Category Archives: Life Goals

2015 Week 48 Update

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Namaste from Mumbai!

We’re in India now and the one thing that hits me everytime is the noise. Where we stay is a quiet housing locality, but even there, the noise from the people and cars is rather overwhelming! Is this because Singapore is rather too quiet?

The flight was uneventful but since we were travelling with S’ mum & aunt, we, rather I had to slow down a lot as they are old. We reached home at nearly midnight and this was the first time my dad didn’t come to pick us up from the airport, for which I am quite proud…

Today and the rest of the week will be hectic and I am super excited to meet my sis and gorgeous nieces next week after a trip to Bangalore to meet my gran and aunts…

2015 Week 47 Update

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This has been a very emotionally draining week for us with the PSLE results being declared. As I wrote yesterday, both under-performed compared to what they are capable of. We’re over this now and after a discussion, both S and I have decided to support them regardless of their results.

They’ve applied to a school both like (the same school) and BB will thrive there as it has an Applied Learning Programme in his area of passion which is aeroscience! GG also likes the school and hopefully she does well enough in her first year to get promoted to the same stream as BB.

In the long run and scheme of things, the PSLE is not the end of the world. I realise this now and maybe this is for the best. The children stumble at the age of 12, learn that life is not easy and hopefully, apply the lessons they learn from this life episode and come out stronger and better individuals.

I can see both are disappointed with their results and the determination to succeed I now see in them continues as they move along secondary school!

Off to more interesting things – we’re super excited for our trip to India later this month. My sister is also coming the week after and so the kids are all going to have fun…

Posting may be a bit sporadic, though I am not going to jinx my daily streak. More next week!

2015 Week 46 Update

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This week as the last one went by worrying about the PSLE results.

Work-wise, the usual. I actually don’t have much to do – I think I finish up what’s on my plate for the day before 10 am and then it’s trying to look busy…I am happiest when I am so busy I don’t have time to even drink water, wish those days come back soon! Intellectually I feel I am slipping, but like I wrote earlier, I will wait till I am back from my holidays to have a talk with Big B and also start seriously looking for a new position.

We looked at a couple of secondary schools this weekend and looks like both have zoomed into one. It’s not a brand name school, a bit far for us, but BB loved it for its niche programme in his area of interest and when we went there, GG also liked the school. I liked the school and my first impressions were positive. Now we’ll wait for the results to see if this will indeed be our school of choice.

Happy Monday everyone! This week I will be on tenterhooks, so please send positive thoughts our way as well as please pray to the higher being you believe in that both BB & GG do well when the results are declared!

2015 Week 45 Update

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This week was a mixture of being both hectic and then slow! Hectic in the first half because of Diwali and then slow in the second half because of work!

I decided to make 11 items for the festival, 5 each of sweets and savories and a traditional medicine, all which were fantastic. I’ll post recipes soon, especially for those which do not require specific utensils to make.

The second half at work was as usual, boring. I am serious now about talking to Big B about my future here, but will do that after my holidays. Hopefully he will be around long enough at that point in time for me to have a serious talk with him.

BB’s voice has started to break and my baby is now growing up! Actually this started a couple of weeks back, but at that point, we thought he’s getting a cold and this slightly distorted voice is because of that. When it went on for more than a week, we realized that it’s not a cold, but BB is getting to be an adult finally! He reached puberty almost two years after GG!

2105 Week 44 Update

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Surprisingly this week went by faster than I thought it would. Work-wise, it’s still the same. I don’t have enough work to fill the eight hours at work. The day I have something to occupy my time for atleast half the day, I am happy! I’ve realized it’s far more difficult to pretend to be busy and do work than to actually do something….

Tomorrow is Diwali, the festival of lights and probably the most important festival in the Hindu calendar for the year. I’ve been busy preparing sweets and savories and have over-extended myself this year. Hopefully by the end of the day, I actually finish making all that I have planned for…

Beofre the festival, people clean and if possible, renovate and decorate their homes. The festival is celebrated slightly differently in North and South India. What’s common is the creation of beautiful rangolis or patterns made from coloured flour outside homes and decorated with lamps. The lamps are kept lit throughout the night so as to invite Goddess Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth into your home. People also wear new clothes across the country on Diwali and burst fire crackers outside.

In South India, Diwali is celebrated as the day Lord Krishna defeated the evil demon Nakasura and is called Naraka Chaturthi. Here, traditionally, especially in Tamil Brahmin homes, if the festival falls on a new moon, everyone wakes up super early and the lady of the house first takes a bath and lights the lamp. Then one by one, family members come and sit in front of the lamp where the lady of the house will put some gingelly oil which has been prepared the previous evening on them. They then have a bath and come and prostate before the Lord, after which they get their new clothes. Before they start the feating which is typical of the festival, they are also given a medicinal legiyam which sort of helps digest all the fried food and sweets which you eat throughout the day.

In North India, the festival is celebrated as the day Lord Rama, from the epic, Ramayana was welcomed back home to Ayodhya in present day Uttar Pradesh along with his wife Goddess Sita and brother Lord Lakshmana after a 14 year exile. Lamps are lit to welcome the trio. Prayers are also said to Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth in the evening of Diwali.

Certain communities also welcome their new year on the last day of the celebrations.

Here’s wishing all of you a very Happy Diwali! May the festival of lights light up your lives and bring you happiness and abundant prosperity….