No Monsoon....No Magic

2007-12-24T11:15:00.000-08:00

On love...

2007-02-14T06:28:00.000-08:00

Don't go far off... by Pablo Neruda

Don't go far off, not even for a day, because --
because -- I don't know how to say it: a day is long
and I will be waiting for you, as in an empty station
when the trains are parked off somewhere else, asleep.

Don't leave me, even for an hour, because
then the little drops of anguish will all run together,
the smoke that roams looking for a home will drift
into me, choking my lost heart.

Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach;
may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance.
Don't leave me for a second, my dearest,

because in that moment you'll have gone so far
I'll wander mazily over all the earth, asking,
Will you come back? Will you leave me here, dying?

This post is dedicated to all who step up and show they care......

Netflix for Handbags

2007-02-13T06:32:00.000-08:00

This Valentine you can gift your loved one a subscription to Bag Borrow or Steal

Rubiks Revolution

2007-02-10T14:17:00.000-08:00

Rubik's Revolution," a supposed "sequel" to the original Rubik's Cube will be in Stores in 122 days

Innocent and Irinjalakuda

2007-02-10T12:37:00.000-08:00

Innocent and Irinjalakuda- they seem to go so well together. Whenever I mention to anyone from Kerala that my native place is near Irinjalakuda the immediately response is “Isn’t that where Innocent is from? And If I ever see anyone blinking I volunteer “I am from Innocents place”. Mention Innocent and I am always awarded with an innocent smile, a huge grin and entry into the inner circle. After all Innocent’s nattukar should be innocent .Right?

How come nobody ask me about Jayachandran? Or Edavela Babu (I heard of him first while he was a student of Irinjalakuda Boys High School, judging from the mallu movies I watch it seems like he never outgrew college-Lucky him..) If you would like to know more about Innocent and Irinjalakuda do visit his at Parpidam in Cyber space.

Dramatic times ..

2007-02-07T16:36:00.000-08:00

I got introduced to Malayalam drama when I was pretty much young. My dad used to be associated with or rather was instrumental in organizing All Kerala Drama Festivals through his Club (I think it was called Falcons) and one of the first malayalam play that I read was a manuscript named Kadalassupookal (Paper Flowers) submitted for entry into this competition.There were also a number of black and white photographs of my dad as the hero of several plays in our family album including some with actress Philomena who incidentally is from Thrissur. (My mother definitely was not crazy about these photos). Needless to say with us kids growing up he had very little time to spend nurturing his club and the remnants of his venture like the shiny satin curtains was put to good use as draperies in my house.

Still I used to get a regular dose of Malayalam dram through my one of my uncles who was a connoisseur of drama. We used to visit their house every summer and he would take me and my brother out along with his family to watch the latest Malayalam plays. More than the pleasure of watching the nadakam there was much more enjoyments in the next few days in observing my uncle dissect the drama and the actors and give his critique on their performance. This is was almost like a group discussion the kind one might encounter these days for an MBA admission with everyone including me eager to prove their leadership skills and put their point across and at the same time making sure they do not ruffle any feather while taking the maximum airspace.

My own forays into the world of theater started when I was chosen to play the wicked step mother to Snow White in the school annual day. Not a very auspicious beginning I would say. This progressed into romantic hero roles during my senior years which kind of were a disaster considering I always wanted to be the romantic heroine. Only time I ever got to play a women on stage was once in school youth festival when I played the role of Sakuntala’s Thozhi.( I swear there was no Sakunthala in the drama, or I am sure I would have landed that role with my histrionic ability.) Once I progressed into women’s college these roles changed to even more snappier ones like a double role as St. Paul and Christ( you are right ..there was no one else ready to carry that cross). A swift end to my interest in the field came after we enacted a serious play at the D Zone arts Festival. School of Drama students from Aranatukkara came in for a little bit of voice coaching and a whole lot of mouth watching (Vai Nottam). They wanted to make sure they make good the only time they could enter into the armored gates of our women’s college without undergoing interrogation that even a terrorist cannot stand (Many a real brother has confessed to being a lover during such interrogation according to college legends).The very serious modern play was initially declared a winner but was later relegated to down under which I still believe was a drama enacted by our arch rivals at the Engineering College against us the fairer sex in womens college. There ends my chapter in dramatics.

Underneath the Mango trees

2007-02-06T14:53:00.000-08:00

By the time Christmas holidays is over and the New Year begins I would be eagerly waiting for the summer holidays to begin. Schools in Kerala close only by March end and the teachers are usually busy trying to finish the syllabus before the annual exams. This was not an issue for me as our school had this policy of all pass till 10th grade and I never felt any reason to study for the finals. There was no report card for the final exams. There was just a fail or pass to the next grade posted on the school notice board. One has to be a really bad student not to get promoted to the next grade. It was almost impossible to fail. In the 6 years that I spent in that school I don’t ever remember going and checking the promotion list.

Once the summer holidays starts there was no holding back. It was just fun and more fun for the next two month. It was also a time for visits and stay at my mums and her sister’s house. These home stays always ended in movies and dining out. Of course it was also the Mango season. We woke up to the smell of mangoes. Mum would have gone and picked up basketful of Mangoes.

We had lots of mango trees…..Neelum, Mulgova,Sungari,Thenmavi,Komanga, Nattumanga,Muvandan and Prior (the best of best). We used to run from one mango tree to other collecting fresh mangoes that would keep falling all day. It was like a mango shower. We also had lots of pazhamanga curry (my favorite and my mum makes it best), fish and mango combinations and of course raw mangoes were eaten with salt and chilli powder. It was the best of times.... underneath the Mango trees.

Big Sur

2007-02-03T13:31:00.000-08:00

This does look like magic.. Would like to visit someday.

heart broken..

2007-02-02T08:48:00.000-08:00

Even a Cell has a heart!!

I would love to walk..

2007-02-02T06:52:00.000-08:00

My geography of Bay Area is really poor. Not that I am good in geography otherwise. But I regret that after living in Bay area for more than two years I still haven't seen most places both near and far. These days when I hear about any City in Bay area or California I try to check it out in the Map. Incidentally I learned about Lake Elizabeth in Fremont. Quite Picturesque (Yes , I have seen only the pictures but I would love to walk around the lake one day with a bunch of flowers in my hand.. ) talk about wishes..

Wishes are meant for you to ponder, they pass along to someone in need, or can be kept all to ourselves. Wishes are sincere in belief that all our hopes and dreams are within reach. ..Melissa in Poetry America.

The pain..

2007-01-31T18:28:00.000-08:00

A mighty pain to love it is,
And 'tis a pain that pain to miss;
But of all pains, the greatest pain
It is to love, but love in vain."

Abraham Cowley

Search Mash

2007-01-25T14:46:00.000-08:00

Read about Search Mash in Wall street Journal. Google uses this site to test its search features. You can get results for Blogs,Images, Wiki and Videos in the same page. Pretty cool.. try it out..

Cingular - AT & T

2007-01-17T19:01:00.000-08:00

The connection..

2006-11-06T17:13:00.000-08:00

Some links are never broken like the one you have with the place you grew up. But how do you connect with a place when you are so far away. My answer to that has been Kerala Blog roll. What ever I need to know whether on the latest movie reviews to what is happening in Kerala politics I track it here and I know I am in touch with the latest. I hardly have 30 posts in here but I visit my blog everyday to link myself to Kerala Blog roll. Some things just grow on you..

Halloween Fun

2006-11-01T09:02:00.000-08:00

This was our second Halloween in US. Our pumkin carving skills have surely got better. Except that I carved the mouth a wee little bit low, it came out fine. This year we also had the right candle to light inside the Pumkin. I used an old black skirt over the unused winerack and some cobwebs and 3 plastic spiders to keep our pumkin outside our door. My son had this idea of hiding his smoke/fog machine under the winerack . He pasted a small note saying "Press me if you dare" on the remote and made all the kids press it and surprised them with the blue smoke/fog. Our visitors - Fairies, Pirates , Ninjas , Goblins, Zorros, Spiderman and Batwoman all were taken aback at the blue smoke/fog coming from under the dark hood. My son also went trick or treating and had a great time. Next year he wants the fog to come out from the Pumkin. Oh oh..Did I just give away his secret !

Balanced Creation

2006-10-31T09:37:00.000-08:00

A mail forward from a friend

God was in the process of creating the Universe. And he was explaining to his subordinates. ........

"Look everything should be in balance".

For example, after every 10 deer there should be a lion.

Look here my fellow angels; here is the country of the United States.

I have blessed them with prosperity and money. But at the same time, I have given them insecurity and tension....

And here is Africa. I have given them beautiful nature. But at the same time, I have given them climatic extremes....

And here is South America. I have given them lots of forests. But at the same time, I have given them lesser land so that they would have to cut off the forests...

So you see fellows, everything should be in balance.

One of the angels asked... "God, what is this extremely beautiful Country here?"

God said......." Ahah...that is the crown piece of all, INDIA.

My most precious creation! It has understanding and friendly people. Sparkling streams, serene Mountains.

A culture, which speaks of the great tradition that they live. Technologically brilliant and with a heart of gold....."

The angel was quite surprised "But God you said everything should be in balance."

God replied - "Look at the neighbors I gave them........ "

My First 5K

2006-10-30T10:11:00.000-08:00

I ran my first 5K race yesterday at the Silicon Valley Marathon 2006 (http://www.svmarathon.org/). My son also ran the race with me and we both finished the race in just under 40 minutes. My better half as usual did better and ran a halfmarathon. The lesson I learned after the race was - Never touch the free energy bars offered after completion of race- stick on to the fruits they give. I was so tired after the race, I ate two of the energy bars/granola bars and got some kind of allergic rash on both my cheeks. It looked like I fell over a rouge stick.Those bars had so many different kind of grains and nuts and fruits in it I still have no clue what ingredient caused it. But it just made me so sick and my stomach was all cramped up for the rest of the day. Still I was quite happy at completing my race.. Who knows one day I just might run a Marathon...

I am outdated

2006-10-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

My son - Can you borrow me more books on Animorphs from the library?

Me - A what?

My son -It’s this story about children who grow tails and hair and sharp ears like a mouse... or wings and beaks like an eagle …

Me- Isn’t that creepy? Why do you want to read about kids turning into animals?

My son – You don’t understand do you? Animorphs saves the planet..

Me in my mind – (Yes, Animorphs saves the planet but who will save you from them? )

My Son – How come you never read these stories as a kid? You have never read "Visser" or "Elimist" have you?

Me – Nope; But I have read "Tom Sawyer" and "Huckleberry Finn"

My Son – Yeah, you borrowed that from the library for me . But you know what... That is just not cool…. You should have borrowed the “Andalite Chronicles” or better still the “The Hork Bajir Chronicles” instead

Me- What is so great about these animorphs anyway?

My son- You need to know more about the Superstring theory to understand that, also you need to understand Live Memory Transfer protocol and the Andalite Harmonic Theory

Me – Why not read some books that has normal human beings in it?

My Son – Not only do you dress funny.. You’re so not cool…

Me – I give up... I am so very outdated...

A day in the life of a H4 Visa holder

2006-10-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

6.30 am - Do a Google search on legal immigration and find 20 new articles for and against illegal immigration pop up and none on legal immigration.

7.30 am - Log into immigrationvoice.org and check on BREAKING NEWS

8.30 am - Log into Murthy.com and read Latest Rumors on immigration

9.30 am - Log back into immigrationvoice.org - enjoy the fights, give risk free advice..feel good that you are better that someone who filed in 1998 is still stuck with FBI name check

10.30 am - Log into Monster.com, Dice.com, careerbuilder.com and renew your resume for the nth time, make some cosmetic changes. Check your job agents and apply wherever they don’t mention Visa status.

11.30 am - Log back into immigrationvoice.org and see if there is any new development in the last five minutes that would allow H4's to work.

12.00 Noon - Tell the recruiter who called you that you are not a software engineer, no way... you faint on seeing math problems. And no your hubby cannot change jobs; he is retrogressed ...whatever that means...

1.30 pm - Log back into murthy.com forum and read on the latest woes of the immigrant community. Dispense some free advice again.

2.30 pm - Look for employers who could sponsor an H1B visa for you... a non tech person... wonder how your resume will look after such a long break away from work...rework on your resume...

3.30 pm - Call your hubby at work and remind him to talk to the immigration attorney.

4.30 pm - Hubby calls back and tells that you need to keep ready one more set of documents just in case something moves. So go drag out the heavy document folder and make sure everything is in order.

5.30 pm - Tell the recruiter who called you...No you are not a SAP person, somewhere in the resume probably there are three English alphabets S and A and P.

6.30 pm - Do a new Google search on H4 Visa's allowed to work... SKILL bill getting introduced..., Lame Duck Session.., Legal Immigration Support... Visa Numbers magically increased overnight... BEC is working faster. Retrogression has disappeared...

7.30 pm - Call your H4 friend and compare notes...

8.30 pm - Log back into Murthy.com and read new updates on how BEC's are working and how murthy is happy on things moving faster on immigration and profits

9.30 pm- Check out few more web sites rajivkhanna, immigration law, AILA, anything remotely connected to immigration and read all predictions for the next 12 years.

10.30 pm - Read about immigrating to Canada, Netherlands, Australia, find out how those who returned to India are doing

11.30 pm- Send a mail to your young cousin working in a top IT firm in India not to come to US on an H1B visa without being assured of her green card

11.31 pm - Log back into immgirationvoice.org to see if there is any BREAKING NEWS
Since you do not find anything else interesting to read there give your prediction for the Visa Bulletin - October 2009

11:32 pm - Think seriously about changing your career from Human resource preofessional to Immigration law Adviser once you get your EAD.

Life is beautiful...

Wounds

2006-09-21T09:28:00.000-07:00

It has been said, 'time heals all wounds.' I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, (protecting its sanity), covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But, it is never gone.... Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy

I am not sure why this quote came to my mind today!! But I thought let me post it.

Housing Boycott

2006-06-20T19:38:00.000-07:00

Boycotthousing.com

A website to visit for all those who wonder if they would ever be able to afford a house here in bayarea.

Whether you currently own a house or rent you can add some laughter into your life..checkout the house of the day link on the website..

Of Goosebumps, Captain Underpants, Aliens and Potter

2006-04-19T09:04:00.000-07:00

The Favorite books of my childhood were Famous Five, Secret Seven and Hardy Boys. I loved being part of their adventures and secret meetings which involved fresh lemonade and freshly baked cookies and ginger biscuits while they tried to catch the bad guys with the help of their pet dogs and friendly neighborhood police. Enid Blyton was a favorite and I loved reading Malory Towers. I yearned to study in a school where so much seems to happen all the time and wished for friends who were fun, adventurous and brave like Sally and Darrel. Of course as most schools in India go we didn’t have a proper library and the exposure to books and the world outside were limited.

Now my son is going through the phase of reading adventure stories. For him the favorite books are Harry Potter Series, Captain Underpants, and Goosebumps and of course anything involving aliens and outerspace.He also loves monsters and has read Hobbit. What would the next generation love to read?

I love Bangalore..

2006-04-18T10:34:00.000-07:00

I lived for almost 10 years in Bangalore and kind of grew with the city. I saw it go through the software boom, the cautious years during the bust and the outsourcing opportunities that followed in almost every field making it a haven for ambitious youngsters. I loved the city; it gave me opportunity to grow my career. I loved the freedom that it gave to young and old. Only time I griped was when violence marred the otherwise wonderful place during 1994 and again during the kidnapping incident in 2000. Last few days reading the reports on the violence that rocked the city with Kannada film Star Rajkumars passing away I was relieved that I did not have to encounter it again. It brought back memories of riding through the city on my Kinetic Honda with tires burning all-around and mobs yelling and screaming.What makes people behave so irrationally when such tragedies strike? Can sanity prevail and can people prevent themselves from being used as pawns by antisocial elements?

Kunjunni Master -The little big man of Malayalam literature

2006-03-30T07:34:00.000-08:00

I was fortunate to meet Kunjunni master thrice-in middle school, during my pre-university and later while doing my masters.He read his poems with us, talked to us about reading habits and wrote "pokkamillayama aanenthe pookam" in my autograph. His book "Namboothiri Phalithangal" if I remember correctly was a prescribed reading for Calicut University students although this was before I entered college. My brother and I managed to get the book and we memorized all the verses.I still remember

" Oru theepatti kolli tharu,
Oru beedi tharu,
Oru chundu tharu,
Nan orru beedi valichu rasikattey"

His kavithas were short, full of humor and memorable.He will be missed by all malayalis young and old.

On the zimmply mallu

2006-03-21T09:44:00.000-08:00

Kerala is not Zimmbly Karela

Purple flowers, Parle biscuits and Sundari mango

2006-03-08T13:17:00.000-08:00

She lived in the big house with the old door that creaked so bad it disturbed the afternoon siesta of people living five house from theirs. The hideous concrete fence around her house was lined with mango and coconut trees and pepper vines. During the summer the mangoes were ready for picking and tasted like heaven. Sundari Mango had the most beautiful fruit and blushing cheeks like a bride and till you bit into it you never knew how sour it was. Even the wayward kids from the neighborhood, who had nothing to do but stone every Mango tree on that lane, spared Suandari. The garden had a small creeper with purple flowers and yellow berries. Its fragrance always reminding her of Parle biscuits inside the yellow and red wrapper that her dad got from the corner shop. Nobody cared for the creeper except the little girl.But they grew wild and fast just like her. While her mother tended to the bright red roses and father trimmed the bougainvilleas she walked around the small garden smelling the purple flowers.Yesterday I met the little girl,she was still searching for that fragrance sorting through Nina Ricci, Chanel and D&G

My Personal DNA

2006-03-06T09:30:00.000-08:00

If you would like to know more about yourself get a personal DNA report. It is fun to do this assessment and the interface is very user friendly. My report reveals that I am a benevolent leader.If only I had followers :)

Benevolent Leader

What Tarot Card Are You?

2006-03-06T09:01:00.000-08:00

You Are The Chariot

You represent a difficult battle, and a well-deserved victory.
You tend to struggle to get what you want, both internally and externally.
You excel at controlling opposing forces, getting down the same path.
In the end, you bring glory and success - using pure will to move forward.

Your fortune:

There is great conflict in your life right now, either with yourself or others.
You must find a solution to this conflict, which is likely to be a "middle road" between the two forces.
You posses the skills to triumph over these struggles, as long as your will is strong.
You are transforming your inner self, building a better foundation for future successes.

For answers like this and more check out the link below

What Tarot Card Are You?

Rotten Tomatoes

2006-03-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

For all movie lovers an excellent site to find certified fresh movies - tomatometer at Rotten Tomatoes.

What's in a name?

2006-03-04T17:41:00.000-08:00

"That which we call a rose
by anyother name would smell as sweet." William Shakespeare

If you are looking to change your name or searching for a baby name , it would do good to read Harvard Scholar and economist Steven D Levitt. In his book Freakonomics he studies the riddles of life and come up with some freaky answers. A book that you just cannot miss and makes great reading.

Shashi Tharoor

2006-03-01T19:33:00.000-08:00

Stumbled up on the official website of Shashi Tharoor today. Riots is his only book that I have read ..It is a sensitive story and a brave one- a topic many writers many not want to broach.

Sad loss for the Malayalam Literary world

2006-02-25T09:54:00.000-08:00

Prof. Guptan Nair

M Krishnan Nair

One of the best literary critics and who opened the doors of world literature to Malayalees M.Krishnan Nair passed away. His sharp and sometimes acerbic tongue that used to enliven the malayalam literary world would be greatly missed. This comes just around a week after another eminent Malayalam literary critic and educationist Prof. Guptan Nair's death. As I remember their writings in Bashaposhini and Kalakaumudhi and host of other Malayalam Magazines, Prof.Guptan Nair was through, sensitive and infused depth into his work while M Krishnan Nair was more popular with his pungent comments and used precision and brevity in his almost addictive colums. Indeed a great loss to the Malayalam Literary world.

Oru Desattinte Katha (Story of a Village)

2006-02-13T10:07:00.000-08:00

Some books stay with you for a very long time . Oru desanttinte Katha which was written by S.K Pottekatt for which he was honored with Jnanapith Award is one such book. I can still recall the feelings that I experienced when I read his book in my middle school years. I went on to read his travelogues and short stories.It opened me up to the malayalam literary world and its other great writers. Intrestingly Eighteen years before he won India's highest literary award, Shankaran Kutty Pottekkatt won the Cannanore seat in Kerala in 1962.

"Dogs Own Country?" - A Blog On Kerala

2006-02-10T12:35:00.000-08:00

"Dogs Own Country?" - A Blog On Kerala

Arundathi Roys Writing

2006-02-09T13:08:00.000-08:00

Last two days I have been reading Roys book " An Ordinary person's guide to empire" .
Quite compelling read- although there are lots of overlaps in the topics . This is her second book that I am reading, the first one ofcourse being " The God of small things" I feel connected to Roys writing more so because I hail from the same state as she does and understands her anguish and reasoning. I wonder if she would ever get her true place in the literary world. Her strong words on a range of topics is sure to irritate and alienate a lot of people. Would she ever write another fiction? I wish she would - she got that rare gift for writing ( rather the words seems to just flow ..) which eludes most.

Onam Greetings

2005-09-15T09:56:00.000-07:00

Try these links to send your loved ones Onam Greetings

Happy Onam

2005-09-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

Onam is the festival all malayalis celebrate in the month of Chingam as per malayalam calendar. Onam generates nostalgia and happiness in the minds of all malayalis. Let me wish all malayalis all over the world a Happy Onam

Birds on the lawn

2005-07-30T06:28:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Monsoon Magic

2005-07-29T11:50:00.000-07:00

I was born in Kerala- Gods Own Country with its copious rains and hot summers. The magic of those days is what inspired me to name this Blog -Monsoon-Magic. Now miles away from Kerala in the hot summer of California I still cherish those magical days of rain drops falling on my head and the smell of sweet manoges during the summer holidays. This blog has no theme, its my families little space on the web and hopefully it will evolve on its own in the days to come.