Have not been able to blog for sometime now ...
Just want to wish everyone
HAPPY GOWRI - GANESHA CHATURTHI !!
Friday, August 25, 2006
Monday, August 14, 2006
Happy Independance Day
India celebrates her 59th Independance day and here is wishing every Indian a very Happy Independance day.
August 15th always occupied special place for me. I remember even now, the Independance day celebrations at school. When I was in primary school, I commanded the pledge "India is my country and all Indians are my brothers and sisters .... every day and it meant even more on the Independance day. Then there would be an inter school gathering where chosen few from each school would display their marching ability. Dignitaries from the colony we stayed in were invited as chief guests ... there would be sweet distribution followed by sports day activities. (for me sweet distribution was the culmination of the event. I never really took part in sports)
Middle school days involved me leading a pack of students in patriotic song rendition. There would also be some cultural dance... oh yes, I was a part of the school band (flute was my instrument of choice) and hence got to wear lovely band dress and a cap :) I simply loved the outfit and thought I looked "smart" in it.
My participation in high school involved in me giving either the welcome speech or a small speech reminding everyone of the sacrifices made for Independance by our fellow countrymen. I was also a part of the school orchestra and we sang lovely patriotic songs. Then again, there was attendance (no attendance in primary and middle school) followed by sweet distribution. Usually it was followed by sports day ... again of which I was never a part of :(
I remember attending Independance day in Engineering college only twice. The tricolor Indian flag was hoisted by the principal, followed by the National Anthem. What surprised me most was the mere 30-40 crowd. It was disappointing...
Anyways, there has and will always be a spirit in my heart riding high on the Independance day and I will continue to feel proud for being an INDIAN !!!
Before I conclude, I'd like to recollect some of the patriotic songs I have learnt:
August 15th always occupied special place for me. I remember even now, the Independance day celebrations at school. When I was in primary school, I commanded the pledge "India is my country and all Indians are my brothers and sisters .... every day and it meant even more on the Independance day. Then there would be an inter school gathering where chosen few from each school would display their marching ability. Dignitaries from the colony we stayed in were invited as chief guests ... there would be sweet distribution followed by sports day activities. (for me sweet distribution was the culmination of the event. I never really took part in sports)
Middle school days involved me leading a pack of students in patriotic song rendition. There would also be some cultural dance... oh yes, I was a part of the school band (flute was my instrument of choice) and hence got to wear lovely band dress and a cap :) I simply loved the outfit and thought I looked "smart" in it.
My participation in high school involved in me giving either the welcome speech or a small speech reminding everyone of the sacrifices made for Independance by our fellow countrymen. I was also a part of the school orchestra and we sang lovely patriotic songs. Then again, there was attendance (no attendance in primary and middle school) followed by sweet distribution. Usually it was followed by sports day ... again of which I was never a part of :(
I remember attending Independance day in Engineering college only twice. The tricolor Indian flag was hoisted by the principal, followed by the National Anthem. What surprised me most was the mere 30-40 crowd. It was disappointing...
Anyways, there has and will always be a spirit in my heart riding high on the Independance day and I will continue to feel proud for being an INDIAN !!!
Before I conclude, I'd like to recollect some of the patriotic songs I have learnt:
- Saare jahan se achcha (my all time favourite)
- Hind Desh ke Nivasi
- Jai Jan Bharat, janamana abhimata
- Aakash ganga
- Ye mere watan ke logon
- Sara haddina bahu doorada varegu
- Vishwa vinuthana vidhya chetana
many many more.......
Saturday, August 05, 2006
100,000 !
What does the title represent ... can you guess ??? Its not the number of posts on my blog... it isn't lottery amount I won (I wish !!) ... its certainly not my age ... (I know that was a bad one).... well thats the number of miles we have driven our first car !!!
Yep ... last friday our car crossed the 100,000 milestone and yours truly was driving it when the feat was achieved. Of the 100,000 miles, I can certainly claim atleast 50% contribution if not more. My distance to work has certainly been responsible for this amazing achievement. Anyways, our car which my husband fondly calls "Darling", has been a very loyal and great companion. It has been a wonderful ride (pun intended) so far and I have lots of memories like my first drive in the car at 12:30am on the day of landing in the US, our trip to LA, our ride back home from the hospital on the birth of my daughter ... and many many more.
I am certain there are many more in the making !
Yep ... last friday our car crossed the 100,000 milestone and yours truly was driving it when the feat was achieved. Of the 100,000 miles, I can certainly claim atleast 50% contribution if not more. My distance to work has certainly been responsible for this amazing achievement. Anyways, our car which my husband fondly calls "Darling", has been a very loyal and great companion. It has been a wonderful ride (pun intended) so far and I have lots of memories like my first drive in the car at 12:30am on the day of landing in the US, our trip to LA, our ride back home from the hospital on the birth of my daughter ... and many many more.
I am certain there are many more in the making !
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Peddle, Peddle, Peddle
When I think about my most priciest materialistic possession, my BSA SLR features in the top 5. For the uninitiated, BSA SLR is a brand of bicycles in India.
I learnt cycling during the summer vacation after class 4. We were in Chennai (then called Madras) visiting, my mom's uncle. We were atleast 4 cousins and were undeterred to give up cycling, before we mastered the art. The initial balancing part was slightly hard and the fact that my feet did not touch the ground, when I wanted to bring the cycle to a halt, only made my task a little more harder. Even an occasional scratch on the knee did not bother me. Before I realised, I had learnt to balance and peddle on my own ... but the brakes were still a small concern.
My parents saw my enthusiam and decided to buy me a bicycle. I already knew that I wanted a BSA SLR. That was the "HAPPENING" brand for girls cycles. When we went to the cycle shop, we gave a slight thought if we had to go with the gray color or the marroon ... but all of us were easily convinced that it had to be marroon. My dad offered to peddle it from the cycle shop to the house, but we decided against it soon. Customary pooja was performed and I was rearing to take it for a ride. Thus began my long association with my BSA SLR.
I showcased my peddling talent to my parents the following weekend to get their nod on riding it to the school. My parents did notice my "not so great", braking ability. But had to concede to my request finally. I was just in the 5th std, when I began cycling to school.... and continued doing it till my first year of engineering. I was not very particular on getting a moped / scooter etc even during my engineering ... but my parents felt, I deserved one and bought me a scooty. (thats again very close to me). Anyways, coming back to my cycling days, the initial days saw me enthusiastically going to the grocery store, music/ dance classes, offering "doubles" to cousins and friends all the time. I participated in a lot of extra cirricular activities during my student days ... be it an inter school debate, story telling, singing, science exhihibition etc etc, I cycled my way to the location, participated and rode back home. Mysore not being a very big city, only helped that, I could peddle my way to / from any place within the city.
Now why did I suddenly write about my bicycle ... well last weekend, we were trying to teach my 2year old cycling and she was not very keen on learning. So, we decided that may be if one of her parents set her an example by peddling along with her, she would learn faster ... I volunteered to peddle. Soon, I discovered that my passion for bicycles was intact ... my little one was more than happy to just watch her enthusiactic mother peddle her way in the park :)
I guess some passions stick with you for lifetime !!!
I learnt cycling during the summer vacation after class 4. We were in Chennai (then called Madras) visiting, my mom's uncle. We were atleast 4 cousins and were undeterred to give up cycling, before we mastered the art. The initial balancing part was slightly hard and the fact that my feet did not touch the ground, when I wanted to bring the cycle to a halt, only made my task a little more harder. Even an occasional scratch on the knee did not bother me. Before I realised, I had learnt to balance and peddle on my own ... but the brakes were still a small concern.
My parents saw my enthusiam and decided to buy me a bicycle. I already knew that I wanted a BSA SLR. That was the "HAPPENING" brand for girls cycles. When we went to the cycle shop, we gave a slight thought if we had to go with the gray color or the marroon ... but all of us were easily convinced that it had to be marroon. My dad offered to peddle it from the cycle shop to the house, but we decided against it soon. Customary pooja was performed and I was rearing to take it for a ride. Thus began my long association with my BSA SLR.
I showcased my peddling talent to my parents the following weekend to get their nod on riding it to the school. My parents did notice my "not so great", braking ability. But had to concede to my request finally. I was just in the 5th std, when I began cycling to school.... and continued doing it till my first year of engineering. I was not very particular on getting a moped / scooter etc even during my engineering ... but my parents felt, I deserved one and bought me a scooty. (thats again very close to me). Anyways, coming back to my cycling days, the initial days saw me enthusiastically going to the grocery store, music/ dance classes, offering "doubles" to cousins and friends all the time. I participated in a lot of extra cirricular activities during my student days ... be it an inter school debate, story telling, singing, science exhihibition etc etc, I cycled my way to the location, participated and rode back home. Mysore not being a very big city, only helped that, I could peddle my way to / from any place within the city.
Now why did I suddenly write about my bicycle ... well last weekend, we were trying to teach my 2year old cycling and she was not very keen on learning. So, we decided that may be if one of her parents set her an example by peddling along with her, she would learn faster ... I volunteered to peddle. Soon, I discovered that my passion for bicycles was intact ... my little one was more than happy to just watch her enthusiactic mother peddle her way in the park :)
I guess some passions stick with you for lifetime !!!
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