Wednesday, January 17, 2007

People in my neighbourhood

Chapter: Tartrazina's Trot to Work

...on the Sunny Side of the Street!

Ever Since we shifted into our new office just off Residency Road, I get my daily dose of excercise thanks to Bangalore Police's terrific road network planning! In the last leg of my journey, the one way route in an auto would take me a good 25 minutes more, which considering I'm usually running late is not worth the extra kilometers. The Pink is in an Auto and the Yellow is Tart's Trot!





So I walk instead. And the faces and places that make my days brighter...




Everyday I can't help pausing for a few seconds @ the Puma store. Its sooo pretty... I know the word I should use is funky - but its pretty in my head!!!!! Green ones, pinks one, blue ones, red ones, silver ones, yellow ones ... I want them ALL, and yet have none! Fortunately I've walked by when the store was open only ONCE - thus my urge to splurge has been thwarted!

Sometimes I wish I could spend a late morning in Pecos, sipping a beer and munching free popcorn!

If I'm lucky there'll be some hot yeng firangs gents that I might smile at - and as Banana, Bert or Zu can tell you, to get a smile out of me pre-11am is a rare but precious moment!!! :-)

If for some reason, I'm NOT on the sunny side of the street I usually pass the spas dog that sleeps outside the shops to the left! He looks like a dwarfed wolf - and I've rarely seen him awake! He makes me jealous of my ugly routine.

The other day I walked through a bunch of Tibetan Monks. Mrs. Tote thinks Tibetan Monks are hot! Does anyone else think the same? I didn't find them hot, but I guess they do have an air of mystery and calm!

Then there are the random breakfast options that keep my mind occupied as I trot down Brigade Road. I'm not particularly fond of coffee off late, so I usually dash into Nilgiri's for a sandwich & Mango Yogi. Or if there's time a Subway or Dosa @ Ballal's - which is soooper yummy, but not great for my tummy!

(Illustrations courtesy Google Earth!)

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Trip to thousand 6!

I never got down to completing my Hyderabad post - tho' I promise I shall some day ... I owe it to the bunch of crazy people I had such an awesome time with!

Its 2007 already! And every year seems to finish faster than the previous one!

As usual - a quick re-cap of a year that was... 2006

Jan... began with many, many nights @ Take 5! Making new frundses! Drinking new wineses - Inniskillin ..reccommended for those of you who like sweet wine! And a week in Bombay on work, which ended up being a sooper time with the Nair Sisters!

Feb... More work and a lot more travel!

March... I can't remember anything other than the endless planning with the Rat for THE BIG BEACH HOUSE BIRTHDAY celebration! Ma turned 60 and Rolf turned 21. And I turned OLD!

April… never in my life have I had so many things to do and SO LITTLE time! I ended up missing my best friend’s wedding to go to South Africa and Dubai. The guilt of missing the wedding was over come by the fantab time I had of course.. hehe ;-)

May… I think I must’ve been on a high after my travels, coz I don’t remember much!!

June… I don’t remember either… must’ve been World Cup fever!

July… was shifting time L Still miss my old house – specially on sunny winter days when we could bask on the terrace. Its true that there must’ve been 5 such occasions in 3 yrs. But still!

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August… oh yes how can I forget! Taking you back to July here for a moment – when I discovered my little (OK BIG!) friend ET growing inside of me for what could’ve been a year! And the panic and chaos and calm and comforting from inside and outside of my head! What mattered most (no pun intended!) was all of my friends and family who really really stood by me and got me through the crap!
…August 1st was ET’s day OUT! And from then on the month was spent on the road to recovery!

September… new secret travels with Liz! And finally back to work! Just in time to bid farewell to The Goose who left to become a rockstar!



October… selling expensive ass villas. Making new friends. Falling for the wrong ones! And getting over the whole mess that is what life is all about!

November… still getting over the mess! And making more new friends… and strengthening older bonds! Being far away from home and still at home! Being pampered by the Totes! And loving every minute of it!

December… Couldn’t believe it ended so soon! Hyderabad couldn’t have ended any better! There was a quick trip to Cal to see my New Little Plum and the Old Big Pudding! And then back to Bangalore where the entire family joined me for Christmas. Was a month of sharing and caring and loving and cuddling and reuniting with old friends that had almost fallen off my radar! Also had an absolutely sooper NY’s eve close to the sea… swimming, drinking, barbecuing, and bartending!



(Mid way through this post, I lost the ability to post pictures! ..yes I worked it back to front!)