Day 11 Out in the Rain

It's raining intensely. Winds are blowing fiercely and the sky has taken a grim look. For me,it's a perfect Saturday evening and I am up on the rooftop. I absolutely love this weather and love it when the wind carries across droplets of water splattering them all over and love it when all the trees around me sway precariously in the winds. Well,strictly speaking it's just two trees but with so many branches and  leaves, I cannot help but envision that I am on a tree house in the middle of a rainforest. ;)

Day 10

Today being the last working day of the month, I wanted to reward myself for completing another interminable week and a month. So right after work I headed straight to Spa Ceylon. My other alternative was to reward my self with doughnuts but somehow I steered my mind away from that and planned to get my self a new body scrub and a face scrub. After browsing through their big array of products for nearly one hour, I settled down for a body polish and a facial scrub with a mild Ayurvedic fragrance.

Day 9 Still it's Movie Time

I watched two movies today- 'Nothing but the Truth' and 'Parker'. 

Day 8 A Man on the Ledge

As a brand new 'first' I have decided to have an entire week of watching movies, specifically movies about cops, detectives, the FBI and the likewise. Today I watched 'Man on the Ledge' and loved all the action! The story is about a man who has been wrongly convicted and how he endevours to prove his innocence. I must admit that initially I felt as though the movie's plot is hardly intriguing and was bracing myself to watch for 2 hours, a  group of cops trying to negotiate with a man on the ledge of a high rising building. Doesn't sound all that inspiring right? However the movie proved to be much more enjoyable than I anticipated. Of course it is yet another American movie that glorifies the jobs of the NYC police officers but that suits me just fine. I think I must confess my long standing  admiration and curiosity about the FBI, Scotland Yard and detectives on general. Maybe my next 'first' should be read more about the detective agencies and learn the tidbits about them! 

This blog is certainly leading to some momentous transformations...

Day7 Movie Time.

As strange as this may sound, today I watched a movie after a long time! I have quite a collection of movies downloaded and saved and as Rads rekindled my interest with her blog post I thought I will allocate this afternoon for a movie session. I ended up watching two new movies -'Prisoners' and 'The Call'. 

Day6 Holiday Planning..

It's finally that time of the year. The much awaited Christmas holidays are just around the corner. Spurred by all the holiday talk and the myriad of advertisements, I spent this afternoon, yet again flirting with different ideas for a perfect holiday. Earlier this year I was fascinated by some travel pictures of Iceland and New Zealand that I came across online and was overwhelmed by the abundance of natural beauty in those countries. Then, not surprisingly, my ever speculative mind completely changed and I was contemplating a cruise trip! How exciting that was as I have never actually gone on a cruise! But subsequently I remembered that I have been on a ship after all where I was attending a Xmas party. To my dismay I remember feeling a bit sea sick and once again I am left wondering if a cruise trip is the perfect holiday? Oh I forgot to mention, China was on my mind too as a holiday destination but that was a couple of months ago. Presently I am tiptoeing in the direction of a trip to Bangalore inspired by an airline advertisement which claims absurdly competitive deals, so I was thinking why not? 

At the end of this all, I feel like I have actually planned visiting half of the world. Oh for an indecisive mind! So much to do so little time! 

But then, part of the fun in a holiday is actually the planning stage. So I shall resort to enjoy this and when the holiday actually happens, well, it will be a nice surprise.

Day 5 A Childhood Fantasy

Today I spent a couple of hours reading one of my most favorite books from many many years ago. It is 'The Secret Island' by Enid Blyton. I guess some of us never really grow up or is it what they call 'young at heart'? Either ways I can't help but marvel at how enthraling I still found this story. It's almost like going back to my childhood and reliving a fantasy from the good old days. It proved to be an excellent tension-reducing and mood boosting measure. 

It seemed to me, as I kept remembering the excitement I felt as a child when reading this book has not faded with the years. Or perhaps, it's not the book or the  story but the feeling of being young and so carefree again. Perhaps it's not that we never grow up but those trouble free, beautiful days are infinitely precious and worth saving and re-living every now and again...

Day 4 A Date with Mom

Today I decided to spoil my mom and took her on a shopping spree and a  special lunch. We even indulged in some sweet delights which is usually forbidden for mom! I must admit, not without a pang of guilt, that it has been quite a while since I last spent some quality time with her and even longer since I did something to make her feel special. Because, let's face it, for many of us, one of the most vexing challenges is striking a healthy balance between our busy professional and academic schedules and our personal lives. When our free time is not properly managed, it's typically the parents who get pushed down on our lists of priorities! This is because only a few of us are inclined to spare a thought about parents when we are engrossed with our busy lives. But sometimes, it's great to just slow down, pull back and pause instead of just charging down the alley of life. This would give us more time for the loved ones thus enriching our lives evermore..

Day 3 Mighty Castles, Misty Mountains and Conquering Titans..

Day 2 Breaking the Vow of Silence

As I entered the office today, bright and early as usual, I had all but one thought on my mind - To make conversations! I won't be exaggerating if I say that on a typical day I appear like a person who has either taken a vow of silence or caught up in a severe state of abstracted musing.

This morning, however, was different as I was filled with an eagerness to interact, thanks to this blog prompting me to try out something new.

As I sat at my workstation getting on with my morning tasks,  I soon realized that despite my best intentions I was actually still in my own bubble and the whole venture was becoming less alluring by the minute. Already, a whole hour has elapsed and the right spirit was entirely absent!  Of course, I was not going to give up that easily, so I headed towards the pantry and instead of slipping away having given a half-smile like on other days, I actually got into an animated conversation with the colleagues. The day passed with a few other such engaging, high-spirited wordy encounters and at the end of the day, I left office, pleasantly conscious of a day well-spent.

I am en route to becoming a conversationalist....
 

Day 01 Bright Beginings.. Great Expectations..

Inspired by my friend who has already embarked on a 'Journey of Firsts' this is the first step of my trek through 365 days of new experiences.
Be it a whole new experience or a new perception of something mundane and conventional, I intend to have a wonderful catalogue of daily reflections to cherish in an year's time.

I hope this would inspire me to learn something new everyday and keep track of little things that would otherwise go unnoticed. And without meaning to sound philosophical, I think this would also help to stay in the present day and present moment without swinging through the passages of time into the past and future. It would be a leisurely paddle of daily musings, cherishing small achievements and aspiring to be a better person each day.

So this is my first step of a journey of 'Firsts'.