#NotesToSelf

: Be completely independent and then be completely reckless.

:  Look for positives in people, unless they're competing directly with you. J

: Make Health, Convenience and Good Life your priority.
: Be grateful and gracious, as far as possible.
: Don't think about people's intentions when they're dealing with you. Instead, focus on your intentions while dealing with people.

:  Never be afraid of what people might think cuz being afraid is mediocre.

: From time-to-time, take a step back and look at the big picture. Get a perspective.

: When something starts disturbing you, explore new stuff!

: Hold onto your ideas (unless you think they're extremely stupid); There's only so much risk that one lives to take, anyway!

: Do or say little, but do or say it right.

: Value yourself and ensure to communicate it to others.

: Ensure to smell good, all the time. J

: Humor is important. Humor > Sarcasm.

: Never give out your opinion unless you're paid to do so or it directly affects you. J
: Let only your actions do the talking.

: When in doubt, keep a low profile.

Com-part-mental-izing

How good are you at compartmentalizing? (According to Thesaurus: Compartmentalization is the act of distributing things into classes or categories of the same type)

We all compartmentalize, by default. We do it to avoid too many conflicting values, disparate lives, mental discomfort or our reality, temporarily. We live several lives, in compartments - like panels in a cartoon strip.

How we start our day, who we meet and how we traveled to where we are - they are all markers, ways we space things out. Walking into our home or the office or the lover's pad are physical acts that change our psyche. As soon as we walk into a conference room, for example, we change! As soon as we walk out of it, we change again! Some, struggle to keep office affairs from personal affairs. Some, successfully create parallel lives for 'emselves and live 'em well while they last.

I'm at the tipping point of all my successfully acquired parallel lives, living one moment at a time. All of this has a shelf life, an evolution, I know. How I feel about each, changes from time to time. But what really matters is that the Memories are etched, and they shall remain irrespective of which of the lives they belong to.

Franz Kafka

You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait, be quiet, still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet. - Franz Kafka

Did you ever try to grab and feel the essence of the world?
Go and grab any part of the world that your hands can reach. Then be totally still, close your eyes, don´t move. After some time you will feel the essence of what you touched.  – My version

My New High!

I’m not much of a music freak as much as I’m a chic-flicks-freak. But then, there are many songs that are 'my songs' at different points in time. This one is my current mood-uplifter:

The song is in Afro-Portuguese and is sung by a Portuguese singer - Sara Tavares. Two words for Her: Pura Vida. And one message for You:  Um só povo, um so coracâo, one love :D (One people, one heart, one love)

The King’s Speech

I Love watching movies (Romcoms, chic flicks, animated, sci-fi, comedy, horror et al except war-related, depressing, family drama & dark ones) and there is always something that I take back home. The King’s Speech was one such movie. It is totally worthy of its wide acclaim.

The movie is filled with useful reminders of struggles one can face to communicate clearly. At first, many presenters struggle to get their words out. I had my moments too :P. But then, over time I realized that you’re only as good as you perceive yourself to be.

The movie reinforced that there’s no substitute for hard work. You have to roll up your sleeves & put in the hours to get where you want to be. And accepting that there is a problem and you need help is the first step closer to finding its solution. 

The therapist’s role re-affirmed my belief that it is experience & not academic credentials that makes you a pro (Now I don't regret not taking up MBA last year inspite of the good-enough score).

Above all, 'Broadcast a true version of yourself' is the biggest lesson to be learnt from the movie. King George VI was loved by his people because his imperfections made him a hero. His stammer humanized him.

Do You Know What I Love?

I Love Shopping :D

I Love Burberry.

I Love strawberry lip balm that makes my lips feel deliciously fruity.

I Love Sleeping.

A good hair day. Definitely Love a good hair day. I Love my midnight thinking sessions.

I Love watching Chic Flicks. I Love the way Audrey Hepburn looked in her movies.

I Love elephantine fluffy colored cushions strewn across a dark, oak-wood floor.

I Love walls whitewashed in reckless perfection.

I Love a fleeting moment captured on a Polaroid photograph with an illegible caption in black ink scrawled across.

I Love snuggling into my happy, patchwork, thick quilt that hides me in a distant world of my own.

I Love Ice-Cream. I Love freedom. I Love long stretches of green land.

I Love the intoxicating reek of petrol especially while tanking up on a road trip.

I Love my friends.  I Love my F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

Reruns of my favorite shows on the weekends.

I Love the idea of sinking into a gigantic bean bag with a book in my hand and not a thought in my head.

I Love relating to awesome songs for different situations.

The crimson flush on my face after a long walk and a cold shower.

I Love the tingling ache in my tummy after an uncontrollable laugh.

A whiff of freshly brewed coffee. I Love making froth moustaches.

I Love peppermint breath.

I Love writing messages to myself from the steam of a hot bath.

I Love bubble bath.

The unburdening of sorrows and confessions to a friend who listens, not judges.

I Love great conversations. I Love a perfect start to the day.

A firm yet friendly first handshake.

A huge, lung-squeezing, rib-cracking bear hug from a friend I meet after eons.

I Love quirky TXTs that are typed with thought not indifference.

I Love digging my toes deep into cold, wet sand while azure waves splash gently at my feet.

I Love beaches. I Love mountains.

Lying on a hammock strung between two shady palms in a cozy beach cove.

I Love thinking about everything I Love and explicitly describing it to people who may or may not give a damn..! :-)

Some Messages

@Home - You’re my happy place.

@Mom & Dad - You’re my first love :D Stop being extra protective!!

@Jiju - You’re the best thing to have happened to me.

@Sis - I like you now :P

@My neighbours & some relatives - Get a life – your own, not mine.

@My girlfriends – Stop being busy! Stop asking for permission!

@My male friends - I like you as much as my girlfriends. I wish I was allowed night-outs like you do :(

@Some girls - Stop being insecure, stop prying, stop playing dirty!

@Some guys - It is not time ;)

@God - It IS time!

@Yoga - I miss you. I will do you soon.

@Sleep - I miss you. Get back.

@Vodafone - I do pay my bills on time, stop sending me reminders!

@Airtel - Speed up!!

@90 % of the Indian women who drive - Stop it!

@Rickshaw-walas & Cabbies - Stop the menace, you outcasts.

@Aunties in train - No! I won’t give you my seat! No! I'm not thin, I won't fit in!

@People who litter & spit at public places – I just slapped you in my mind.

@Eve-teasers - I know Karate, and I know where it hurts!!

@School kids - Stop using mobile phones. Stop swearing. Stop being street smart. Stop being so grownup.

@SRK - You’re Old. Give up. Please.

@Karan Johar - Come Out.

@Rakhi Sawant - Please Don’t.

@BigBoss - Shut Up!

@Viggo Mortensen - Marry me.

@Taylor Lautner - Marry me.

@Ashton Kutcher - Marry me.

@Everyone - Let me be.