A song of Fire and Ice

I run to the high mountains

I pour my heart out to the skies

I sing of the summer song

While the sky above dance in the yellow light.

The cool breeze fools the sun above

Takes a run, wins the mighty fight.

Your light then comes to me with warmth,

A view my heart wants.

Love to me is the song you write.

The tricks you play with the endless sky

And with the icy wind you find a disguise.

You burn me like sun that burns up 

In the blue abyss.

With the ink of my emotions

You write a song of Fire and Ice.

Hello sweet fellow beings,

I stumbled across some really fascinating things today, and did not want to deprive you of the little joy you could get while reading these things. I compiled my understanding of all these webpages and wrote it out for you and made a mash-up! Enjoy!

A perfect Lazy yet active day!

That sounds confusing, doesn't it? Give it sometime, it'll make sense when you're done.
Let us pick a day first.. umm let's say Saturday( We are not going to mess with our darling Sundays).  I know a lot of us like being lazy after 5 days of slogging at work. But, you should know absolute laziness for more than 5 hours leads to sub-conscious depression. I am going to tell you how you can enjoy being lazy on your weekend, yet keep the mind active and happy.

Say hello to Weekends:
6 things to do on your Saturday:
1. Wake up sometime around 8 am-10 am ( No, don't wake up early to catch the glimpse of the morning, leave that for another day)
2. Once you win the "battle of the bed", turn up the music ( Throw those earphones away!Enjoy music loud and clear on speakers, TV, Radio, anything, just no plug-ins)
3. Since, we are being lazy, no bath, brush only if you want to! ( personally, I would just brush and give my shower some rest for the day)
4. Next, we are going to eat- Bread and butter/jam/marmalade, or something even simpler pasta/Maggie?    ( Sounds good and easy to me)
5. Now we're going to find a movie to watch. I'm going to give you a choice of 10 amazing Saturday movies. I promise, you'll thank me :)

a. Under the Tuscan Sun
b. (500) days of Summer
c. Dirty Dancing
d. The Shawshank Redemption
e. The Usual suspects
f. Once (Oh, this is a BEAUTIFUL movie- You're going to sing" Falling slowly" one you're done with the    movie)
g. Goodwill hunting.
h. Amelia
i. Mr. Bean's Holiday
j. Along came Polly.

Now, that might look like a bizarre collection of movies, but they are all such brilliant and different genre of movies and you will adore these movies.
6. The last and final thing which is must for the Saturday is some lone time in your balcony, corridor or Terrace. Don't do anything just stare into the abyss, happy thoughts tend to come to you when you do this.

Tomorrow is a Saturday and I'm going to do all that I've written and I hope you make your Saturday mornings and afternoon healthy and happy, so that smile of yours is wider when you head out in the evening.

Cheers,
JG

Snap back to reality, Oh there goes Gravity!

Let me start off by saying, “It’s not always good news”, and good news for us (the 9-6 robots) is the one and only “Your work is done, you may leave for the day”.

But, again that rarely happens. What really happens is as soon as the clock ticks 6, your brain says, “Boy you've worked enough today and BOOM it just shuts!” Your brain has given you a clear sign of Do Not Disturb, but Mr. Boss man has other plans for you.

But, then this happened:

“Morning is here, sunshine is here! The sky is clear, Get into gear!!”

Woke up, feeling all energetic and excited. Never felt better in the mornings. So, I drive to work early, listening to some happy tracks, and hit the gym at my workplace. A hot water shower after the gym and I’m all geared up for the day, with a perfect schedule in my head.

Then, I reach the floor and I get a work request which is quite a simple one.  I am told to take my time and finish the work request, there’s no hurry, and I’m thinking,” Oh that is good. No pressure, I can work in peace. Finish as much as I can, leave tops by 7! Just how I planned. Good day indeed.

Now, its 6, and I am all happy because I have managed to finish the work , and after the boss man reviews it I can go out catch up with some friends over a cup of coffee, grab some good dinner( as opposed to the very monotonous Pizza we eat, when we work late). And heavens, it happened I left at 7. And after that all I can say is, “It was a good night”.

Then, the alarm profoundly rang into my ears and oh the dream…………….

Well, now for the reality.

The part where I wake up is right, but not quite with the whole Morning is here, sunshine is here, let’s get into gear, more like, “Morning is here? Oh, no. Damn the sunshine.” So, I drag myself out of the comfort of my little too awesome comforter, and drive to office at 7 in the morning, so that I can hit the gym before I start my work for the day.

Gym time is the only one which remains same in my dreams as it is in reality. I feel good, thin (I weigh 45 kgs, so I feel thin otherwise also) and strong. So, congratulations to me for that one hour of my day, which I would like to call, “Productive.”

It is 10 am now, so it’s time for reality to bite me back in the ass. Before I even take a minute to keep my laptop down, work is ready to pounce on me, and this time it comes with a stringent deadline. (This is where I miss that “Take your time, there’s no hurry”, ugh dreams!).

Did I tell you I hit the gym today? So, when I do that my stomach goes on a hunting spree. It wants to eat everything. But, with that work request in, I have to decide between breakfast and lunch. (Don’t judge me; I’m a fat, hungry kid inside). I eat what 3 people eat for breakfast; hoping lunch time would go by easily and get to work. With a little help from my dear friend at work, I do finish my work sharp at 5, with thoughts of that missed lunch a couple of times in between, well we have all been there.

I’m happy now, with hopes that the dream come true. And, Mr. Boss man would quickly review it and it’ll be a good day. If only the clocks ran under my command.

The clock tick 7, and the plan of leaving at 7 cease to exist and I end up staying till 11.30. Not working, mind you. Waiting for the review, which sadly does not start till 10, because boss is a busy man, he has to attend to other things (which I totally understand, not).

I reach home at 12, and into the comfort of my dreams I lay, until another day!

JG

God Bless the Italians!

Ever wondered what the world would be like without the Italians? It would be a sad little place with no pastas and pizzas, oh and the delicious, mouthwatering cheese! OH boy, it’s like being locked out of heaven.

All that talk gives you a hint of how big a fan I am of “La buono Cucine di Italia” I’m just like the Italians when it comes to food. There is no greater love in this world, than the love for food. And no body sticks to that mantra better than the Italians(and me). Like it is said,” When the Italians eat, they really EAT.” What else do you say when the culture of the country is its food itself.

There are so many cuisines in the world, then why all the hype for only Italian food? But, you know the answer is quite simple, Italian food is effortless, it is unpretentious. It tastes just how it looks, absolutely delightful.

No other dish explains its meekness better than Spaghetti and cheese. The way the cheese melts in your mouth and the sweet sour taste of cherry tomatoes gushing in your mouth, a touch of the long slender spaghetti doused in the spicy and tangy tomato sauce, it is like heaven served on a plate.

I am a total spaghetti buff. In fact, I just finished 2 big bowls of my favorite Aglio Olio at “The Patio”, this amazing restaurant in my city (look for the address at the end of this article). Not a fan of Garlic? Try Aglio olio, you’ll go running back for some more of that garlic and cheese topped heaven in a bowl.

It’s funny how much I enjoy Italian food in India. I think I might get lost in a maze of bliss once I try the local Italian food in Italy! While a lot of you might think a food tour to Italy is an absolute waste of money and only a quicker way to become fat, I think only food has the knack to satisfy one truly and no fat, no money can weigh more than the feeling of being satisfied!

So, don’t hold back! Take a tour of the magnificent Italy, and eat your heart out, and if a tour isn’t the thing for you right now, enjoy the simple Italian food at restaurants in your city, or pamper yourself and make yourself some delicious pastas, pizzas, salads and end it with a coffee.

“Buon Appetito”

Cheers,

JG

“The Patio by Viva Italia”

Shilparamam Food courts,

Besides Quiznos,

Madhapur, Hyderabad.

Desire, a masked angel!

Everything we do is surrounded by the need to have something or want something. It’s an illness, an incurable disease! I call it a disease, but this disease brings along an excitement, and its cousin pleasure. That’s what sets it apart from a need, or a necessity. There is no excitement in wanting water, or to breathe. But, there’s elation when our heart desires something or someone. The sense of longing, the unending craving to want that one thing or one person, sets you on a flurry, a sweet sweet flurry.

It’s all a little confusing isn't it? Great scholars and Great people of religious morale tell us to give up desires, and find inner peace. I disagree. What is life really without a pinch of excitement? I will find peace when I’m dead. I’m alive now, not to find peace and give up the worldly pleasures, but to relish them while I can.  Why postpone our desires in the name of higher ideal?

Desires our born of raw emotions, it is the product of a sense of lack or wanting. But, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a little more. It keeps you alive. There would not be great men in this world, if there was no desire in them; desire to do something great, desire to be powerful, desire to find love.

Desire is not a bad thing in and of itself; it is a strong and powerful force breeding within humans. It is the human appetite for a given object of attention.  It’s the lubricant to our lives.

To someone who believes in nothing I say; “To desire for something or someone gives you a reason to stay alive. If you stop wanting, you stop living.”

A Must Watch!

Dear Bloggers,

Its a Saturday night, and here I am writing to you guys. Now, a lot of people would say its the weekend, put on your party shoes. But, sorry "lot of people", I'm in a mood to wear my blogging dress and take a long walk along the internet beach, bare feet!

Why?

Because, I'm inspired, touched and moved by a little something, which I will tell you about shortly, before that lets have our little talk, shall we?

Hello, how are you? (You could answer that in your head), and I'm going to assume you are doing fantastic('cause I know you are).

My dear reader you must be wondering why all this talk about inspiration. It is a pretty straight forward topic. We see great people do great things, and get inspired, and try to be like them, and succeed (well, at least a bunch of us succeed , if not all). The rest of us who take the fall,  keep looking for inspiration in life, inspiration to get started, inspiration to live happily, inspiration to raise from our usual mediocre life. And in our attempt to find that inspiration we stumble across an ocean of things that show us a spark of  inspiration. I'm one of those, who hasn't succeeded (YET), and I'm also one of those people who instead of getting inspired from one, got inspired from a whole bunch of people, places and things and eventually got lost in the maze.

How?

So, I look at Obama, and I'm moved by his Charisma, his leader like abilities, and I'm inspired to be a leader. I see The Dalai Lama, and I want to be kind and generous, and do something for the greater good. I watch the army men, and the marines and I want to be valiant. Well, to be more realistic I see an artist by the road, and I go home and decide to draw a little sketch (which I attached with this post). I hear some good poetry, and I want to write myself a little poetry of my own.
Basically, I AM LOST, and I AM CONFUSED. I want to do it all.

But, then one fine night, something magical happens. Of all the things I have been inspired of in the past, is beaten by a movie. Yes, you heard it right, and probably guessed it from the title of this post. This movie I talk of has proved to be an inspiration which I was waiting for all along. This wonderful, wonderful movie called 'Julie and Julia."

Delightful is an underused word for this brilliant piece of art. To talk more about the movie, a fully loaded movie with stars like Meryl Streep and Amy adams, the movie is a journey to inspire and get inspired.
Its about two very similar Women, who work their way out of a mediocre life by trying to find something that truly inspires them, something that they are really meant to do (to my eyes, and ears it really my story).
After being a resident at the "lost university for the confused", this movie just gave me a starting point (which came after many unsuccessful starting points, ofcourse). But, as they say it. "Better late than never".

For those of you reading this, please watch the movie. If not to change your life, then just to enjoy the beautiful Meryl Streep and Amy Adams, but watch it, you will smile at the end of the movie, I guarantee that.
As to those who already watched the movie, I'm not inspired to cook, because Julia Child could cook, i'm inspired because Julie Powell could write about it, and bring out a Julia Child I would want in my life.
For the first time I'm not at the crossroads.I'm not lost, I'm inspired to write, and this time I'm going to find my way.

And I hope you find yours.
Until then, Keep looking my friend.

Cheers.
PS: The sketch,and a link to read more about "Julie and Julia"
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135503/

JG

You know you want it too!

A little bit of desire hurts no one. We all need love, we need to be tended too. It snot selfish to want good things for yourself. But, not all of us are lucky enough to get love without asking for it, for some of us, we just have to ask. To put yourself out there, and tell them, "I want love Mr., and everything that comes with it." Or you could just read them something I tailored:

I need warmth

I need Passion endless

A sweet whisper,

A kiss and

A promise.

I want compassion, jealousy,

I need a heart break

And then I need someone to fix it

I want to be a smile,

A tear, a wound

And a cry.

Its hard to love

I know that quite right

That’s why I’ve never loved.

Its never easy to let go

That’s why I never get close enough.

But, Now I don’t want to live on nothing

All that I ran away from

I want it all now

I want love.