Technology and trust issues

A news article caught my attention. Wife was seeking divorce from her husband of two months. Reason - he didnt update his FB status from single to married. Husband says he was busy with wedding, hence didnt get time to update the status. That reminded me of an ad on TV, a guy is getting married and his boss calls up on his mobile and wants to talk about work.

What do these two have in common, you ask. Well, to me both are depicting the ill-effects of technology in our lives. We welcome technology with the hope that it would improve our lives and make it easier for us. But it doesnt always work that way. With the advent of mobile phones, communication improved a lot. But at the same time, it has made us easily accessible. We can not take the call, but with mobiles you are obligated to return the call. No longer do we have the excuse of we didnt get the call or I didnt know it was you. Caller id has taken care of that. So if your boss calls you in the middle of the night you have to take it. The office gives you a laptop and blackberry, you are happy, company is taking good care of you. Downside, you are on call 24x7, 365 days.

Now coming to the personal front. No privacy. I know there shouldnt be any secrets between husband and wife, but in reality it doesnt work that way. I dont want to tell my husband all that I share with my girlfriends. And I am happy not knowing few things from his end. We have a very healthy recipe, whether you agree or not. He doesnt peek into my cell, my sms, my emails and I dont either. You call your spouse and dont get any response, you jump to the wrong conclusions. You harass them to death about it. I think that borders on trust issue also. Why are we so insecure? Give your spouse some benefit of doubt. In this 21st century, we keep seeing co-ed groups. So the assumption that a girl and a guy cant be friends is outdated. Friendship is no longer gender-specific, even it has become blind like love. Deal with it and let the poor spouse of yours live peacefully.

Post-painting

Now that painting work is done, house looks great, as good as new. Got the floor polished, too. 

Painting work though painful, has its plus points too, I realised. Apart from the obvious that your house looks good after all the effort. House gets cleaned. By pulling the furniture away from the walls, all the dust and dirt that got accumulated behind them can be cleared off. Especially, if you have heavy furniture like ours, which cant be moved around easily (a tip to those buying furniture, buy light-weight easy-to-move furniture). Also all the junk that got accumulated over the years can be thrown away. I always prided myself of not hoarding junk, but realised we too have junk at home. One shelf had paper dated March 2009, imagine I didnt clean up that cupboard for the past three years!

Second, while the workers are around, our craving to snack and munch between meals comes down. Eating becomes a chore and with all the dust and paint smell, all appetite disappears. Nice way to loose weight if you ask me. Once I dig up my weighing machine, I will let you know what exactly is my weight loss.

One tends to finish all household chores before the workers come, so the entire day is left free. So I could catch up with all pending paper-work, reading, etc., anything that needs one to sit in one place and hours of dedication.

Then nothing to beat the sympathy of all around. My God, how long it is taking, seeing you I am feeling tired, I wonder how you are managing. Best was my maid, how are you managing to cook, no one else had that doubt!

I have taken a vow to keep house in this form forever, wont shirk from cleaning and dusting tasks. I know what most of you are thinking - New Year Resolutions.......

Tryst with Painters

After postponing it for two years now, this year we decided to plunge into the treacherous ordeal of getting our apartment painted. Ours is a 11yr old apartment complex and we bought this flat at the end of 2004. The seller obviously painted the house before putting it up for sale. He used pastel colors, which tend to show dirt more, I feel. So the area around the switchboards and the like were the first casualties. We ignored. Then it crept to around the tubelights and the like, still ignored. Now we could no longer ignore. People visiting our flat, started leading the conversation to painting and other interior decorator topics, looking at our walls pointedly. We decided it was time to act.

A lot of survey was done, mostly because we were so apprehensive about the humongous task in front of us. Quite a few people we knew had recently painted their houses, so there were no dearth of suggestions. Which confused us all the more. Each one of them vowed that their experience had been the best and easiest. We decided to take a call after getting quotations from all the concerned options. One question that stumped us was what is the paint-able area. Now we had a bunch of numbers - carpet-area, super-plinth-area, built-up-area; but how do we get this paint-able area? We struggled with the blueprint of our apartment and an excel spreadsheet and after a lot of struggle came up with a value. There was on-line help which calculated the paint-able area to be roughly 4 times the carpet area, we were not wholly convinced of that, though.

First to walk in was a contract painter, he looked too flashy to be a painter. He walked around and pronounced a nice fat figure and said it would take 3-4 weeks. I said forget it, I am not going to babysit your painters for such a long time. Again got varied opinions, "that's too long"; "that's ideal time it takes" and the best "at least he is honest, many will say one week but will eventually take that much time". Then came the company painter. He looked around and gave an astronomical figure. Turns out his calculation of paint-able area was double that of ours. He assured us once we agree to go with them he would get us a nice discount. But discount was not what we wanted but an honest evaluation, somehow their approach put me off. Then came a guy from MP. He said he would do it in a week (7 days to be exact), very reasonable price (felt like a steal actually), but we needed to get the material. The friend who suggested him, swore to his workmanship and his dedication. But running around for material was not our cup of tea. Another contractor, said one week, very reasonable and very mild mannered. We fell for him.

The paints were selected, advance paid and work started. Slowly and quietly he started. Madam, your floor looks a bit dull, even though we promised to clean it up, it might be worth considering polishing it. It will shine as new and will hardly take couple of days. I was tempted. Next, my estimate was based on the assumption that you would use same color throughout the house, now we are using four different colors, but I wont ask for more since I agreed upon the rate, it is upto you in the end, if you are happy with our work........ Next, madam your doors, though they look fine now, after getting the walls painted they will appear dull, better get them polished. Next it was window grills. Looks like we are getting a new house after all. Cost, well it is bound to go up as will the estimated date of completion. The other day some one queried about the estimate, my husband responded with when - prior to start of work, while the work is going on or once the work is completed?

Meanwhile, it is me sitting in a lone chair, preserved for my usage, in a corner, away from the workers way, with dust all around me....... I wish I had taken up my brother's suggestion seriously and shifted out of the house while the work was going on, you see they do that in US given the "toxicity of paint fumes". Of course, there most of the times it is DIY, instead of going with professional painters. It is a week now and looks like another week to go, in meantime if you see me some place (highly unlikely since I am stuck in the house till work completes) do not comment upon my dirty unkempt hair or patches of paint/dirt on my dress, unless you don't  want to return home that day!!!!!!

Summer - Season of Mangoes and Pickles

Summer had a special attraction for us growing up. It meant visit to grandparents' place, where we could meet all our cousins and generally have fun. I don't know what the temperatures were at that time, but it never hampered us from having some fun. Might be we were more tolerant or global warming is really playing a havoc now.

Apart from all the playing and fun, food was something to look forward to, the solid and tasty curd, the special taste of grandma's cooking (not that my mom was a bad cook). And more importantly mangoes. So many varieties and in so many forms. My grandparents had 4 mango trees at home, all of different varieties. So we would start off plucking the small mangoes, pindelu, and just pop them into our mouths taking care to avoid the seed (jeedi). We would be caught and asked to keep off them, as they are "bad for your stomach" and wait till "they grow big they will be tastier". Then the raw mangoes, with salt and chilli; cooked with lentils (yummy, mamidikaya pappu); ground with coconut or yellow lentil (kobbari-mamidikaya pachadi, pesarapappu-mamidikaya pachadi); enough to give one a stomach ache. Not that we minded, after all grandfather had medicine for it. 

Then the pickles. It was a venture which would put the major industries to shame. The planning and effort that went into its execution. Chillies and mustard were to be ground, not using any appliance. Workers would come and use the mortar and pestle to grind them. Then came the men with long poles with a knife and net bag attached to their ends. This to pluck the mangoes from the trees without dropping them on the ground and damaging the fruit. We would all gather beneath the trees, try to spot and yell directions. Then comes the D-day. Grandmother would finish all her cooking early in the morning and would settle down with the workers, mangoes and other ingredients. And the work would start, it would be one week before we would be allowed to taste the pickles. Of course that wouldn't stop us from sneaking off with the dried and salted mango pieces. All the efforts finally pay off, when everyone tastes and praises the pickles, and grandmother packs them into bottles (no vacuum sealing then) for each of her children families.

Then of course the ripe mangoes. Mangoes would have to be ripened by putting them in a dark, hot room on hay bed. Every meal time, grandfather would go to this room and examine the mangoes and pick the appropriate ones of our consumption for the day. He would pick one of us to accompany him and we would all wait with bated breath. It was such an honour to be picked. The mangoes again of various types: kothapally kobbari with all the fibre to keep you busy after eating - picking your teeth for hours; cheruku rasalu with all the sweet and sumptuous flesh; and of course banginapally which had to be cut and eaten. Fights would be on for the seed, which could be slurped for hours on end, of course if cut by grandmother. If grandfather cut it then no one wanted the seed as he would cut it cleanly without any flesh left. After few days, we would be treated with mango juice in the evenings. We relished it till we saw grandmother make it. She would take the overripe and rotten mangoes and make juice from the unspoiled portion. That was goodbye to juice from us. She would also make mango cakes (thandra), layers of mango juice sun-dried.

Now that we are all grown up, we keep wondering how my grandmother managed all this in the hot summers, with no AC and only fans, if electricity permitted. And we miss all the fun, too. With apartments replacing independent homes, there is no room for trees at home. With Swagruha and other places boasting of home-made pickles, it is an easy way out for the fast-paced time-stressed current generation. And also with the increased awareness of cholesterol and other "eat healthy food" fads, no one is keen on these summer time binges. But ahhhh, those good old days.

UK - Travelogue - Switzerland

An European experience wouldn’t have been complete without Switzerland, and expensive though the guided tour was, Switzerland is definitely worth a look. We goofed up in planning for the trip, for the tour was to begin and end in Switzerland but on two separate days we were to transit through Italy, which required that we obtain a double entry visa to Italy and a triple entry for Switzerland. But it was too late when we realised that we had only a single entry Swiss visa. So we had to miss out on two days of Italy in spite of having entry visas.

The scenic beauty of Switzerland cannot be described in words. The snowcapped mountains, the lakes, rivers - everything is simply superb. Weather is unpredicatable. We were told that the only way of predicting the weather was by looking at the cows. If they were standing and grazing, it was going to be a clear day. So most of the time we were goading the cows to stand up and be more active! Part of the Swiss ambience is the cow - bells! Whenever we passed the pastures, we could hear the pleasant sound of the tinkering bells.

We travelled extensively in Switzerland and saw places such as Appenzel, Vaduz and the Rhine valley which is famous for its ski-resorts. As a result of our visa goof-up we had to take a detour by bus and train through the countryside. We passed through villages and small towns. It was amazing the way the driver of the bus knew most of the residents on the way. He kept greeting them by names. We joined rest of the tour at Lugano. We had a ride in funicular (railway) up the mountain and had a nice view of the city by the night.

We also travelled by the Glacier Express - which is the slowest express train in the world - from Lugano to Visp which was a nice and quiet city! The city starts from right next to the tracks and so there is no exit in the station. We just crossed the tracks and were in the hotel. It is the starting point for the hikes going up the Alps.

On the way to Berne, the Swiss Capital we visited a cheese factory in Gruyeres. Berne is a city with narrow roads and is filled with people. After seeing the Parliament house and other interesting things, we proceeded to Lucerne. Lucerne has the only war memorial of neutral Switzerland - the dying lion. Nearby was the glacier garden and hall of mirrors. From there went to Peak Titlis - partly by cable car and then by rotair. Rotair is a revolving gandola or cable car - one of its kind in the world. There is an ice grott -long tunnel made of ice. The peak was covered with snow, with plastic sledges put up on the glacier slopes for sliding down.

Next we came to Zurich and roamed around. We saw the famous Swiss banks; Parade Platz, the city centre and St. Peterhof which boasts of the largest clock face of Europe. Zurich is divided by a river, Limmat, and there are two churches, Fraumunster and Grossmunster on either bank of the river overlooking each other.

Then it was time to return to London.

UK Travelogue Europe

London and its surroundings over, our next destination was Europe, across the Channel.

Our first stop was Amsterdam in Netherlands on a guided tour. We reached Dover and were put on a ferry. Crossing the English Channel took half an hour. From Calais on the other side, we went by coach. Amsterdam is a very beautiful city with people roaming around freely. Late in the night we went on a cruise in the canals of Amsterdam a candlelit cruise with cheese and wine served. The cruise passed through the red light area which is legalised but no photography is allowed. We were taken to Volendam where we tasted the famous delicacy of Netherlands - apple pie with really yummy cream. The next stop was the famous Tulip garden - Kokenhof garden, an immensely breathtaking vista, with rows and rows of colourful tulips just like we see in the movies. We also visited a farm where cheese making process was shown to us. Netherlands is a country of canals and windmills. We came across many of them on the way. Another thing which caught our fancy was the airport. There, the runway for the planes is above the motorway - like an overbridge. So when we were passing under it, a plane taxied over our heads.

Next, we visited Delft, where the royal family used to stay and then onto Brugges in Belgium. It is a medieval city and care is taken to retain the medieval appearance of all the buildings. For example, we saw a bridge which was built 400 years ago and is still in use. Then after one more canal cruise we headed for home with wonderful memories of the beautiful tulips.

Our next trip was to Paris but the weather unfortunately, was a big let down. It was raining throughout. We went by the Eurostar, the train which goes through the famous Channel Tunnel under the English Channel. The journey took three hours. First we went to the Euro Disney, an amusement park on the lines of Disneyland with a number of fun rides - like the Space Mountain where all the rides were in the dark. Then there is the Fantasyland - with the Palace of the Sleeping Beauty, Alice’s Wonderland, Alladin’s Wonder Lamp and lots of other things. There is also a “It’s a Small World” which had the dolls in the outfits of almost all the countries. It looked really like a fantasyland - straight out of my childhood fantasies. We climbed the Eiffel Tower and had a boat cruise along the Seine river. Next day, we went to Versailles, the royal palace. We had a trip around the palace and visited the gardens attached to it. They are beautiful but nothing when compared to our Brindavan Gardens. Our visit to the Louvre Museum to see the famous Mona Lisa however turned out to be a non-starter, the museum was closed on that particular day. We walked down from Louvre to Arc de Triumph along the famous Champ de Elysees, a wide road bristling with shops and shoppers. The thing we remember most about Paris are the long queues everywhere. Also, it seemed to be full of tourists everywhere and no one else. We could not find any person who looked as if he lived there. So that was Paris!