A Useful TAG

After my last post, I was flooded with HTML tag questions [ummm…of how to do a strikethrough mainly] by other bloggers, so I thought I’ll share with you whatever little I know……

I'm actually targetting this post at the beginner bloggers since the veteran bloggers will know most of the tags I have displayed here.

So here are a few simple HTML tags to help our posts & comments look more attractive:

To begin with, < > & < / >are called HTML tags. We put our requiremment inbetween these tags & make it work.

# For BOLD,
First insert "b" inbetween <>
Then ur matter comes in the middle
and to end put "/b" inbetween <>

Got it??????

Similarly….
# For Italics, use "i" inbetween <> your matter here < / i >

# For underline, use "u" inbetween <> your matter here < / u >

# For strikethrough - put "s" inbetween <> then ur matter & /s inbetween <> in the end[Thanks Rakesh:-)]

# For Bold, italics & underline together - put "b", "i" & "u" in <><><> your matter here < / b >< / i >< / u >

# And if you want to align just 1 word or sentence in the center, use center inbetween <> your matter < / center >

# A simple br between < > will put space between 2 sentences. There is no closing tag for this.
[I included this tag as .......sometimes even though you put a space between 2 sentences to start a new paragraph, in the post or comments section it will show like they are in the same paragraph. So this tag helps]

# For blockquote, put blockquote inbetween <> Matter < / blo ckquote >
This is used when you want to share an example or a quote.
[Here your sentence will start 2 inches after ur normal sentence & end 2 inches before the normal sentence....a sort of an indent. Try it out.]

Have you noticed how a few bloggers link you directly in your comments section[For eg. I've tagged u, click here]. I for one, was very impressed by this & Snow showed me how to do this with a simple Tag.

# Put a href just before the = sign
"< = "link goes here"> Click Here < / a >
[except for a single space between a & h please remember no spaces anywhere else when you actually do it And you can remove the ‘click here’ if you don’t need it & show the link as it is.]

#And my last tip, how to place a UTube link directly on ur page:
This is how Goofy Mumma taught me:

*Go to the Edit HTML tab while composing your post.
*Copy the embed code of your preferred video from YouTube.
*Paste it where you want to put the video in your post.
*Done!

That's it People.....I've given U all I know. Now if any of the bloggers who are passing by is in a generous mood to impart knowledge please dont hesitate. I will edit this post & add the information here with due credit ofcourse.

Any doubts with the tags or if a sentence doesnt make sense, I'll be glad to clarify it & if I dont know I'll find out. Just dont forget to thank me;-D.

Note: Once again.....I stress - I've put spaces between the tags coz Blogger will take it as tag & wont let me show U how it is done. So remove all spaces while U use the tags.

And oh I almost forgot, can anybody help Iya......she[ & I] wonder how to add a header to a blog.


Edited to add: Dear Friends........the whole post is behaving crazy. Half the tags have gone wonky. I've tried to fix it but.......


Edited once again: Nothing I try is working:-(
....Hopefully this should teach me NOT to meddle with stuff I dont know.


And again: OK everybody, I've re-edited the post once more. Its sort of OK now. Check it out. As I mentioned, any doubts, u can.....;-P

We need CHANGE

***A letter addressed to all professionals at Blogger who are endlessly persevering to make it a better place for us***


Dear Experts,

Subject: Blogspot’s future at stake

I have documented a few issues here which I’m sure will be of great interest to you. I didn’t want to bother you initially as I’m more than aware you are all very busy people who work really hard to make blogger the best on the web, but few matters made me pause & as a loyal subscriber wanted to make you aware of it.

Allow me to proceed directly to matters burning at the tip of my fingers.

I do wonder if you’ve noticed that, in recent months quite a few of your loyal followers have ditched the wagon[pardon the slang, here & everywhere else] & joined hands with a competitor who has lured them away with promises & previews of better themes & options. If you haven’t then please click here and here and here and here………………

Seriously, how much time or effort does it take you to make blogger a more user friendly workspace for your subscribers????
For instance, have you noticed that your themes are hardly anything to write home about???? You have more than a million users & you offer them a total choice of 16 templates with some piddly options to change colors????

Yes I know I can pick up themes from freelancers who specialize in these things. But a layman like me finds them useless. I can’t even proceed with a new template for fear of losing all my data which let me tell you nearly happened once incase you are viewing my complaints with jaundiced eyes.

Definitely you would have noticed that other blogspaces have offered a facility wherein the author of the post can directly reply to a comment within the individual’s comment space itself. I’m sure you’ve seen for yourself that this option is an instant hit in the blog world!!!!!!
Come on tell me now, how difficult is it to incorporate the same into your system???

Instead of wasting time trying to make the Username space turn yellow when we login, you could try to introduce some useful stuff like, emoticons for example.
A simple smiley makes a whole lot of difference to a post. If you have any doubts, ask Indyeah she’ll elucidate this point across to you with appropriate examples & emoticons in atleast 2 pages.
I mean, we are not asking for the moon, are we?????

Bloggers like me with basic or no knowledge of HTML have a difficult time expressing our feelings……..have you realized how a simple strikethrough like this automatically lifts a post to a whole new level & makes it so much fun to read. I’ve been blogging now for more than 1½ yrs & found out just 3 days back how to do this thru HTML courtesy a fellow blogger Rakesh. And today Snow shows me how put a link in the comments section. Before this week I didn’t even know all this could be done in blogger.
We do know Blogger is full of possibilities but please make it a lot more user-friendly for us!!!!!

I’ve always been a creature of habit & a lazy one at that. You know, I simply detest making drastic changes in my life & will go to any lengths to avoid it. Believe me, I don’t even want to be thinking about the hassles of moving out of Blogger.

No, no its not some intimidation technique…….but do try understand that if you guys don’t get on with making functional & effective changes, you are the ultimate losers.

I have mentioned just a few of my grievances here. If you will please open your eyes wide & read between the lines you’ll find a million other bloggers with similar & more complaints.

I hope you take my post as constructive criticism & go back to the drawing board to make the necessary modifications.

In anticipation,
Yours truly,

Nancy

One, Two ka Four

Rohini has tagged me to do this Numbers Tag.

I typed 1 to 10 down grandly & proceeded to stare at them for the next 1 hr. Well I could have gone the 1 husband, 2 children, 3 bedrooms way but u know me...I love to make things complicated. And so after scrutinizing my surroundings & self for eons, came up with this pathetic effort.

I came 1st in first standard & that was the 1st time & last time.

There are 2 baby pigeons outside my bedroom window, they will start learning to fly anyday now. They sure make a lot of mess but oh so adorable.

My poor babies are over-burdened with school-work. I wrote a total of 3 pages of their homework with my left hand after they went to sleep last night:-(

My brother-in-law uses only 4 fingers to eat his food. The index finger sticks out prominently coz he uses that finger to put his contact lenses.

[Nancy rushes off to attend an emergency]

My cooler’s leaking & I just spent the last ½ an hour cleaning up the mess. And I’m sure I lost atleast 5 litres of water:-(.

Whenever I spy 6 eggs in the refrigerator I have this urge to bake:-P

Just multiply 7 by 4 & that’s the total number of grey hair on my head[at last week’s count]

I need atleast 8 hours of sleep otherwise I’m cranky, irritable & drive my family crazy. They now know the literal meaning of “Let sleeping dogs lie”.

I have 9 potted plants scattered all around the apartment.

Ummm.......I love 10der coconuts .

Phew, it's done. Seriously...how complicated was that;-S


And I tag.......

An Open Book

Archana

Brocasarea

Colours

Saima

SGD

Shails

Still thinking

Swaram

WarmSunshine

Winnie the poohi

*************************************************

Edited to add:

Agnes asks in the comments section......
Nancy, what's "ka"? Where I come from, the number between 2 and 4 is called "three". T-H-R-E-E.

So Agnes & all the others who were wondering the same, here is a simple but long-winded explanation:
One, Two Ka Four is actually a song from the Hindi movie “Ram Lakhan” picturised on Anil Kapoor[of the Slumdog Millionaire fame].

Yeah well I was doing this tag & wondering what to put up as a blog title. Ummm…I was actually going to type in One, two, buckle my shoe in desperation when this "One, Two ka Four" song was playing on Tv. I was watching idly, grinning at Anil Kapoor’s antics on screen and Ta-Da the fingers automatically typed in One, Two ka Four as it suddenly seemed apt for my post title….as random as that.

Anil Kapoor plays the roles of a small-time thief & the lyrics of the song sort of say that I'm an easy-going guy who can teach u a few tricks[as in double ur assets], My name is Lakhan.
I’ll give you the link to this song, you simply have to watch it…it’s a song & dance routine from a typical bollywood potboiler. Great fun, I assure u.



Thank U Goofy Mumma for helping me put up this video......
Again I marvel what fun blogging is & how I learn new things everyday.

Take a leaf out of another's book

I enrolled the kids for Vacation Bible School held at our church for 7 days in March. Since the transportation the church provided was over-crowded I decided to take the kids to church myself all those 7days. VBS was held for 3 ½ hours everyday which meant that I had to look for ways to keep myself occupied during that time.

Envisioning the long hours stretching endlessly in front of me, I had already picked up 2 books to read the previous weekend itself. So on the 1st day I dropped the kids off in the predefined area & went off to find myself a nook to sit comfortably & read my book.

But on my way to find that perfect niche I met an acquaintance who was also there to drop off her 8yr old daughter for these classes…she also had this fat book in her hand which she immediately closed as soon as she saw me.

This delicate looking & soft-spoken woman Reni was actually Manu’s friend. I had met her in church & at Manu’s house a couple of times but we never really spoke all that much. You see, even though I’m an extrovert & open with friends, I don’t really go out of my way to meet people & make conversation.

But here we were thrown together by circumstances & it didn’t really look nice if I just walked away to go sit in some corner & read a book….u know sort of openly saying that I prefer to read than talk to u. So I stayed on.

Since we didn’t know much about each other we cautiously waded thru general day to day stuff for a while. In the way of conversation I showed her my book [Still Me by Christopher Reeve] & asked her what she was reading. She showed me a medical journal & I was a bit taken aback.

Looking mildly surprised[I guess, she thought I knew] at my expression Reni told me she was a doctor who had taken a year’s sabbatical to be with her new-born, was now looking to rejoin work soon & so was just trying to update herself with the latest medical news.

I immediately felt mediocre whiling away my time reading about celebrity tragedies when I could have used the time to study rocket-science or nuclear effects of wars. The book which was flashed about with so much enthusiasm was quietly withdrawn & never came out again.

My curiosity was aroused & I started asking questions unobtrusively. Surprisingly[well, she always had come across as a bit reserved to me] she opened up freely & soon was telling me a lot about herself.

I always have been fascinated with People & their circumstances. Very often its happened that people think I’m their greatest friend & well-wisher simply because I am very interested in the going-on’s in their life & take the time to give a balanced view-point based on the things they tell me.

Well we spoke a lot…….in those 7 days we meandered through all the subjects touching our lives excluding only politics & rocket science. Reni spoke about her childhood, her medico days, her profession, about her husband & children.
When she told me about her 2nd child who was born after 3 miscarriages she had tears in her eyes & I clumsily put my hand on hers before turning away to hide the sheen in my own eyes.

Our conversations also included interludes of silence & moments when we went into the tranquil insides of the church to contemplate our relationship with God.

She made me feel inadequate without even trying…..I mean, here is a woman, a doctor who is managing home & on the other side continually updating herself [writing exams to qualify to work in Dubai], was working in a hospital in Sharjah[all that commuting] & inbetween all this had to bear the agony of losing her unborn babies & countless other barriers.

Made me sit up & ponder over many related/unrelated issues in life. Men or women didn’t necessarily have to be poor or under-qualified to experience the travails of life. Life is tough on everybody. How we overcome our deficiencies & circumstances is what sets us apart finally.

At the end of 7 days we very warmly waved each other good-bye & it was only a few days later I realized that we didn’t exchange numbers or contact information to keep in touch.

In hindsight now I realize it was one of those chance encounters where we meet somebody for a brief period & share without inhibitions our life-stories….

…….which, in turn made me pause for a while, to look into my own life, to appreciate & truly value my little world.

What's your excuse???????

None of U, with the sole exception of Shalom, wished me for Easter??????????

[Nancy stands with her arms akimbo at the entrance of her blog]


And ur excuses better be good!!!!!!!

Life is Beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The new academic school year[or is it school new academic
year;-P] started on April 5, 2009 & I’m walking around with a big grin on my face. I bet you are thinking I’m smiling coz my kids have got good marks for their final exams & have progressed to the next class.

I’m walking around rubbing my hands gleefully coz I’m a free bird now. Aaaaah the freedom…unexplainable really. Before you conclude that I’ve bundled them off to boarding school, let me explain.

All these days, after a hectic 1-2 hrs activity in the kitchen early every morning, I send the kids & better half to school & office[yeah, in that order]. I would just have time to switch on the laptop & login into blogger when the maid would make her appearance. Dunno why but I feel very guilty when the maid is hard at work & I just sit around tapping away on the computer. So while she is there I try to finish my cooking for the day. 2 hrs later when she leaves I’m still in the midst of creating the midday meal[somebody must have coined the word 'slow-coach' after seeing me in action. My sister makes fun of me saying that I even put the sign of the cross in slow-motion]. Finally when I finish, it would already be 12pm & time to pick Naina up from the bus-stop. Just when I finish with Naina's lunch, Nikita comes back, and then you know how it is & those who don’t, feel free to take a wild guess & multiply it by 100.

But now, guess what……….Naina is in 1st std & so both sisters reach home only after 2pm.

Heeeeeeee………..I’m in seventh heaven. You see I’ve got a whole 2 hours to myself. To do anything I want, the way I want to. I’m so pleased with myself & everybody around me. The world looks so promising.
But when I tell this to other mothers they look at me strangely, forget others, the better-half himself looked at me with this very troubled expression as if to say you are celebrating as if you’ve been freed from bondage.

The worst is that I feel exactly like that…..sort of like freed from some cage. I have a million ideas buzzing in my head. I feel vaguely guilty planning trips to the beauty-parlour where I can relax while the girl there gives me a nice head massage instead of the usual jumping up with a start & looking at the time every 15mins. Most of my package deals at the saloon go waste because I always rushing out to the bus stop without completing all the items mentioned in the package.
Most of my supposedly leisurely supermarket trips are also cut short only because of these ill appropriate timings.
I cant even visit a friend to have a heart-to-heart chat or rather a face-to-face talk. Well u know how it is; when we visit, we spend the first 2 hrs talking all the irrelevant things, just when we start opening up to pour out our innermost secrets its time to go….the worst is when we have to wind up the conversation at the door in less than 5 minutes unlike the 2 hours we usually take.

And I can also do my baking in peace now, without the usual.....

Nikita: “What’s that white stuff???”
Mama: “Nikita, its sugar & this is the nth time you’ve asked me this question & no, I am not going to give you some more to taste”
Naina: “Why do you mix it like that????”
Mama: “Coz the recipe says so”
Nikita: “What are you going to do next????”
Mama[exasperated]: “I have no clue as you are sitting on the recipe”
Naina: “Will u give us the bowl to lick after you finish????”
Mama: “U know I always do, now stop talking & let me concentrate”
Nikita: “So when will u finish????”
Mama: “Aaaaaaarrrrrrrhhhhhhhhhh”
[2 pairs of feet quickly exit from the kitchen to reappear again after 4 minutes with the same set of questions phrased in a different way].

Last 3 weeks were hectic with the kids at home fulltime after their final exams & believe me when I say I had my hands full. Boys or girls, doesnt matter which gender they are, they are so full of enthusiasm & mischief that we have to be on our toes the whole time.

I love my kids to bits but also long for some free time where I can ….
Just loll on the couch & watch some tv[I normally don’t watch TV or movies when they are around],
Sleep for 2 hrs[highly unlikely but the thought that I can do it if I want to feels good],
Spread the newspaper out on the table & read from the front page to the last page in 1 go[as soon as I open the paper when they are around Naina will want to sit on my lap to read too & Nikita will remember that she's terribly hungry only then]

So on the 1st day of my freedom I baked some yummy Peanut Butter Blossom cookies to perfection[finally].
The next day my friend who was going away to India for forever, came to spend the day with me & we had a wonderful time together.
And yesterday I set off to the parlour right after the maid left & came back a whole hour before the kids came back, looking & feeling rejuvenated.
And today, right after I put up this post I’m going to repot all my plants who’ve been crying for my attention for sometime now.

Haaaaaaaah!!!!!! I’m feeling good!!!!!!!!!


p.s: And yeah, I now spread the newspaper out elaborately onto the table & read it 1st page to last page in 1 go. Anybody want to test my knowledge???? Ask away, I’m all updated.

Which reminds me, tomorrow I’m at a loose end, any ideas anyone???????

Not very musically inclined

Music never featured BIG in my list of necessities anywhere. But that didnt mean I didnt like to listen to it; I do enjoy listening, singing along, breaking into a jig & it never fails to cheer me up but after an hour or so I also feel the need to switch it off & breathe in the silence.

During School & College days I did have good collection of English & Hindi cassettes & even took the trouble to write down the lyrics to memorise some of them[u knw, rewinding & rewinding to catch the lyrics]. Somehow I never bothered with songs of the 80's or 90's; I just loved to listen to songs from the 60's & 70's.

Nowadays I'm completely out of touch, except for odd songs like 'Masakali' or 'Jai Ho' or a 'Pehli Nazar' otherwise I'm completely indifferent to whats going on in the music world but yes I'm still very partial to the songs of the 60's & 70's.

Renu tagged me to list 10 favourite songs in any 2 languages; I'm putting up my 10 favourite Hindi & Malayalam songs. Listing English songs would probably been easier but I just felt like putting up a list of songs I like from Malayalam movies.

I actually put together my list of both favourite & then noticed that Renu had specified "SOULFUL, SLOW AND MELODIOUS SONGS"

Renu, please forgive me but I just cant think of going back & doing it all over again....this itself took me ages especially the Malayalam songs.

So here goes,

My 10 Favourite Hindi Songs:

1. Jab Koi Baat Bigad Jaaye - Jurm

[always brings back memories of my college days when all friends would sing it together]

2. Rhimjhim Gire Saawan - Manzil

[this is an altime favourite song]

3. Ajeeb Dastaan Hai - Dil apna aur preet paraya

[love to watch picturisation of the song; a soulful number sung by a woman to her love who's newly married to somebody else]

4. Chookar Mere Mann Ko - Yaaraana

[Just love the song....always gets my heart thudding expectantly;-P]

5. Ek Din Bik Jaayaega - Dharam something

[an old favourite......the only hindi song of which I know the lyrics & I sang on the stage in school]

6. Kahee Door Jab Din Dhal Jayae - Anand

[Soulful, beautiful, melancholy......makes me think about life & its mysteries, Rajesh Khanna actually looks good here]

7. Naina Barese, Rhimjhim Rhimjhim - Who Kaun Thi

[I just know 2 lines from this song & I keep singing it whenever I want to placate Naina;-D. Naina pretends to go all huffed up but loves the attention]

8. Zindagi Ek Safar - Andaz

[I'm running out of adjectives actually....partial to it coz it was a favourite when I was younger]

9. Raat Kali Ek Khwaab Mein Aaayi - Buddha Mil Gaya

[No reason...I just like it]

10. Pal, Pal Dil Ke Paas - Blackmail

[perfectly captures the essence of love atleast according to my idea of it;-P]

10 favourite Malayalam Songs:

1. Enthinu Veroru Sooryodayam - Mazhayethum Munpe

2. Aaayiram Kannumai - Nokkatha Doorathe Kannum Nattu

[An old classic........more my mom's favourite. Whenever it was aired my sister & I turned up the volume & waited expectantly.....within seconds mum would come running to watch it & we'd grin at eachother.]

3. Kaarmukil Varnente - Nandanam

[A poor servant girl's agony portrayed so well by Navya Nair that it brings tears to the eyes]

4. Olathumbathu Unzhaalaadi - Pappayude Swantham Appoos

[An old childhood favourite which reminds me of my native place Kerala]

5. Mele Vellithinkal - Tanmaatra

[Beautiful....oh so beautiful]

6. Kaattu Veliyude - Tanmaatra

[Ditto]

7. Parayaate Ariyaate - Udayananu Taaram

[yep u guessed right....bit of a Mohanlal fan]

8. Enthu Paranjaalum - Achchuvinte Amma

[picturises a mother's agony for an estranged daughter]

9. Kilukil Pamparam - Kilukkam

10. Manjakilliyude Moollee Paatunde - Kanmadam

[brings a smile to the face....I bet the old lady without teeth still cant believe her luck tht she got to dance with Mohanlal]

10.1. Ende Ammae Onnu Kaannaan - Nammal

[I just had to include this one. Its a song from a child[adult] to his mother yearning to see her........I cry whenever I watch or hear it...always:-(]

I tag

Blindwreck

Deeps

I scribble here

Iya

My space

Ordinary Guy

SandyaS

Shalom

Shayari

Sindhu

Snow

Solilo

Sriparna

WannabeWriter

Now that I've finished with it I can get all nostalgic & say that I enjoyed doing the tag & am especially feeling very pleased about taking the trouble to pick out the Malayalam songs. My memory being what it is, I'm sure that I'd love to read all this back 10-20yrs later.

Dear God,

My earliest memories are of my mother, sister & I sitting on a yellow straw mat & praying to You. Mother taught me beautiful hymns, she taught me verses from the bible & I remember coming 1st in Sunday school. She also taught me how to pray.

I knew the Bible quite well....ofcourse I dont claim to have understood it but I could recite many short chapters from the Psalms & knew most of the stories in the Bible. I once read the whole Bible in 1 week[yeah I know You know that I was terribly sick with typhoid & didnt have another book to read]. I knew who Ruth was, what Esther did, who Elijah & Elisha were & how they went to heaven, knew about David & Goliath, Wise King Solomon & most importantly I thought I knew all about your Son & how he gave his life up for us.

All good uptil here huh!!!!

But as You very well know, somewhere along the line I lost interest...not that I didnt believe in you. I did but I never took time out to talk with you. I never thanked you for my blessings, I didnt approach you when I had decisions to make. Even when I had troubles it never occurred to me to come to you and even it did occur I could never do it because my reasoning was that I never did it when I was feeling good so I had no right to approach You when I was feeling miserable.

I dont really recall when or why I started distancing myself from You. I sort of started relegated You to the backgroud during my teenage years. Oh I still sat with my family for the family prayer where we sang hymns[I thought I sang pretty good], read the bible[yeah I liked hearing the sound of my voice], sing songs again. Here I got irritated...well we already sang songs, right???...whats the need to sing again???
Chitrahaar was going to start in exactly 20 mins & this hymn was going to take up 4-5 precious minutes & then the final prayer would take another 10-15 mins. Throughout the prayer I would stealthily peek thru my closed eyelids at the clock & my brain would try to connect with my mom's brains to "Keep it short, keep it short, KEEP IT SHORT, please". Ofcourse Ma would decide to say 2 extra prayers that night. Finally the Amen & the sign of the cross happened in fast forward mode & the next second found me in the living room pressing the red button on the TV remote.
Oh dang...the first break was already in. I bet Ma deliberately does this, I would think bitterly.

Looking back, teenage years were trying times. I sure could have done with some Faith. Whether we joined her in Prayer or not I knew my mother shed tears while she prayed for us. I watched my sister....my younger sister read the Bible & Pray every night before going to sleep while I slept or pretended to.

But I know You haven't forgotten those odd occasions when I did come to You & laid my heart bare at your feet. Every once in a while I reminded you about this wish I had……..for a good husband. Not those rich or pretty-looking dudes, just a good human being who'd stand by me through thick & thin & oh how can I forget that I asked for good wedding photographs. Coz wedding photgraphs were for life & however I turned out later, these pictures would be my signature for life....something to show my kids & grandkids. Ofcourse I realise now that it was 1 dumb request as the kids recognise everybody else in those photographs except me. You must have had a good laugh while granting that request.

You granted both those requests……a fine man by my side & good wedding photographs. My faith was strengthened by the good things which were happening & I thanked You over & over again.
Leaving my family to be with a man I was hardly knew was a big test in my faith in You. I still remember sitting in that plane 10 yrs back to join the man I married, staring blankly through the window into the darkness outside with tears pouring down my cheeks. Just for a moment I even wondered whether I’d reach my destination.

I wonder if You realized that at first when I started praying genuinely I felt like such a fake…like I was mouthing some lines simply because I thought you expected to hear it. Prayer didn’t come easily…and placing my complete faith in You was so difficult. If I gave myself to You COMPLETELY, did that mean I have to give up movies or games or erase that bit of deviousness which was present inside me??? I was not really ready.

The children made their appearance & their growth again made me marvel at Your Kindness. Along with the children I also grew…..wider. But jokes apart……except for the quick one-liners muttered under my breath, there were times I was busy or too tired by the end of the day to speak with You, and strangely my faith was deeper than ever.
Obstacles would appear from nowhere, the people I depended on most may not have been there to shield me and You my Lord also took your own sweet time to respond but there wasn’t any doubt that You’d make it right finally & that if I held on to You I’d be totally safe.

Maybe I’m feeling my age…………..maybe I have more faith than before or maybe its Just You……I’ve gradually started depending on You, learning to let go and lean on Your strength, though I still have my doubts about my Faith whether….
… I’m good enough in your eyes
…or maybe I’m doing it all wrong
...You’ll reject me when I reach there

Then again I realize all these misgivings are about me…….about You there is never really any doubt.

Yours till eternity,
Nancy

A Hundred Questions

Was tagged by Shayari on this...........

100 things about me


ABOUT U:

1. What's your name→ Nancy

2. Nicknames→ Nance, Nancy Drew..... and no, not Nan.

4. Zodiac sign → Aquarius

5. Male or female or transgendered → Female

6. Elementary→ Heeeee.....Holy Cross School, Bangalore

7. Schools → St. Charles High School, Bangalore

8. Colleges → Bishop Cottons Women’s Christian College, Bangalore

9. Height → 5'4”[almost]

10. Hair color → Black

11. Long or short → Mid length

12. Do you have a crush on someone? → No but I sure would like to crush a few people

13: Ever been in love? Ask me when I've been out of love, first my parents & sister and now with my husband & kids

14. Piercings → of the ears.

15. Tattoos → Never wanted one but like to see them on others

16. Righty or lefty → A little bit of both

FIRSTS :

17. First piercing → Ears, When I was 5.

18. First best friends →Farhana & Tanveer

19. First sport you joined→ Some kind of drill I think for School sports day.

20. First pet → Toothie, a German Shepherd.

21. First vacation → Kerala, my birthplace

22. First concert → In School I think, don’t remember really.

23. First crush → Sometime in 7th std, few days later I found out that he studied in 6th std & the crush died an instant death.

24. Eating → When hungry……. is the correct answer. But alas…its whenever I see food I like.

25. Drinking → Only when I’m parched:-S. I'm trying to change.

26. I'm about to → get the kids cleaned up for dinner.

27. Listening to → Jai Ho[& the kids are doing a war style dance in the background]


LASTS:

28. Last beverage → Chocolate Milk

29. Last phone call → 12 hrs back

30. Last text message → from Etisalat trying to convince to me join some scheme where I could call India for 99fils.

31. Last song you listened to → Previous to Jai Ho was Pehli Nazar from Race

32. Last time you cried → a week back........thanking God.


HAVE YOU EVER:

33. Dated someone twice → I’ve never dated:-). No, not even once.

34. Been cheated on? → Yeah that’s happened with friends

35. Kissed someone & regretted it? → Yeah when the kids don’t clean up after eating chocolates & I'm just going out .

36. Lost someone special? → Yeah once in a while I mourn for my innocence

37. Been depressed?→ Oh Yes, I don’t really need reasons to get depressed

38. Been drunk and threw up? → Nope…..haven’t really drank anything alcoholic as such unless you count breezers or wine.


HAVE YOU:

39. Made new friends → Not recently…..I’m friendly but take a lot of time to make good frinds

40. Fallen out of love → More like, fallen out of infactuations.

41. Laughed until you cried → So many times….last was the Fatty Bombalatty incident:-D

42. Met someone who changed you → No….I keep mourning that also.

43. Found out who your true friends were → No I still get surprised by some actions of good friends

44. Found out someone was talking about you → Oh I find that out automatically, my ears tingle & turn red everytime people talk abt me.

45. Kissed anyone on your friend's list → On the cheek, yes

46. Made the first Move → Never....basically lacked the courage.

47. Do you have any pets → We have 4 fish…Rosie, Goldie, Longie & Greedy

48. Do you want to change your name → Not anymore

49. What did you do for your last birthday → Had my friend & her kids over for the whole day, cut a cake; basically had a surprisingly good day.

50. What time did you wake up today – 07:45 AM…..would have slept longer but the maid arrives at 8.

51. What were you doing at midnight last night→ just got back home after church & from shopping[Friday is weekend here like how Sunday is for the rest of the world]

52. Name something you CANNOT wait for → some peace & quiet in my life. I have 2 children who cannot comprehend the beauty of silence.

53. Last time you saw your father → April 2008

54. What is the one thing you wish you could change about your life → When I make a decision, I want to make it happen.

55. Most visited webpage → No surprises here, My Blog:)

56.Bribed someone? → Yes, a policeman, for something to do with my passport.

57.Played with dolphins? → Not yet, plan to do it soon


YOUR FUTURE :

58. Want kids? → No already have 2, but at odd moments I think I wouldn't mind a third one. Luckily sanity prevails in 5 minutes

59. Want to get married ? → Maybe on the 60th year to renew the vows…will be fun I think.

60. Careers in mind? → Oh yes so many…..but as of now a dedicated homemaker

61. Settling in a Big Villa? → Maybe One day

62. Day or night? → Day

63. What day is tomorrow? → Sunday.

64. Challenges? → I'm not that daring to go types....more laidback. But if I have company I'm more enthusiastic.

65. Drive with windows up or down? → down anyday

66. Scared of Death? → Yes, a bit.

67. Cook or Clean? → Dont really fancy both but I guess clean if somebody will make the stuff I like to eat.

68. Lips or eyes → Lips or eyes, what?????

69. Hugs or kisses → Not very comfortable with both except with the family .

70. Shorter or taller → Taller

71. Older or Younger → A li'l older.

72. Romantic or spontaneous → Spontaneous.

73. Nice stomach or nice arms → This is like asking “devil or the deep sea.???”

74. Sensitive or loud → I think the question should have read sensitive or thick skinned, I mean loud is the opposite of quiet, right???? Anyways I'll stop trying to divert u......a mixture of both, I'd like to think:-P.

75. Hook-up or relationship → Don't gimme ideas:-P

77. Trouble maker or hesitant → Troublemaker Heeeeee.


HAVE YOU EVER :

78. Kissed a stranger → I don’t think

79. Lost glasses/contacts → No…..I’ve sat on them, broken them but never lost them, touchwood.

80. Found money on the road → Yes, rs.5/- when I was in 5th std.

81. Sex on first date → U r joking

82. Broken someone's heart → I never got a chance

83. Had your own heart broken → Same as above

84. Held a snake? → No, & no way.

85. Been arrested → No.....boring life I tell U

86. Turned someone down → Yes

87. Cried when someone died → Oh I just have to hear the news & my eyes fill esp if the person is young.

88. Liked a friend that is a girl/boy? → Yes


DO YOU BELIEVE IN:

89. Yourself → U r joking again

90. Miracles → I believe….& am waiting patiently for that free trip around the world to materialise.

91. Love at first sight → Nope, didnt happen even when I saw my children for the 1st time.

92. Heaven → lots of clouds floating, I wear white robes & float around with the angels singing[soprano] glorious hymns & playing golden musical instruments. Sounds idyllic huh!!!!!

93. Santa Clause → I believe in the symbolism

94. Peace in this lifetime → Too much to expect I think

95. Kissing on the first date? → This is like asking if I’ll give away my kid for adoption. Incase u r still in doubt, maybe............heeee just kidding much as it is tempting.

96. Angels → Oh yes, lot of them floating around with big black diaries keeping track of our deeds……….

97. Is there one person you want to be with right now? → Two....My parents

98. Had more than one boyfriend/girlfriend at one time in the past? → Huh!!!!!

99. You will die Young → Yeah You will, not me

100. You will end with the one you love and learn to love the one you are with – The latter


And I tag.......

Anusha

Deeps

Durga

Former sansmerci

Indyeah

Mindspace

Naperville mom

Prashanti

Rohini

Sindhu

Sunshine

Smi

Umas

Winnie

Though there are 100 questions to be answered it didnt take very long……the numberings were a big mess when I got it, so I straightened it out. Have fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Feat of Clay

The tooth fairy visited Nikita 2 weeks back & left 10dhs under her pillow[the tooth fairy got fed up of leaving gifts coz teeth kept falling with unfailing regularity].

Contrary to our expectations, Nikita was thrilled to receive money instead of a gift & we were hitting ourselves for spending so much money on gifts the last 2 yrs when we could have gotten away with keeping dhs.10 under the pillow.

Now Nikita walked around with that amount the whole of the next week wondering what to buy. Finally she decided on a packet of coloured clay. Much against my better judgment I let her pick it up. A year back the sisters made so much mess with some clay they had that I decided never to get it for them again until they were old enough to clean up after themselves.

There was a lot of improvement this year…they actually made models of things & I was quite impressed with their creative outbursts.

I’m going to relate to you something which took place & do want to know what you think.


A week back Nikita[7½ yrs] & Naina[5yrs] came to me with their hands behind their back…

Nikita: Mama we’ll show you something & you have to tell us which one you like best.

Mama[without agreeing to their conditions]: Show me the things first.

Naina: Taaaantaaaadan……

Naina[excitedly]: Ok which one do u like best?????

Nikita[confidently]: You’ve got to choose whichever model is the best.

I’m in a quandary here. I know which one looks better[both are supposed to be birds by the way]…..but how can I rate one above the other & disappoint the owner of the not-so best one??? Once in a while they put me in a situation like this & usually I wriggle out with a standard answer.

Mama: Ohhhhh they are sooooo beautiful, I like both of them.

Nikita[disappointed]: Noooooo….you’ve got to choose one.

Mama: Well I can’t help it if I like both, can I????

Both of them murmuring disappointedly went away after I clicked pictures of their exhibits.

Half an hour later….

They come back with their hands behind their backs again.

Nikita: Mama, we’ve made new things & this time please don’t say you like both.

Nikita & Naina[together]: Okkkkkkkk please, please, please????

Mama[sighes in exasperation]: Alright show it to me.

Taaaantadaaaaan…..

Since I have no creative abilities to speak of I'm always impressed when I see the kids doing even the simplest of things. Now Nikita’s Crab looks good to my eyes but when I look up I see Naina’s face which has a defeated look…like she knows her sister’s model looks better & her distress was clear at her inability to make a nice exhibit[her’s was supposed to be a dragon, by the way].

Nikita: You HAVE to tell us which is the best, please, please, please you have to.

Naina: Yes Mama you have to.

Mama who had no idea how to tackle the situation took the easy way out

“I don’t like both”!!!!!

“MAMA” wail both in unison.

Nikita: Naina I know why mama is doing this. Mama doesn’t want to choose one & make the loser feel bad, so she is simply saying that she doesn’t like both.

I shake my head in amused irritation that she read me so well.

Nikita: Mama we are going to make something else & this time please don’t say you like both or that you don’t like both. You have to choose one as the best.

Naina[in renewed enthusiasm]: Yes you have to choose.

They go away & Nikita comes back after 2 minutes without Naina’s knowledge & advises me.
“Mama, I know why you can doing this, you don’t want to hurt one of us right by choosing the better thing. Why don’t you do 1 thing…….just judge the clay models by giving a 1st prize & a 2nd prize, that way we both win prizes & won’t feel bad at all”.

She then rushess away to make her model & I stare after her in wonder. Now why didn’t I think of that????

In the end that’s what I did…..declared 1st & 2nd prizes.

And the below were made a few days back….just couldn’t help putting them up.....you know, to show it off. In case you are wondering if Naina’s exhibit is a bomb, yes it is………you know the one’s which Tom & Jerry use to blow eachother up, yeah its modeled on that.

Now I’m curious…..how do all of You deal with this kind of situation??? And those who don’t have kids, do you remember how your parents dealt with this kind of situation??? And those who don’t have kids or dont remember how your parents dealed with this, how do You think this kind of situation should be dealt with?????

And finally for those who are not interested in answering the above question, let me ask you another question.....can you take a guess what Naina had made in the 3rd picture[next to Nikita's sofa & flower]?????
I ask coz I couldn't figure it out when she first showed them to me but had a hearty laugh when I found out.

Edited to add: Its drumsticks People............. she made Chicken legs. Naina is fond of fried chicken legs..........so I guess it was instinctive of her to have made it so close to dinnertime. Rows of the same thing confused me too at first.........anyways I had so much fun reading all the imaginative comments.............heeeeee:-D. A big hand to umas, everybody!!!!!! She added the word Chicken to everybody else's lollipop:-D!!!!!!