It is the last day in 2008 and a time of reflection, I thought I would do a recap of what is standing out to me this past year. You knew a list was coming, right?
1. To start off on a cheerful note, we had the best Christmas ever with close family I haven't seen in 3 years. That was such a blessing and we had the most wonderful time ever.
2. I was able to spend the beginning of the year with my parents who are 10,000 miles away and that was an incredible blessing too.
3. As a family we had some painful experiences -one as a couple, and another more personal for me when my uncle went home to be with the Lord in June. It is hard to believe he is no longer with us as he was one of the most dynamic and full of life person I have met.
4. Two families at church whom we are very close to moved/is moving. Their absence has left such a big hole in our lives.
5. We were able to travel to a bunch of places that we always wanted to and made some cherished memories.
6. A lot of family and friends visited us this year and we were blessed by their stay here with us.
7. I started the "Saturday unplugged tradition" and the days we did it, it has been such a sweet time. I just cook something extra nice or special, bring out the nice dishes, light some candles and have dinner. It could be just hubby and me or sometimes we have people over. But we turn off the tv, and computer and phones. We read, or play board games or go for a walk, or just talk.
8. I was able to read 53 books this year thanks to all the doctors that I had to see and the subsequent waiting at the office. My goal was 50 and I do feel a sense of accomplishment. I know you all probably read 100, just pretend like I did something, okay?
9. And with all that has happened in 2008, personally, professionally, the hills and valleys, ups and downs I can say with certainty that God is good all the time and all the time God is good. His mercies are new every morning.
And to the One who does exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think to Him be all the glory. I wish all my readers a wonderful Year 2009.
Even so, come Lord Jesus.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Highlights from my week and thoughts running through my head
1. Wrapped gifts under the tree
2. Half clean house
3. Sick hubby who needs a lot of TLC
3. Eating leftovers for myself and soup for hubby to make time for cleaning
4. Hoping I haven't gotten sick as well
5. Wondering where all our guests are going to sleep
6. Keeping DH away from work and trying to get him to rest
7. Thrilled and looking forward to spending time with family.
8. Hope they would like my cooking after being used to my sisters awesome food.
9. Praying that I won't sing off-key during the cantata
10. Wondering why I could not come up with a shorter title for this post
2. Half clean house
3. Sick hubby who needs a lot of TLC
3. Eating leftovers for myself and soup for hubby to make time for cleaning
4. Hoping I haven't gotten sick as well
5. Wondering where all our guests are going to sleep
6. Keeping DH away from work and trying to get him to rest
7. Thrilled and looking forward to spending time with family.
8. Hope they would like my cooking after being used to my sisters awesome food.
9. Praying that I won't sing off-key during the cantata
10. Wondering why I could not come up with a shorter title for this post
Monday, December 15, 2008
Two Income Trap - Part 2
See Part 1 here
In this long-awaited (yeah, right!) post, I will address the argument about Mom being the safety net that was put forward by the authors in Two Income Trap. The basic premise is that when there is only one income, couples buy house based on that, and since mom is a safety net, if dad loses the job, mom can go into the work force until that time dad gets another job.
There are three (broadly) reasons why moms stay at home while dad goes to work.
1. Religious reasons
2. Lack of education, so no good job choices
3. Educated, but prefer to be home with the kids
I think choices 1 and 2 are self explanatory and so I am just going to focus on the 3rd choice. There is an argument that is commonly put forward for moms staying home which is that if they go out to work, the family have to pay for child care, gas and maintenance on the second car, clothes, and all the trappings that come with a second job. I recently read somewhere that the mom needs to make at least $50,000 annually to make a contribution to the family finance. It sounds reasonable since many jobs do require all of the above. So many of the families who keep Mommy home do think of this. The cost benefit analysis show that it is better financially that a Mom remains home since for some jobs it takes money for her to be in the workplace.
So let us consider such a family. Jane is reasonably well educated, has 2 kids, never worked. John has a good job which brings in $50,000. They manage the home with that. She is frugal, watches the pennies, they don't eat out, do not go for vacations. She sends Junior 1 to public school and Junior 2 who is a toddler stays home with her. Now the economy turns bad (not hard to imagine now, is it?) and dad loses the job. Now, according to the book, this is when mom steps into the work force and rescues the family until Dad finds a job. Maybe I am being naive here, but I don't think there are a lot of employers out there offering anyone a $50,000 job with no experience, is going to be there only until the husband finds a job. (which could be one month to 6 months or maybe even more) A good job is not something you walk in and out of. And it is not rocket science what happens when putting an inexperienced mom suddenly into a work situation. In majority of the cases, she cannot hack it.
So John's and Jane's situation has changed. Jane is working at store X as a a clerk. The economy which cost John his job is not kind to Jane either. That is all she got since she has no experience and is not there for the long haul. She needs new formal clothes, she can't get home until late evening, so they need child care. John has interviews to attend and jobs to apply, so he cannot look after the kids while Jane is at work. Jane is tired coming from work, and looking after children, so she has no energy to cook, clean or pinch pennies. Expenses are more, and she brings in nowhere close to what John used to bring. I don't really think there is any hyperbole in the situation that I presented. It is a very possible outcome of such a situation.
Another problem I had with the book was that it does not give really good solutions as to how to get out of the Two Income Trap, a lot of families find themselves in. The book is good reading to understand how people get into saddening life situations, but I feel it doesn't do much good for a family already there. The overwhelming feeling I got after reading the statistics that the book provided was sadness. The answer to a crisis such as Dad losing the job is not to send a Mom who has never worked before into the workplace. I don't think it will work in real life for the reasons stated above.I am not saying I have the answers. But there are some things which I believe are good tips for a couple starting out in life.
1. If both husband and wife work, buy a house with a mortgage+utilities which you can afford to pay with one income. If you cannot afford to do that, you are not financially ready to buy a house. The book touches on this about keeping your fixed expenses below 50%.
2. Live WAY below your means. It means different things to different people. But you know where you are. Save well.
3. Don't worry about what other people are making or not making or emulate their lifestyles. Look at successful people and learn what they are doing right. Take control of your OWN finances.
4. Learn about investing. E.g. A car is a depreciating asset and is not a wise investment choice.
5. Above all, don't forget the source of every blessing.
Since I cannot say it any better, I leave you with Amy's words. If you are poor, let it be becasue the Lord wills so, and not becasue of your foolish choices.
In this long-awaited (yeah, right!) post, I will address the argument about Mom being the safety net that was put forward by the authors in Two Income Trap. The basic premise is that when there is only one income, couples buy house based on that, and since mom is a safety net, if dad loses the job, mom can go into the work force until that time dad gets another job.
There are three (broadly) reasons why moms stay at home while dad goes to work.
1. Religious reasons
2. Lack of education, so no good job choices
3. Educated, but prefer to be home with the kids
I think choices 1 and 2 are self explanatory and so I am just going to focus on the 3rd choice. There is an argument that is commonly put forward for moms staying home which is that if they go out to work, the family have to pay for child care, gas and maintenance on the second car, clothes, and all the trappings that come with a second job. I recently read somewhere that the mom needs to make at least $50,000 annually to make a contribution to the family finance. It sounds reasonable since many jobs do require all of the above. So many of the families who keep Mommy home do think of this. The cost benefit analysis show that it is better financially that a Mom remains home since for some jobs it takes money for her to be in the workplace.
So let us consider such a family. Jane is reasonably well educated, has 2 kids, never worked. John has a good job which brings in $50,000. They manage the home with that. She is frugal, watches the pennies, they don't eat out, do not go for vacations. She sends Junior 1 to public school and Junior 2 who is a toddler stays home with her. Now the economy turns bad (not hard to imagine now, is it?) and dad loses the job. Now, according to the book, this is when mom steps into the work force and rescues the family until Dad finds a job. Maybe I am being naive here, but I don't think there are a lot of employers out there offering anyone a $50,000 job with no experience, is going to be there only until the husband finds a job. (which could be one month to 6 months or maybe even more) A good job is not something you walk in and out of. And it is not rocket science what happens when putting an inexperienced mom suddenly into a work situation. In majority of the cases, she cannot hack it.
So John's and Jane's situation has changed. Jane is working at store X as a a clerk. The economy which cost John his job is not kind to Jane either. That is all she got since she has no experience and is not there for the long haul. She needs new formal clothes, she can't get home until late evening, so they need child care. John has interviews to attend and jobs to apply, so he cannot look after the kids while Jane is at work. Jane is tired coming from work, and looking after children, so she has no energy to cook, clean or pinch pennies. Expenses are more, and she brings in nowhere close to what John used to bring. I don't really think there is any hyperbole in the situation that I presented. It is a very possible outcome of such a situation.
Another problem I had with the book was that it does not give really good solutions as to how to get out of the Two Income Trap, a lot of families find themselves in. The book is good reading to understand how people get into saddening life situations, but I feel it doesn't do much good for a family already there. The overwhelming feeling I got after reading the statistics that the book provided was sadness. The answer to a crisis such as Dad losing the job is not to send a Mom who has never worked before into the workplace. I don't think it will work in real life for the reasons stated above.I am not saying I have the answers. But there are some things which I believe are good tips for a couple starting out in life.
1. If both husband and wife work, buy a house with a mortgage+utilities which you can afford to pay with one income. If you cannot afford to do that, you are not financially ready to buy a house. The book touches on this about keeping your fixed expenses below 50%.
2. Live WAY below your means. It means different things to different people. But you know where you are. Save well.
3. Don't worry about what other people are making or not making or emulate their lifestyles. Look at successful people and learn what they are doing right. Take control of your OWN finances.
4. Learn about investing. E.g. A car is a depreciating asset and is not a wise investment choice.
5. Above all, don't forget the source of every blessing.
Since I cannot say it any better, I leave you with Amy's words. If you are poor, let it be becasue the Lord wills so, and not becasue of your foolish choices.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Christmas Banquet
Just like Titanic, only different...
The little man was trying to wriggle his way down as fast as he could.
And then, the updated family pic with my blonde-haired blue-eyed baby from the Christmas Banquet at church.
I just love him to pieces. And that goes for the man and the baby.
The little man was trying to wriggle his way down as fast as he could.
And then, the updated family pic with my blonde-haired blue-eyed baby from the Christmas Banquet at church.
I just love him to pieces. And that goes for the man and the baby.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Hubby,stop reading, others help!
I will do the second part review of the Two Income Trap soon, but for now I need some help. If my husband is reading, PLEASE STOP READING RIGHT NOW. Dearest Husband, you have managed to squish every single surprise I have tried to put together for you over the years, so please give me a fighting chance and stop reading right now. If you don't I will cook fish and okra for every single day for the next one month. I am well aware how much you hate it.
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Ok, back to my dear interpeeps. This is my dilemma. Hubby has about 1000 songs in cassette tapes that he wants to convert to mp3/cds. While we were shopping at Bed, Bath and Beyond one day, we saw a converter and it was for $150. He said he wanted that, but we decided to shop around a little bit. I just thought about that last week, and decided to gift it to him for Christmas and accordingly looked it up on Amazon.
Bear with me, the story is going somewhere.
It was $136 and then when I read the comments, I found that, it was not worth it and all you need is a Y connector ($4.99) and a software called Audacity (free download). We already have a tape player. And then I googled it, and there are even you tube videos showing you how to do it. So being thecheapskate frugal person I am, I would not shell out $130 for something I could do for $4.99. Anyway, that is when I ran into this dilemma. I dont know what is the audio line-in jack for my computer! Where is it, what is the symbol? I tried asking hubby, but he got suspicious. Have you heard "curious as a cat"? Hubby has nothing on the cat. He likes to get to the bottom of things. And I am not a very good liar. He already suspects something is up, and I have been avoiding him today.
So if you know, can you help me? Pretty please?
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Ok, back to my dear interpeeps. This is my dilemma. Hubby has about 1000 songs in cassette tapes that he wants to convert to mp3/cds. While we were shopping at Bed, Bath and Beyond one day, we saw a converter and it was for $150. He said he wanted that, but we decided to shop around a little bit. I just thought about that last week, and decided to gift it to him for Christmas and accordingly looked it up on Amazon.
Bear with me, the story is going somewhere.
It was $136 and then when I read the comments, I found that, it was not worth it and all you need is a Y connector ($4.99) and a software called Audacity (free download). We already have a tape player. And then I googled it, and there are even you tube videos showing you how to do it. So being the
So if you know, can you help me? Pretty please?
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Two Income Trap- Part 1
I recently read the review of Two Income Trap by Amelia and Elizabeth Warren at Elizabeth's blog and started asking so many questions that she encouraged me to read it for myself. Hubby and I make mostly sensible financial decisions, so I figured there wasn't much the book could offer. I was right and wrong. Right that the book does not offer anything much new in terms of personal finances, wrong that there wasn't much that I could learn. I learned quite a bit and received a fresh perspective on issues affecting two income middle class families.
Now here is where I have to admit my ignorance. I haven't been in the US for that long and there are some things that I don't understand. One is electoral college and the other is school districts. Why is there a rule that only people who live in certain areas can go to certain schools etc.? I was aware that was the case since my niece and nephew are in public schools, but I never understood why. Can someone explain me that? The book explains very well the problems arising from that. People go for better schools for their children, max out their mortgage for buying a ridiculously high priced house in that school district. But why should that be allowed to happen? Why is there a rule prohibiting kids to go to their school of choice? Logically, without knowing anything about the issue, I would think that kids leaving for a better school (if there were no restrictions) would inspire sub standard schools to get their act together. Maybe I am missing something. I would love to know. Also another thing is, the authors keep comparing a current couple with a 70's (I think) couple to show why families are more in danger now. Was there no school district delineation for education then?
Another aspect she talks about is regulating predatory lending. A big hearty Amen to that. It would be great if there are more rules in place so that credit card companies can stop lending to people who are incapable of paying them back. The whole sub-prime crisis is becasue the companies wanted to make money and gave money to people whom they could charge high amounts of interest. "No discrimination for home buying based on money". (Don't even get me started on this screwed up statement) Started interestingly by Jimmy Carter. Followed through by Clinton and Bush administration. Anyone with half a brain could see that, the way the real estate market was going, it was not sustainable.
A third aspect the books talks about is Mom as a safety net. This is what started me on this book. It sounds great in theory. Dad works, couple buys a home based on Dad's income, mom stays home, takes care of children, crisis happen, mom goes to work until dad finds job, mom comes back home to former SAHM life, hunky dory dosy. What is the reality? Why do I disagree? What is the fallacy of the argument? I will explore that in part 2.
Now here is where I have to admit my ignorance. I haven't been in the US for that long and there are some things that I don't understand. One is electoral college and the other is school districts. Why is there a rule that only people who live in certain areas can go to certain schools etc.? I was aware that was the case since my niece and nephew are in public schools, but I never understood why. Can someone explain me that? The book explains very well the problems arising from that. People go for better schools for their children, max out their mortgage for buying a ridiculously high priced house in that school district. But why should that be allowed to happen? Why is there a rule prohibiting kids to go to their school of choice? Logically, without knowing anything about the issue, I would think that kids leaving for a better school (if there were no restrictions) would inspire sub standard schools to get their act together. Maybe I am missing something. I would love to know. Also another thing is, the authors keep comparing a current couple with a 70's (I think) couple to show why families are more in danger now. Was there no school district delineation for education then?
Another aspect she talks about is regulating predatory lending. A big hearty Amen to that. It would be great if there are more rules in place so that credit card companies can stop lending to people who are incapable of paying them back. The whole sub-prime crisis is becasue the companies wanted to make money and gave money to people whom they could charge high amounts of interest. "No discrimination for home buying based on money". (Don't even get me started on this screwed up statement) Started interestingly by Jimmy Carter. Followed through by Clinton and Bush administration. Anyone with half a brain could see that, the way the real estate market was going, it was not sustainable.
A third aspect the books talks about is Mom as a safety net. This is what started me on this book. It sounds great in theory. Dad works, couple buys a home based on Dad's income, mom stays home, takes care of children, crisis happen, mom goes to work until dad finds job, mom comes back home to former SAHM life, hunky dory dosy. What is the reality? Why do I disagree? What is the fallacy of the argument? I will explore that in part 2.
Monday, December 08, 2008
Mish Mash
My sister and family are visiting us this Christmas and staying with us for 8 days. To say I am excited is putting it very mildly. I have not seen them in three years and I am literally counting the days. To plan their fun week here was glory to my organizing soul and Excel and I had a grand ole' time. I talked to sis today and told her about a tentative schedule I had prepared. Then I also mentioned that I made a menu plan. She listened to me very kindly, but was probably thinking I was slightly off my rocker.
Organizing is great and it is one of my strengths and weakness as well. After all the planning and organizing, if things go awry, I start twitching. That is where I am really glad I have the DH next to me. Otherwise I will have to take to clenched fists, and gritted teeth repeating to myself "I am calm, I am calm." That would not be very convincing or helpful I think.
I have been on a reading binge for the last 2 weeks and now I am feeling a little burnt out. I read The Poisonwood Bible, Same kind of different as me, Two Income Trap in about 10 days. This was with a full time job, guests, and cooking. Which means I was reading every spare second I had. Like reading while stirring the soup. Right now I am reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. I will review Two Income Trap soon. I do have something to say about the book.
Our house is all done with respect to new countertops, flooring, carpet etc. I have to paint the bathroom and I will be done. I am excited. I will try to put pictures after I take them, sometime in this millennium.
I also have the tree up and the decorations out. I still have not finished buying all the gifts. And our travel plans have been cancelled. I am actually kind of relieved. With all that has been going on, planning for that has been a wee bit too much.
This has been a pretty hodgey podgey post and I apologize.
Organizing is great and it is one of my strengths and weakness as well. After all the planning and organizing, if things go awry, I start twitching. That is where I am really glad I have the DH next to me. Otherwise I will have to take to clenched fists, and gritted teeth repeating to myself "I am calm, I am calm." That would not be very convincing or helpful I think.
I have been on a reading binge for the last 2 weeks and now I am feeling a little burnt out. I read The Poisonwood Bible, Same kind of different as me, Two Income Trap in about 10 days. This was with a full time job, guests, and cooking. Which means I was reading every spare second I had. Like reading while stirring the soup. Right now I am reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. I will review Two Income Trap soon. I do have something to say about the book.
Our house is all done with respect to new countertops, flooring, carpet etc. I have to paint the bathroom and I will be done. I am excited. I will try to put pictures after I take them, sometime in this millennium.
I also have the tree up and the decorations out. I still have not finished buying all the gifts. And our travel plans have been cancelled. I am actually kind of relieved. With all that has been going on, planning for that has been a wee bit too much.
This has been a pretty hodgey podgey post and I apologize.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Thanksgiving notes
So, thanksgiving weekend went well. We had the guests with the food restrictions, but it went remarkably well. I managed to cook stuff that could accommodate everybody, so no one had to starve. We had thankgiving dinner at a friends place. It was lovely. And here is a photo I stole from her blog.
We did an eat and run as we had to get the house and food ready for our guests. I have no idea how the four days went, but it just did in a flash. Our Oaklahoman guests left very early Monday morning and in the night we had some other guests from Milwaukee.
Unfortunately since it was a Monday and both hubby and I work, we were not able to provide as good a dinner as we wanted to. On top of that hubs had a dentist appointment and since we are a one car family, the logistics did not work out the way to facilitate an elaborate meal . There was just pulav, raita, and fish fry. They ate well, but I feel it was inadequate. Hubby told me to get over it and that majority of the people would have just eaten out if they worked full time and had guests on a weekday. They brought us wine, and two kinds of chocolate all wrapped up in nice bows. I am not sure who is going to eat all that chocolate. It will take us three months to finish that. Since we don't drink, we had the guests drink the wine themselves. I realized that a bottle is not much at all since they managed to finish it between them.
I have not been able to put up any Christmas decorations and now I am in the process of making a to do list for all the things to be done before the end of the year. There is Christmas, family visiting for a week, our wedding anniversary, a tentative travel plan, hubbys Microsoft certification exam, and some birthdays coming up. I think the organizing/scheduling part of my brain just went into overdrive.
It is a good thing that I love the busyness of everyday life. Recently I had a friend tell me (nicely) that if she tried to do all that I do, she would go crazy. Aren't you glad that God made us all gloriously different with unique capabilities and talents? I know I am.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Giving Thanks
There is a lot to be thankful for as I reflect upon our life this season. Even as news from the doctor is not ideal and waiting periods seem longer, I can't help but thank the Lord for the innumerable blessings.
I was reading recently on a couple of different blogs about people complaining about their jobs and how they hate being on "someone else's" schedule and how they would rather be home etc etc. Then I got phone calls from two people who are leaving the US as they are unable to find jobs becasue of the failing economy. Listening to both aspects, I just want to take this time to express gratitude for my job. It is not the most exciting job in the world (I am not uncovering diamonds here), but it is a great job. It provides very good health insurance, which is crucial to me. Stress levels are low to moderate most of them being self induced. I learn a lot and it is fulfilling. I will be honest here, I love the fact that it enables us to do things like buy fruit irrespective of season, go on vacations and save for the future. It enables us to give to family, friends, sponsor kids and give to child care ministries.
Yes, I am very thankful to be a working woman and that the Lord provided me with this job. And I am very happy to be here until that time He reveals otherwise.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
I was reading recently on a couple of different blogs about people complaining about their jobs and how they hate being on "someone else's" schedule and how they would rather be home etc etc. Then I got phone calls from two people who are leaving the US as they are unable to find jobs becasue of the failing economy. Listening to both aspects, I just want to take this time to express gratitude for my job. It is not the most exciting job in the world (I am not uncovering diamonds here), but it is a great job. It provides very good health insurance, which is crucial to me. Stress levels are low to moderate most of them being self induced. I learn a lot and it is fulfilling. I will be honest here, I love the fact that it enables us to do things like buy fruit irrespective of season, go on vacations and save for the future. It enables us to give to family, friends, sponsor kids and give to child care ministries.
Yes, I am very thankful to be a working woman and that the Lord provided me with this job. And I am very happy to be here until that time He reveals otherwise.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Monday, November 24, 2008
Quick notes from the weekend
1. I got a haircut. I think it looks cute. Does that make me an egotist? A friend told me I look like a 1960s housewife with my haircut and dress. Wonder if that is a good thing.
2. We went to see the Apostles of Comedy on Friday. They were good. Jeff Allen was my favorite.Good, clean fun without se*ual innuendos and foul language. That was such a blessing.
3. We got a new living room floor. It is purty, if I may say so myself. Goodbye, dirty old carpet. You will not be missed.
4. We had some friends over on Saturday and we watched Wizard of Oz and ate popcorn and Chinese food. No cooking, no cleaning, just gorging on unhealthy food. Good times.
5. We bought a new futon for the den and replaced the sofa there. I have some organizing to do, after hubby assembles it. I do like organizing as opposed to cooking and cleaning. This dislike of cooking? I come by it honestly. I don't think Mama likes cooking very much either.
6. Hubby bought a new laptop which uses fingerprints for logging in. How fun is that? Even if it gets stolen, no one other than hubby or me can get in. I think. But I just love swiping my finger and logging in just for the fun of it.
7. It has been COLD here in Florida for the past few days and I do not like it. A relative called yesterday and invited us to visit them in Milwaukee for the New Year. Are you kidding me??? I am not stirring from here until June, thankyouverymuch.
8. Ater getting lost just about everywhere we go, we finally bought a GPS this Saturday.
9. We are replacing all the bathroom countertops with granite. It has been a painful process. I am not going to do any home improvement (capital projects that is) for another 10 years. It started with a small paint job in the bathroom and it has snowballed into this huge project involving wood floors, new bedroom carpet, granite and what not. Hopefully it will all be done by the middle of December. I will show pictures then.
10. We have guests coming this Thursday. 5 people. It is going to be an interesting time cooking. All of them are vegetarians (no egg even) and one guest will not even eat garlic and onion for religious reasons. I am flabbergasted. I might have to cook two of every dish. With and without oninos. I am not even sure Indian food tastes normal without onions and garlic. My MIL suggested that I let her cook for herself. I am thinking it might not be polite.
What are the notes from your weekend?
2. We went to see the Apostles of Comedy on Friday. They were good. Jeff Allen was my favorite.Good, clean fun without se*ual innuendos and foul language. That was such a blessing.
3. We got a new living room floor. It is purty, if I may say so myself. Goodbye, dirty old carpet. You will not be missed.
4. We had some friends over on Saturday and we watched Wizard of Oz and ate popcorn and Chinese food. No cooking, no cleaning, just gorging on unhealthy food. Good times.
5. We bought a new futon for the den and replaced the sofa there. I have some organizing to do, after hubby assembles it. I do like organizing as opposed to cooking and cleaning. This dislike of cooking? I come by it honestly. I don't think Mama likes cooking very much either.
6. Hubby bought a new laptop which uses fingerprints for logging in. How fun is that? Even if it gets stolen, no one other than hubby or me can get in. I think. But I just love swiping my finger and logging in just for the fun of it.
7. It has been COLD here in Florida for the past few days and I do not like it. A relative called yesterday and invited us to visit them in Milwaukee for the New Year. Are you kidding me??? I am not stirring from here until June, thankyouverymuch.
8. Ater getting lost just about everywhere we go, we finally bought a GPS this Saturday.
9. We are replacing all the bathroom countertops with granite. It has been a painful process. I am not going to do any home improvement (capital projects that is) for another 10 years. It started with a small paint job in the bathroom and it has snowballed into this huge project involving wood floors, new bedroom carpet, granite and what not. Hopefully it will all be done by the middle of December. I will show pictures then.
10. We have guests coming this Thursday. 5 people. It is going to be an interesting time cooking. All of them are vegetarians (no egg even) and one guest will not even eat garlic and onion for religious reasons. I am flabbergasted. I might have to cook two of every dish. With and without oninos. I am not even sure Indian food tastes normal without onions and garlic. My MIL suggested that I let her cook for herself. I am thinking it might not be polite.
What are the notes from your weekend?
Friday, November 21, 2008
TMM Review -Part 3
I have written about credit cards, saving money in review of Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover, but there was one thing which made me pause a lot. I am still wondering about it and I would like to know what you think.
In the book he says rhetorically, "Is it ok to buy a $30,000 watch?" "Million dollar home?""$100,000 car?"Absolutely!" When I first read that I was thinking, that is such a waste of money and I was honestly a little disgusted. I wondered if that was the end of all this wealth building. Then I thought some more about it. It is easy for me to say that these things are a waste becasue I don't care about watches or cars or houses beyond ordinary. But what about travel? I love traveling. We spend good money on it. Granted, we mostly stay at the Holiday Inn, but then there is airfare and all other expenses. So we end up spending a bit at the end of a good vacation. To someone else, that would be a waste of money. I realized, Hypocrisy, thy name is Annie.
Isn't it the same, the bit about the plank in my eye. What do you think?
In the book he says rhetorically, "Is it ok to buy a $30,000 watch?" "Million dollar home?""$100,000 car?"Absolutely!" When I first read that I was thinking, that is such a waste of money and I was honestly a little disgusted. I wondered if that was the end of all this wealth building. Then I thought some more about it. It is easy for me to say that these things are a waste becasue I don't care about watches or cars or houses beyond ordinary. But what about travel? I love traveling. We spend good money on it. Granted, we mostly stay at the Holiday Inn, but then there is airfare and all other expenses. So we end up spending a bit at the end of a good vacation. To someone else, that would be a waste of money. I realized, Hypocrisy, thy name is Annie.
Isn't it the same, the bit about the plank in my eye. What do you think?
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Review Part 2
To continue on the review of TMM, I will touch on another aspect of his book. The fixation on credit cards.
That is where he and I part ways. According to him, we should not have credit cards, even if we are fully capable of paying off the card before they charge you anything. I got my first credit card when I was in college. I learned about and used it very well. With some help from him. I managed to make some $200 from the company before I graduated. Plus I had no debts. Although I disagree with Dave on that point, I understand where he is coming from. Most people do not know how to manage credit cards. But to those who have purposed to live way under their means and know what a credit card means, it can be a great tool.
If we don't have the money, we don't buy it. I didn't buy a car for the first two years I was here. I walked or took the bus. I didn't buy any new clothes until I graduated. In those two years, with an average income of $500, I graduated with $1000 in savings. That being said, now we ALWAYS take advantage of 0% interest. We bought our bed, sofa, and appliances that way. Not becasue we didn't have the money to pay upfront. We just earmark the money and put it in a cd with a particular bank. 1 month before we have to pay up, the cd matures and we pay it off. And we get to keep the interest from the cd. If there is an unexpected difficult situation, like a job loss or something, we are not scrambling to get the money to pay off the cards. It is already there, and it is not part of our savings.
We must have gotten at least $300 back in gift cards. (I know that means we spent a lot, but majority of those were home related and medical expenses which we had to do). I got $60 each when I moved (3 times) and many other incentives. I have never so far paid interest on a credit card loan. Credit card is not the evil he portrays in the book. Most of the time, the problem is greed. Buying things we cannot afford. Sometimes it is just unwise choices. But we can do something about that. And the book gives good encouragement to work hard and pay it off. And that is sound advice.
I would reccommend the book mainly becasue it is sound, sensible advice. Even if you are not wallowing in debt, it can help you to shape up financially. The couple issues I have with it, I already addressed. Above everything, live simply, give liberally. Becasue that is true religion.
That is where he and I part ways. According to him, we should not have credit cards, even if we are fully capable of paying off the card before they charge you anything. I got my first credit card when I was in college. I learned about and used it very well. With some help from him. I managed to make some $200 from the company before I graduated. Plus I had no debts. Although I disagree with Dave on that point, I understand where he is coming from. Most people do not know how to manage credit cards. But to those who have purposed to live way under their means and know what a credit card means, it can be a great tool.
If we don't have the money, we don't buy it. I didn't buy a car for the first two years I was here. I walked or took the bus. I didn't buy any new clothes until I graduated. In those two years, with an average income of $500, I graduated with $1000 in savings. That being said, now we ALWAYS take advantage of 0% interest. We bought our bed, sofa, and appliances that way. Not becasue we didn't have the money to pay upfront. We just earmark the money and put it in a cd with a particular bank. 1 month before we have to pay up, the cd matures and we pay it off. And we get to keep the interest from the cd. If there is an unexpected difficult situation, like a job loss or something, we are not scrambling to get the money to pay off the cards. It is already there, and it is not part of our savings.
We must have gotten at least $300 back in gift cards. (I know that means we spent a lot, but majority of those were home related and medical expenses which we had to do). I got $60 each when I moved (3 times) and many other incentives. I have never so far paid interest on a credit card loan. Credit card is not the evil he portrays in the book. Most of the time, the problem is greed. Buying things we cannot afford. Sometimes it is just unwise choices. But we can do something about that. And the book gives good encouragement to work hard and pay it off. And that is sound advice.
I would reccommend the book mainly becasue it is sound, sensible advice. Even if you are not wallowing in debt, it can help you to shape up financially. The couple issues I have with it, I already addressed. Above everything, live simply, give liberally. Becasue that is true religion.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Total Money Makeover - Review Part 1
One of the books that I read this year was Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover. Generally, I don't read a lot of self help books. But I had heard a lot about this one and decided to give it a try. Our financial strategy is very much like how Amy describes in her How we did it series. If you are not currently reading it, I would strongly encourage you to read it.
I should start reviewing books with a disclaimer. I am not very good at remembering stuff, so if the review is not immediately after, I pretty much forget key points. But I will try and list a couple of things that stood out to me. One is the aspect of paying off debts and saving and the other is Credit cards.
This book approaches finances from an agressive get out of debt, help yourself before you help others perspective. I have mixed feelings about it. I believe that Bible teaches the New Testament believers to give, not tithe. It is not a 10% for God, 90% for you deal. We are asked to give cheerfully. Anyway, it all belongs to God and he can give and take as he pleases. So if we believe that we should not give until we have financial stability, when do we decide that we have achieved that stability? When we have food, shelter, and clothing? When we have that million dollar house paid for? And then there is the undeniable fact that the more we have, the harder it is to give. We can save and save until it comes out of our nose, but we will still be looking for savings.
On the other hand, there are people who use giving as a crutch, not to be financially responsible and making unwise choices. I know people like that in real life. I know pragmatism seems a whole less spiritual than saying "The Lord will provide for our needs." Yes, the Lord will provide, but he also gave us a brain to make wise choices.
I cannot say what should the best scenario for every family should be. That is between you and the Lord. For a practical example, let us say, I am in debt and am already supporting a ministry. What I would do is honor the commitment, but cut back in personal areas. Maybe I won't take additional commitments until the high interest debts are paid off. Becasue loans on which you have to pay interest (other than house) do not make sense. For example, if you buy a car for 20,000 and pay $400 monthly for 8 years, then you pay enough to buy 2 cars. It does not make sense. It is math. If we are unable to support with finances, we can support ministries and the local church with our time and effort, prayer etc. Giving should be joyfully from the heart, not a bill to be struck off from the list.
Next: Credit Cards and Dave
I should start reviewing books with a disclaimer. I am not very good at remembering stuff, so if the review is not immediately after, I pretty much forget key points. But I will try and list a couple of things that stood out to me. One is the aspect of paying off debts and saving and the other is Credit cards.
This book approaches finances from an agressive get out of debt, help yourself before you help others perspective. I have mixed feelings about it. I believe that Bible teaches the New Testament believers to give, not tithe. It is not a 10% for God, 90% for you deal. We are asked to give cheerfully. Anyway, it all belongs to God and he can give and take as he pleases. So if we believe that we should not give until we have financial stability, when do we decide that we have achieved that stability? When we have food, shelter, and clothing? When we have that million dollar house paid for? And then there is the undeniable fact that the more we have, the harder it is to give. We can save and save until it comes out of our nose, but we will still be looking for savings.
On the other hand, there are people who use giving as a crutch, not to be financially responsible and making unwise choices. I know people like that in real life. I know pragmatism seems a whole less spiritual than saying "The Lord will provide for our needs." Yes, the Lord will provide, but he also gave us a brain to make wise choices.
I cannot say what should the best scenario for every family should be. That is between you and the Lord. For a practical example, let us say, I am in debt and am already supporting a ministry. What I would do is honor the commitment, but cut back in personal areas. Maybe I won't take additional commitments until the high interest debts are paid off. Becasue loans on which you have to pay interest (other than house) do not make sense. For example, if you buy a car for 20,000 and pay $400 monthly for 8 years, then you pay enough to buy 2 cars. It does not make sense. It is math. If we are unable to support with finances, we can support ministries and the local church with our time and effort, prayer etc. Giving should be joyfully from the heart, not a bill to be struck off from the list.
Next: Credit Cards and Dave
Friday, November 07, 2008
Vacation Memories
I realize that I fail to write anything about the vacations that we take. I mostly mention here on the blog that we are going here or there and then not write anything about it. I have identified the reasons behind it.
- Whenever I come back from vacation, my work load is very heavy becasue of the time I took off. And by the time work slows done enough for me to write a few words, I am no longer in the mood to write it.
- Half of the time, I cannot even remember all the details of the vacation. It comes back in spurts over time, but when I sit down to write about it, nothing comes.
- There is always a let down that I feel after coming back from vacation. An out of sorts that doesn't get better until about a week later. Then... see second point. It is a vicious cycle.
All this to say that I still haven't written about the cruise. I don't think anyone is waiting expectantly for a description, but I know that I want to write because there is only so much I can commit to my faulty memory. I really enjoyed writing the Greek travelogue and every time I read it, I remember all the little things that happened to make the trip a very memorable one.
So, for posterity, I am thinking I will write about all the trips soon starting with the most recent one which was the cruise.
Stay tuned.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Monday, November 03, 2008
My life on paper
One of the questions I get since I have a career is "How do you manage everything?" or "I could never do what you are doing!". From some, it is genuine appreciation, for others it is "I bet you eat out every day and your house is a pig sty." I usually answer Time Management, but I guess it kind of implies that I am a super woman who does all things in order and perfection. ahem. Also my "managing everything" is work, eat, sleep (some days), but for the other person it very well could be work, cook 4 course meals, keep a spotless home, do crafts, volunteer, knit, sew, garden, teach etc.
So this is reality.
Things I don't do
So this is reality.
Things I don't do
- Bake. Very rarely - once in 2 months or so a banana bread is the extend of my baking. DH and I are not big fans of baked goods.
- Sew. No time/talent
- Crafts. See (2)
- Home improvement stuff - painting, ongoing decoration etc. No time or eye for decoration.
- Window shopping. No time.
- Garage sale-ing, thrifting - no money saved that way. Again, no time
- Hair/makeup. Getting ready takes me 3 miuntes down to the shoes. No interest in spending hours before a mirror.
- Vacuum/mop/clean everyday. This is more a dislike induced procrastination than time issue if I am honest with myself.
- Blog every day. Unable to make time
- Work out every day. Unable to make time
- Watch a lot of TV shows/movies. Again a conscious choice due to its energy sapping capability than a time issue. Unfortunately not working very well since I replace the TV with internet. Back to square one.
- Go for the mid week Bible study. Time and some other issues.
Things I do
- Work full time
- Help DH's business with sales and payroll
- Cook every day (mostly) and keep a clean sink
- Teach sunday school
- Read/Study Bible and other books an hour every day.
- Coupon (yes, it is a verb!)
As you can see there are a lot of things I am not able to do. Granted all those are not things I necessarily *want* to do except the midweek Bible study. I miss not being able to do that regularly.
Oh, and to add, I do not consider paying bills, getting dressed and doing laundry as huge tasks to put in the list since it takes less than 5 minutes each. Rest assured that both of us have clean clothes and that our bills are paid.
This is not a strict list of things I do/don't do. Pretty much this is how it works out in the end for me in real life. I have tried to do more before, but it has been crash and burn for the most part. There are some things that are important to me. Like home cooked meals. I make time for that. Like everyone else, I make choices.
I don't do it all. Nor do I know anyone in the world who does it all. I don't even think he/she exists. In fact I don't even think there is an "all" in the commonly attributed sense of the word. An all to me could be none to you and some to you could mean none to me. You get my drift, don't you? On a given day if you have given your best to what you do and do it as unto the Lord, you have done it all. And that is my definition of a person who does it all.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
To Kill a Flying Roach
This is going to sound like I am on a Windex campaign or roach-killing crusade, but I cannot withhold this vital information from all of you anymore. I do have to affirm by everything I hold pure and holy that I do not get a commission from Windex or anyone in the immediate Windex family. Also I don't want to sound all My-Big-Fat-Greek-Wedding-y on you all especially since I am an alien here and that would not be a compliment.
But Windex works for killing roaches. I admit I haven't made anyone a believer so far, but I will keep trying.
For more tips, visit Rocks in My Dryer.
But Windex works for killing roaches. I admit I haven't made anyone a believer so far, but I will keep trying.
For more tips, visit Rocks in My Dryer.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Travel Tips
Antique Mommy who is just one of my favorite bloggers ever is hosting a travel tip carnival. Now traveling is something my husband and I love to do quite a bit. This year itself, we had 2 trips to India, Smokies, Yosemite, Bahamas, Utah and Marco Island.
I am no expert in traveling, but there are a few things I try to do so that things go smoothly. From every mistake in a trip, we learn something and I will try to list our learnings. Some of it might help you. Or not. I will list away anyhow.
Packing:
Like Antique Mommy wrote, we do not check in bags either (At least for domestic travel.) For us, it is a waste of time, checking it in, waiting for it at the destination and there is always the possibility of it not getting to us on time. We mix and match the clothes and when you are on vacation nobody cares. Okay, so in all my vacation pictures I have the same clothes, but so what?
One thing I have found helpful is to have a master list. The master list has all the items that we usually need, but could forget. It includes items like cell phone charger, batteries, battery charger, neck pillows for air travel etc. We check our bag against the master list. That way things don't get left behind.
Another list is the specilaized list. Since a lot of our travel destination include hiking, we have a hike list too. It turned out to be crucial especially while we were packing for our Yosemite trip.
We also have a toiletery bag. It is not a bag that we put togther the day before travel. It is always there. It has toothbrush for the both of us (not our regular ones), paste, deo, sanitizer,wipes etc. Everything is airline approved size and the bag is transparent so we do not have to check everytime if it has everything. It is always packed and ready and we just toss it in.
General Tips:
One thing I always think I should do, but rarely remember to is to mute the phones before we leave. Maybe you all do it already, but if you don't it is a good idea so that it doesn't shout out the absense.
We have learned that for us it is a good thing to have a file with the directions and hotel information/confirmation etc printed and ready. We have all the techy gadgets, but there has been so many times when it has failed to work in remote areas. Murphy's law in action. Plus the lack of satellite reception. It never hurts to have good old fashioned maps and directions in paper.
These are the tips for now folks. My lunch time is over and I need to get back to work. Check out the hub if you need more tips.
I am no expert in traveling, but there are a few things I try to do so that things go smoothly. From every mistake in a trip, we learn something and I will try to list our learnings. Some of it might help you. Or not. I will list away anyhow.
Packing:
Like Antique Mommy wrote, we do not check in bags either (At least for domestic travel.) For us, it is a waste of time, checking it in, waiting for it at the destination and there is always the possibility of it not getting to us on time. We mix and match the clothes and when you are on vacation nobody cares. Okay, so in all my vacation pictures I have the same clothes, but so what?
One thing I have found helpful is to have a master list. The master list has all the items that we usually need, but could forget. It includes items like cell phone charger, batteries, battery charger, neck pillows for air travel etc. We check our bag against the master list. That way things don't get left behind.
Another list is the specilaized list. Since a lot of our travel destination include hiking, we have a hike list too. It turned out to be crucial especially while we were packing for our Yosemite trip.
We also have a toiletery bag. It is not a bag that we put togther the day before travel. It is always there. It has toothbrush for the both of us (not our regular ones), paste, deo, sanitizer,wipes etc. Everything is airline approved size and the bag is transparent so we do not have to check everytime if it has everything. It is always packed and ready and we just toss it in.
General Tips:
One thing I always think I should do, but rarely remember to is to mute the phones before we leave. Maybe you all do it already, but if you don't it is a good idea so that it doesn't shout out the absense.
We have learned that for us it is a good thing to have a file with the directions and hotel information/confirmation etc printed and ready. We have all the techy gadgets, but there has been so many times when it has failed to work in remote areas. Murphy's law in action. Plus the lack of satellite reception. It never hurts to have good old fashioned maps and directions in paper.
These are the tips for now folks. My lunch time is over and I need to get back to work. Check out the hub if you need more tips.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Your opinion wanted
I have 4 drafts on various topics that is sitting on my drafts. I haven't had a chance o finish them as work has been really busy. Anyway, today, I want to ask you all a question, interpeeps.
For a while, my face has been a playground for acne. I kept ignoring it, hoping it would just be gone one fine morning. But since then, many fine mornings have passed and the games have just continued unabated. I kept thinking about doing something and one day I read here that Mary Kay acne treatment gel does wonders. I scoured the net for reviews, looked around and finding tolerable reviews all around, finally decided to place an order.
So I did that on October 6th. I registered at the website. I got an email from an independent consultant in my area that she will contact me for delivery and final price. So I waited for the delivery knowing it takes time and then waited some more. Then I reread the email, it said that she will contact me. So far, no contact had been made. Then I made a call to this person. The message was in Spanish. I left a message. Then another 5 days passed. Nothing. Finally I called again today. She thankfully picked up the phone. She said she had moved to North Carolina and she will have someone deliver the package to me.
OK.
I have never purchased Mary Kay products before. I don't know how the company works.
Is it like Southern Living, Pampered Chef, Quixtar, Monavie etc where you payridiculous higher prices on products for their supposed quality?
Is it an isolated incident that she never contacted me or sent me the product? Anyone with experience like this?
Basically, how does this whole thing work? Do the sales people come and do home delivery? Why don't they just mail it?
For a while, my face has been a playground for acne. I kept ignoring it, hoping it would just be gone one fine morning. But since then, many fine mornings have passed and the games have just continued unabated. I kept thinking about doing something and one day I read here that Mary Kay acne treatment gel does wonders. I scoured the net for reviews, looked around and finding tolerable reviews all around, finally decided to place an order.
So I did that on October 6th. I registered at the website. I got an email from an independent consultant in my area that she will contact me for delivery and final price. So I waited for the delivery knowing it takes time and then waited some more. Then I reread the email, it said that she will contact me. So far, no contact had been made. Then I made a call to this person. The message was in Spanish. I left a message. Then another 5 days passed. Nothing. Finally I called again today. She thankfully picked up the phone. She said she had moved to North Carolina and she will have someone deliver the package to me.
OK.
I have never purchased Mary Kay products before. I don't know how the company works.
Is it like Southern Living, Pampered Chef, Quixtar, Monavie etc where you pay
Is it an isolated incident that she never contacted me or sent me the product? Anyone with experience like this?
Basically, how does this whole thing work? Do the sales people come and do home delivery? Why don't they just mail it?
Anyone with Mary Kay experience is welcome to chime in.
I just want to know.
Thursday, October 02, 2008
As if I don't talk enough about myself
Amy tagged me for this. Some of it you may already know. Just pretend you are reading it for the first time.
1. I do not like the taste of cheese, coffee and wine and can only tolerate two kinds of chocolate- Ferrero Rocher and Kitkat (Please be my friend still!)
2. My husband says that I would have the above three if it is fried. I love me some fried stuff. My face is proof of that.
3. I love having people over, but I am worried about what to cook since my guests are mostly American and I am not. They complain about the spiciness. I seem unable to adjust it.
4. I sometimes look at my husband and house and wonder if it is all a dream. I could never picture myself married and taking care of a house. (Although I am using the term "taking care" very loosely here). But wonder of wonders, I am incredibly content.
5. There are only few things in life that I hate and one of them is MLM (Multi-Level Marketing). I think it spoils friendships.
6. I am pretty anal-ytical about purchases. I compare shop online, actual shops, sleep on it, sleep on it some more, read reviews, make excel sheets. It is the engineer in me or maybe I am just cheap. I am sure its just the cheapness, but it sounds better to say engineer.
7. At last count (he keeps adding to it), my husband has 62 pet names for me. I have 3 for him. Guess who is the creative one in the marriage?
Now to tag. I am tagging the following people.
Saagar (My first friend after I landed here in the US of A. If there is anything I don't know about you, I want to know it now.)
Calamity Jean (My very first blog friend although I wouldn't know her if I met her on the street)
Ruth (A new blogger, she is English and it would be nice to know more)
Allison (A new blogger, I know she gardens, it will be fun to read more)
Quirky (A new read for me, she is funny and I like funny)
HopiQ (My real-life friend, my first faithful reader, and the mother of my "son". As an aside, anything to get her to post.)
Beth (A relatively new read, and a very talented lady to boot. Check out her project of the last supper)
If you have a policy decision against doing memes, please don't feel obliged to do it.
1. I do not like the taste of cheese, coffee and wine and can only tolerate two kinds of chocolate- Ferrero Rocher and Kitkat (Please be my friend still!)
2. My husband says that I would have the above three if it is fried. I love me some fried stuff. My face is proof of that.
3. I love having people over, but I am worried about what to cook since my guests are mostly American and I am not. They complain about the spiciness. I seem unable to adjust it.
4. I sometimes look at my husband and house and wonder if it is all a dream. I could never picture myself married and taking care of a house. (Although I am using the term "taking care" very loosely here). But wonder of wonders, I am incredibly content.
5. There are only few things in life that I hate and one of them is MLM (Multi-Level Marketing). I think it spoils friendships.
6. I am pretty anal-ytical about purchases. I compare shop online, actual shops, sleep on it, sleep on it some more, read reviews, make excel sheets. It is the engineer in me or maybe I am just cheap. I am sure its just the cheapness, but it sounds better to say engineer.
7. At last count (he keeps adding to it), my husband has 62 pet names for me. I have 3 for him. Guess who is the creative one in the marriage?
Now to tag. I am tagging the following people.
Saagar (My first friend after I landed here in the US of A. If there is anything I don't know about you, I want to know it now.)
Calamity Jean (My very first blog friend although I wouldn't know her if I met her on the street)
Ruth (A new blogger, she is English and it would be nice to know more)
Allison (A new blogger, I know she gardens, it will be fun to read more)
Quirky (A new read for me, she is funny and I like funny)
HopiQ (My real-life friend, my first faithful reader, and the mother of my "son". As an aside, anything to get her to post.)
Beth (A relatively new read, and a very talented lady to boot. Check out her project of the last supper)
If you have a policy decision against doing memes, please don't feel obliged to do it.
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
A winner and an apology
Update: I wrote this post long back. The only reason I didn't post it is because I was waiting to post the pictures as well to make the post interesting and I should have remembered that I am really bad at posting pictures, so should have just announced the winner and for that I apologize to my dear readers and hope that you will continue to read my blog and pick pictures for me and answer all my questions about life, home making and receipes becasue I know that this blog without you all is like a PB &J sandwich without the PB &J.
Thank you all for participating in the great photo pick of 2008. Since there were not too many people who commented, I had great fun writing your names out, putting it in a container and have my husband pick out a name.
Look who he picked out!
Congratulations, Anne Marie - For your surprise gift, I have decided (after much brain things in my head) that I will send you a $25 Amazon gift card. Please email me so that I can be sure of your correct email address.
I loved doing this. Hope all of you had fun looking at the pictures.
Thank you all for participating in the great photo pick of 2008. Since there were not too many people who commented, I had great fun writing your names out, putting it in a container and have my husband pick out a name.
Look who he picked out!
Congratulations, Anne Marie - For your surprise gift, I have decided (after much brain things in my head) that I will send you a $25 Amazon gift card. Please email me so that I can be sure of your correct email address.
I loved doing this. Hope all of you had fun looking at the pictures.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Food overload
This weekend will go down in our house as the Saturday we ate so much we could not get out of the chair.
There is a celebration (where my husband and I are from) called Onam generally in the month of August/September. It is the harvest festival and there is mythology behind it and to cut a long story short, it is the Kerala Christmas. In the sense that there are lot of sales, people spend lots of money and eat a lot. Very much like Christmas and Thanksgiving combined here.
There is a special kind of sari that women wear on that day. White with a cream/gold border. Now the eating part is tricky. Food is eaten on a banana leaf, all the dishes are pure vegetarian and there should be at least 8 dishes or so with the main dish which is rice.
Growing up, we never celebrated any festivals including Christmas. So, I had no intention of cooking an 8 dish meal and was happily at work on Friday when I happened to go on my orkut page. Almost all of my friends had pictures uploaded from the feast. At the end of the day I started thinking that it might nor be a bad idea to make one myself. Peer pressure, not a good thing my friends. Steer clear of it.
Anyway, one thing led to another and there it was.
We even dressed up for the occassion with our traditional outfits. It was great fun.
My husband and I held hands and I prayed over the food and the many blessings in our life. It was a very special time. We also have enough food to last us for the next year.
At least the next week for sure.
And the tired out cook
There is a celebration (where my husband and I are from) called Onam generally in the month of August/September. It is the harvest festival and there is mythology behind it and to cut a long story short, it is the Kerala Christmas. In the sense that there are lot of sales, people spend lots of money and eat a lot. Very much like Christmas and Thanksgiving combined here.
There is a special kind of sari that women wear on that day. White with a cream/gold border. Now the eating part is tricky. Food is eaten on a banana leaf, all the dishes are pure vegetarian and there should be at least 8 dishes or so with the main dish which is rice.
Growing up, we never celebrated any festivals including Christmas. So, I had no intention of cooking an 8 dish meal and was happily at work on Friday when I happened to go on my orkut page. Almost all of my friends had pictures uploaded from the feast. At the end of the day I started thinking that it might nor be a bad idea to make one myself. Peer pressure, not a good thing my friends. Steer clear of it.
Anyway, one thing led to another and there it was.
We even dressed up for the occassion with our traditional outfits. It was great fun.
My husband and I held hands and I prayed over the food and the many blessings in our life. It was a very special time. We also have enough food to last us for the next year.
At least the next week for sure.
And the tired out cook
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Pick three get one free
I want to ask a favor from y'all. I am submitting the following pictures for my company calendar and I want your top 3 favorites. So please comment on this post with the names of the pix in the order of your preference.
For spending your valuable time evaluating this, I will pick a winner from the commenters. The winner will get something nice. I am not sure at this point what it will be, but it will be something fun. And if you want to pick your favorite but do not want the gift, you can mention that. Please pick away while I meditate on your gift. The more comments, the better, so please spread the word.
1) YellowStone2
2) Yosemite 1
3) Yosemite 2
4) Horseshoe
5) Kerala Farmer
6) Mirror Lake
7) Painted Forest
8) Yellowstone 1
9) Bridge
10) Diamond Rock
11) Grand Canyon 1
12) Grand Canyon 2
13) Grand Canyon 3
For spending your valuable time evaluating this, I will pick a winner from the commenters. The winner will get something nice. I am not sure at this point what it will be, but it will be something fun. And if you want to pick your favorite but do not want the gift, you can mention that. Please pick away while I meditate on your gift. The more comments, the better, so please spread the word.
1) YellowStone2
2) Yosemite 1
3) Yosemite 2
4) Horseshoe
5) Kerala Farmer
6) Mirror Lake
7) Painted Forest
8) Yellowstone 1
9) Bridge
10) Diamond Rock
11) Grand Canyon 1
12) Grand Canyon 2
13) Grand Canyon 3
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Bears and Mountains and Snakes Oh My!
We went to Smoky Mountains for the labor day weekend. A couple friend from Atlanta also joined us. If truth be told, I didn't want to go on this trip.
Case in point: Our black suitcase which has been in our bedroom since the last week of June.
Last week of June, DH went to Utah for 3 days. One week later, he went on a 2.5 week trip to India. Then I had to be in Marco Island for 3 days and 1 week later, I had to be in Naples for a week.
The suitcase has never left the bedroom. Now it is still there waiting for the packing for the cruise.
And all this travel had made me want to curl up into a ball and sleep through the entire long weekend. Enrgetic hubby had other ideas. I agreed to tag along as long as I could sleep in the car and not do any trip planning. The terms were agreed to by both parties and we set off on Friday. We have been to Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone etc, so Smoky Mountains pales a little in comparison for us with regard to beauty. But bears and mountains? Never a bad deal. Plus, it was a good time with friends.
But something happened during the trip which made it very memorable.
We were on a hike to see a waterfall. I was walking a bit ahead and my husband and the other couple were behind. At one point they were far behind, but they soon caught up. Or in other words, I really slowed down. I just kept plugging along and suddenly I heard my husband call my name.
LOUDLY.
I stopped immediately. And looked down.
One single step ahead of me was a snake.
I didn't realize it was a poisonous rattle snake. Moments later, he told me that it was shaking it's rattle and ready to strike. I was close enough for the snake to feel threatened. When I heard that, I felt my whole body going weak and had to sit down on a nearby stone. I felt the trees around me spinning. It was a while before I could get up and continue walking.
The rest of the vacation went on without incident. I came back and read about rattlesnakes in wikipedia. Considering that we were kind of in the middle of nowhere (more than half way up the hill) and it would have taken a while to get proper medical help, the possibilities were very sobering. A loss of limb being one of them.
I thank God for his protection, that we are back safe and sound. But I realize how tenuous is the thread that separates life from death and how in that one instant our lives could have been irrevocably changed. That in one step, concepts like death, loss of limb suddenly could have gone from abstract "happen to other people" to concrete reality.
Case in point: Our black suitcase which has been in our bedroom since the last week of June.
Last week of June, DH went to Utah for 3 days. One week later, he went on a 2.5 week trip to India. Then I had to be in Marco Island for 3 days and 1 week later, I had to be in Naples for a week.
The suitcase has never left the bedroom. Now it is still there waiting for the packing for the cruise.
And all this travel had made me want to curl up into a ball and sleep through the entire long weekend. Enrgetic hubby had other ideas. I agreed to tag along as long as I could sleep in the car and not do any trip planning. The terms were agreed to by both parties and we set off on Friday. We have been to Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone etc, so Smoky Mountains pales a little in comparison for us with regard to beauty. But bears and mountains? Never a bad deal. Plus, it was a good time with friends.
But something happened during the trip which made it very memorable.
We were on a hike to see a waterfall. I was walking a bit ahead and my husband and the other couple were behind. At one point they were far behind, but they soon caught up. Or in other words, I really slowed down. I just kept plugging along and suddenly I heard my husband call my name.
LOUDLY.
I stopped immediately. And looked down.
One single step ahead of me was a snake.
I didn't realize it was a poisonous rattle snake. Moments later, he told me that it was shaking it's rattle and ready to strike. I was close enough for the snake to feel threatened. When I heard that, I felt my whole body going weak and had to sit down on a nearby stone. I felt the trees around me spinning. It was a while before I could get up and continue walking.
The rest of the vacation went on without incident. I came back and read about rattlesnakes in wikipedia. Considering that we were kind of in the middle of nowhere (more than half way up the hill) and it would have taken a while to get proper medical help, the possibilities were very sobering. A loss of limb being one of them.
I thank God for his protection, that we are back safe and sound. But I realize how tenuous is the thread that separates life from death and how in that one instant our lives could have been irrevocably changed. That in one step, concepts like death, loss of limb suddenly could have gone from abstract "happen to other people" to concrete reality.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Clothes Policy
I have a 6-month rule for the closet. Any article of clothing, which I don't wear for 6 months, I assume that I will not be wearing again and it goes into the Goodwill bag. And I have been pretty ruthless so far. It helps me keep the closet clutter free, retains my sanity and works out great for me. Or should I say...worked out.
Some of the clothes that I don't wear anymore are slighltly oversize T-shirts and baggy tops. A while ago, I had purged my closet from all those and donated two bags to Goodwill. And then 3 weeks before I had to go for fieldwork for 2 weeks for my job. And the kind of work I was supposed to do there, called for the baggiest tops and T-shirts. And loose pants. Speaking of pants, since my reacent body padding, those don't fit anymore. Not that I had any fit for soil sampling. There was one, and no prizes for guessing where it went. So, I ended up having to buy baggy pants. I managed to survive with a bunch of company and conference T shirts though.
Anyway, I was decluttering my closet again yesterday. While I used to ruthlessly throw clothes into piles, I paused as I was fingering the clothes yesterday. I wondered if my mom's way made sense. She keeps everything. Even stuff she no longer wears and stuff for which I cannot think of an earthly use, she will keep. She has outfits that are 33 years old. Saris that are literally falling to pieces.
Now I am wondering if maybe it is a good idea to keep some of my less worn outfits for times like this.
What is your clothes buying and decluttering policy? That is in case you do have a policy.
Some of the clothes that I don't wear anymore are slighltly oversize T-shirts and baggy tops. A while ago, I had purged my closet from all those and donated two bags to Goodwill. And then 3 weeks before I had to go for fieldwork for 2 weeks for my job. And the kind of work I was supposed to do there, called for the baggiest tops and T-shirts. And loose pants. Speaking of pants, since my reacent body padding, those don't fit anymore. Not that I had any fit for soil sampling. There was one, and no prizes for guessing where it went. So, I ended up having to buy baggy pants. I managed to survive with a bunch of company and conference T shirts though.
Anyway, I was decluttering my closet again yesterday. While I used to ruthlessly throw clothes into piles, I paused as I was fingering the clothes yesterday. I wondered if my mom's way made sense. She keeps everything. Even stuff she no longer wears and stuff for which I cannot think of an earthly use, she will keep. She has outfits that are 33 years old. Saris that are literally falling to pieces.
Now I am wondering if maybe it is a good idea to keep some of my less worn outfits for times like this.
What is your clothes buying and decluttering policy? That is in case you do have a policy.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Realism and Romance
Romance
On Thursday night, my husband and I enjoyed a candlelight Italian dinner.
Reality
On Thursday night, my husband and I suffered through cold, leftover pizza as the power was out due to tropical storm Fay.
Romance
My husband and I went upstairs so that we could snuggle in the 1.5 chair by the bedroom window and watch the storm and wind by candlelight.
Reality
My husband and I went upstairs so that we could snuggle in the 1.5 chair by the bedroom window and watch the storm and wind by candlelight. My husband was balancing two candles on top of a book and I was following him. One candle slipped from his hand and the hot wax fell on my legs and I hopped around on my feet and hit my ankle on the corner of the wall. The wax fell on the carpet, and the carpet is runied. I sat on the 1.5 chair treating my leg with Aloe Vera and hubby tried to clean the area with carpet cleaner.
Romance may be good for the day, but reality makes lasting memories to laugh about.
On Thursday night, my husband and I enjoyed a candlelight Italian dinner.
Reality
On Thursday night, my husband and I suffered through cold, leftover pizza as the power was out due to tropical storm Fay.
Romance
My husband and I went upstairs so that we could snuggle in the 1.5 chair by the bedroom window and watch the storm and wind by candlelight.
Reality
My husband and I went upstairs so that we could snuggle in the 1.5 chair by the bedroom window and watch the storm and wind by candlelight. My husband was balancing two candles on top of a book and I was following him. One candle slipped from his hand and the hot wax fell on my legs and I hopped around on my feet and hit my ankle on the corner of the wall. The wax fell on the carpet, and the carpet is runied. I sat on the 1.5 chair treating my leg with Aloe Vera and hubby tried to clean the area with carpet cleaner.
Romance may be good for the day, but reality makes lasting memories to laugh about.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Coupon Craze
If you coupon in any form or shape, you will really appreciate this. I am not as intense a couponer as this guy's wife, but this post had me in stitches.
I am still laughing.
HT: Moneysavingmom
I am still laughing.
HT: Moneysavingmom
The story of a toothache
When I decided to start a blog, I was determined not to write stuff like I had cereal for breakfast, I plan to have chicken for lunch, I puked once today, roses are so pretty. In the course of 1.5 years, I think I did all that. Not only that, I have on my reader people who write that and I actually enjoy it. (Admittedly, not the throwing-up part.)
I must be getting older or something.
Anyway, all this to tell you about the toothache I had past Friday. Writing about that will leave no ground uncovered for the topics I discuss on this blog.
I had a wisdom tooth extracted about a month back, and I was hurting. That was normal, there was a lot of bleeding. I was whining and complaining, but I was still working through that. Then three weeks later, I had a temporary crown put in. It wasn't too bad, there were some slight complications, so it hurt a bit. But a girl's gotta do what she's gotta do.
Fast forward to Friday night. The tooth started hurting and I had 2 painkillers. Then I slept. I woke up bright and early Saturday morning with the pain. Such pain as I never had up till this point in my life. I could not sit, stand, walk, talk. I was rolling on the floor crying in pain. That was a new experience for me. I called my parents in India and I think I scared the living daylights out of them. (Sorry Papa and Mama!).
I called the dentist and left a message. I took two more painkillers and couple of hours later, my pain subsided. My dentist office called back and said they will call the pharmacy and prescribe antibiotics for me.
The pain never came back. It was the weirdest experience for me. The dental office said they never heard pain coming one week after the crown is placed. If there was an infection, I don't know why it never hurt again. At this point I don't have answers to that. What I do know is that prayers are answered. And I serve a God who cares for me.
And that is enough knowledge.
I must be getting older or something.
Anyway, all this to tell you about the toothache I had past Friday. Writing about that will leave no ground uncovered for the topics I discuss on this blog.
I had a wisdom tooth extracted about a month back, and I was hurting. That was normal, there was a lot of bleeding. I was whining and complaining, but I was still working through that. Then three weeks later, I had a temporary crown put in. It wasn't too bad, there were some slight complications, so it hurt a bit. But a girl's gotta do what she's gotta do.
Fast forward to Friday night. The tooth started hurting and I had 2 painkillers. Then I slept. I woke up bright and early Saturday morning with the pain. Such pain as I never had up till this point in my life. I could not sit, stand, walk, talk. I was rolling on the floor crying in pain. That was a new experience for me. I called my parents in India and I think I scared the living daylights out of them. (Sorry Papa and Mama!).
I called the dentist and left a message. I took two more painkillers and couple of hours later, my pain subsided. My dentist office called back and said they will call the pharmacy and prescribe antibiotics for me.
The pain never came back. It was the weirdest experience for me. The dental office said they never heard pain coming one week after the crown is placed. If there was an infection, I don't know why it never hurt again. At this point I don't have answers to that. What I do know is that prayers are answered. And I serve a God who cares for me.
And that is enough knowledge.
Friday, August 15, 2008
This is a very Unique Corporation
When I answer the phone at work, I say AB & C, this is Annie. Except that I say my company name. Otherwise, you know, it would be very confusing.
After hearing that a couple of times from me, when my dear hubby who works from home picks up my calls, he says Petname 1 and Petname 2, this is Petname 1. (Again, insert actual petname)
And that makes me laugh out loud.
EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.
Calling home from my cell phone using day time minutes: 40 cents
Having a husband with a sense of humour: Priceless
After hearing that a couple of times from me, when my dear hubby who works from home picks up my calls, he says Petname 1 and Petname 2, this is Petname 1. (Again, insert actual petname)
And that makes me laugh out loud.
EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.
Calling home from my cell phone using day time minutes: 40 cents
Having a husband with a sense of humour: Priceless
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Fashion Question
After the pity post of yesterday, I am moving on to more cheerful topic.
I have a question to ask my dear bloggy readers. This is one of the times I am hoping that I have diverse readers. Because if you are all like me then it is going to be of no help. This is the deal. Hubby is taking me on a cruise for my birthday which is in September. He booked the tickets, and they sent an email to fill some documents. After I did that, I was looking around the website and found that I have to wear cocktail dress for dinner one night.
Now my fashion sense is sadly lacking. I have improved quite a bit in the last two years, but still there is a long way to go. I asked Mr. google to give me the images for a cocktail dress. I had an idea in my mind of what one looked like. But apparently things have changed. The dresses I saw were so short and ruffly that to me it looked like something a hooker would wear and my husband thought it was lingerie. Then there were some nice ones, but it cost $250 and above. There is no way in God's green earth that I am shelling out $250 for a dress I probably won't be able to wear again.
So here is where I need your help. I need some suggestions for an ensemble. Dress, purse, and shoes. All my stuff is very utilitarian and I like it that way because I don't bother dressing up 95% of the time. I want an affordable dress (cheaper, the better) which does not make me look like a hooker. Is that too much to ask? If there are no options, I can always fall back on the some of the dresses I have which I can make do with. But I am interested to see what is out there.
I have a question to ask my dear bloggy readers. This is one of the times I am hoping that I have diverse readers. Because if you are all like me then it is going to be of no help. This is the deal. Hubby is taking me on a cruise for my birthday which is in September. He booked the tickets, and they sent an email to fill some documents. After I did that, I was looking around the website and found that I have to wear cocktail dress for dinner one night.
Now my fashion sense is sadly lacking. I have improved quite a bit in the last two years, but still there is a long way to go. I asked Mr. google to give me the images for a cocktail dress. I had an idea in my mind of what one looked like. But apparently things have changed. The dresses I saw were so short and ruffly that to me it looked like something a hooker would wear and my husband thought it was lingerie. Then there were some nice ones, but it cost $250 and above. There is no way in God's green earth that I am shelling out $250 for a dress I probably won't be able to wear again.
So here is where I need your help. I need some suggestions for an ensemble. Dress, purse, and shoes. All my stuff is very utilitarian and I like it that way because I don't bother dressing up 95% of the time. I want an affordable dress (cheaper, the better) which does not make me look like a hooker. Is that too much to ask? If there are no options, I can always fall back on the some of the dresses I have which I can make do with. But I am interested to see what is out there.
Update
Weeds have taken over the blog. Things are so hectic in real life I don't have time for blogging. It was and is one of the busiest times at work since I started working two years ago. In the midst of that there has been many doctors appointments. I had one yesterday (still recovering from that) and there is another one coming Friday. I am on medication which is making me grumpy most of the time. And bursting into tears any given moment. The last time I made a home cooked meal was 3 weeks ago. The house - the less said, the better. DH has been washing dishes for the past month without even mentioning the fact.
Although I am not sure where the dishes are coming from given that I am not doing any cooking.
That is a whiny update of what I have been up to. Despite the many appointments and uncertainties and things that tend to overwhelm, it is a comfort to remember that the One who holds my tomorrow is the one who is in control.
Although I am not sure where the dishes are coming from given that I am not doing any cooking.
That is a whiny update of what I have been up to. Despite the many appointments and uncertainties and things that tend to overwhelm, it is a comfort to remember that the One who holds my tomorrow is the one who is in control.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Party People, it's Friday (Saturday) Night
I am late to the party. As usual. But better late than never, right? I hope so. My name is Annie and I am your ordinary gal.
Thank you for coming to my party. You might want to check out the Even More Things About Me in the sidebar. It was written a while ago, but I don't think a whole lot has changed.
Here is a recipe for my apparently world famous tuna cutlet. And when I say world famous, I do not mean it lightly. It is the one thing that gets me most hits. That and how to take dye off clothes and how to wash a comforter. Those are questions I asked fellow bloggers who then responded. So seems like even people who come to my blog, read only the comments and not the content. It makes me wonder what that says about my blog.
Hubby and I went to Greece on our first wedding anniversary. I wrote an epistle on that. You might need two hours before you settle down to read that. I disliked dogs, then got one, loved one and lost one. I wrote about that here.
Thank you for visiting me. Hope you come back. And don't forget to go to the carnival hub. You won't regret it.
Thank you for coming to my party. You might want to check out the Even More Things About Me in the sidebar. It was written a while ago, but I don't think a whole lot has changed.
Here is a recipe for my apparently world famous tuna cutlet. And when I say world famous, I do not mean it lightly. It is the one thing that gets me most hits. That and how to take dye off clothes and how to wash a comforter. Those are questions I asked fellow bloggers who then responded. So seems like even people who come to my blog, read only the comments and not the content. It makes me wonder what that says about my blog.
Hubby and I went to Greece on our first wedding anniversary. I wrote an epistle on that. You might need two hours before you settle down to read that. I disliked dogs, then got one, loved one and lost one. I wrote about that here.
Thank you for visiting me. Hope you come back. And don't forget to go to the carnival hub. You won't regret it.
Monday, July 14, 2008
These Red Shoes
I own these red shoes. I think they are pretty. It matches a cute red outfit I own. Other than that they waste space in my cupboard. I cannot wear it as they have high heels and I cannot walk more than 2 minutes in them.I was walking on my way somewhere and I saw it in the store. It looked pretty, I tried it on, and it fit. I forgot that I am not supposed to wear high heels because of my ankle problem. I forgot that my husband prefers that I don't wear high heels. And I forgot that I absolutely had no need to buy them as I own about 10 pairs of shoes in different colors and styles. And that is not including flip-flops. Yet, I did. I wore it once for a fancy dinner out with my husband. Red dress, red shoes and a red necklace.
I did look cute.
For about 15 minutes until after I got there.
After that all I could think of were my pinching legs and constant fear that I would turn my ankle. It was a dinner show presentation and there was some walking around to do. I was miserable when I got back home and I wrapped up my pretty red shoes and kept it away.
These are the lessons I learned from the pretty red shoes.
1. It might look good, seem to fit, but does not mean it is the right choice for you.
2. Know and appreciate your uniqueness as a person before you invest in something.
3. If you are married and your husband has an opinion on something, it is usually a good idea to give heed to him, especially if he is older and knows you very well.
Replace shoes with any of the new theories, isms, doctrines and whathaveyou and there is a good lesson to remember.
And as far as material things are concerned, it reminds me to be careful in what I am buying, storing up treasures this side where moth, and rust and thieves destroy.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Because I am too lazy to do a real post
I had a lot of ideas for posts in the past few days, but I never got around to writing any of it. It is just that things get so busy and it is hard to find time for blog upkeep. Anyway, this was not one of my original post ideas, but Thursdays Child tagged me for this and I decided to do it today.
What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was preparing for an entrance exam that would get me into engineering school. I eventually cleared it and made it there. There as in the particular school I wanted to be. Or the one my parents wanted me to be. I honestly didn't care that much. I Just barely made it though. That is one tough exam and the competition is enough to kill you or if you manage to survive - give you nightmares for the rest of your earthly pilgrimage. Yes, I still get nightmares about that exam.
5 Things on my to-do list:
I will cheat a little and put one on the list that I already did. I just want to feel a little good about myself. I am known to actually put stuff I already did on my to do list so I can cross it off.
What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was preparing for an entrance exam that would get me into engineering school. I eventually cleared it and made it there. There as in the particular school I wanted to be. Or the one my parents wanted me to be. I honestly didn't care that much. I Just barely made it though. That is one tough exam and the competition is enough to kill you or if you manage to survive - give you nightmares for the rest of your earthly pilgrimage. Yes, I still get nightmares about that exam.
5 Things on my to-do list:
I will cheat a little and put one on the list that I already did. I just want to feel a little good about myself. I am known to actually put stuff I already did on my to do list so I can cross it off.
- Draft a work email which actually should have been sent Friday (done, YAAY)
- Deweed the vegetable garden
- Prepare for Sunday school lesson for tomorrow
- Clear out closet and donate items
- Put recycling out
Snacks I enjoy
Tuna Cutlet, Dahi Vada, Gobi Manjurian, Beef Samosa, Chicken Puffs
What would I do if I were a billionaire?
That one is easy. We would pack up, go to India, start a school for underprivileged kids and I would also rent a summer cottage at PEI and go there every year.
Places I have lived
- India (same place first 23 years of my life)
- Ohio
- Oregon (on and off)
- Florida
Jobs I've Had
- Cashier at an AVI restaurant
- Teaching Assistant
- Math Tutor
- Environmental Engineer
- Assistant Project Manager
5 people I'm tagging
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Happy Birthday America
It is 232 years since America got Independence. I have been only here 5 years. Wasn't it Joseph Cermak who said "It is true I didn't come in the Mayflower, but I came as soon as I could." Today, I want to express my appreciation for my home for the last 5 years by writing this post to say what I like about here. So here it is-from the perspective of an outsider.
1. The People: How can you not like the people here? I have yet to see more generous people. When I first came here for grad school, they provided me with such a lot of stuff to make my stay comfortable like bed, mattress, couch, table, chair. It was and is just amazing to me how much people here are willing to give away. With very few exceptions, the people have always been warm and friendly and it was manna to my weary soul especially during the first few months I was here. And the way people come together to help people affected by natural disasters is just awesome.
2. Customer Service: I am generally using the term customer service. What I really want to highlight is restaurants and returns. Once when we were at Olive Garden, I ordered their minestrone soup and I felt it was a little peppery. It wasn't anything worth complaining about, but I had only a quarter of it. The manager walked by, and asked if I didn't like my soup. I mentioned that it was just a litlle peppery. When we got the bill, we found it was taken off. I do not know anyone who had a similar experience in India. As far as returning merchandise goes, that is not appreciated at all in India. We buy, then it is pretty much final in all cases. Here I think I have returned more than I have bought. Well, that is not true but you get what I mean. I can't help but remember an incident that took place in a Christian bookstore when I visited India last time. I had bought a bunch of stuff and when she was entering it in her computer, I suddenly realized that I did not want one of the items. I let her know and she said that she could not void it since it was already in the system. The same bookstore sold us a defective cassette and would not refund us money or excahnge it for another.
3. Libraries: All of the above pales in comparison with this one when I talk about my love for America. The libraries. Oh. My. Word. I can get books delivered to my door free of charge and there is no library membership fee. This is how libraries work in India. You pay a membership fee. Then you pay 10% of the price of the book for borrowing it. And you get to keep it for 2 weeks. The maximum number of books you can check out is 5. Considering that I spent the majority of my pocket money growing up paying libraries, I feel I am in book heaven. Despite the cost, I finished reading all the books in one of the libraries in my hometown (Granted, it was not a huge library). This for me is the single best reason for my love for my adopted country.
4. Work Environment: Hubby summed it up the best. They treat you as who you could be, not as who you are. I could not agree more. When I was doing my thesis and had some questions about the simulation model I was using, I called the person who had created the model. He was the director of a huge, well known organization at the time and I called him and left a message never expecting to hear back from him. He called me back and asked me if it was a good time to talk. Heck, he could have called at 2 am and it would have been a great time. He spent 40 minutes of his valuable time helping me out and clearing away my cobwebs. I was blown away. I still am amazed at the people at the top of the career ladder here who treat their juniors and cluless grad students with dignity and respect. I am not going to talk about how bosses treat their subordinates in India. It is not good for my blood pressure.
5. Miscellaneous: I am not even going to touch on how anyone can turn their life around here if they are determined and enterprising. And the freedom of expression, the freedom to worship and the list goes on.
There are definitely things I do not like about here, but I am not touching on those today. The first 2 years here for me was pretty tough. There is no downplaying that. But a line I read a while back comes to my mind.
It is a tough life to be sure my friend, but it is a free life.
- Alien
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Have Blog, Will Need Help, Friends are the best
I think it is obvious that my blog look has changed. I had been working on having a whole new look for a while now. Been messing with html, colors, fonts, three way template and what not. Finally, I decided on this. (Sorry, HopiQ) It is not completely done. I am going to mess some more with the fonts and sidebar colors etc. Also I need to add some of my page elements back. I had a lot of fun with this and also it is safe to say that I know a lot more about html than I used to. Many thanks to this website and my friend HopiQ.
Any comments, suggestions would be welcome.
Any comments, suggestions would be welcome.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Have Blog, Will Need Help
First off, I want to apologize to all my dear readers who get me in feed reader. I have been playing around with my blog and I think you will get updates for no reason. I have been changing colors, scheme and what not and I am stuck now. I can't get the top light blue thing to go away. It is there the quarter of the page and I want it GONE!
Any help is appreciated.
Any help is appreciated.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Pappu- A Reprise
What a beautiful evening! And the breeze!!
Wait! I hear something...
Ohh! it is Gator. What do I do?
Grrr! I am not scared of you or anything dude. Just had a bath and don't want to get dirty again.Been with us for two weeks and gave us memories for a lifetime. One year later I still miss him.
Monday, June 16, 2008
By the sweat of thy brow
I have the opposite of a green thumb. I generally manage to lovingly kill all the plants and flowers in the house. It is a special talent which I am not very proud of. So I started with this whole gardening thing apprehensively. But guess what?
Here it is in the vine. If you look closely, you can see the other one too (green).
Our very first homegrown tomato!
Here it is in the vine. If you look closely, you can see the other one too (green).
And then the solitary bean. We had more, but I used it in a dish that I prepared.
We had guests the weekend before we left for vacation. I gave them some of homemade yogurt and homemade mango pickle becasue they said they loved it. I felt so housewifely. It was a special moment for me becasue I remembered the many times I had gone to houses of family friends and distant relatives when I was a single adult living thousands of miles away from home. The ladies would feed me good food and before I leave they would pack me some mango pickles, some chutney powders etc which I could use as a side to food. And when I handed them the food I somehow felt I had come full circle.
The tomato was SO YUMMY! We had a store tomato on the side and it tasted absolutely horrible beside my homegrown one. And now I am all excited about converting the entire backyard into a garden. And we have a fairly big backyard. I already have plan in my head of how it is going to be. I had no idea that gardening would be so exciting. But I guess it is literally seeing the fruit of your labor that makes it worthwhile. Or maybe becasue life afterall began in a garden.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Leaving on a jetplane
Travel for each others birthday has become a family tradition with us. Both of us love to travel and so it is not that hard choosing a birthday gift. And we also give something special and personal when we get back. This year we are going to Yosemite National Park. Neither of us like cities, shopping or the party scene. We both love hiking, outdoor stuff, nature. So Yosemite sounded like a perfect fit.
And then there is an awesome hike in Yosemite called the half dome hike. It is the mother lode of all hiking trails. It is a 17 mile hike and we have been training for it for the past 3 weeks. I am not very positive that I can make it, but I am willing to try it. It is very steep for the last 400 feet and we have to climb it with the aid of cables. To motivate me R said that if I workout every single day leading to the day we leave he will do all the house work until my birthday in September. And boy, was I ever motivated! And we did do that every day. Even when Aunt Flo' came for a visit. Nothing was stopping me. And he has also promised me a special gift if I manage to climb the dome. Maybe housework for the rest of the year? I don't think so. I think he already kind of regret making the current offer.
And I already lost some weight. One of the capri pants which had become very tight for me, is now loose at the waist. So it is a win-win situation. Or if you watch The Office, it is a win-win-win situation. I lose weight, do hiking, get out of housework.
I have booked a lovely B&B at Yosemite or at least it looks lovely from the description and pictures. Both of us has worked hard the past months and we are really really looking forward to this vacation. I have packed books to read and blank papers to write and are keeping the laptops at home. I plan to do some writing and just relax.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Happy 33
Hubs and I have one major handicap each. I cannot get up early in the morning and he cannot remember anything. Not that we are perfect in every other way, but this is a major flaw. Now he doesn't forget birthdays thanks to his pda and I can get up if there is an emergency. But R cannot remember anything that does not go into a pda and for me getting up every morning before 9 is a battle. There, you know my secret.
So we thought that marriage will bring out the best in each other. There is a story of a conversation between Bernard Shaw and a beautiful but brainless woman. She is supposed to have told him something like this: "If we marry, then our child will have your brains and my beauty and he will be unstoppable." To which he replied "What if he has your brains and my beauty?" In our case, it kind of worked like this. Now, I can't remember stuff and he doesn't get up before 9.
To the man who makes me not want to get up from bed in the mornings, who made me love dogs, who makes me burst into laughter 2 seconds after a fight, Happy Birthday.
So we thought that marriage will bring out the best in each other. There is a story of a conversation between Bernard Shaw and a beautiful but brainless woman. She is supposed to have told him something like this: "If we marry, then our child will have your brains and my beauty and he will be unstoppable." To which he replied "What if he has your brains and my beauty?" In our case, it kind of worked like this. Now, I can't remember stuff and he doesn't get up before 9.
To the man who makes me not want to get up from bed in the mornings, who made me love dogs, who makes me burst into laughter 2 seconds after a fight, Happy Birthday.
Friday, May 02, 2008
The Change
The job I currently am in is pretty low stress. Granted, there are a few days here and there when deadlines have to be met, and there isn't enough data or time to make it happen. There were a lot of new challenges for me getting involved in different things. And I loved it. Challenging, yet low stress, wearing jeans to work, no need for makeup, work through lunch so I can get out earlier. I had it good.
Now another company has requested my services as a consultant to work in their offices 3 days a week. I am going to be a Project Manager there. The person who requested me is the director of that company. I went there on Wednesday for an orientation type thing. The atmosphere is nothing like what I am used to. It is a formal work environment and my position is very different too. Tentatively I am going to be working Monday through Wednesday there and Thursday and Friday at my regular office. I am starting work coming Monday.
So these are the changes I anticipate in no particluar order:
1. Wearing business casuals and makeup
2. Ironing clothes
3. Better hair care
4. Getting up earlier in the morning
5. More drive time
6. Longer work hours
7. Way more responsibility
8. More work related travel
9. Lot more meetings
As you can see, there are going to be some changes in my life which are definitely going to follow this. Longer driving time and getting up early etc. are going to eat into my personal time. My new job from all appearances is going to be pretty taxing. And I have a home to take care of. Contrary to what you might read in uber-patriarchal blogs, we do not subsist on McDonalds. Although in the interest of full disclosure, I have to say that some days I feel like looking at my house and saying: "Pig sty, thy name is my house". To which my husband declares: "Then they are pretty clean pigs". He has lower expectations, what can I say? But like they (the patris) are so fond of saying, we cannot do it all. And I agree, something has to give.
And in my case, it is going to be the blog.
As it is, I hardly have the time to blog. But I always had time to read. Now, three days of the week that is also most probably not going to happen. They have filters and all such fun stuff at the new place. I will try and catch up with blogs of my friends over the weekend or evenings while I watch TV (thats rare though), but I would probably not want to spend precious time writing out posts.
This gig as of now is going to last 3 months. So unless things are not as busy as I expect or I am doing an exceptional job of time management, it is temporary goodbye time. I will still be around posting comments as and when I can. Maybe even post. Then why this post? Mainly as an insurance. I don't want to start every post by saying, "I am so sorry, I haven't posted in a while." And also, I don't want you to feel I am ignoring you if I don't comment as often. You will all continue to be in my prayers. I would appreciate if you can remember me once in a while in your prayers as well.
Now another company has requested my services as a consultant to work in their offices 3 days a week. I am going to be a Project Manager there. The person who requested me is the director of that company. I went there on Wednesday for an orientation type thing. The atmosphere is nothing like what I am used to. It is a formal work environment and my position is very different too. Tentatively I am going to be working Monday through Wednesday there and Thursday and Friday at my regular office. I am starting work coming Monday.
So these are the changes I anticipate in no particluar order:
1. Wearing business casuals and makeup
2. Ironing clothes
3. Better hair care
4. Getting up earlier in the morning
5. More drive time
6. Longer work hours
7. Way more responsibility
8. More work related travel
9. Lot more meetings
As you can see, there are going to be some changes in my life which are definitely going to follow this. Longer driving time and getting up early etc. are going to eat into my personal time. My new job from all appearances is going to be pretty taxing. And I have a home to take care of. Contrary to what you might read in uber-patriarchal blogs, we do not subsist on McDonalds. Although in the interest of full disclosure, I have to say that some days I feel like looking at my house and saying: "Pig sty, thy name is my house". To which my husband declares: "Then they are pretty clean pigs". He has lower expectations, what can I say? But like they (the patris) are so fond of saying, we cannot do it all. And I agree, something has to give.
And in my case, it is going to be the blog.
As it is, I hardly have the time to blog. But I always had time to read. Now, three days of the week that is also most probably not going to happen. They have filters and all such fun stuff at the new place. I will try and catch up with blogs of my friends over the weekend or evenings while I watch TV (thats rare though), but I would probably not want to spend precious time writing out posts.
This gig as of now is going to last 3 months. So unless things are not as busy as I expect or I am doing an exceptional job of time management, it is temporary goodbye time. I will still be around posting comments as and when I can. Maybe even post. Then why this post? Mainly as an insurance. I don't want to start every post by saying, "I am so sorry, I haven't posted in a while." And also, I don't want you to feel I am ignoring you if I don't comment as often. You will all continue to be in my prayers. I would appreciate if you can remember me once in a while in your prayers as well.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Gator: Part II
See Part 1 here
One of the things that we decided needed to be changed was the formica countertops in the kitchen. It did look really ugly, and we had couple of coupons from granite installation companies for free estimates. So I called one of them and made an appointment for the next day at 5pm. The route home from work was still new to me and so when I got home, it was a few minutes after 5. When I looked at the front door, I saw a black bag there. Conquering my fear of unattended black bags left at front doors, I looked inside. There was a bunch of papers and some granite samples. I looked around for a car or a bike or whatever, but there was nothing. I went to the backside of the house to see if he went to the yard, but there was nobody. I was distinctly surprised. It was really weird that he would come and leave his bag there and just disappear.
When I came back to the front door, I saw Gator lurking around. I carefully avoided him and got in to the house. We were still not living there, so the house was empty. By 5:30, there was still no sign of the man and so I just went out the main door and stood outside looking out for him. Our house is close to a large lake and it was beautiful outside. There was a lovely breeze and I was enjoying the breeze and the lakeview.
Gator got tired of sleeping near our doorstep and started walking towards the road. I saw a lady walking her big Golden Retriever on the sidewalk. I thought Gator would run off when he saw the dog. I was wrong. He just looked at the dog contemptously and stretched out on the sidewalk. The dog and the owner just walked around him.
Some cat! thought I.
I then saw a lovely bird flying almost close to the ground and then alighting on one of the stone posts on my opposite neighbour's yard. It then flew again and started pecking at something on the ground. I was watching the bird's movements and thinking what a peaceful neighborhood this is. And that is when I saw Gator move stealthily towards the bird. It was almost like he was wearing rubber soled shoes or something, he made no sound at all. At this moment, my cell phone rang inside the house. I ran inside hoping that it would be the granite guy letting me know what is keeping him. Instead, it was hubby calling to see what the status was. I chatted with him a little bit and then came outside again. Gator was coming from the opposite side and he had feathers in his mouth! I have never seen that bird again in my life.
I waited till 7:00 pm and then decided that I would go back home. The guy showed no signs of showing up even to claim his bag. I went home and repeated the days events to hubby. The day after when we went to the house, the bag was gone. To this day we have not solved the mystery behind the man and the bag.
Hubby and I have a theory though. We believe that Gator ate him.
One of the things that we decided needed to be changed was the formica countertops in the kitchen. It did look really ugly, and we had couple of coupons from granite installation companies for free estimates. So I called one of them and made an appointment for the next day at 5pm. The route home from work was still new to me and so when I got home, it was a few minutes after 5. When I looked at the front door, I saw a black bag there. Conquering my fear of unattended black bags left at front doors, I looked inside. There was a bunch of papers and some granite samples. I looked around for a car or a bike or whatever, but there was nothing. I went to the backside of the house to see if he went to the yard, but there was nobody. I was distinctly surprised. It was really weird that he would come and leave his bag there and just disappear.
When I came back to the front door, I saw Gator lurking around. I carefully avoided him and got in to the house. We were still not living there, so the house was empty. By 5:30, there was still no sign of the man and so I just went out the main door and stood outside looking out for him. Our house is close to a large lake and it was beautiful outside. There was a lovely breeze and I was enjoying the breeze and the lakeview.
Gator got tired of sleeping near our doorstep and started walking towards the road. I saw a lady walking her big Golden Retriever on the sidewalk. I thought Gator would run off when he saw the dog. I was wrong. He just looked at the dog contemptously and stretched out on the sidewalk. The dog and the owner just walked around him.
Some cat! thought I.
I then saw a lovely bird flying almost close to the ground and then alighting on one of the stone posts on my opposite neighbour's yard. It then flew again and started pecking at something on the ground. I was watching the bird's movements and thinking what a peaceful neighborhood this is. And that is when I saw Gator move stealthily towards the bird. It was almost like he was wearing rubber soled shoes or something, he made no sound at all. At this moment, my cell phone rang inside the house. I ran inside hoping that it would be the granite guy letting me know what is keeping him. Instead, it was hubby calling to see what the status was. I chatted with him a little bit and then came outside again. Gator was coming from the opposite side and he had feathers in his mouth! I have never seen that bird again in my life.
I waited till 7:00 pm and then decided that I would go back home. The guy showed no signs of showing up even to claim his bag. I went home and repeated the days events to hubby. The day after when we went to the house, the bag was gone. To this day we have not solved the mystery behind the man and the bag.
Hubby and I have a theory though. We believe that Gator ate him.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
This and That
I was not feeling good at all this weekend. Nothing spectacular, just aches and pains all over. So when you are all achy and painy what is the best thing to do?
Give the kitchen a complete overhaul of course!
So that is what I found myself doing on Saturday and some of Sunday. Took out all the pantry items, rearranged everything. Initially, I was planning to work on only the pantry closet, but ended up pretty much rearranging the whole kitchen.
I also ended up with a nice leg ache for the night, but those trifle things do not bother me when I am on an OCD roll. I don't have any pictures to show, but it looked really good if I may say so myself.
Then we went mega grocery shopping on Saturday and here (Picture will be updated shortly) is what we got for $13.15. This was the single greatest couponing accomplishment EVER. (It is a long story) So inspite of the health issues, it was a pretty productive weekend.
I am going to share about a possible change in the next few days. It is not something that I expected and I don't know how everything is going to work out long-term, but for now it is definitely going to be a change. I am excited and nervous at the same time.
And that is all the notes from the weekend.
Give the kitchen a complete overhaul of course!
So that is what I found myself doing on Saturday and some of Sunday. Took out all the pantry items, rearranged everything. Initially, I was planning to work on only the pantry closet, but ended up pretty much rearranging the whole kitchen.
I also ended up with a nice leg ache for the night, but those trifle things do not bother me when I am on an OCD roll. I don't have any pictures to show, but it looked really good if I may say so myself.
Then we went mega grocery shopping on Saturday and here (Picture will be updated shortly) is what we got for $13.15. This was the single greatest couponing accomplishment EVER. (It is a long story) So inspite of the health issues, it was a pretty productive weekend.
I am going to share about a possible change in the next few days. It is not something that I expected and I don't know how everything is going to work out long-term, but for now it is definitely going to be a change. I am excited and nervous at the same time.
And that is all the notes from the weekend.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Gator: The First Meeting
Remember this? Well me neither! Anyway whenever Anne Marie writes about her cats, I feel I should write about Gator. Now who is Gator? Glad you asked. Allow me to explain.
If you think Gator is just a cat, that is where you would be completely wrong. He is more a force of nature, a power to be reckoned with and was probably the inspiration for Kipling's cat who walked by himself and to whom all places were the same.
The story of Gator needs to be told to the world. It was remiss of me not to have done it for a year, work and other obligations notwithstanding.
It was exactly an year ago to the day when it all started.
We had just purchased the new to us house and just like first time homeowners, on our first "visits" to our home before we started living there, there was always something we would think of improving. The first day we went there, there was Gator right at the doorstep. We walked towards the door, hoping he would get up and go. He did get up alright and when I opened the door, he coolly walked in. I just watched to see what he would do next. When he I saw that he was getting ready to settle in the foyer, I said shoo, scat, not your house etc. He just stretched and went to sleep.
He probably didn't think I was worth dignifying with a response.
I stepped out of the house wondering what to do and thankfully our neighbor was out there. I asked her about the cat, and she said. "Oh, he is ours. But he is such an alley cat. The previous owners had a cat and Gator always used to go there." So I learned that his name was Gator and that he had many feline sleepovers at our place. I also learned that for the next few days I was supposed to watch the door so that he will stop trying to get in every time we opened the door.
And that was our first encounter.
Stay tuned for Part 2.
If you think Gator is just a cat, that is where you would be completely wrong. He is more a force of nature, a power to be reckoned with and was probably the inspiration for Kipling's cat who walked by himself and to whom all places were the same.
The story of Gator needs to be told to the world. It was remiss of me not to have done it for a year, work and other obligations notwithstanding.
It was exactly an year ago to the day when it all started.
We had just purchased the new to us house and just like first time homeowners, on our first "visits" to our home before we started living there, there was always something we would think of improving. The first day we went there, there was Gator right at the doorstep. We walked towards the door, hoping he would get up and go. He did get up alright and when I opened the door, he coolly walked in. I just watched to see what he would do next. When he I saw that he was getting ready to settle in the foyer, I said shoo, scat, not your house etc. He just stretched and went to sleep.
He probably didn't think I was worth dignifying with a response.
I stepped out of the house wondering what to do and thankfully our neighbor was out there. I asked her about the cat, and she said. "Oh, he is ours. But he is such an alley cat. The previous owners had a cat and Gator always used to go there." So I learned that his name was Gator and that he had many feline sleepovers at our place. I also learned that for the next few days I was supposed to watch the door so that he will stop trying to get in every time we opened the door.
And that was our first encounter.
Stay tuned for Part 2.
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