lovelessworld’s blog

• This nagging problem about my son’s long uvula:
  Uvula is the fleshy hanging thingy that is present in the roof of the
  mouth at the back of the tongue. Suddenly, i see that it is elongated,
  that it almost touches his tongue!!! Woah! It just freaks me out!
  I quickly google it and find the actual word for this fleshy thingy
  (uvula) and why this happens. I couldnt find any child-specific reason.
  So, i try with my neighbour aunty who always has some ancient herbal or
  ayurvedic or just a good diet advice up her sleeve that usually solves
  the problem. Though she did say ullikai paste with honey was good for
  this, i had no clue what ullikai was or where to get hold of it from.
  Anyway, i go to the dr to find out that is probably happens due to cold.
  Plenty of warm water and gargling with salt and water. Great!
• 35% of the Hindi spams are generated in India and India ranks 6th in generating malicious code!
  I have been getting these emails in my inbox, which have announced that
  me, my car, my email address and much more have been selected to win
  huge amounts in pounds, dollars and Rupees  from the royalty in England,
  some Nigerian official, BMW, Yahoo, Microsoft and many more… Some
  mails even come from my friends’ inbox saying that they urgently need
  money as they are stranded without a passport in some weird city in
  England… Pity, i have to mark it as spam not reply to claim my prize
  in dollars or pounds or Rupees….
• Mystery of the yellow cup:
  I wanted to pet a cat as there seems to be a huge rat in my garden. I
  leave a cup of milk that the cat cleaned it up the other day. Yesterday,
  i leave a yellow cup filled with milk in anticipation of the cat
  returning so that it will keep the rat at bay. Today, the yellow cup is
  missing… I am sure the cat was interested in only the milk… in
  whatever cup. Is the rat upto no good by removing my yellow cup so that
  the cat wont return?

I am a homemaker. Am i successful? Can i be successful? Can a home maker ever be successful?

It was a question that popped onto my head one day.

Does success mean being involved whole-heartedly, with the working of an organization? Are you successful only if you have a good job?
I have never set foot in an institution- inspite of getting some offers- with the intention of working at that place. But i am at my Home, making sure my husband dear gets to one on time, works his butt off all through the day (and night), feeds himself properly with nutritious food, and is dressed appropriately. I do take the responsibility though, to send the kids off to school, properly groomed and attired. I still work, not only from 9 to 6, keeping my home clean and ready for the rampage that i very well know is happening tomorrow. I do work with great sincerity and respect because i am doing everything for my family. For their well-being, to make their lives happy and easy.

Does success mean making a lot of money?
I dont get paid for the amount of work i put in. Although i do get those rare little hugs and kisses and those thankyou-for-getting-me-out-of-desperate-situation looks. I do get those warm calls and festivity invtiations from friends and family who appreciate the support and attention showered on them. I get free know-hows and how-i-did-it lectures from well-meaning neighbours which end up being great practical advice than the professional store-bought solutions.

Does success mean having more than 100 friends on your Facebook?
I have but very few friends, who unfortunately have yet to discover their facebooks. But i am never short of a friend when i want my kids to be picked up from school, looked after because i am stuck in traffic, or even food when i am at home sick and even to give serious advice, scoldings and consolation on any subject under the sun.

Does being successful mean all work and no-play? Does success mean no time for other things?
I do have a tight schedule in the mornings. But, later in the day, i get todo what i like to do. Read books, just walk in the garden, get on the internet and lose myself in the world wide web. Doing what i like todo makes me feel so good, that it recharges me for yet another day. Just keeps me happy.

Does being successful mean not losing focus?
I am focused on so many things on one particular day that it all seems so vague. I juggle so many different things at one particular instant that i dont feel like i am doing anything properly at that point. But, at the end of the day, i somehow manage to bring all the horses back home, safe and sound.

Doesnt successful mean accomplishing something?
I like to think that i accomplish something everyday- Healthy food, clean home, friendly neighbours, goodwill with the extended family and friends. This might not compare great against people who sign up trade agreements with the US or create multi-storeyed buildings for a living. But keeps the husband relaxed and lets the kids be kids.

Doesnt being successful mean being sure of yourself and have high confidence levels?
Then, i am not. According to a lot of spiritual teachers, we just have to do our duty that has been assigned to us properly and whole heartedly in this life. I do the duty of a homemaker whole heartedly but cant help feeling that is this why i was born? Just to be a  homemaker? i am surely capable of much much more? Then why do i find blockades to every little path i follow? Or am i not trying hard enough? Or am i just being lazy?

My favorite Michael, who didnt (surprisingly)  make it to the top 3 pages of a google search is Michael Crichton. (But i didnt expect to see the Michaels’ store top the list over Michael Jackson) My favorite MC book is Disclosure. But enjoyed reading almost all of his books. And watched almost all of the movies that were made from his books.

• If not for him, the world would not have had a Jurassic Park or the The Lost World. And Spielberg would have been a few millions short.
•  The totally rivetting and cut throat world of the corporates in Disclosure. If not for him, we wouldnt have got to see the scintillating Demi Moore seduce Michael Douglas…
•  The legendary The Great Train Robbery, where we go through the intricate process of planning for the robbery and the where the villain is heroic.
• The nanotechnology details and interesting development in the Prey.
• Peek into the serene but dangerous world of the Japanese corporation in The Rising Sun with Sean Connery and Wesley Snipes. 
• Explore the jungles of Congo for King Solomon’s treasure and come face to face with the killer gorillas aided only by the sign-language-speaking gorilla.
• Ponder upon life and its origin in the Sphere.
• Enter into the world of virus and the devastating nature of those microns in the Andromeda Strain.
• Examine the intricacies of the airplane in Airframe.
• The Eaters of the dead (The 13th warrior), Five Patients and The Terminal Man, Timeline. 

Each of his book is different from the other, well researched, interesting, cant-be-put-down and bestsellers. It was kind of sad to lose a man (Michael Crichton passed away on Nov 6th due to lung cancer) who created such wonders with his imagination and the 26 letters of the English language. But, i guess he has attained immortality through his books and will remain in the hearts of his admirers forever!

Have you ever been to Madurai, The Temple City? Madurai is a hot city now. Both in temperature and in the IT market. It has been rated the 12th growing IT spot in the country. Madurai”s world famous Meenakshi Amman Temple was vying for a spot in the 7 wonders of the modern world. The Chithrai street just around the temple has been tiled and prohibits vehicle traffic. Madurai”s airport is also going to be upgraded into a world class facility, already sanctioned with 1.5 billion rupees. The Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai is thankfully being extended. IT parks, byepass roads and many more… Madurai has matured.
The Meenakshi Amman Temple is the most visited place in Madurai, but there are innumerable interesting artifacts that the visitors miss. 

• The entrance to the Amman Sannathi houses two huge yaalis (a mythological creature). One of it has a round stone inside his partly closed mouth. We can touch the stone through its teeth, but never take it out.
• The Mandapam in front of the Swamy sannathi itself is an intricately sculpted stonework. Then, there are statues that are held in the mandapam. There is the authentic Meenakshi Kalyanam statue. (The famous wedding of Meenakshi and Sundareshwarar, with Vishnu (Meenakshi”s brother) performing the vows. The legend and the statue depicts Meenakshi darker, with Shiva and Vishnu a bit fairer, though they were sculpted out of single stone. Shiva looks the proud groom and Vishnu is shown grinning. (it is said that Vishnu is grinning because he is happy to have performed the wedding of his dark sister to a fairer and an able groom.)
•  The DwaraBalahar (Shiva”s sentinels) in front of the Swamy Sannathi should be around 20ft tall.
• The Natarajar here is the only one in the world who dances on his right leg as per the request of a Madurai King Rajasekara Pandian. His sannathi is plated in pure silver and is called the “Velli Ambala Natarajar”. There is also said to be a underground passage from the temple to the outside the Pudumandapam by which the people escaped the muslim invaders.
•  The PuduMandapam around the temple also houses wonderful sculptures. It is said to have built for celebrating Vasantha Vilzha by running Vaigai water around it.  It is now a busy place bustling with vendors selling colorful stuff and so over shadowing the beautiful and huge sculptures around. There are statues there of Thirumalai nayakar, the king who beautified the Meenakshi Temple and also extended it. There is also a statue of Shiva dancing on top of an elephant after vanquishing the Asura who takes the form of an elephant.
• There is a famous and powerful Pillayar (Ganesha) called the Mottai
  Pillayar. This Pillayar does not have a head. It is said to be the
  handiwork of Malik Kafur.

Eating: The Jigardhanda is a famous dessert of Madurai. It is made out of milk whey, icecream and kadal paasi (sea weed) The icecream is hand cranked and has very little calories. The concoction is just too yummy for words. Just not to be missed on a trip to Madurai.

Shopping:  The best shopping in Madurai is in the Pudumandapam. It houses some real exotic stuff which are handmade.The Chitrai street also houses interesting  shops. And since it is devoid of vehicular traffic, it allows a relaxed walk around the temple.  Clothes are best from the Amman Sannathi street.