon, Shirshendu
The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
Any form of art by Rabindranath Tagore
Terror thrillers (not of the horror.werewolf, cannibalistic variety)
History, political and cultural
Museum interiors
Pagemarks

CULINARY

Omelettes
Paneer
Indian Chinese food
Italian food (pizza, pasta, macaroni, spaghetti…)
Sizzlers
Vegetables, the less cooked the better
Salads
Tomato ketchup
Pineapple & Apple Juice
Vodka (In summer)
Brandy (In winter)
All fruits
Supermarkets
Black forest cake
Cheese
Custards, puddings, muffins, shonpapdi, swiss rolls, hot drippy jalebis, cold amritis, laddoos of every type, kalakand, shimay payesh, yogurt
Doi in any and every form, sweet or sour
Potatoes in any and every form
Churmur
Kasuri methi seasoning
Machher jhaal
Chicken in any form
Strawberries, in any and every form

SENSUOUS

Waking up with the sun on my face
Subtle perfumes and deodorants
Fragrance of incense
Olive oil
Citrus, lavender and strawberry scented cosmetic products
Moisturisers with vanilla and/or cocoa butter
The music of the dhaak, flute, violin, shanai, tobla and piano
Fireworks of the ‘tubri’ type
Water colours

QUALITIES

Shy smiles
Honesty
Efficiency
Enthusiasm
A friendly nature
Cleanliness
Politeness
Sincerity
A candid nature
Diligence
Kindness
Consideration
Patience
Perseverance
Compassion
Spiritual undertones
Reticence on certain occasions
Privacy
Solitude
Silence

ELECTRONIC

Digital cameras
Microwaves
Vacuum cleaners
Mixers