housekeeping matters

I think I should finally get around to writing a 'how to' book for ' managing household help in India' and I wish there was a 'how to' book for ' dealing with a husband who works from home when you are home too'

The wogma lady......

When I first asked her if I could do a post on her..

"Would you mind "

*grin*..."no"

"I won't mention your name"

*shrug*... "ok even if you do, we have accepted the fact that there can be little privacy in a blogger's life"

So here goes...

I first saw a glimpse of her bespectacled face behind a closing door of the 5th floor apartment where she first lived when she and her husband moved to Pune, about 10 years ago. Did'nt seem particularly friendly.

I had moved to the city recently too, and lived in the same building on the 6th floor, right above her apartment. I don't remember how we first met and how we became friends.. but we did. I had taken a break from work to look after my 1 year old and she was still figuring out what to do with her life and her 5 degrees (as in academic), each more difficult to acquire than the other. By the time we got around to doing mid morning tea and gup shup sessions in the middle of the day, she was done with her tryst with corporate life, declaring ' corporate life is not my cup of tea' one evening.

And so life moved on....I saw her through her settling woes in India, buying her first house, the birth of her son, then daughter (I was in the hospital for both), her involvement with a NGO and many more such milestones in her life.

We often talked about what we would like to do with our lives, our kids, our household help, our families, our marriages and the like. We shared a passion for films, even then. Though we have now evolved, in our own ways.

And then we (my husband and I ) bought our own apartment and moved from the building leaving behind some great friends and memories. We kind of drifted apart and began to meet less frequently....

Today, she is living my dream, she is a film critic. She had finally found her groove. Has a very successful blog, has had a blast doing the film appreciation course at FTII, Pune and is really living it up. When I meet her these days... it's a delight. She has made her choice.. of being the way she is .. carefree (well relatively, she is still a proud mother to her two kids and takes her job as a film critic very seriously), full of beans; a newly acquired and trendy dressing style; making friends with whoever she finds interesting enough to tolerate... caste, creed, age,sex.... no bar; but still very confident, value driven and down to earth.... her scintillating intelligence sitting lightly on her petite frame...... a far cry from a young mother who attended pre-natal classes with the same deligence as she did her CA classes, who cried in the hospital when she realised she was'nt the first to hold her baby, a daughter in law who struggled to please all ......

Today, I find myself rooting for her every little success in her career, just the way she would rooted for me, if this would have been my life. And she sends me free passes for the local film festival. When we meet,we usually chat the whole night... Thanks to facebook, we usually know what is going on in each other's lives. Maybe social networking does have it's advantages.

and hey... if you are reading this M...I still believe in stereotypes but I don't think I can ever find one for you :). You are one of a kind....

the last one week..

have been in and out of PIFF. Probably the first time I have used the free pass sent to me by my good friend effectively.

Tally this year...

7 days, 15 brilliant films for free!

PIFF: Pune international film festival. Disorganized, with hapazard schedules coming out at the last moment, movies scattered around in 5 different multiplexes, devoid of celebrity presence one sees in other film festivals, but full theatres. Collection of movies... impressive.

2010 and how we ended it ....

So new years eve was small and intimate. This time, without anybody I felt compelled to have a conversation with, (and if you know me well, I am not the kinds who finds having a conversation with ANYONE that difficult, but there have been people and there have been moments....), thankfully. A small group of friends, a bornfire and some great food and wine at a friend's place, so did'nt start the new year spending half the night in the kitchen cleaning up and not entirely sober, for once. (In India, guests don't help in cleaning up, including close friends because of cheaply available help)

Some events that shook my world a little this year:

1. A's medical procedure

2. Realization of how much A and I meant to each other (as a result)

3. Being unemployed for most of the year.

4. Realising I didn't have a back-up plan in case my current plan of going back to work did'nt come through.

5. Finally finding a live-in maid who looks like she means business and most importantly is here to stay. (In India, that's passport to freedom)

6. Finally agreed on refurbishing plans and got most of it done by year end. (I am one of those women who takes joy and pride in her home )

7. For the first time in my life possessed a small car and discovered the joys of doing so.

8. For the first time, learnt to laugh at myself and felt good doing it!

9. Had a blast with my sister for about a week who counselled me on taking myself a little more seriously than I did.

10. Exercised without a major break for almost 9 months (If only I could diet that long too, would have dropped 3 sizes instead of just one!)

11. Learned the joys of internet shopping.

12.Learnt the importance of insurance policies and actually managed to have claims paid substantially.

13. Organising paperwork and taking a closer look at finances.

14. Learnt to manage money better.

15. Finally got parents-in-laws to agree to move closer to us.

here's looking forward to another eventful year.....

The Back-Up plan

In case, I am proven to be the world's biggest idiot.. and not the die hard optimist I always prided myself to be; I need to think of a back-up plan. and fast....