Greatest speech ever

I got this youtube link from a friend. Does it strike a chord? Does it shake you up? Does it make you say - I know....exactly! I say I agree!

I replayed it again and again to feel the rush!

Women and Cultures

Since I moved to Bangalore I have had a maid at home to do the daily cleaning; just like my Mysore days. But a much better experience than the super-smart maid Radha in Mysore. Here I have a Muslim lady coming to work. Actually they are a bunch of ladies that work around here in my locality. So all are related to each other like sisters-in-law (in Indian terms they are Bhabhi, Nanand, Devrani, Jethani to each other)My maid Salma, recently started to bring a little girl…by which I mean a short girl really. Chandni, damn adorable girl with a very very innocent smile..just about 4 feet or an inch. On day one I wasn’t sure how old she is and I really didn’t want a little girl (minor) to work in my house. So I quickly asked Salma if Chandni was her daughter. She said no, Chandni was her brother-in-law’s wife. I was so shocked to hear this little baby faced girl was a ‘married woman’. I asked Chandni how old she really was and she said she was 19. That relieved me! Next day she mentioned she had two kids. I was again shocked to know she was already a mom with TWO kids! So in my head was calculating that its fine..she might have got married when she was 17 and then had the babies…which I think is common in Muslim custom (but not generalizing).

A week later she hadn’t come with Salma. So I enquired if she was fine. Apparently her kids were not doing well. And I felt sorry for her thinking her little kids must be sick and this little girl is supposed to nurse her two kids. When she came back to work after couple of days, I enquired about the well-being of her kids. I just generally asked how older her kids were…”One is 5 and another is 2”! Shocked!! I didn’t take too long to ask her ‘How old were you when you got married’. 12 was the answer!!! I was totally speechless. In my head I was thinking when I was 12, how I must have been in 7th grade..with images of my 7th grade classroom flashing before my eyes…the fun we had..the small events from 7th grade suddenly coming alive after so many years! And this girl was married at that age!  In coming days…I have always been very fond of her; her innocence, her child-like face. One morning she was done with the dishes so I was washing Spinach in the kitchen sink. She asked me “Don’t you wear Bangles?” Embarrassed, I answered quite vaguely..”err…neah…no…not always…like if there is a celebration or special occasion…I wear them”. It somehow felt like I was such a bad ‘Indian’ woman! The next day my mom was with me at home. We were busy in the kitchen. After her work, Chandni was watching us, when she dropped another big question; “Don’t you wear a nose ring?” I was so very embarrassed this time. I laughed out and said..No dear, I don’t wear a nose ring!!!

She retorted back saying, “Your mother doesn’t wear either”. For this one I had an answer. I told her how my mom used to wear earlier, until it started to hurt her and she stopped wearing her nose ring. She also noticed my mom’ bare hands ..no bangles. My mom had a better convincing answer! Since we work at home and office…we try to maintain the bangles from water and stuff..we only wear it to work and remove it once we’re back home! Chandni nodded in acceptance and said..”Well in our community we have to wear bangles and nose rings compulsory…or else, we are scolded”. I told her that in our religion/community, there is no such hard and fast rule to follow such customs…at least not in my family.

I have always thought of how some religions or communities are so strict and strong on their rules…especially rules that are made for WOMEN! It makes me go back to the same old thoughts of how all the rules in the society are made for women…around women…and if there are any rules for men, they can always be broken and adjusted, right! I have grown up with couple of rules for being a girl too..safety wise..and I still hear even today from elders of some rules and ways of living for a woman! I choose to decide myself..what is required…what can be ignored! But little Chandni hardly has any choice to think or decide or ignore any rules! She does what she is told and thinks that is what life is all about!

Chicken tales

Fragile Chicken

My weekend was hectic travel one. I travelled from Bangalore to Salem to Mysore back to Bangalore. We went to visit my husband’s grandfather who is ill. My aunt-in-law who is taking care of him lives in a more village-like part of the Salem town. Like they actually have a well to draw water and have baskets of chickens.




 

Light colored babies



Water drawing from the well



Feisty Mommy!



It’s always been a small wish to hold chickens in my hand…and I did so this week..cute little black chickens…gosh! They are so adorable…and they are pretty loud when the squeak..and their tiny little wings! Very cute! When they were let out to roam..the view was beautiful; one black beauty – the mommy and 14 little baby chickens! All running and following their mom at all times. The mom would scratch the soil and dig out while the chickens would probably eat ants or something.

Artistically Dented

There was a moment when a dog came around…and man! The way the mom chased away the dog ….like in flash of a second…was a total Animal Planet scene. I always knew dogs are scared of cats, but this one was a shocker! A hen attacking a preying dog with open arms, literally! Poor dog..haha! Great motherly instincts!

 Life is quite simple in small town. I got to eat curry made from banana flowers; flowers that would eventually grow to become bananas! It tastes really good. The neighbors baby was laid on a simple cradle made of a long cloth..with a simple wooden seperator that also hold the twirling toy to keep the toddler busy! Super simple design!



Banana flowers for curry

 



 

And the well, I tried a few times to pull out water. Yes its fun J. But frankly these women using wells must have really good muscles! I mean really easy workout if you want to have toned arms! The little girl pulling our water performed a whole gymnastic activity with all her might pulling out a full vessel of water & picking and re-filling a pot. The vessel to dunk in was surely a piece of art! Still life art! The number of dents on it speaks of its journey! Totally funny to look though!

 Salem was hot as always, but not that bad. What’s surprising is how the temperatures across the border of Karnataka & Tamil Nadu change drastically! Like you suddenly have air conditioning the moment to leave Tamil Nadu and step into Karnataka. Bus ride to Mysore is beautiful. Mysore genuinely is beautiful with the green paddy fields, coconut trees, red Gulmohar trees, cool weather, less traffic and people (compared to Bangalore).  Visited the Nanjangud temple again with grandparents and uncle.  

Baby in the home made cradle

Life is quite simple in small town. I got to eat curry made from banana flowers; flowers that would eventually grow to become bananas! It tastes really good. The neighbors baby was laid on a simple cradle made of a long cloth..with a simple wooden seperator that also hold the twirling toy to keep the toddler busy! Super simple design!



Mysore Police....still living the Royal times!!!

Nanjanagud Temple

I think family get-togethers or short group trips are a good change for our routine life. It was a fun-filled weekend of travel, food, jokes and laughter. I wish travelling would be so easy w.r.t work days, leaves, transport availability, good company and good places. I wish we had a bus or train pass for lifetime and could travel anytime anywhere! What a fun life eh!

Pope John Paul

Pope John Paul

I just learnt from a friend that this bunch of white roses is called Pope John Paul….My miss Nadya octomom is doing so well….7 blossomed roses…1 more to go. They look so beautiful. The first time I saw the buds…I was wondering how the little branch would bear the weight of 8 roses, because they looked like they will all bloom around the same time.

Acting like sunflowers....going out towards the light!!!!

The bunch of semi-blossomed roses looks so amazing. Since I migrated from Mysore to Bangalore, I decided to keep only floral plants than show plants that don’t bear any flowers. It always brings joy to see pretty flowers in my little garden placed in my gallery.

I wish these ‘octoplets’ would stay forever! That’s the sad part about flowers, they don’t last forever!

Octomom!!

So I came back after a week from my Pune visit and I found my white rose plant has 8 buds!! All on the same branch! Got an octomom in my garden….remembered the long lost octomom famed Nadya Suleman!!! Wonder what she does these days!

Now I patiently wait each day to see one white rose bloom at a time!!!

Travel to Pune

This week I am visiting my home…my parents’ home in Pune; after 1.5 years. They have visited me a bunch times in the past 1.5 years J. I planned my travel by bus as its still holiday season in India and you don’t get train reservations, unless you planned and booked 3 months ago! And well bus is much quicker than train too. I attended half day at work and my husband took me to my bus boarding place. Koramangla in Bangalore! As per Indian time schedule a bus came 5 mins late.

When we plan for a long journey of 14 hours..its understood your bus will be one of those huge Volvo bus; either ways my husband took care to find me the best luxurious AC bus. What came to pick me up was a small mini bus like from the 1970s but with the same name of the travels…I was speechless to comment about it. And I said to my husband ‘Are you sure I am supposed to travel 14 hours in this bus!’ And quickly he realized that this was just a pick up bus that would carry passengers from nearby locations and drop to the actual location from where the bus would start! Phew! What a relief! I didn’t know we have pick up services in India. And if so, they should at least upgrade their mini buses to newer versions!

The driver was one of us..typical Indian characters- who in their world are perfect while the rest of the people around are so stupid and should not be roaming out freely! We were going over a small bridge which was over the underground road. And a car in front of us was waiting carefully to drive through the incoming traffic. Our pickup driver got so annoyed that he is waiting for NOTHING! He popped his head out of his drivers’ window and screamed at the car driver “Yo Dude! You can go man! There no need to wait” (closest translation). The car moved on quickly while our driver mumbled to himself “Why do people buy expensive car when they can’t drive!” Yes sir, so true. This entire attitude while he himself was breaking every other road rule J.

We picked passengers to cover all 20 seats of the mini bus. It was quite suffocating each time it stopped for people. Big and large sizes of men and women travelling in a mini bus! Finally, when I reached the location after 40 mins. my real bus looked so much more convincing. Big, large, huge, gigantic regular VOLVO bus!!!! Phew!

When I got into the bus, I saw I had a window seat. We Indians do not ever let go a window seat, and if you’ve paid for one..then NO WAY! I was talking on the phone, passing the information of the location where the bus will stop in Pune, so my family can come to pick me up. I had a girl passenger next to me. My seat of 7W (w is window, clear identification); the girl asked me very smartly with a dirty expression, “Do you want to go in to the window seat or should I?” In other words, can I take the window seat! I asked her what is 7W? Window seat? She says…I think so! Like it isn’t obvious enough? So you are openly stealing my window seat??? I said hang on, let me take my seat! Window-seat-stealer!!! I got my window seat!  J

Then when they put on the TV, it was such a pleasant relief. I mean all through these 1.5 years I have travelled around only to Tamilnadu. So every time I board a bus, I have heard loud, harsh tamil songs or movies. To my pleasant surprise the bus guy put in a DVD that had only Hindi movies. So what if they are Salman Khan’s movies! It’s a good deal any day! Yaay! I ended up watching Ready (crappiest movie), Bodyguard (another stupid movie) and then Maine Pyar kyu kiya; which I am surprised that it’s the same story as Hollywood movie ‘Just go with it’ which released very recently. How can a new Hollywood movie be similar to an old Bollywood movie? Isn’t it the other way round?

Anyways, I am home now. Back to the town I grew up in and it changes every time I come here. New roads, new stores, new malls, lots of traffic etc. It sure is much hotter than Bangalore right now. I am missing the cool Bangalore showers! More to come about Pune visit!

So good to have bar 'atteched'

One of the funny english boards on my drive this sunday afternoon!