It's time!

Here is something that has been bugging my innards for a while, and I knew, just knew, that I had to do a post about this. Maybe I will make this a continuous series, I don't know. But it really is time!

I am here, oh faithful readers, to give you a lesson in good grammar. Here are some quick and easy tips for you, so you can achieve better writing results!

Disclaimer: I aint no grammar guru, but these are just basic lessons everyone should know!

1. First and foremost, it is spelt GRAMMAR, not GRAMMER. -shivers-

2. '...' are called ellipses. If you must use them, use them only in threes. For instance: "Oh I thought...I thought you were serious!" and not "He stood in the corner.....................................and saw her standing on the other side."

3. Chatspeak. Stay as far away as you possibly can. "OMG..lyk u r so funeee!!!!!!!!" sounds like an adolescent talking, and is really unfit for normal writing situations. Writing "Oh my goodness, you're so funny!" is not very hard to type.

4. 'You're' is short for 'you are'. Your is short for nothing. It denotes belonging.
Wrong: Your so cute. (Your what is cute?)
Right: You're so cute.

5. 'Common' is defined as belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public; "for the common good", or having no special distinction or quality. It is not another way of saying 'Come on.'
Wrong: Common, dance!
Right: Come on, dance!

6. Exclamation points. Use them more than twice, you're really a lunatic!
Really wrong: Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok: Wow!!!!
Great: Wow!

7. Inverted commas. These are very important for dialogues. Try not to write them without these. Also, a full stop, exclamation point, or comma always comes before closing the inverted comma.
Really Wrong: I love you she said.
Wrong: "I love you", she said.
Right: "I love you," she said.

8. Serial commas. I learned these very recently. These are commas used immediately before a conjuction.
Wrong: I ate chocolates, lolipops and chewing gum.
Right: I ate chocolates, lolipops, and chewing gum.

Well, that is all for now. Most people know I am a crazy grammar freak, and I just wanted to share my so-called 'knowledge' with you. I hope these lessons help you, and who knows, I may come back for more! Let me know what you think!

Where will I find Love?

"Where will I find Love?"

Before I turned 21, I did not care.

I did not look for it.

I never wondered what Love felt like.

Then, I fell in Love.

Fell in Love with someone who Loved me.

I Loved Loving the one who Loved me.

It was a feeling I can't describe.

The feeling made me feel cozy.

Like a warm, fuzzy blanket.

On a cold winter's day.

I thought I would be in Love.

Forever. And ever.

But (I hate buts) things changed, and the blanket was taken away from me.

What remained were broken pieces of glass.

Or maybe it was our hearts.

Tears, lots of them.

I moaned, and weeped, and cried.

I wanted Love back.

But (I love buts) I started thinking.

I thought a lot.

Maybe, I wasn't Loving myself.

And so I began.

I found Love again.

A whole new kind of Love.

A Love with no boundaries.

A Love that will be endless forever.

And ever.

A Love that takes me back to those days.

Where I did not care about finding Love.

A Love that taught me.

Love can be found when you least expect it.

And so, I learned.

And for all those who suffered/are suffering like I did.

I hope you do too.

New beginnings

He likes long hair.

I have been growing my hair from the last two years.

They grew. They reached just below my bra-strap.

But then, he was gone.

And my hair grew matted, and tangled.

Split ends, knots.

Tears. Sobs. Depression.

One day, I had enough.

I got up, I rose.

Smiled. And made my way to the salon.

Snip. Snip. Snip.

The knots, mats, tangles fell to the ground.

Now my hair falls just below my ears.

And I love it.

And I love me :)

10 fun things to do without spending a dime

( I got inspired after reading this article. I couldn't think up 20, but 10 is good enough :D)

So we all know recession has hit, and bad. I can no longer have Rs. 5,000 worth Body Shop hauls, and other such exuberant spendings. So, I made this list of 10 fun things to do without spending a dime. I hope they help you too!

10. Annoy your mother: Poke her. Make loud noises. Get in her way. Annoy her any way you can. Hell hath no fury, like a mummy annoyed! And, it's fun while it lasts! :D This can also work on your dad/sibling/dog. Be careful of the dog though. It can/will/may bite!

9. Doodle: Doodling is my favorite pastime. Just give me a notebook and a pen, and I'll fill it up in a matter of minutes! Doodles sometimes turn out to be great works of art! So never throw them out. I still have all my doodles with me.

8. Drink water: And lots of it. Then, go to some unknown place. What goes in, must come out, no? Then, have fun searching for a restroom to relieve yourself in. ;)

7. Make a list!: Random lists are so fun! They just make a you think sometimes for hours (What's your favorite colour?!) Finishing them is quite fulfilling, if you put your mind to it!

6. Zone out: Just stare at a wall, and slowly zone out. Zoning out is one of my favorite things, cause you can do it anywhere. Just pick a spot, stare at it, and clear your head of all thoughts. Works best during pathetic/boring meetings. The boss thinks you're listening, while you have been somewhere else. Fun! :D

5. Go for a walk: Walking does not have to be a task or a boring routine. Go for a walk somewhere you haven't been before. Take a different route from the one you usually do. Take a camera along and take random photographs. Healthy, AND fun!

4. Daydream: Daydreaming is close to zoning out, except that in daydreams, you're actually thinking about something. You can be anywhere/anybody with anybody you want. My most frequent daydreams involves me having Giselle Bundchen's body and having a jet-setting life. Of course, when you come back from your daydream, you come back to earth, but that 10 minutes as Giselle is certainly fun, and totally worth it!

3. Spa Day: Pamper yourself - at home! Make homemade facials, give yourself a manicure/pedicure. Paint your nails in funky colours! (My fav - hot pink!)

2. Photograph yourself - You are da bomb. Yes you, reading this! Then why not capture this on celuloid? Just whip out that camera and give your best poses. Pout, blow air kisses - whatever! You should be your own muse! I take my photo every opportunity I get. I love me! :D

And finally....

Drum roll please!!!!

The no. 1 fun thing to do without spending a dime is..................


1. Make out/Have sex: I don't need to explain this. Just please, use condoms!


So that concludes my list! I hope you had fun reading this :) You didn't even had to spend a dime!

Dad

My dad smells like cigarettes.
His shirt smells like cigarettes.
His fingers smell like cigarettes.
His breath smells like cigarettes.

I smell like cigarettes.

Slumdog Millionaire

Yesterday, I got into a huge debate with two people regarding the movie 'Slumdog Millionaire'. They both did not feel it was a deserving movie, it was over - hyped, and they both felt A R Rahman has given much better music than the one in this movie. I present to you, my arguments:

1. Even though this film is made by a British chap, it is about India. It features Indian bigwigs like Anil Kapoor and Irrfan Khan. It features lesser known Dev Patel and Frieda Pinto. It features even lesser known slum kids, whom we still only refer to as Jamal, Latika and Salim. So, having such a varied INDIAN cast, won't Indian's relate to the movie and feel happy about it winning the Academy Award?

2. A. R. Rahman. He is perhaps India's best music composer, and he has now achieved global recognition because of Slumdog Millionaire. My friends both argued that Rahman has given better music in films such as Dil Se, Yuva, even Delhi 6. "What kind of crap is Ringa Ringa?," one had said. Well, my reply to that was, Dil Se, Yuva, and Delhi 6 have not been nominated for the Academy Awards. So globally, no one really knew who Rahman is. Even though Slumdog's music isn't at par with Rahman's other compositions, it has still won him an Oscar! This is only the beginning, and I'm sure Rahman will win many more Oscars for his wonderful music.

3. Then, one said, I don't think the movie was that great that it deserved an Oscar. To that, I asked her, which other Oscar nominated films of the year HAVE you seen? I didn't get a reply.

The problem with us is that we are all pseudo-critics. We will always go against the tide and hate the movie just because it doesn't show India how you would like it to be seen. We're un-informed haters. Look around you...nothing of the Bombay surroundings shown in the movie is fiction. It's everywhere. We just choose to ignore it.

So bottomline is, if you didn't like the movie, just pop any Karan Johar movie in the DVD, and SHUT THE FUCK UP!

Update: I'm quoting my friend Vivek P for this wonderful insight: "Yeah, it’s funny that Karan Johar takes his entire Indian crew abroad for shooting his films, whereas the Slumdog guys came to India to shoot, with an Indian crew, an Oscar-winning film."

Confuddled

Some say we're like Ross and Rachel.
Some say we're like Mr. Big and Carrey.
What do you think?
Will you come after me to Paris and be my knight in shining armour?
Or will you be my lobster?
Or what?
I don't know.


P.S. I'm back from vacation! Pics/stories soon :)