Sick leave, Mission 'Clean it' and Mee Radhika

1. I am not really ill, but don't feel up to going to work either, so I stay at home. I haven't been able to sleep well at night, so I sleep in late. I have a lazy day.
2. Because I am at home, I can get some cleaning and scubbing done from the maid. She's probably not too happy to see me home on a weekday, meddling in her work.
3. A contestant on Zee Marathi's Sa Re Ga Ma Pa sings Aarti Ankalikar's Mee Radhika. Its a marvellous song, which I have had the fortune of hearing live from Aarti Ankalikar herself at the Sawai Gandharva Music Festival, and she does justice to it. Once again I am reminded that I need to find an mp3 version of the full song for the iPod.

Home delivered health, Third Girl, Twist in the tale

1. The wheatgrass juice was delivered in neat little pouches early in the morning. It was nice and fresh and I'm looking forward to it every morning now for a few days, before we change the order to some other healthy vegetable juice.
2. Staying up with droopy eyes just to finish the book and find out who the murderer is. I just wrapped up Agatha Christie's 'Third Girl'. It was one I hadn't read before and was satisfying in a way that only a good Poirot mystery can be.
3. S told me yesterday that he'd written himself into a hole and was stuck in the story much earlier than he had thought he would be. Today he tells me that he's written himself out of the hole and is super excited about the turn his book has taken. I must of course wait
   for a week or maybe more before I find out what really is going on and in the meanwhile, get along quicker with the editing.

Breakfast, bonus time and touch my toes

1. Natasha makes lovely tea every morning. Oh, and today there's oatmeal porridge too.
2. Discovering that I don't really need to attend that two hour meeting. Bliss!
3. After half an hour of aerobics, I'm flexible enough to touch my toes.

Old-new, no need to choose and unexpected

1. The seating arrangement at work has been reorganised across the floor for some 400 people. The machines were shifted to new work locations over the weekend. There's plenty of chaos in the morning - people are hurrying about, connecting their PCs, unpacking boxes, putting up their charts and posters and arranging their desks... and occassionally also forgetting to go to their new locations, and turning up at their old desks, only to find someone new already occupying their seats.
2. The aerobics class got shifted to Tuesdays and Thursdays instead of the original Mondays and Wednesdays. I no longer have to choose between attending the Yoga class and aerobics.
3. An old friend from junior college suddenly calls to say he's in Pune, and would like to meet if I'm free. I get late at work, and he gets late too, so we end up meeting at 10 p.m., but I'm glad we do. He's pleasant company and it's fun catching up and getting news from Nagpur. He's a father now and shows pictures of this little daughter with evident pride.

Sun salutations, chai tales and the nanny

1. Finally getting the hang of the Surya Namaskar. Its a yogasana combining 12 steps and exercises most major muscles. I still can't do it perfectly, but I atleast know what I need to do better and how. The last time I did it, I had no clue what came when!
2. No tea spewed out by any vending machine can ever match up to real chai - not even the tetley tea bag dipped thick milk whitener added tea... Tea powder should be boiled, preferrably with the milk and sugar added, and with some ginger (some people like to add cardamom too, but I don't like it that much). That's the perfect chai... the caterers at work have started serving chai in the afternoon at tea time, and though its a little too sweet for me, I still prefer it to the vending machine tea.
3. Watching 'The Nanny'. I especially like the way the outrageous nanny laughs.

Neat and tidy, towards better health and prankster

My internet connection is playing the traunt, hence the irregular posting. I hope to be back online soon!

1. I come home to find the house in neat order and the dinner cooked. The rose plant has also been watered. The maid's back! Yay!
2. Even though its too late to go to the gym by the time I'm done in the evening, I still find the time to come home and do some yogasanas.
3. Tanmoy calls me up very gleefully to tell me about a prank that he's played on Shreerang. "Its going to drive him crazy!" I'm told with much delight.

For Addy, coffee with the breeze and hard work

1. After many days, I catch Aaoge Jab Tum on radio... And instantly, I think of Addy. She had been asking me about my favourite contemporary hindi music, and I had somehow missed this one. So Addy, this one's for you. About the song... well, just listen to it!
2. Dipti and I carry our coffee mugs outside to the portico, for the afternoon break. Its a cloudy day with a gentle breeze, and we are both so pleased to be out in the open that we laugh easily, forgetting the closed office and the heap loads of work.
3. When I check my watch, I find that the yoga session has actually lasted less than the alloted hour, but I'm feeling as if I've been through one gruelling length of time. Its hard work!

Breathing space, effectiveness and welcome

1. After many days of high pressure work, its a relatively easy day. I can relax and take breaks without feeling guilty.
2. I do pranayam at the evening yoga classes being held at work. There's a tingling sensation on my face when I finish the breathing exercises.
3. I drop in at Kaka's place unannounced, but they won't let me go without dinner. Its such a relief not to have to worry about arranging for dinner that I accept immediately...