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Song of the day: Kisiki ki muskuraahato pe ho nisaar…

This year has already been so eventful, a real roller coaster ride. From hitting rock bottom to flying sky high and then diving down again to slowly raising my wings out one more time. So if someone asked me “Hows the year going so far?” I’d say, Its goin’

Some very important lessons that I have learnt, not just this year but over many years. Now, I am not an expert on wisdom and lessons learnt but its nice to pen them down somewhere to look at during times when the roller coaster of life takes that 90 degree dive downwards.

Lesson 1 - When you have achieved everything in life by working just enough, you get used to it. Failure and rejection are the best teachers in life. They should motivate you to rise after each fall, and do better. Don’t ignore that failed task and take up a new one. Finish it. Succeed at it and only then move on to a new one.

Lesson 2- You did not get to choose your own family because it takes special people to stick by you through thick and thin, and not all of these can be picked by you. Some divine intervention needs to pick them out to stand by you through all those crazy things you do in life.

Lesson 3- You cannot seek love, nor can you run away from it. But you have to recognize it when its there, acknowledge it, embrace it, and most important of all, believe in it.

Lesson 4- When someone says something harsh, or something you did not like, or just something that was true but bluntly put, don’t stop talking to them, or run away from them just yet. Sometimes, they might apologize the next day and what if you weren’t there to really know that they realized their mistake and regretted saying it?

Lesson 5- People can walk into our lives easily, and can walk out just as easily. Just when you think you would never get in touch with that friend that moved away when you were in 4th grade, he/she might just pop up on orkut and say hi and all those memories would come rushing back. It will make you think back and say wow! I never thought I would hear from them again.
Us humans are a social lot, you cannot search for meaning in every friendship/relationship you make, because sometimes the purpose could be as simple as bringing that huge smile on your face after many many years.

Lesson 6- There is no such teacher as travel.

Lesson 7- Phone companies are out there to get your money. There is never a no hassle deal! Always a catch!

Lesson 8 - Put your feet up, let your hair down every once in a while and go crazy. It can be very therapeutic. Or just spend some “me” time - alone!

Lesson 9- I am the best! Okay okay just checking if you made it to the last one. I got more lessons but no one can be bothered by the lessons of a 20-something girl! I will write more 20-some years later now.

You know how you hear some people say, “My life just took a complete 360 degree turn.”

I am yearning for one of those GOOD 360 degree turns.

But in retrospect, is there anything that I really need to be complaining about? There’s nothing really, but it just doesn’t feel right - like it could be better.

Funny how we are never satisfied. There’s always “just one more thing” to ask from God when you go to the temple.

- Himesh Reshammiya is making his own movie, in which he will star himself. Probably also have his own music. The title is also his very own “Aap Ka Suroor”. I am not at all excited about it. If this film happens to be a hit, Himesh might just run for PM in the next elections!

- AA wedding is in the offing (sigh). Mrs. Bachchan loves her, or atleast thats what I deduced from her speech at Filmfare. I wonder what will become of Aish’s Hollywood dreams after the wedding?

-Speaking of Filmfare. The film industry keeps saying that the Oscars aren’t that important, our film industry is good in itself. And yet they make Filmfare a red carpet event just like the Oscars and ooh and aah about their dress designers and accessories.

- Kunal Kapoor is a guy to watch out for. I hope he can make it big.

- Salaam-E-Ishq is all that everyone has made it out to be. A long, boring movie. The story itself isn’t too bad, but I think the reigns were in the hands of an inexperienced director who just lacked the talent to handle it all.

-I quite liked Ayesha Takia and Akshaye Khanna in the movie. John could still take a few acting lessons.

- Mallika on Koffee with Karan’s rapid fire: “which item number could you have done better?”
Mallika - “Kareena in yeh mera dil”
Karan - “Why”
Mallika - “Because I am better”

Points to her for being so honest. Kareena was not at all appealing that song. Not that Mallika was stellar in Mayya mayya.

- Tusshar(did I get the # of S’s right?) still stars in movies. How many times does he get launched huh?

- Am awaiting Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Saawariya. Am skeptical about the new starlets but can’t wait to see what SLB has come up with this time.

- SRK needs a break. He is getting visibly old.

- Looks like 2007 is also going to be a great year for Bollywood. Maybe not as awesome as 2006 but lots of good sounding movies coming up.

Holi pictures circled the family emails last week. I kept looking at them over and over again with the same expression and thought in mind: ” Oh my god, I am soooo fat!”

I dimissed the thought as a figment of my overstressed over-worked brain thinking that I was going through that phase of anorexia where every body part seemed fatter than usual. But then the bombs dropped. One after the other.

I should have taken the hint right away when the first thing B’s mom said when she met me last year was: “Photo main kaafi patli dikh rahi thi” Imagine if these were the first words you heard from your extremely sweet future mother-in-law. It hits hard in the gut. I thought that maybe those pictures from Didi’s wedding were flattering and maybe I had just looked a wee bit too thin then. I dismissed the thought and didn’t think much of it. It has come back to haunt me, every minute now.

The subject of Holi pictures was broached by one of my cousins last night. He thought that the pictures looked like an advertisement for the obese face of growing Indians in the US! “its like all of you were competing for the chubbiest face contest.” Sadly, it was true. To make matters worse, this morning at work two people told me I was gaining weight. One of them was a customer, so I gladly sent her home with a smile on my roly-poly face. The other was not spared. Azzie*, a very nice Morrocan gentleman at work was talking to Katie*.I happened to pass by when he said in a very thick Morrocan accent, “K, you seem to be getting faatter.” I wanted to dig a hole right there and bury myself. If looks could kill, the look in my eye that minute would have fried him. Realizing his folly, he immediately corrected himself, “No no,I mean you are now looking even preettieeeer. Real wemin have corves you know.” The damage was done. Azzie tried to make amends by smiling and remembering everything good that he could think about me, to no avail.

I still remember the medical/physical test that every immigrant to US has to go through. At that physical five years ago, the Parsi doctor at Breach Candy hospital said to me in her stern voice. “Dikra, you are underweight and you want to go to US?” She was checking my BMI(body mass index) that fell under “Underweight” category. Just on whim today, I checked my BMI and sure enough, it fell smack dab in the middle of the “Overweight” category.I let out a cry and as mom came over my shoulder to see what I was doing, she exclaimed: “Huh, atleast you are not obese.” Sure! The glass is half full. Literally.

5 years and 50 lbs (23kgs) is what I have accomplished since that BMI test at Breach Candy, Mumbai. Somehow, I don’t remember those years when I used to fall under the “Normal” category. I am not one of those to go completely anorexic and starve myself because I do love food! Having a palate for all kinds of food doesn’t help either. However, I have come to realize that I neeed to do something about it. Not get to the point where I am vain and all I care about is how thin I am, but atleast to the point where I am not competing for Ms Roly Poly award.

New resolution added to this years list (a first): Lose weight and get to a “Normal BMI”

The good news is that I now have an excuse to explain my procrastination with not blogging, finishing up taxes, getting off the couch, not doing all things and sundry. Buahaha! Who said I was not positive about this?