Monthly Archives: August 2014

A Glass of ‘Whine’

Wine & dine…. the motto which must have misled at least a few dashing young men to join the Army. And indeed, in the Army we do ‘whine’ & dine in style. Our men dine & their better halves whine. While getting prepared to marry our Army brave hearts, we quite certainly did not have the slightest idea, that the feat we were going to accomplish was ‘Mission Impossible’ (with no Tom Cruise by our side) & that ‘Khatron ke Khiladi’ would (after we wed) seem like a cake walk ‘me ladies’.
The fact that one is an ‘Army Wife alone, I reiterate, alone, should suffice, to make us eligible for a number of highly paid jobs (Modi sarkar, pls pay attention). Marriage to an Army tusker ensures that you become a multitasker. You become expert Master Chefs (the ravenous young officers leave you with no choice), Bakers (can’t bake तो you are labelled fake), Dabba packers ( lost count of the infinite dabbas we have packed for the ‘incoming/outgoing’ officers), Interior decorators (how else would one show off the abundance of stuff collected tenaciously over the years, travelling), Renovators (staying in dilapidated Bhoot bungalows & bashas helps), Party planners (we party at the ring of a bell, which doesn’t stop ringing), Event managers (conducting infinite number of ladies/welfare meets ensures that), Disaster managers (staying without your better halves in the remotest corners of the country is in itself a disaster),    Talent hunters (one has to keep on hunting talents inside oneself & others for every successful ladies meet, coffee morning, husbands night, raising days,……), School teachers ( just like every hospital boasts of a Malayali nurse, likewise in every school you will find a teacher who is an ‘Army wife’),       Financial advisors (years of maintaining maximum style at minimum wages), Personal groomers (how else can we compete & win the May Queen pageants ), Packers & Movers (moving every 2 yrs without fail, with all your belongings in tow, intact), Counselors (years of being an agony aunt to your juniors is practice enough), Mannequins ( we can stand for hours, all dressed & decked up at parties, since our First Ladies have an aversion for chairs), Finishing school teachers (British rule has ended but we still eat our Dosas & Idlis with a fork & knife), Diplomats & Politicians    (& you thought that climbing the hierarchy ladder was easy ), Gardeners (our accommodations come with ample land, to pant & plant), Social workers (marry a ‘fauji’ & get married to ‘Army Wives Welfare Association’ too ), Tourist/ Shopping guides (we have seen ‘& shopped’ it all)…… & to be continued.
Although trying to compete with Ma Durga ( not fair, she has numerous hands) gets our health packing, stress levels shooting, frustrations piling…… there is no other place in the world I would rather be, wedded to my same ‘olive green’ (someone is surely going to frame this page, lol).
Now let me drift back from the ‘whining’ space to the ‘dining’ space. Since we do an ocean of entertaining, in a sea of budgeting, we have to come up with some innovative ideas to spice up our tables while partying. Here are some dead easy tips to hip up that table layout of yours.
Discarded CDs made into coasters to match the table decor, by sticking coloured jute ropes(in a circular manner) onto it…. any toast to that??image
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Table mats to match the coasters, place cards & the rest, were made from suitable pieces of cloth…… cut, hemmed & laminated.
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A smiling sun was painted ( using ceramic paints ) onto two white tiles. The tiles were later stuck onto either sides of a wooden handmade napkin holder. This bonny piece is sure to make your day sunny.
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Bought these plain salt & pepper holders at a throwaway price. Painted some vibrant pumpkin faces on them to go with these cheerful pumpkin mats.
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So all this ‘whine & dine‘………  finally has earned me that glass of wine, what say???
 

Rains

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Skies have darkened with gathering rain,                                                 Gusts of wind blowing the trees insane;                                               Thunder and lightning raging side by side,                                               Fireworks display on the black sky wide;                                             Marking the arrival of the great monsoon.                                               Which has come not a day too soon;
Pitter patter, fall  the first shy drops,                                                         Pounding soon like marching troops;                                                         Heady scent of the fresh wet earth,                                                             Parched minds dance with joy and mirth;                                                 Pelting rains and wailing winds,                                                               Rustle up music in ailing minds;                                                                 Gushing falls and gurgling streams,                                                           Rain soaked children’s happy screams;                                                     Up and down sail, the paper boats,                                                               Made by angels in dapper coats;                                                                     Puddles of bliss and croaking frogs,                                                             Emerald green moss on floating logs;                                                         Misty lanes with glistening stones,                                                               Chirping crickets’ heartening notes;                                                             Wet sidewalks awash in golden lights,                                                       Fluttering moths add to the enchanting sight;
Washed clean of dust and grime,                                                                   World looks so cool and sublime;                                                                   Gracing the land with waterfalls,                                                                 Brightening lives of weary souls;                                                                   Rains have come back home,                                                                           I pen a poem in …………..welcome.