My thought process when I buy a wallet: "Would Wonder Woman be able to save the day with this held in her hand?" The answer is generally no, but in my head there are buzzers going off screaming a big yes.

I really, really do not like wallet/purse/clutch shopping. None of them appeal to me. Brands don't do it for me, most of them have some kind of chunky metal flower or poop-shaped thing involved, and those – I don’t get. Did I miss out on some feminine training growing up or something? I don't know, I guess I'm just a practical girl. I'm drawn to simple and functional stuff and nothing too loud.

If you think about it, a woman's purse/wallet reveals the kind of person she is. Right? Next time you're out, look around. It's kind of interesting. Anyway, since my wallet before plainly fell apart, I've received a weird looking thing my mother insists me on carrying now.
Then we argued over which one of us got to keep it. She reminded me that she was too old to carry off pink. I don't know if she even thought of me while buying it. I suspect not. And then she frowned all day upon my lack of style.

In today’s casual news, I got a haircut. Just a short crop. You know what I mean. The type of haircut that will look charmingly devilish with sunglasses and the appropriate amount of uninterrupted attitude to match. I needed something new, radical and feisty for the summer.


Sometimes I forget how totally kick ass the eighties were. Let’s face it, I was only eight years old when the nineties body slammed the eighties into the past, but there were some good times to be had as a youngster in the eighties, like Genesis and Phil Collins. And listening to his music now brings all the yummy goodness right back to the front. Listen to this track (one of my favourite Phil Collin tracks growing up) ‘In the Air Tonight’ and you’ll be pleasantly thrilled with the drum-heavy explosive bursts, thundering chorus and a general sense of nostalgia. Nostalgia never sounded so good.

Trust me, this track is a good enough song that you should impulsively listen to it from the player below and enjoy it over this holiday weekend. Cheers.

It’s Thanksgiving for the Americans. And I guess if they didn’t observe it, it would mean they let the terrorists prevail.
Although it isn’t part of Indian tradition to stuff ourselves with turkeys and pumpkin pie, there is a part of the practice that I would like to follow; the part to be thankful. Celebrating where you’ve come from and what you have but, more importantly, what you are today. At the end of the day, everyone’s pasts are joined into a big grand cord to create a universal future and show that we, at least some of us, can get along.

I've been truly blessed this year. I have a wonderful family and best friends who are truly splendid in every respect. My job pays the bills and honestly doesn't suck. I'm thankful that I live in a wonderful country, that I was born here and not in utter poverty. Thankful that even at the times when I’m feeling at my worst, I am reminded in so many ways and shapes and forms how loved I am. And then there are you guys. Thanks for stopping by everyday, for reading, for giving me your time and opinions.
Whether or not you celebrate this particular holiday, due to geography or some minor inconvenience like that, it's never a bad time to remember what you truly have to be thankful for.

Agree with me or not (or feel guilty about it or not), but I think this single by 80’s British soul and dance band - Imagination is actually sorta kinda addicting. And while I’m not ashamed to admit that I like the catchy string loop, the dance beat, or the old school pop stylized delivery I still have too much arrogance to truly find out more about this track, or review the complete album, or in general confess anything other than I listened to the radio this past week, heard this track, and thought I should post it.

Enjoy it or don’t. It’s your call. No one will think less of you. (Ok, I can’t give my word for that last bit).

Soulmate performs at Le Rock Pub on Church Street, Brigade Road, tomorrow, the 27th. They’ll probably get started at 7:30 pm. Please come up and say hello if you plan on attending the show. Unless your last name is Assford.

Good weekend!

THURSDAY:
My day pretty much sucked. Possibly the worst day ever. I had to be at work and in that time I learned a hundred different ways to curse my company. I was really looking forward to getting out of there and going to the nearest polling booth because the whole voting thing was figuring pretty big on my head. And every minute spent at the office made me feel guilty for not thinking about the elections.
Anyways, so after voting at the local police station, I walked out in the best mood, all cheery at strangers and adding a little skip in my step like I was in the opening scene of a friggin musical. I swung around lampposts and little birds helped me put on my stole and a pup carried my bag home. Then all the lights were dimmed and Gene Kelly started singing and I’ve said too much already but it was so wonderful.

Anyway, for those who voted, good job. I want to kiss you all but I shall hold myself back!

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FRIDAY:

It’s the reserved side of my phase and I can’t seem meet new people or go outside without feeling some kind of apprehension. This time, the occasion presented itself and I couldn’t say no.

I force myself to go.

It was raining too violently to be wearing an off-shoulder top and a crocheted overcoat, but nothing could stop me from making it to the club. I keep thinking to myself that at this time on a Friday evening, I’m usually unwinding. Watching a movie, finishing off a post and putting away my worries until Monday. Instead, I’m heading out. For days I’ve been trying to understand about how cluttered I feel. There have been new occurrences, both nice and unpleasant, leaving me with a combination of exhilaration and discontentment. The most I can say is that it makes sense, how I feel and I can map out every sensation to a reason.

We find an auto. In it, I listen to the rain but I can’t get my head in the right space. Nothing fits. I’m not feeling gloomy or glad or cynical or bouncy.

Stepping off the auto, my anxiety begins to suffocate me.

I can’t breathe. Maybe some alcohol will help scarf up my nervousness. We visit a club. I walk out into the open aired area. It’s raining quite lightly now. There’s shelter by the door. The intense cool air sucks the breath out of my lungs. I quickly light up the cigarette to get rid of it.

Minutes pass. Resentment and acceptance fill my heart, the former because of my oversight, the latter because there isn’t anything I can do about it.

The rest of the night was spent club-hopping, gulping alcohol and meeting ten new people. At the end of it, I just wanted to go home and shower.

I go through these phases — wariness and boldness, assurance and doubt for a purpose. As much as I need steadiness in my life, I need uncertainty. As much as I need bliss, I need distress. Otherwise, life would remain inert and there would be really nothing to type about.

And as much as I enjoy the comfort of a clear and simple life, I need to welcome the unexpected, the unease, and take a pass on the club thing.

Incubus’ new release, ‘Love Hurts’ is part of the album ‘Light Grenades’ which is tough to define in words.
In a recent interview with Incubus, Brandon Boyd expressed his thoughts on the song:

“It’s almost a little bit of a cliché. It is talking about the idea of love and find love and having it be purity and having it not be tainted by your misperceptions, misconceptions, expectations and transcending the sort of more worldly aspects of the love experience.”
The band is famously known for their very distinctive sound which is a combination of heavy metal, punk, hip hop, surf rock, post-grunge, progressive, folk, and space rock and grunge with funk, jazz, and psychedelic. To me this band tends to paint extensive soundtracks for rainy days and lazy afternoons spent contemplating life. There is something here that transcends the simple clichés of radio ready music and the single song download. Here is a depth and maturity, patience, not often found.

I understand that not everyone can check every blog every single day; I know I can’t, but hopefully through this track ‘Love hurts’, I’ve found something everyone can enjoy.

And enjoy it you shall. And really, if this track is on a blog you might as well check it out. Cheers!

I seem to have a weird relationship with our local radio station ‘Radio Indigo- 91.9 FM’. There are times when I absolutely love it. Then there are times when I abso*fuckin*lutely despise it. I am a critical insider hence I can afford to offer my criticism. I’m glad that Bangalore has an English radio station but I’m extremely critical of the music that’s being played on air especially since there’s very little of it that truly strikes me as good. Nevertheless, I just can’t stop listening to the station for fear of losing touch with music that’s being released. So I put up with listening to the corny ads, Barker’s use of ‘wicked’ in every alternative sentence and 50 Cents’ music that drives me up the wall.

When did New Kids on the Block come and go? I thought they were ready to shake pop history? Guess they just fell into the category: Nothing Spectacular.

Before anyone out there goes, ‘you mentioned earlier that you love your job!’ Hold up a second. I mean ‘the job’ as in that energy-sucking, mood-crushing, pressurizing, corporate hulk. It drives me out of mind when I get cornered by my boss who’s not even in this country. Admittedly, at one time he really managed to shake off that image in my mind and I really enjoyed coming to work with a mission to do my best. Now it just seems like putting up with consistent assaults on my work. Honestly, it really kills work for someone like me who gets absorbed in her job. I’ve been particularly bothered the last couple of days because I was forced into thinking that I might’ve screwed up. Good grief! I need tea!

I’m frequently oblivious to the fact that not everyone likes the same music I do. Then I mess it up further by asking them- ‘Why? But why? Why? Why not? Why?’ It perplexes me all the more when the other person has no idea or doesn’t really appreciate some song or artist or genre when it is completely beyond me that one could actually exist without it.

Any thoughts, people? Comment, comment, comment away….

Here’s the man whose music speaks to people. I first heard him on the show ‘One Tree Hill’ and his music fit in so well with the tormented characters of the serial. It took me a couple of years to get to his music but now that I have it’s going to take me some time to get over him. Here’s a shout-out to my man- Matt Nathanson!

I Heart Music

I’m inspired by a lot of modern artists and those that have come before me. My favorite genre apart from modern alternative rock is the rock/pop of the 80’s time period when Prince, The Police, Billy Idol, Tears for Fears & Bonnie Tyler were performing their biggest hits. The sound is so influential and amazing to me that there’s no way I could shy away from it. It’s in your face and it’s timeless.

Our little church has waited till it was cool enough to host an extravagant worship event in a month or so. They’re in the middle of getting the installation, performance and visual aspects of the concert ready. Musicians and singers are being called and practices are underway. Watch this space for more information on the upcoming show that is set to take over the neighborhood.

Built in the same villa as ‘Orange Peel’ is a couture store called ‘Sanctuary’. I laid my eyes on a very indie- looking Pepe top with an iconic vintage logo. Limited to only a few pieces produced, this vintage logo tee emblazoned with unabashedly cheerful colors, will surely be a rare delicacy among the boutique circuit.



Do you have a place you go to where you can totally zone out? I do. It’s my bedroom. Every time I sit with my family in the living room it’s like I’m sitting with people I don’t really know. Like they’re from different countries packed into a bus for a day. Very eerie. I get into my room and it’s the same feeling you get when you see a full moon rising over a fog covered city. Very cool. Very trippy.

Work has started flowing in. All this time we’ve been working on the US market so there hasn’t been a lot to do. Yesterday, we got the European market under our wings and boy, are we swamped with work.

Went out with the crew last night to see ‘Hancock’. Hmm… expected so much more. But it wasn’t so bad. Atleast I had the caramel popcorn.

There wouldn’t be the saying “there’s life after *blah*” if there wasn’t life after it. I just feel like I’m stuck some place I don’t want to be in. How do I ever get past it? Someone hand me the happy pill, puhleez!

I’m having a hard time continuing this post because my little niece Abigail wants my attention or she threatens to throw my laptop off the desk. Here’s Damn Yankees with ‘High Enough’. To Dilli. Happy B’day.

Attempts To Heal Myself (2)

Last night I watched this really amusing film called ‘Employee of the Month’. It would’ve been a pretty good night except that I discovered that this guy I really like cheated on this girl I knew. And guess who the other girl was? ME!

Doh!!

With this discovery everything felt stressful. I really don’t know how to handle this sort of thing yet. But it feels like I’m getting used to it.

I’ve been asked why I constantly upload pictures on facebook. Why do I feel the need to capture moments? Why can’t I just experience it? I think that I’m just trying to pass on one amazing experience to someone else.

One of the things my folks have never understood about me is that I’m very much unlike the person they think they know. I feel like I’ll never be able to explain how I would rather listen to music all day and not search for my future husband or spend time learning to cook. They’ve never felt the bass that thumps your veins or felt the rhythm of a song in their stomachs or understood people pumping their fists when they listen to something they can’t contain their excitement for. I’ve spent so much time away from them in new and different situations in this crazy world, how could I expect them to understand? That’s one of the reasons why I want to move out - there’s just so much of a disconnect. Even if they can’t comprehend why I do the things I do, I hope they can accept it.

Heard a song on the radio today. Used to be one of my favorites when I worked at the radio station. I used to play this song every time I had control over the song selection. I sure do miss my days there. The band’s called Johnny Hates Jazz. They came up with music known as New Romantic pop during the 80's. While the band appeared to be trying too hard to tug at pop-loving hearts, their music was catchy. So for all you 80’s lovers, go ahead and take a listen to this track – Johnny Hates Jazz ‘Heart of Gold’. Enjoy the music.