tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55436142155643473232024-03-05T10:51:08.013-08:00Mocktail Mommies Me TimeAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.comBlogger161125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-55635206426771118532017-12-29T03:29:00.003-08:002017-12-29T03:29:57.148-08:00A Suitable Candidate<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With pleasure, <b>Team MocktailMommies</b> welcomes <b>Varad </b>of <a href="https://looseendoftheredthread.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">LERT </a>on board today. He is an aspiring Writer, Bookworm, Sun Tzu fan, Himalayas lover, Proud father and a Happy husband – not necessarily in that order. Over to you Varad...</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>-!-!-!-!-!-</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chennai<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Swanky office of a Multi-national e-commerce firm<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">July 2016<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Where do you see yourselves ten years from
now?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">An irritated groan rippled through Shiv’s
mind even as he tried his level best not to roll his eyes. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Something funny?’ The interviewer
admittedly was sharp, Shiv conceded to himself. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Absolutely nothing, Sir. I was just
wondering why this is such an integral question to any interview. That’s all.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘You will get the answer to that question
when you are on this side of the table, my friend. Now, do you have an answer?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Sure, Sir. In ten years, I see myself
happily married with two kids – a girl and a boy, in that order.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ha! Take that, smug interviewer!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘I’m sorry?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘No need to be, Sir. It’s where I see
myself and I’m sure you would agree it isn’t such a bad place to be, wouldn’t
you?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Definitely! But I guess you didn’t quite
get my question.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shiv shook his head, ‘Oh no! I sure did get
your question. Between you and me, we would have encountered this question a
few hundred times, yeah? What did you expect me to answer? The same run of the
mill blah-blah, loyal servant to my organization, blah, a true leader, blah,
epic motivator, crisis manager, etc… spiel? Or the cautiously arrogant – I see
myself in your seat spiel? I’m pretty sure you’d be bored and borderline
irritated listening to these answers, right? So, please allow me to stick to my
answer – happily married with two kids -
a girl and a boy, in that order. Oh! A sleek Mercedes wouldn’t be bad to
add to that picture.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The interviewer smiled a nasty grin, ‘Thank
you Mr. Shiv Acharya. It’s been…interesting, to say the least.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shiv shrugged, ‘Good luck with your search,
Sir! I’ll leave you to your devices. Thank you.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mumbai<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Coffee Day – Bandra<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">September 2016<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘So, Swapna! What do you look for in a
prospective candidate?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Swapna sipped her <i>Mocachillo </i>slowly as she considered Priyank’s question. What did
she look for indeed? Definitely not random meetings in coffee shops after the
moms discussing their match through <i>matrimony.com</i>
on telephone for starters. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Well, Honesty definitely. A dishonest man
is not worth considering at all.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Interesting! What else?’ Priyank slurped
his <i>Fruity-bliss</i> noisily, scaring few
mosquitos that dared venturing near their table. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dude!
What’s with this interviewing? <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Looks, dressing sense, empathy,
spontaneity …yeah’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘What about prior experience? Would you rate
looks over that?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘What?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘What?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘I don’t follow, Priyank.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘You are a HR manager with Damageon, right?
I was asking about that…oh!’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Yeah! Sorry.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘No need, Swapna. I’m sure you’d have had
many interesting interviews, right?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Yeah…I guess so!’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘As a project manager, I face my share of
weird interviews as well. Few months ago, a guy answered that he sees himself
happily married with two kids - a girl
and a boy in that order when I asked him where does he see himself after ten
years...what’s funny?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘That was a brilliant reply, Priyank. If
he’s happily married with two kids after ten years, that means his career has
been sorted out, right?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Well. He’s an idiot for not taking things
seriously.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘I’d have hired him!’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘What? Really?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Oops! Guess we both are looking for
different things, eh?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘I don’t follow, Swapna.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Good luck, Priyank.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Later
that evening…<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Toto’s Garage pub, Bandra<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Dude, seriously?’ Meeta guffawed spraying
beer everywhere, earning disgusted looks. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘He started interviewing me yaar! I’m
pretty sure he would have asked for my salary breakup in the next five
minutes.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That brought about another bout of laughter
from Meeta. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘What do these guys look for before
accepting to marry someone? Seriously!’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Eh! Excuse me guys. Very sorry to
interrupt you two. Can I please get a seat at your table?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Swapna cast an irritated glance at the
intruder. Just as she was about to say a rude ‘NO’, the guy flashed her a
disarming smile. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Please guys! I’m new to your city and a
single guy roaming around with a beer in a pub can raise suspicions. I have an
interview tomorrow and I don’t want to be taken to a Police Station tonight. I
promise I won’t overhear or butt into your discussion much.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meeta rolled her eyes and nodded, much to
Swapna’s chagrin. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Muchas Gracias, amigas! I’m Shiv.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘I’m Meeta and this is Swapna.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘So, what were you guys discussing? Oops,
bad one!’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Swaps, let’s hear a guy’s opinion on what
we were discussing, what say?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Whatever!’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘So, Shiv! Tell me, you are a prospective
groom meeting a girl for the first time. What would be the first things you’d
like to know about her?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Well, two important things – 1. The speed at
which she usually keeps the fan running during the night and 2. The volume at
which she listens to music.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘What?’ Swapna turned her head so fast that
she almost sprained her neck.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Well, if my expectations match hers on
these two things, all other things would be just formality.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Really?’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Yeah! Life is very simple. Take care of
the little things that might cause a long term impact and the big things will
follow suit.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Fair point,’ Swapna conceded. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Anyways, guys. Thank you very much for
your hospitality. I’ll take my leave now. Wish me luck?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Don’t think you need any!’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘I’ll drink to that. Cheers!’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
next day…<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Damageon
India Office<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘May I come in?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Yes! Oh hi! Come on in. Do take a seat,
not that you have any issues joining random people in their tables.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shiv nodded at Swapna with a grin and took
his seat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘So, Shiv, where do you see yourselves in
ten years?’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘Happily married with two kids - a girl and a boy, in that order.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>They smiled at each other..... </b></span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #741b47;">-!-!-!-!-!-</b></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white;">About Varad...</b></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #741b47;"><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Varad is an accomplished blogger and businessman. He is a doting husband and father of two. He blogs at </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://looseendoftheredthread.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">https://looseendoftheredthread.wordpress.com/ </a> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Along with his wife, Namratha, he has started <a href="https://looseendoftheredthread.wordpress.com/category/micromondays/" target="_blank">#MicroMondays</a> series. To know more about him, <a href="https://looseendoftheredthread.wordpress.com/about/" target="_blank">click here...</a></span><b style="background-color: white; color: #741b47; font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://looseendoftheredthread.wordpress.com/about/" target="_blank"> </a></b></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You can contact Varad at...</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-42000648825021787422017-12-26T20:06:00.000-08:002017-12-26T20:27:32.550-08:00Panch Pandav Raths at Mahabalipuram<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><u><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Panch Pandav Raths at Mahabalipuram<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A few years back, I had gone to visit
cousins in Pondicherry in Tamil Nadu. On their suggestion, I headed out to
coastal town of Mammalapuram or Mahbalipuram which lies midway between Chennai
and Pondy a mere 90 kms. The reason I jumped to it was the drive on the ECR
(east coast road) which runs parallel to the sea mostly and the ancient temples
in Mahabalipuram which date back to the Mahabharat as per legend.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The road was amazing as it was smooth
and free from pot holes all the way through. The sea was visible in bits and
pieces and was farther than I thought it would be. One drawback of this road
stretch at that time was no good food joints apart from a government run Midway
which was pretty average.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Two hours of riding a bike and we
were there. It was quite balmy for February and I was surprised by the
fierceness of the morning sun. It grew worse as the day progressed. Everywhere
around I could spot lots of road side sellers, all selling beautifully carved
granite stone items. I did pick up a pestle and mortar though had no idea how I
would cart it back on the bike – it was damn heavy!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">First stop was the Rathas – these are
monolith temples built out of a single rock by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman-I
(AD 630-660) and are called so as they resemble wooden chariots. These are
called PanchPandava raths (Five Pandavas Chariots) but apparently have nothing
whatsoever to do with the Mahabharata. <i>Ok
by now I was bamboozled by this fact and sought for more information on this.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But the stone temples made me stop in
my tracks as they were just amazing in their construction. It’s said that a
huge rock sloping north to south was used to cut out each temples, few animals and
figures that are found in this compound. I was amazed to see that the texture
of the stone is still quite visible and it’s not smoothened over the years or
affected by the salty sea winds.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcCmKJYLAmy2slh_ECwe-Rra_Mhzv6flIYX2mQbtC3ycdpba8DHFQ4ch4SJw_39nMIptIPZ5kPwSfFSfWJ9pw7IYJKxBZ7p4mENH4Op8bba2TTNbNzcp090sRvZVS2wgQcIUsNNK0WJ5k/s1600/pic+4+Arjuna+Ratha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcCmKJYLAmy2slh_ECwe-Rra_Mhzv6flIYX2mQbtC3ycdpba8DHFQ4ch4SJw_39nMIptIPZ5kPwSfFSfWJ9pw7IYJKxBZ7p4mENH4Op8bba2TTNbNzcp090sRvZVS2wgQcIUsNNK0WJ5k/s320/pic+4+Arjuna+Ratha.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All the rathas are named after the
five pandavas and their wife Draupadi but carry inscriptions from the Pallava
empire and are in fact one of the finest specimen of Pallava plastic art form.
These are said to have no precedent in Indian architecture and were declared a
protected site by UNESCO in 1984 and are maintained by the ASI now.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Insert pic5 Draupadi Ratha<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All the five rathas are in one
straight line starting from Dharamraj Ratha (Yudhishtra Ratha) to Bhima Ratha
to Arjuna Ratha to Nakul-Sahadeva Ratha and finally the Draupadi Ratha which
was the smallest of them all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I couldn’t figure out why they were
named after these characters from the Mahabhartha but did hear that these were
never desecrated and stand intact since the day they were built. An amazing
accomplishment given that our country was raided and plundered by outsiders
numerous times.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If you ever have the opportunity to
visit Mahabalipuram, do stop by these incredible structures and marvel at the
thought behind their conception. Oh and do note the sound of chisel and hammers
all around as this town seemed to have some of the most gifted sculptors as
evident from the wares being hawked from every street stand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">_____________________________________________________________<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">About Shalzmojo</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">An
interior designer by profession, writing is a passion which coupled with travel
love blossomed into this blog where I love to just “do my thing”! Be it
recipes, food events, travel jaunts, fiction dreaming or even meditative
musings; all of it’s taken up quite passionately on my blog. I am a serious
wine guzzler and love to chase butterflies in my free time.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Read about my visit to the monolithic temple in Masroor, Kangra in Himachal
Pradesh <a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/2011/01/travel-diaries-masroor-monolithic-rock-cut-temples-hp/"><strong>Here</strong></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This post is written for the December bloghop #mymojo with <a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/"><strong>Shalzmojo</strong></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Linking up for #wordsante with <a href="http://namysaysso.com/"><strong>Namysaysso</strong></a>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-87222205697031264872017-12-21T16:55:00.001-08:002017-12-21T16:55:16.046-08:00Patwonji ki Haveli in Jaisalmer {Guest Post}<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With pleasure, <b>Team MocktailMommies</b> welcome <b>Shalini Baisiwala</b> on board for today's guest post. Shalini is averstalie, dynamic and enterprising lady with many feathers in her hat! Today she gives us the pleasure of visiting best kept secret of Jaisalmer. Over to you Shalini...</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>-!-!-!-!-!-</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jaisalmer’s claim to fame is not only
its most noted Golden fort but also the beautiful Patwonji Ki haveli which is
not one but a series of 5 houses. The uniqueness of this homestead lies in the
fact that it’s the first of its kind to be constructed in Jaisalmer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It’s said that this Haveli was
commissioned by one of the most wealthy brocade merchants of the city who also
had homes built for his 5 sons within the same compound. Though it’s disputed
that the wealth was garnered through opium trafficking and moneylending; no one
can contest the sheer architectural beauty of these buildings – inside out!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Having heard such fame and claim of
these Havelis, it was but obvious that we had to make a pit stop here.
Expecting a grand driveway to the cluster of Havelis, I was shocked to note its
pedestrian approach. Its situated in a narrow by lane of Jaisalmer and if you
didn’t notice the architecture, you could have just gone past it with it
knowing how famous it is.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The narrow lane is encroached upon by
several pavement shops, selling handicrafts of every hue possible. Moreover one
sees signs of government offices and come to realise that these jewels have
been confiscated by sarkari babus as their mundane offices. How silly of the
government to do that! I think ASI and a few other tourism related departments
are housed here.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ignoring the hideous signages, we
climbed up the steps to enter a room that blew our minds away. Its jewel tones
coupled with intricate mirror work on the walls and ceilings, literally stopped
us in our tracks. As we stood gaping at the vivid hues, it struck us that the
sandy desert monotone had been overshadowed by these interiors. Perhaps that
was the intention of its creator – to escape the mundane tones and imbibe some
life via colours and patterns in the décor.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Havelis are interconnected and
are a two storey affair. You have to marvel at the 60 interconnected balconies
visible in the façade which I guess is a marvel in itself. When we climbed the
upper floor we saw complete interiors of the rooms restored and barricaded to
showcase yet preserve them from the tourists – I breathed a sigh of relief to
note this.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Exquisite carvings on doors and
pillars was a common sight here and it’s said that all of the archways and
windows have dissimilar patterns, making each unique. I loved walking around
the balcony of the open courtyard which allowed for a peek below and also in
the next courtyard.</span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Have you visited these Havellis? Have you heard about them? What did you
think about them from this article?</span></span></i></div>
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<i style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">_____________________________________________________________</span></i></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">About Shalzmojo<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqunsp4ljSqFPzEguRsaEQRVWNrUYBY27ARjGJrGCq4DY55VmNXkvPqA6fNI22qCJSEsAacLevXBMcNB4k7XbmRn9kw9CzHBVkQhK4gPbzEm5Wq0Xv38vZfqL4e5f9RXgmCsiNZehCS8/s1600/_MG_2665+pdf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="681" data-original-width="1036" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqunsp4ljSqFPzEguRsaEQRVWNrUYBY27ARjGJrGCq4DY55VmNXkvPqA6fNI22qCJSEsAacLevXBMcNB4k7XbmRn9kw9CzHBVkQhK4gPbzEm5Wq0Xv38vZfqL4e5f9RXgmCsiNZehCS8/s200/_MG_2665+pdf.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">An
interior designer by profession, writing is a passion which coupled with travel
love blossomed into this blog where I love to just “do my thing”! Be it
recipes, food events, travel jaunts, fiction dreaming or even meditative
musings; all of it’s taken up quite passionately on my blog. I am a serious
wine guzzler and love to chase butterflies in my free time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Read about <a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/2017/04/b-the-body-art-atozchallenge-2017/"><strong>BodyArt</strong></a>
in Bikaner<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This post is written for the December blog hop <b>#mymojo</b> with <a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/"><strong>Shalzmojo</strong></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Linking up for <b>#wordsante</b> with <a href="http://namysaysso.com/"><strong>Namysaysso</strong></a>
for every post deserves some love <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-18855204980801692852017-12-21T02:26:00.002-08:002017-12-21T03:07:27.119-08:00Seven Jain temples of the Golden Fort in Jaisalmer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jaisalmer is one of the most
popular tourist destinations in Rajasthan for its Golden Fort of the </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Shonar Qila</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"> – a name given to it by the famous Bengali writer/director Satyajit </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ray. The fort is constructed of golden sandstone which turns to honey gold</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">tones with the rays of the setting sun.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">I will vouch for its sandy goldiness as I witnessed it first </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">hand on a trip to Jaisalmer a few years back. The fort is a living one for most </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">of its population within its walls and thrives from here. </span><span style="color: #222222; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It lends quite a festive
touch to the fort which are otherwise a sombre affair with their artful
architecture and historic monotones.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The fort also house seven Jain temples, interconnected in a maze like arrangement and are also built out of the golden sandstone. The architectural details of these temples take inspiration from the famous <b>Dilwara (Mt.Abu) and Ranakpur (Udaipur) temples – both in Rajasthan. </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>A beautifully worked ceiling with some amazing colours caught my eye and I strained to get it perfectly in my camera.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">These Jain temples are said to be built in the 15th-16th century and are open all day to Jain devotees. Non-Jains need to adhere to the visiting times which are from early morning to about 12 noon. Also all shoes, leather items are to be deposited outside the temple as these are considered unclean to be carried inside the temple. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><b>All the idols are made in some stone or the other and show a seated avatar.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The seven temples are dedicated to different Tirthankars – Parsavanath, Chandraprabhu, Rishabdeb, Shitalnath, Kuntinath, Shantinath and Sambhavnath. These temples are built back to back or adjacent to each other and I was quite confused as to where one began and the other ended.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>A gorgeous series of columns flank long corridors which leads to the inner sanctums in one of the temple.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">All I can say with certain clarity is the architectural carving were uniquely intricate and blew me away with their precision. Everywhere I looked – ceiling, domes, brackets, pillars, walls, corridors, columns- all were decorated with fine detailing in stone work representing animals, plants and deity figurines.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A deity is carved with amazing dexterity and entwined with other symbolic carvings, each highlighting the craftsmanship.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Unbelievable peace reigned supreme in the temples, despite them being live temples and there was no noise or dirt in any form there. Each and every wall is adorned with beatific carvings that echo the love of art and architecture of the patrons who indulged in buildings such gorgeous sanctums of religions. </span></div>
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<b><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">I loved this demon like head which </i><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">projected out from the base of a wall and seems to be a water spout of some </i><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">kind or maybe hold oil.</i></b></div>
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<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #222222;">Have you visited any of the Jain temples in India? What do you</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #222222;">think about them?</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>_____________________________________________________________</i></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">About <b>Shalzmojo</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">An interior designer by profession, writing is a passion which coupled with travel love blossomed into this blog where I love to just “do my thing”! Be it recipes, food events, travel jaunts, fiction dreaming or even meditative musings; all of </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">it’s taken up quite passionately on my blog. I am a serious wine guzzler and love to chase butterflies in my free time.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Read about Ravanhatha in Pushkar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">This post is written for the December bloghop <b>#mymojo</b> with <a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/" target="_blank">Shalzmojo</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Linking up for <b>#wordsante</b> with <a href="http://namysaysso.com/" target="_blank">Namysaysso </a>for every post deserves some love </span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-61619873143493307692017-12-19T18:55:00.000-08:002017-12-19T18:55:54.476-08:005 MUST HAVES IN YOUR PURSE #Guestpost by Manisha Garg<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello friends!!! Yet another exciting day dawns on this blog hop and to add to all the excitement, today I have the privilege of hosting one of the most popular lifestyle bloggers, <b>Manisha</b>!!! Read on to know her thoughts on the 5 must haves in your purse. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i>A girl can never have enough of bags, can we?</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We carry a world along with us in our bags. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have different bag for every occasion and they serve a
different purpose.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some of us prefer a compact bag like a<b> satchel bag</b> while
some could prefer to carry a lot of stuff, so they might go in for a <b>hobo bag</b>.
For small outings we carry a <b>clutch</b> or a <b>sling bag</b> while for travelling we
carry a bag pack depends on the situation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Whatever bag we may carry we have somethings which are
<b>absolute must haves</b> or <b>essentials</b> while some depending on the
situation/occasion.<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Today
I discuss with you 5 absolute must haves which a woman should carry with them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first and the foremost is some
<b>napkins/handkerchief/wet wipes.</b> We travel we sweat or dust accumulates so we
need to wipe it off as you can’t have a dull face. If something spills off on
the dress or may be sudden sneeze you may need something to wipe it off. </span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anything wrong with makeup you need something to correct it. Napkins/handkerchief/wet
wipes become a must have. If you carrying a handkerchief preferably carry a
cotton one as it soaks and is soft on skin. Similarly, if you carrying a napkin
use a soft one. Wet wipes are generally soft, and you have plenty of options to
explore these days. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Next comes a<b> lipstick or a lip balm.</b> You may just be
going to work or for a travel whatever be the case you don’t want dry lips. Or if
any sudden unplanned occasion comes up– then lipstick always does the trick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The third would be some <b>safety pins.</b> You just never know
when you need them! Last thing which you want is a wardrobe malfunction!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fourth would be <b>sanitary pad.</b> I know you might know your
date but it’s always safe to carry one. You might need it for yourself or you
could help someone. Remember- A friend in need is a friend indeed!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last but not the least is <b>MMK.</b> Wondering what it is?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well here it goes –<b> (M)-Money, (M)Mobile and (K) Keys.</b> Always
carry cash even if you have cards and Mobile with all the apps. Carry you
mobile which is charged. For emergency remember or have the numbers noted on
small notepad. Your keys you need to get back home, right?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><b><i>Whatever the bag it be, these should go in always </i></b></span><span style="line-height: 107%;">😊</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pic Credit </b>– https://www.quotemaster.org/Purse</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>About The Author</b> : Manisha</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> started blogging as her space to share her thoughts and experiences. It has been her endeavour to write across different topics. Starting from writing on relationships she has touched topics on health, beauty, lifestyle, food and her travels. Her highlight for this year has been the 15-interview series during A-Z Challenge of Women across different sectors this April. Last year she was the <i><b>2<sup>nd</sup> runners up for the MyFriendAlexa campaign with Blogchatter</b></i>. Recently she has won <b><i>BlogRock 2017 – Lifestyle Blog award</i></b>. Looking forward too many more milestones which wait for her.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This post is written for the December bloghop #mymojo with <strong><a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/">Shalzmojo</a></strong><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-3861537479098957922017-12-18T17:10:00.001-08:002017-12-18T17:11:32.842-08:00Make Christmas Special At Home {Guest Post}<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With pleasure, <b>Team MocktailMommy</b> welcomes, <b>Zainab</b> our guest on board today. She is a unique blend of fun yet mature ways of thinking. Her straight from heart, honest posts are sure to touch a chord with you. Over to you Zainab...</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>-!-!-!-!-!-!-</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Christmas is a magical time and, makes us all happy. Although it’s fun to go mall hopping to enjoy the decors there are ways to make this festival exciting at home too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">No clues how to do it with much ado, here is DIY for you...</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbf84LwBbAR_Ve_0dTPBmFs-2H_qkkngPSSQul2_sjdsgD-X9acYpCbSHky2StsgxSLm4lk7WYNhHp7zmuExq8YGRFNiXIMiXfy8L0U8XXDLDgYOn7aQs5xsbRiG_DvUwxD7YxcyTRjw/s1600/make+Christmas+specialat+home.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1132" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbf84LwBbAR_Ve_0dTPBmFs-2H_qkkngPSSQul2_sjdsgD-X9acYpCbSHky2StsgxSLm4lk7WYNhHp7zmuExq8YGRFNiXIMiXfy8L0U8XXDLDgYOn7aQs5xsbRiG_DvUwxD7YxcyTRjw/s400/make+Christmas+specialat+home.jpg" width="281" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Go for a tree –</b> First things first. No Christmas ‘feel’ is complete without a tree. Now, you don’t need to buy a big one, even a small one would do. Of course, with the decors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Baking- </b>Start some baking at home, to make the day extra festive. Chocolate cake, with red icing goes well for the dayJ</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Throw a Christmas party -</b> You have a tree, you have the baked goods. Now you just need some friends. So, throw a party and invite your near and dear ones.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Pot Luck It - </b> Often the hosts, are not able to completely live it up at their own parties. What if you, divide the food amongst the guests. Keep the dessert and one special meal for your home though.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Gifts- </b>Now no Christmas is completer without gifts. If you are celebrating just within the family, decide a budget. Each member can buy a gift for the other.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Make a playlist -</b> Some Christmas songs are not to be forgotten. Do your research and add more fun to your evening.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Movie Time- </b>Don’t forget the classics like “Homealone” to be watched, when you enjoy the dessert. And, you can always order a pizza </span><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14pt; text-align: left;"><b>J</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4wBFAOypU1qqepGV5NHSUXnShXkbE0hEnDaSpVXEGYmFOgbWczgRUPzPsEjI3Pck1HaJ3I5lTfkel_8HOw7GbVGrDv4XGjDDHZ_iq-3Mr1uT88b7ZncVOXEKdGUCD5JcmLIYAU79API/s1600/A+Splendid+Christmas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="560" height="451" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4wBFAOypU1qqepGV5NHSUXnShXkbE0hEnDaSpVXEGYmFOgbWczgRUPzPsEjI3Pck1HaJ3I5lTfkel_8HOw7GbVGrDv4XGjDDHZ_iq-3Mr1uT88b7ZncVOXEKdGUCD5JcmLIYAU79API/s640/A+Splendid+Christmas.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In case, you are having a party, ask each one to get gifts (after setting a budget) and then exchange with each other. Budget friendly and fun too </span><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14pt; text-align: left;"><b>J</b></span></div>
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<b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">-!-!-!-!-!-!-</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This post is written for the December bloghop #mymojo with <strong><a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/">Shalzmojo</a></strong><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Linking up for #wordsante with <a href="http://namysaysso.com/"><strong>Namysaysso</strong></a> for every post deserves some love </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>About Zainab...</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcUwidFm1EUCMjHM0XVaxPIAgrJ9Imj4Ti1DlcnOalGHdrLGqbfYFwVKE1fyjlGBFcRpgWN-0UxTVcbKtoC3DU25EukZKiiFibXcD0uiUOVzZlTET8CbK2LP-CTGOVxoDNH4aeC3bjn6A/s1600/WmQdqZ6__400x400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcUwidFm1EUCMjHM0XVaxPIAgrJ9Imj4Ti1DlcnOalGHdrLGqbfYFwVKE1fyjlGBFcRpgWN-0UxTVcbKtoC3DU25EukZKiiFibXcD0uiUOVzZlTET8CbK2LP-CTGOVxoDNH4aeC3bjn6A/s200/WmQdqZ6__400x400.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Zainab is a 30 something year old wife and a SAHM. She has a love and hate relationship with her treadmill, but it’s getting better everyday. Sit back to read, honest posts about how she struggle daily to send my kids to school (or get them to bed) and how I pretend to be the perfect wife at <a href="https://slimexpectations.com/" target="_blank">https://slimexpectations.com/ </a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You can reach out to Zainab at...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">| <a href="https://www.facebook.com/zainabraazi" target="_blank">Facebook </a>| <a href="https://twitter.com/slimexpectation" target="_blank">Twitter</a> |<a href="https://www.instagram.com/slimexpectation/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>|<a href="https://in.pinterest.com/slimexpectation/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a>|</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-89855485151041539472017-12-07T17:39:00.001-08:002017-12-07T17:39:44.507-08:00A MALDIVIAN AFFAIR - #Guest Post by SHALINI BAISIWALA<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A solo
trip is pretty memorable and enviable in my opinion; and even more so when it’s
an overseas one. I recall the time I had to make a work trip to the <b>Maldives </b>–
a tropical island nation in the Indian Ocean, just off SriLanka. It was a work
trip for me as I had just been accorded a very prestigious assignment of
re-styling the interiors of a 7 star luxury resort. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU_osYg-dj9JMUKLR1oFMrToVQAtdSOW8XCXQQdcrGMAAMAov5fk5Y1OAZyTbG7R5-AronRRH69c7abqhqSiR3SlmVIYm0_9bzQzwDUSiS_md3l2jhyghnf6B4EvWmR7IzKAA7UyX8K0/s1600/Maldives+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU_osYg-dj9JMUKLR1oFMrToVQAtdSOW8XCXQQdcrGMAAMAov5fk5Y1OAZyTbG7R5-AronRRH69c7abqhqSiR3SlmVIYm0_9bzQzwDUSiS_md3l2jhyghnf6B4EvWmR7IzKAA7UyX8K0/s320/Maldives+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was
super ecstatic to be on an overseas trip on my own; that also to a tropical island
renowned for its uber luxurious resorts the world over. In fact, it has some of
the world’s most expensive resorts where even Hollywood stars holiday as the
privacy factor is high here.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwXpjP1LdWQAK3T68JynzolX7vABznDZK4OfQAXfAvBPO7dFBAYBh9ySHhQ_nBJ34O-UvYbH-TrEdVFvdhKWn1tQRxKezqEsM9kz1UlvLt1dexcGxJ75ZSN4iSPSL6yOLQDGMBd_kOWw/s1600/Maldives+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwXpjP1LdWQAK3T68JynzolX7vABznDZK4OfQAXfAvBPO7dFBAYBh9ySHhQ_nBJ34O-UvYbH-TrEdVFvdhKWn1tQRxKezqEsM9kz1UlvLt1dexcGxJ75ZSN4iSPSL6yOLQDGMBd_kOWw/s320/Maldives+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I landed
in <b>Male</b> – the capital of Maldives at 2 am local time and was frisked off to a
tiny matchbox hotel in one of the alleys of the city. I was appalled and a bit
frightened by the look and size of the hotel. Trust me when I say that I spent
the entire night in a tiny square of a room with little or no elbow room; I sat
on the bed staring at the door and yes I had jammed a chair under the handle. I
was terrified of being there – my first and last such experience. Later on the
client clarified to me that this was one of the best hotels in Male- Male is a single
night stopover for tourists as they rush off to the more exotic resorts
immediately when they arrive in the day. But at night all water traffic is
suspended and so one has to make do with such accommodation.<b><i> Whatever – I was
determined to never again and I didn’t!</i></b></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the
day time I discovered Male to be quite unimpressive in sights and sounds as I walked
around to take it all in. This gorgeous gold dome belongs to the gorgeous
<b>Islamic centre</b> in Male which was opened in 1984 and was one thing that I quite
liked in appearance from afar.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With
narrow lane-like roads, Male had a surprising number of taxis. I rode in a
couple of them and was amused with the rip offs of Sonu Nigam / Shahrukh Khan
songs which were sung in the local language and were blasted from every street
corner with great love.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I came
upon a signboard advertising a trip to the depths of the sea in a submarine.
Thrilled I signed up and went in or rather down the hatch to immediately come
running back up again as I felt too claustrophobic. The crew were quite bemused
and assured the embarrassed me that they are quite used to this as most folks
feel faint to be confined so. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I did
finally settle down and watched the gauge like a hawk as the submarine
plummeted 40 m below sea level. Unfortunately the water outside was somewhat
dark and murky and the double glass lined windows offered a blurry view of the
sea life. So even though I couldn’t take pictures, it was quite a thrill to
watch coloured fish and other sea creatures scurry around us. Quite the
aquarium feel but it was the fish watching us ;-)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Soon it
was time for me to take an air taxi- something I was quite excited about as
this was again a first for me – to the island where my project was located. Air
taxi is simply a seaplane service to ferry people across the many islands of
Maldives. Incidentally Maldives is made up of<b> 26 atolls</b>; an atoll is a ring
like coral reef formation which encloses a lagoon and consists of a chain of
islands.<b><i> In total there are about 1200 islands in Maldives which is
predominantly an Islamic nation.</i></b></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnLRGrdXzISfKMrUPwqWrab8cu198Z917q5j5PE1b6fTJ6KKrIwVXIIN1vo6mjx8BGxc_GrflV-Qky3HUH9XYsaxH9vzEQJCSOingqrLJtowweLFFZ5Hf8mwAnzXiDCCXAJbl5vBC_tWo/s1600/Maldives4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnLRGrdXzISfKMrUPwqWrab8cu198Z917q5j5PE1b6fTJ6KKrIwVXIIN1vo6mjx8BGxc_GrflV-Qky3HUH9XYsaxH9vzEQJCSOingqrLJtowweLFFZ5Hf8mwAnzXiDCCXAJbl5vBC_tWo/s320/Maldives4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While on
the plane ride, the view of the azure blue sea dotted with plenty of aquamarine
lagoons was bewitching to say the least. I wanted to simply jump into the sea
below as the waters were pristine clean in beautiful hues of blue. Some areas
were so clear and shallow that I could see all the way down to the sea bed. The
sea around Maldives usually remains calm and rough waves are seldom seen. It’s
an ideal destination for paddling in the sea and many resorts offer motor boats
and yachts to their guests to enhance the experience.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Almost
every island has this quintessential sight of a thatch covered pavilion
insetted into the lagoon where one was wade in quite easily during low tide.
The resort I stayed in had this serene setting where I spent many evenings with
a glass of wine and my laptop as I worked and day dreamed alternately.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijVRM6bIDrWd4D3DT3cGoKU8JHpZcE18po77kyk_ZWXLNdlNnlasWcKNe6CzekFDxAkKbQNwowUGewYE2_VXtaUghyW8HhyphenhyphenKv88Q2Eg6CsBpKq_UmeCUs7RR-rWalpYzNAloK5oBW19gw/s1600/Maldives+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijVRM6bIDrWd4D3DT3cGoKU8JHpZcE18po77kyk_ZWXLNdlNnlasWcKNe6CzekFDxAkKbQNwowUGewYE2_VXtaUghyW8HhyphenhyphenKv88Q2Eg6CsBpKq_UmeCUs7RR-rWalpYzNAloK5oBW19gw/s320/Maldives+5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I stayed
there for quite a stretch of time and it took a lot of time to </span>acclimatize<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> to
the heat factor as we are very near to the equator and the humidity is almost
100% there. In fact the salt content in the air is so high that I found myself
dozing off in meetings; much to my embarrassment. It was later I learnt that
this happens to most everyone on their first time around.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix1kV9cqqVn3lz1AGGpR1W7hIcNRZlqV-bOKsDH7cIHs_edhfrMr9xn8IMDiuxUergwCF0Yh0PF_jofRrsV2GehpbIV8KTEyVN9kazTVGrmHW7PGdeHcqJbACk7_WFq9B0TS6V-bfFvjk/s1600/maldives+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix1kV9cqqVn3lz1AGGpR1W7hIcNRZlqV-bOKsDH7cIHs_edhfrMr9xn8IMDiuxUergwCF0Yh0PF_jofRrsV2GehpbIV8KTEyVN9kazTVGrmHW7PGdeHcqJbACk7_WFq9B0TS6V-bfFvjk/s320/maldives+6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of
the best memories of being there are these <b>giant coral pieces</b> that would drift
in with the tide. I was thrilled to find this one but then my enthusiasm was
dampened when I was informed that it’s illegal to carry it and the customs will
arrest me if I do so. I consoled myself with carrying some tiny bits of it
which were okay by the law.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In fact I
was told of the many souvenir shops in Male that cheat tourists by selling them
such pieces with a certificate of “</span>authenticity<span style="font-size: 12pt;">”. Then at customs the poor tourist
has to cough up a fine, the souvenir is confiscated and duly returned to the
shop – it’s quite a racket there. I did walk into a couple of such shops and
was assured wholeheartedly by them that I will be allowed to carry these
items. Hmmmmmm!!!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One point
of advice to anyone venturing out there is to be prepared for the heat – its
killing and I spent most of the daytime indoors. So early morning and late
evenings are best to enjoy the beach. There are no touristy spots in Maldives
and each resort offers plenty of activities like indoor games, movie libraries,
etc. to keep the guest entertained.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Also
there is hardly any agricultural produce growing in Maldives and everything is
outsourced. As a result there is a lot of canned and frozen food stuffs which
is not very palatable; especially for the vegetarians. They use desalinated sea
water as a water supply which is not advisable for drinking since it’s been
cleaned off all minerals during the desalination process. So mineral water is
best but that comes at a huge cost. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Go to
Maldives with a no agenda holiday; just laze in cool indoors or sip cocktails
on the beach or luxuriate in the ultra-classy spa at your resort!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Have you ever been to the
Maldives? Do you like holidays where you do nothing but laze or an itinerary
filled one is what you crave for?</b></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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</span><br />
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</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">About Shalzmojo<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">An
interior designer by profession, writing is a passion which coupled with travel
love blossomed into this blog where I love to just “do my thing”! Be it
recipes, food events, travel jaunts, fiction dreaming or even meditative
musings; all of it’s taken up quite passionately on my blog. I am a serious
wine guzzler and love to chase butterflies in my free time.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Pls do
check out my post </span><strong><a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/2013/03/stop-over/">Rawla Narlai</a></strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> This post is written for the December bloghop #mymojo with <strong><a href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/">Shalzmojo</a></strong><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Linking up for #wordsante with <a href="http://namysaysso.com/"><strong>Namysaysso</strong></a>
for every post deserves some love </span><o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<strong>| </strong><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Shalzmojo/"><b>Facebook</b></a><strong> | </strong><a href="https://twitter.com/Shalz75"><b>Twitter</b></a><strong> | </strong><a href="https://www.instagram.com/shalzmojo/"><b>Instagram</b></a><strong> |</strong><o:p></o:p></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-22752251249827439632017-11-30T20:30:00.000-08:002017-11-30T20:30:08.498-08:00What’s that band on your Wrist!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While you have a quick visit to the grocery store or say go for a morning walk, have you ever noticed people with some fancy watches/bands on their wrist? I am sure you must have wondered what’s this watch/band? What does it really do?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fitness trackers have been around us from the year 2013 in various forms. <b>iPhone</b>, for example, has an inbuilt health app that counts the number of stairs you have climbed, the number steps you have taken in a day, etc. Apart from that, we have smart watches/activity trackers that can be synced with your phones using multiple apps that support these devices. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are various Trackers available in the market, the ones that are leading in the Indian subcontinent are namely:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><b>Goqii Fitness Band</b>- This is not just a fitness tracker but a complete package where you not only track your steps and your food, but you also have doctors and trainers who reach out to you biweekly and work with you in achieving these goals. It uses a subscription model, and the band is part of the subscription.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><b>Mi Band</b>- <b>Mi Band</b> is from Xiaomi, it has almost similar features of steps recording and heart rate recording as Goqii, but does not have the community building feature as Goqii.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><b>Fitbit</b> - <b>Fitbit</b> brings a range of fitness trackers, with a simple steps calculator to a high-end heart rate monitor, etc. The Fitbit is in a more upper price range as compared to the other two. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRrb7a8yyxjy_1QRhBWrJe6edtqvO-HvplJTRMHCvv6jwlXxswxUDR6SlLvgP09AebVrcui2LHtbts0bQ4kReob557Q9qnlkO5vEEPnP-MQnYDZWYmBzeHrf35PK_u3fiKJUqPWiotvYM/s1600/wrist+band.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRrb7a8yyxjy_1QRhBWrJe6edtqvO-HvplJTRMHCvv6jwlXxswxUDR6SlLvgP09AebVrcui2LHtbts0bQ4kReob557Q9qnlkO5vEEPnP-MQnYDZWYmBzeHrf35PK_u3fiKJUqPWiotvYM/s320/wrist+band.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So how have these bands shaped our life? </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>They have been successful in building communities of similar interests, like fitness, healthy living, innovating the fitness drive in a way that it helps to contribute towards a cause. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Live data capturing like how many miles/kilometers did you cover in a day, primarily talking about the amount activity you carried out in a day.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Analysing your sleep pattern, by sensing how much you move throughout the night.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Researches have found that with the use of activity trackers, individuals have shown a rise in their physical activity and have started building more awareness towards how the body reacts in situations.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The ultimate goal of having these trackers are to reach that point in your fitness journey where you understand how active you need to be in order to feel healhy and fit. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<b><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">--Guest Post by Shruti Shankar--</span></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To read on a variety of subjects check Overcoffeewithshruti. You can also follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This post is written for the December bloghop #mymojo with <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&q=https://www.shalzmojo.in/&source=gmail&ust=1512114330448000&usg=AFQjCNHzaZVfrm3AZXEg4eKPT675Jr8SXg" href="https://www.shalzmojo.in/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: blue; text-decoration-line: none;">Shalzmojo</span></strong></a></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Linking up for #wordsante with <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&q=http://namysaysso.com/&source=gmail&ust=1512114330448000&usg=AFQjCNHkoE3pPuD6RYk_JQvw6cYtoHwR_w" href="http://namysaysso.com/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: blue; text-decoration-line: none;">Namysaysso</span></strong></a> for every post deserves some love </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-18083008133570328282017-11-12T17:27:00.000-08:002017-11-12T17:38:15.175-08:00To My Heart's Content This Children's Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hello friends, </span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I, MocktailMommy Vidhi, am back, after a long hiatus, with a creative project. This time it's the one that is sp close to my heart.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What is there on 14th November??? No marks for guessing. Here in India, it’s children’s day!!! When I was a child, there was no specific celebration of the Children's day. However our parents celebrated each and every day for us in spite of their busy lives. This year I will be celebrating this special day with my mother. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Have you ever thought opening up your mother's heart ??? What do you think you will find there? I am sure it will be filled with love for her children, brim to brim. Don't you think so? With this very thought, I have tried to capture that moment in my creation. Sharing it with you here...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">First, i got raw mdf box from my stash. I have very lovely image of mother and daughter lost in their world; as if time froze at that very moment! I have used the same image for this artifact. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMrUVITUzeREhD_jVY-0XUAvP6bwV112WzlY_Y6GkZEilk5Pt_G_I9IcsWr9UGXXmP_33Ni4lMoS4sydyPdcp6IH8k-8VbLyrUZLRQ9tODS7vAuQ51W7AqN7l451hPPspJGDfQjGd55M/s1600/IMG-20171112-WA0021.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1158" data-original-width="1280" height="577" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMrUVITUzeREhD_jVY-0XUAvP6bwV112WzlY_Y6GkZEilk5Pt_G_I9IcsWr9UGXXmP_33Ni4lMoS4sydyPdcp6IH8k-8VbLyrUZLRQ9tODS7vAuQ51W7AqN7l451hPPspJGDfQjGd55M/s640/IMG-20171112-WA0021.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As I wished to indulge in this project to my ‘hearts content’. Driven by this thought, I made a heart from air dry clay. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After that, i decoupaged that lovely image at the centre of top side. Now the colouring time !!! I have coloured clay heart, all sides of box and inner portion of box too with acrylic colours and tried to mix decoupage paper’s background with the box. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEIiBObbKRF-0vkMFSiv_75tOlYuNwS4WfXTi0SPyuUJcv2ZoKVuKBBT_1ahxhKECaPYHo5v7p7aQhLhEW8QyCPnLrTgLzyRSEzGAKwOaUbKVZW4dAQN_ngPJatFkYUYQnVy8xl0Cm13g/s1600/IMG-20171112-WA0024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="883" data-original-width="1280" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEIiBObbKRF-0vkMFSiv_75tOlYuNwS4WfXTi0SPyuUJcv2ZoKVuKBBT_1ahxhKECaPYHo5v7p7aQhLhEW8QyCPnLrTgLzyRSEzGAKwOaUbKVZW4dAQN_ngPJatFkYUYQnVy8xl0Cm13g/s640/IMG-20171112-WA0024.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At the end, I simply stamped a beautiful line of lovely mother and daughter relation in the box and glued a sequence. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP5sricTq9ZW5RJEZQZq1MpMy50f1FyCoU4PCM1vFa3AzlyNezgFgErYkn1EjUifmwZWDZ3JJSLUuOteBcH9d31NW92ODX5WhiZ4e_kTYvzpUBxeF8rK2qfJ7P5IYahb8V9IGgZnpWP3U/s1600/IMG-20171112-WA0022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="961" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP5sricTq9ZW5RJEZQZq1MpMy50f1FyCoU4PCM1vFa3AzlyNezgFgErYkn1EjUifmwZWDZ3JJSLUuOteBcH9d31NW92ODX5WhiZ4e_kTYvzpUBxeF8rK2qfJ7P5IYahb8V9IGgZnpWP3U/s640/IMG-20171112-WA0022.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">You can gift this box to your mother on this special day and add any gift whatever she likes ... perfume , candles , jewellery etc. Because she is a mother we can still be children! You may also give this to your little Princess and fill it with the goodies that are her favourite. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Running short of time to make it? No problem... You can buy it from my online shop at <a href="http://arterycrate.blogspot.in/" target="_blank">Artery Crate</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-----By MocktailMommy Vidhi</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Linking this post to <b>#FridayReflections</b> by <a href="https://www.sanchwrites.com/2017/11/burnout/" target="_blank"><b>Sanch Vee</b></a></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-12208572229108423502017-11-06T05:32:00.000-08:002017-11-06T05:32:47.302-08:00The Nanny<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Neha stared at the dress on the rack....it was the prettiest dress she had ever seen. She quickly checked out the size, it matched hers!!! What luck!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She took a quick glance around to check if anyone was watching her. Nope... nobody around. She picked the dress, rushed to the trial room. After debating in her mind, she gave in to temptation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She put on the dress carefully and looked at herself in the mirror. It was perfect!!! The fabric was so soft, the drape over her smooth curves only accentuated her sexy figure. She looked so pretty, she couldn't resist letting out a gasp...</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Suddenly she heard her name. She dumped the dress there and hurried out. <b><i>"Where have you been?? I've been looking for you. Now take care of Riya..I don't have all day to finish shopping!!!"</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>"Sorry Ma'am." </i></b>she said, taking Riya. For a moment she had forgotten, she was only the nanny...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b><i><span style="color: #990000;">------ MocktailMommy Prasanna</span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #616161; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"> Linking this post to #FridayFotoFiction by <a href="http://www.tinabasu.com/" style="color: #3d562d;" target="_blank">Tina </a>and <a href="http://www.sirimiri.in/" style="color: #3d562d;" target="_blank">Mayuri</a></span></i></b></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNebXjIB8obvGn5unohCe9QFM9wPBmLnL4a_jteSibAv1SsDOVzLNDL5WimbTSWcT0tEaHMSWhXyXD0NYrl5YKQi4pdPAHoumqm5lYO-HOMhhK9HegwFoFqMKoCmbuscWRojOf6NjdjM/s1600/Friday-Foto-Fiction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNebXjIB8obvGn5unohCe9QFM9wPBmLnL4a_jteSibAv1SsDOVzLNDL5WimbTSWcT0tEaHMSWhXyXD0NYrl5YKQi4pdPAHoumqm5lYO-HOMhhK9HegwFoFqMKoCmbuscWRojOf6NjdjM/s1600/Friday-Foto-Fiction.jpg" /></a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-67191582506781771692017-10-30T00:04:00.003-07:002017-10-30T00:07:31.539-07:00HEART PRINTS<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A voice came from the Help Desk, "Next is your turn, Astha." All this while she was sitting quietly and was nervous as if she was scared of what was going to happen...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Was it not very obvious but? It was the fourth time. She was desperately waiting for her name to be called up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The previous three experiences were worst than the nightmare. Still hoping against the hope, she felt a lot of positivity emanating from deep within.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With a heavy heart, full of self doubt, she entered the room, keeping her fingers crossed!!!!! She felt as if some one can hear her palpating heart... She was drenched in sweat, which she could hide in the guise of the climate. But from whom was she trying to hide it from? From her own doubting self...may be...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lady in the room coaxed her...and after Astha was comfortable she started her procedure........and within few seconds she heard a confusing wish-swoosh sound.......gradually to a clear one... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: red;">DHAK, DHAK.......DHAK, DHAK.......</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was nothing but the sound of her baby's heartbeats.....it was her first ultrasound check up of her fourth pregnancy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">"Congrats Astha, your child's heartbeat is normal and so is your pregnancy", said the sonologist.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">"This was the cutest sound of her life which she was expecting desperately after her three miscarriages. <b><span style="color: red;">THE CUTEST AND THE BEST HEART IMPRINTS OF HER LIFE... THAT MADE HER FEEL COMPLET...</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: red;">...IMPRINTS OF MOTHERHOOD!!!!</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="text-align: right;"><i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-----By MocktailMommy kARISHMA</span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">I am taking part in <a href="http://writetribe.com/" target="_blank">The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge</a> </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to #MondayMusings by <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">Corinne</a></b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-85426776756313356552017-10-26T18:08:00.003-07:002017-10-27T18:01:47.917-07:00Favorite Song Spiels Itself<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>A good song is like the smell of earth after the first rains. </i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtkeJlbG-u-VBv1ZSsoMs-yhpC5VaNMBD-9PcWbTlOEa7I-mrievyIen_903PiI5w-OZO8uZD8lkt3nhoi1Dc207PUq8gslYtMNymIXvaj3Dns37irdwEDhIjTwyB6fDWHGsegdfJWC7Y/s1600/favsong5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="995" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtkeJlbG-u-VBv1ZSsoMs-yhpC5VaNMBD-9PcWbTlOEa7I-mrievyIen_903PiI5w-OZO8uZD8lkt3nhoi1Dc207PUq8gslYtMNymIXvaj3Dns37irdwEDhIjTwyB6fDWHGsegdfJWC7Y/s640/favsong5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It makes you </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">feel nostalgic, brings back some wonderful memories. So which is that </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">one song that transports you into another world?? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When I chose this </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">topic,I had gazillion songs running through my thoughts like a wild </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">forest fire. Then came the next question. What makes a song your </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">favourite??... The melody?... The soulful lyrics?... The memories that flash </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">when you accidentally hear it on the radio?... The experience one shared with that special someone?... One thought after the other, laced to each other traveled like a train in my brain!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All through the process of searching for my favourite song, there was </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">this one song which kept playing at the back of my mind. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZATHiue4qzIEtqEP9UNecbntZNQFw1Qjls6qrP7nIcRI8dopbu-LAnjMl-x-RLSNq_89TndLv_WYNArqKuOfSnKl4awTCHL8JtnMaI4SpX2E2F18YKY8A2i2VBiD0KmozVs6cgNGJIdo/s1600/favsong1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="309" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZATHiue4qzIEtqEP9UNecbntZNQFw1Qjls6qrP7nIcRI8dopbu-LAnjMl-x-RLSNq_89TndLv_WYNArqKuOfSnKl4awTCHL8JtnMaI4SpX2E2F18YKY8A2i2VBiD0KmozVs6cgNGJIdo/s320/favsong1.png" width="289" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The reasons </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">can be its simple yet very meaningful lyrics, a song expressing a child’s </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">love towards his mother, maybe as this was the first song I learnt to </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">sing, maybe because this song made my music teacher and my parents </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">realize that I, an eight year old then, was a decent singer, maybe as it </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">was this song that gave me the courage to get over my stage fear, maybe </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">because this song gave me the first ever prize in singing , maybe due to </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">the fact that this song had an impact not only on me but also my </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">schoolmates ,so much so, that even after 25 years, few of my </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">schoolmates recently posted the song on Facebook tagging me and we </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">relived all those precious innocent memories. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Do I even need any more reason to make this song my favourite???</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Without building any more suspense, the song is <b>“Mother of Mine”</b> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>written by Bill Parkinson and sung by Neil Reid</i>. Please listen to my </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">version of this song by clicking the link below. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thanks to #Smule app for helping me record it. <b><i>Use Headphones for </i></b></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>better clarity:</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.smule.com/p/1036088654_1718092994" target="_blank">http://www.smule.com/p/1036088654_1718092994</a> #SingKaraoke</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hope you all like it! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Do share your favourite song with me and the story behind it!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="text-align: right;"><i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-----By MocktailMommy Sathya</span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">All pictures courtesy <b><a href="https://pixabay.com/" target="_blank">Pixabay</a></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">I am taking part in <a href="http://writetribe.com/" target="_blank">The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge</a> </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> </i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">#writebravely #writetribeproblogger</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to #FridayReflections by <a href="https://www.sanchwrites.com/" target="_blank">SanchVee </a>and <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">Corinne</a></b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-48321678440592129512017-10-23T21:05:00.000-07:002017-10-24T08:41:25.657-07:00The Holy Pyre<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Aashna sat in front of the mirror at her dressing table. She was all decked up, but her mind was restless.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Just then her mother came in, <b><i>"Aashna, it's time darling...."</i></b> As she walked out to the ceremonial mandap, all eyes were on her. There was a storm brewing in her mind though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Being an arranged marriage, she had hardly got any time to get to know Varun. Everything had happened in such a hurry.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As they walked around the holy pyre to complete their pheras, she was totally absorbed in her own apprehensions..... But he read her eyes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He held her hand gently, <b><i>"Dont worry Aashna. I promise you in front of this holy pyre, that I will always be there for you. Through thick and thin, through ups and downs, through sickness and health. I will be your friend, soulmate..."</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>The lines of worry on her face disappeared!!!</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b><i><span style="color: #990000;">------- By MocktailMommy Prasanna</span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="color: #990000;"><br /></span></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="color: #990000;">Word Count : 150</span></i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #616161; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"> Linking this post to #FridayFotoFiction by <a href="http://www.tinabasu.com/" style="color: #3d562d; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Tina </a>and <a href="http://www.sirimiri.in/" style="color: #3d562d; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Mayuri</a></span></i></b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #616161; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"> </span></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-31317689252226863262017-10-22T21:20:00.002-07:002017-10-23T03:50:37.329-07:00Me Under Siege<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Clearing up the whats app messages after the festivities is such a mammoth task. Before clearing the messages, I make it a point to browse through them, of course if the time permits. Thus many a times, my phone gives up on me and stays grumpy till I clear it, of all the unnecessary burden. During one such recent <b><i>“swachata abhiyan”</i></b> (cleanliness drive), I came across a message. It was a picture depicting King Ram killing the ten headed monster Ravan. In that picture, Ravan had originated from Ram's own shadow. The message read…</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Have you
tackled the Monster that is hiding inside you?”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now that was
something. I must agree that under the sugary coating of fabulous names, which
I have fondly found as the innumerable excuses, lies the <b><i>Monstrous me!</i></b> Once that I have accepted this fact, life seems so light!
Confessions have great value, you know, even when they are done to self! </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As I started
scratching the upper layers of the excuses, here were many monsters hiding at
the most unexpected corners! <b><i>Me under Siege...</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The first one
to surface was none other than the one hiding inside my wardrobe. It sits pretty on colourful stack of un-stitched dress materials. Every time, I visit the market, </span><b style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><i>“just that
one, not any more” monster </i></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">pops up and compels me to buy. When one is alone and
in the glitzy market, its so very difficult to purge self out of the clench of
this monster! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 150%;">There is a
cousin of this monster as well. This one is <b><i>“Will go for stitching next time”.</i></b> It jacks
out, the moment I open the wardrobe and the pile of the un-stitched dress materials stares at me. </span>Then I give myself a pinky promise, next week end, for sure. No matter what! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And that next week end is in
the grabs of <b><i>“x+1” monster</i></b>. Here “x” is always this week. Poor me, I am besieged
by this trio. Otherwise my wardrobe would be clean and most up to date… Please dont lebel me as a "Procastinator". You should see my plight and then think of bringing that word to your mind!</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tied to the
apron string of this monster is <b>“I don’t have anything suitable to wear for this evening”
monster.</b> And this one, 100% of the times, has appeared when I am running out of
time. And on such occasions, more than the clock, it’s the exasperated faces of
my better half and the kids that do all the “Tick, Tick”. That’s really mean of
them. Of course I don’t dare to say this aloud though!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On a regular
day, at times, I am irked by the <b><i>“What to cook today” monster.</i></b> For a forever apprentice Chef me,
its really intimidating. My cook is
about to reach the threshold of the house and I am yet to figure out the meals
to be prepared! Helplessly, I open the fridge and decide my weapons to fight
with it. Staples such as leafy vegetables and the salads, always come to my
rescue! This fight every morning leaves me exhausted. And then I take a
vow that I would make up a weekly meal plan by this week end. <b><i>Oh God save me, the “x+1” monster is ready to pounce on me at
this corner too!</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The song "</span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I am only a man, with a chamber who's got me, and taking a stand, to escape whats inside me... a monster a monster... and it keeps getting stronger and stronger", then echoes all over!</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To shut mute these echoes from the chambers of my thoughts, I end up gorging on the sweets and
the chocolates. Here chortles the <i style="font-weight: bold;">“Just one
last byte” monster</i><i style="font-weight: bold;">.</i> It simply hypnotises me and then he is done. Poor me, I
have a sweet tooth, you see! That’s what my excuse is when I lose the match with it. Odds are stacked heavily against me, you sure will agree!! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With all these
natorious monsters’ bunch, there is a good one too! This monster catches
my attention every now and then. It peeps from the news paper, shouts from the
book shelf and some times chirps from the net. Its call is so magnetic that I simply
surrender myself to it. And this one is none other than the <b><i>“Read and read more”
monster</i></b>. But that's a monster too! It simply eats away my fair share of being
with my friends and family.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 150%;">Barring the
last one,</span> I wish to shoo away the other monsters from fragile, simpleton, poor
me. With this thought I cross my heart and decide to take it up head on.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Did I just hear
the snicker of the “x+1” monster somewhere? </i></b> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 28px;"> </span><b style="text-align: right;"><i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-----By MocktailMommy Anagha</span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">#MondayMusings</a> by Corinne</b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-47827677644969823102017-10-19T20:47:00.002-07:002017-10-19T20:47:25.137-07:00Just One Step Ahead<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">"Suhana......Stop doing it, you will get hurt." I shouted from the kitchen realizing she was doing some gymnastics stunts without proper safety.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-bLpR5ioY8ardrVmaJEIFlynHt1l5urbLR_rKvkMyM7OCwWleT9pUwl6Wx4T-FwgRWSfaBc9N2ZJibc_1Cr189FRBt9X1hyti2Pq2uz3YjfaFXCx0L2lm8WpsGViMvrGLNsSX6lkpgO0/s1600/gym3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="612" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-bLpR5ioY8ardrVmaJEIFlynHt1l5urbLR_rKvkMyM7OCwWleT9pUwl6Wx4T-FwgRWSfaBc9N2ZJibc_1Cr189FRBt9X1hyti2Pq2uz3YjfaFXCx0L2lm8WpsGViMvrGLNsSX6lkpgO0/s320/gym3.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But, Suhana continued doing it more diligently...so I came out and asked her, "What's the matter baby?? Why are you not listening?....see you got hurt again....doctor had asked you to not practice for at least a month....as you just got your plaster removed and your bone may take some more time to heal."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But all my talks were in vain....as if they were falling on deaf ears. She was doing it more and more persistently. I held her hand and coaxed her. I understood that she was hurt by some rude remarks by her batch mates in the class. </span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>"Forget it, Suhana! It's not your cup of tea. You will not be able to do it ever!" and blah blah....followed by giggling ...to make fun of her.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And, the worst thing that pinched her the most was a sarcastic look of her trainer who finally gave up on her after teaching her successively for months, as if he has lost faith in her and doubts her capability.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She looked at me as if she was asking me "Mom, Will I be able to do it and do you believe in me?"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue;"><b>"Believe in yourself and you can do everything!!"</b></span>, I tried to motivate her, and I took my step back...I could have been with her...but then I realized that this is her battle and she has to struggle herself........</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thankfully, remarks provoked her to endeavor more...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: blue;">Chrysalis</span></b> had begun.......I just had to see the outcome.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She practiced for days, months and for years....</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">she fell and got up, </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">got hurt and healed, </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">but didn"t stop practicing!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And, the day had come.....when she got selected for her <b>National Gymnastic Competition!! </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The day when she got her <b>GOLD</b>.....she looked at me and raised her medal...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue;"><b>"We did it MAA!!"</b></span>, and I hugged her tightly...."It's you sweet heart....you have done it....."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And suprisingly she replied....<b><span style="color: blue;">"It was you who believed in me....Thanks Maa!!"</span></b> I thanked and made her realize that its because of her efforts and hard work ...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My tiny cute little cocoon had transformed into a colorful butterfly....colours of strength, hardwork, patience and many more...my baby is now grown up!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I could see the next Deepa Karmarkar!!</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>She would have easily quit gymnastic and stayed in her COMFORT ZONE!!! But NO, SHE HAD THE COURAGE TO COME OUT OF IT AND ACHIEVE HER GOAL!!!</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That day, even I realized that it's only the <b><i><span style="color: #0b5394;">one step ahead of your Comfort to acheive the impossible.......and that is <span style="color: blue;">COURAGE!!!</span></span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>--------------By MocktailMommy Karishma</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">I am taking part in <a href="http://writetribe.com/" target="_blank">The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge</a> </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to #FridayReflections by <a href="https://www.sanchwrites.com/" target="_blank">SanchVee </a>and <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">Corinne</a></b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-81754743433849202982017-10-17T23:49:00.002-07:002017-10-18T00:08:54.363-07:00Sparkling Gems<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The cloudy skies lurking over the mountain trail, the waning twilight, the flood lights at the construction site along with the dotted twinkling lights from housing societies made for a great watch! Wonder if I stay close to jewels' mine!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thanks <b>Supriya </b>for sharing this picture!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>----------By MocktailMommy Anagha</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Linking this post to <b>#WordlessWednesday </b>at</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-42097066231475287802017-10-15T21:56:00.001-07:002017-10-15T21:56:26.730-07:00DISOBEDIENCE ON INJUSTICE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Though there is consensus that we all should highly abide by ‘Law of Land’, there is also an agreement that <b><i>unjust law exists</i></b>. The only point which arises then is that whether we should obey them or disobey them or try to change and obey them till the time they are changed. Though you may find different views, the least a person can do is to disassociate with something which he feels is wrong. You cannot be in a position wherein you are supporting on one side and fighting against it on the other side. <b><i>Even though law and justice are viewed as virtually synonymous, experience however, has taught us that injustice may be supported by law. </i></b>The sense of injustice can be a powerful condition, causing people to take action not just to defend themselves but also others who they perceive to be unfairly treated. As rightly said by <b><i>Martin Luther King Jr., "Injustice anywhere is threat to justice everywhere".</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvUwMrMntUNkcGrOi8n2nHvbwL-go7asSON95ETXBLqA-x7sV9yhIsbjLyZ9DkrLNU7h47Y39dh2gyy0gwLMasC1mEHFgLppVKDbd7vWNiIvbDYWYAoS-Y7hLnU42yhQtwcDmpxik5R8/s1600/disobidience.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="500" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvUwMrMntUNkcGrOi8n2nHvbwL-go7asSON95ETXBLqA-x7sV9yhIsbjLyZ9DkrLNU7h47Y39dh2gyy0gwLMasC1mEHFgLppVKDbd7vWNiIvbDYWYAoS-Y7hLnU42yhQtwcDmpxik5R8/s320/disobidience.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Some of
the traditional practices followed in olden days have taken form of law over
passage of time. Some of them have been misinterpreted and some have used this
to their vested interest by taking shelter under such law. If we talk about <b><i>“Triple
Talaq”</i></b>, it is a customary practice prevalent among Muslims that dissolves a
marriage when the <b><i>husband says the word "Talaq" thrice</i></b>. These have been actively
protested by their woman community over past few years. Several women's rights
groups have also spoken out against the practice and its ill effects,
especially on Muslim women. </span><br />
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the other hand, the Muslim Law Board has
consistently said that <b><i>"Triple Talaq" is a 'personal law' and thus, cannot be
modified by the Center</i></b>. The custom is criticized for being unilateral and
biased against women, and is <b><i>banned in 22 countries of the world</i></b>. </span><br />
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<b><i><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
honourable Supreme Court, few months back, termed the practice of "Triple Talaq"</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: start;"> as unconstitutional.</span></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Few days back, there was an article in Times of
India, a 23-year-old woman of Kherli village in Alwar district has approached
the court after she was thrown out of the house by her in-laws following triple
talaq. In her complaint, she stated that she was given the triple talaq as she
gave birth to a second girl child in February this year. This was disapproved
by her husband and in-laws. Taking cognizance, thre court has now asked the
in-laws to find an amicable solution.<br />
The in-laws had also threatened to kill the child if she failed to accept the
triple talaq. </span><br />
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of the big question which arises is that how
do we respond to unjust law. Even though it can be tackled through nonviolent method,
it would be perceived as breach of law. People engaged in such act are open to
legal consequences since this shows their fidelity to the rule of law. <b><i>One
such larger movement of civil disobedience was led by our Father of Nation
against the unjust British rule.</i></b> The movement led to end of British
colonization which was result of persistent resistance to unjust law.</span><br />
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<b><span style="background: white; color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">THERE MAY BE TIMES WHEN WE ARE UNABLE TO PREVENT INJUSTICE BUT THERE
SHOULD NEVER BE A TIME WE FAIL TO PROTEST IT.</span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p><span style="color: #741b47;"><b><i>---------By Mocktail Mommy Rupa</i></b></span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">I am taking part in <a href="http://writetribe.com/" target="_blank">The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge</a> </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">#MondayMusings</a> by Corinne</b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-62265110030642276732017-10-14T08:32:00.000-07:002017-10-14T08:32:48.411-07:00Accident<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNBU5UEEu1-DJYgZ0RDerNleW-JszCHXzkWXj_0EapOjj9zv4XsUVMS1lTAbZyq3BHcjWHf9zpsDLvLaYz84quX-nju7UAKf2Kxy5358li3QhBqskhnoOjpuFKzhFGx1fJsPhDCvuxu8I/s1600/friday-foto-fiction-photo-prompt-parking-lot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="760" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNBU5UEEu1-DJYgZ0RDerNleW-JszCHXzkWXj_0EapOjj9zv4XsUVMS1lTAbZyq3BHcjWHf9zpsDLvLaYz84quX-nju7UAKf2Kxy5358li3QhBqskhnoOjpuFKzhFGx1fJsPhDCvuxu8I/s320/friday-foto-fiction-photo-prompt-parking-lot.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They walked out of the elevator into the almost vacant parking lot. She stumbled, he held her.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>"You've had way too much to drink today. I think you should get a cab."</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>"I'm fine. I can totally drive. Don't worry so much, honey!!"</i></b> she said nonchalantly. He tried to talk sense into her, but all in vain.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She got into her car and sped out of the parking lot. He stood there and stared helplessly as her car vanished out of sight. But he could not stop worrying just like that!!! He rushed to his car and buckled his seatbelt.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He was about to leave when his phone rang.... <b>it was her!!! </b>She had probably realised her foolishness. He answered it only to hear a strange voice at the other end...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>"Aap madam ko jaante hain kya?? Unka accident hua hai!!!"</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b><i><span style="color: #990000;">------- MocktailMommy Prasanna</span></i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Word Count : 141</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #616161; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"> Linking this post to #FridayFotoFiction by <a href="http://www.tinabasu.com/" style="color: #3d562d; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Tina </a>and <a href="http://www.sirimiri.in/" style="color: #3d562d; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Mayuri</a></span></i></b></span>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-81251705570010312622017-10-12T18:01:00.000-07:002017-10-13T02:52:31.520-07:00Bated Breath Birthday Surprise<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I have
been known as one of those species, that experiment. My lab is none other than my kitchen! </span><span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14pt;">Yes, I am
a Chef of sorts! I love taking risks and cooking something new. </span><span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14pt;">Coming from the Gujju
background, everyone in my family is a foodie. Every celebration at my house thus
has to have a good spread of sweets and snacks. Add to it, my adventurous nature! I look
forward to occasions to surprise my near and dear ones with a new dish. Not all the surprises
are worth remembering though!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">One such adventure
however is fresh in my mind and will always be. <b><i><span style="color: #274e13;">How can I forget the bated
breath with which I was waiting for it to come out nice, fluffy and aromatic?</span></i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It was my
father in law’s birthday. This year I had made plans to surprise him with home
made egg less cake. Off I went to a bake shop and gathered all the ingredients after
referring to a cook book. I was excited! As I began following the steps, I soon
realised that the fear factor has entered my brain ware like a creepy crawly! It was then the time to keep the cake mould in the OTG and wait!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The wait
of 25 minutes seemed eternal! As if transfixed, I was standing right opposite
OTG. Soon the aroma started wafting in the air. My thoughts by now had wandered
into <b><i>what if land</i></b>. My breath was getting deeper and deeper, as if trying to
shy away from the end results. As the OTG buzzed, signalling the end of baking,
my thought train came to a screeching halt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">My legs
started wobbling at the thought of reaching up to the other side. With bated
breath and little shaky hands, I pulled the cake mould out. With a deep long
breath, I pierced a skewer into the cake and pulled it out. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><b><i>Oh my my! It has
come clean! I was on the moon now!</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin98mqwi1TqBDx6uTXGzXAFPefdoTpomhG9ShtoJCA66kApglyFXGmOY1aDmNfZaVLLNbx8SOWs8ZGGj9ncXeY9Tevr6ANlum3g2XopMI0PtfW6Bg1S2j4TBnFAIkJBzWcg73qvPOxEEA/s1600/BatedBreath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="584" data-original-width="934" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin98mqwi1TqBDx6uTXGzXAFPefdoTpomhG9ShtoJCA66kApglyFXGmOY1aDmNfZaVLLNbx8SOWs8ZGGj9ncXeY9Tevr6ANlum3g2XopMI0PtfW6Bg1S2j4TBnFAIkJBzWcg73qvPOxEEA/s640/BatedBreath.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14pt;">Decorating
it, with chocolate frosting and some dry fruits was like a cake walk for me, courtesy the
excitement that has resumed! Evening was far more than delectable, as my father
in law could not stop appreciating and blessing me!</span></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Sharing
the recipe of the Chocolate cake with you all. This is the one that I have
tweaked, based on my further experiments, and is tried and tested for sure!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<b><i><u><span style="color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Ingredients </span></u></i></b><b><i><u><span style="color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">for
chocolate Sponge Cake:</span></u></i></b><b><i><u><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></u></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 7.5pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">1 cup condensed milk / milkmaid</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">¾ cup unsalted butter, at room
temperature</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">1½ cup maida / plain flour / all
purpose flour</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">3 tbsp cocoa powder</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">¾ tsp baking soda</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">1 tsp baking powder</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">¼ tsp salt</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">¾ tsp vanilla extract</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">¾ cup warm milk, add as required</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">For
Chocolate Frosting:</span></u></i></b><b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></u></i></b></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">½ cup unsalted butter, at room
temperature</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">2 cups powdered sugar / icing sugar</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">1 tsp vanilla extract</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">¼ cup cold milk, add as required</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><i><u><span style="color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Chocolate
Cake Recipe:</span></u></i></b><b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In a large mixing bowl take condensed milk and
butter. Beat in one direction till the mixture turns smooth and fluffy. Sieve
maida, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Fold them gently. Add
vinegar, vanilla extract and warm milk. Mix gently to attain smooth dropping
consistency. Transfer the cake batter to a cake mould. Bake the cake at 180
degree celsius for 25 minutes.( you can bake it in cooker too. That recipe some
other day, some other post!!!) Cool down the cake completely. Once cooled, cut
it in two equal halves horizontally.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><i><u><span style="color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Chocolate
Frosting Recipe:</span></u></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 5.25pt; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list 36.0pt; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">In a large mixing bowl take butter and
beat it.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 5.25pt; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list 36.0pt; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">2.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Add cocoa powder, powdered sugar, vanilla
extract add cold milk.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 5.25pt; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list 36.0pt; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Beat till the mixture turns smooth and spreadable.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><u><span style="color: red; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Decorating
Chocolate Cake Recipe:</span></u></i></b><b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 5.25pt; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo5; tab-stops: list 36.0pt; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;">Spread
the generous amount of prepared chocolate frosting on top of the lower half of
the cake. Then place another half on top of it. Spread the frosting on its top
and all along the side. Decorate it with dry fruits or fresh fruits or
Gems or rainbow sprinkles.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Plate it
in an attractive dish. Store in fridge till its cake cutting time!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; line-height: 150%;"><b><i>-----By MocktailMommy Ruchi</i></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">I am taking part in <a href="http://writetribe.com/" target="_blank">The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge</a> </i></b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: "times new roman"; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> </i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: left;">#writebravely #writetribeproblogger</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to #FridayReflections by <a href="https://www.sanchwrites.com/" target="_blank">SanchVee </a>and <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">Corinne</a></b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-85090994316072191842017-10-12T01:00:00.004-07:002017-10-12T02:47:29.697-07:00Twin Trouble<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl5l34be5zy8GqU6xu1q2jeBj6ShNj0ko7puhsGXddY0609taGdc69jOKsafJdePidjolGrWmGkxK6Rex0Mw_JXCD3w-cGscUBByA28AgKhnXKVXdjhpZR9CMyHf4JZMPrPwDgaqTvzyI/s1600/photo-20171009154709601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="500" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl5l34be5zy8GqU6xu1q2jeBj6ShNj0ko7puhsGXddY0609taGdc69jOKsafJdePidjolGrWmGkxK6Rex0Mw_JXCD3w-cGscUBByA28AgKhnXKVXdjhpZR9CMyHf4JZMPrPwDgaqTvzyI/s640/photo-20171009154709601.jpg" width="553" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“Show up
on board. Your time has run out”, declared a stern voice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“Pirates,
this is the last warning. Show up. This is Capt. Whodunit from coast guard ship
Virat” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14pt;">“You can’t
hide for long. Surrender and save your lives”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“What’s
the guarantee of that, Captain? Black Pearl had never succumbed to empty
threats. Don’t dare board our ship. Come closer at your own peril and get
doomed. That’s my promise. Promise of the genuine pirate”, snide the scornful voice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Splashing
of water guns followed. The screams and shouts of “Ahoy” from both the ends
filled the air. And an ugly fight erupted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“What’s
happening in here? You two naughty munchkins! Enough of wasting the water and fighting.
Do you want to spend the entire summer in this bath tub with your toy ships?”,
Said Mom, rushing into the bathroom.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "comic sans ms"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“Aye, Aye”
came the chorus reply from Vidhi and Nidhi, the twins!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p> </o:p> </div>
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<em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #5f6d80; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
</span></em></div>
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<o:p> </o:p><em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: right; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>----By MocktailMommy Anagha</b></span></em></div>
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<em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: right; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Word Count: 151 words</b></span></em></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>Linking this post to #FlashFictionForAspiringWriters 136th challenge by </i><b><i>Priceless Joy</i></b></span></span></div>
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<em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #5f6d80; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></em></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjexliYCd4s-Gk_yPEHw8VIqqcdZ0B_Xi97k0Atmh6CZkM6jtWy-mcqy7u9Ea45Tkxr0lyFSKaJG-tTxZJqc3jScTFfz5-Nk_AJ1IwN6H_4y6botHBx1MpaJ1wqDb_ymm83V7yLJlJy5U/s1600/Flashfiction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjexliYCd4s-Gk_yPEHw8VIqqcdZ0B_Xi97k0Atmh6CZkM6jtWy-mcqy7u9Ea45Tkxr0lyFSKaJG-tTxZJqc3jScTFfz5-Nk_AJ1IwN6H_4y6botHBx1MpaJ1wqDb_ymm83V7yLJlJy5U/s200/Flashfiction.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #5f6d80; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></em></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>This week's photo prompt is provided by BarbCT/Gallimaufry. Thank you BarbCT!</i></span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-79225259340538662802017-10-10T19:08:00.002-07:002017-10-10T19:15:36.559-07:00Lucky Her<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj58ecvpEUOWi1PdKh4rEzEnN-DJSaNusiyzoqKpyWBCUbHg2xeqLdWvI4GEsvEpGEH3YgtTyBeLyzC2xxZxrQ5LlQC9f9YaqVwaf3Mu4azqmXMvGaoN1o2MLpGRwnvgVCstLXGZWFbj2c/s1600/IMAG1745.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="911" data-original-width="1600" height="363" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj58ecvpEUOWi1PdKh4rEzEnN-DJSaNusiyzoqKpyWBCUbHg2xeqLdWvI4GEsvEpGEH3YgtTyBeLyzC2xxZxrQ5LlQC9f9YaqVwaf3Mu4azqmXMvGaoN1o2MLpGRwnvgVCstLXGZWFbj2c/s640/IMAG1745.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "tempus sans itc"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Shock and dread rendered me wordless... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "tempus sans itc"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "tempus sans itc"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Spotted the
charred remains of car around the corner at a busy cross road at Mulund (W), Mumbai.
Learnt that the car caught fire while waiting at the signal. Thankfully, the
lady driving the car, escaped unscathed. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "tempus sans itc"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "tempus sans itc"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;"><b>Lucky her!</b></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>----- By MocktailMommy Anagha</b></i></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="color: black; font-size: small;">Linking this post to <a href="http://wordlesswednesday.blogspot.in/" target="_blank">#WorlessWednesday</a></b></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://bethere2day.com/wwoat-at-the-dentist/" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="150" data-original-width="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6QtkBNlcp9LTlwzRLj9V8sAz5K7SdziVTd6jmle98heMlhkpCkutZ370shAK0xgvfM2QRtNx3ITsa2YcLUtd9TrMZjA39Y-jwTSzAeRESL1horqR-2Uf3l_aNIt56wYzVt7cigAukSSA/s1600/aab2dwwfull2-150x150.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="color: black; font-size: small;">Linking this post to </b></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.create-with-joy.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="150" data-original-width="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPtm3XzFcJkG7KWwIigpw8Tld8czP55A8ymyPTUvHDsnqvtIAKA-d1j9gijhNJoKl4lCEK0syG7OvmEZgGgLd0amZezBN_sGDU8TRNFrPjnqm127MQa5zISwPqisEskRxspGDnp0i2tHA/s1600/Wordless-Wednesday-Button-1501.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-6460851031841939462017-10-09T10:45:00.000-07:002017-10-09T10:45:03.292-07:00Crossroads<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_RoxO-RedRLiH5A8fN1QtKCCtFAjF5jaF7YkMT0GMOKOA-PP-9W4YG_ikQoJHFK5HRtiCOS9TkofYD2xla1hjEGWujzzQt9pHV8PrIDh9i2oWAMlrL4m2wJU1iuZGt1IbhgEwxYnnTkI/s1600/friday-foto-fiction-photo-prompt-date.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="760" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_RoxO-RedRLiH5A8fN1QtKCCtFAjF5jaF7YkMT0GMOKOA-PP-9W4YG_ikQoJHFK5HRtiCOS9TkofYD2xla1hjEGWujzzQt9pHV8PrIDh9i2oWAMlrL4m2wJU1iuZGt1IbhgEwxYnnTkI/s320/friday-foto-fiction-photo-prompt-date.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was her last day in Mumbai. After landing a plum post at a designer label in Paris, she was all set to start a fresh chapter of her life.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He was waiting for her at their usual hangout. But today it was different. She was no longer his employee and he was no longer her boss. All the formalities were struck out.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They had been the best of friends for the last ten years. All of a sudden, he felt as if his world was turning topsy turvy.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She reached for his hand, held it firmly and said, <i><b>"Dont look so sad...You never know, I might change my mind!!"</b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He held her hand in return. <b><i>"I love you, Tanya. Have felt this way for long but never had the guts to confess.... Is that good enough for you to change your mind?"</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>SHE FOUND HERSELF AT CROSSROADS AGAIN....</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b><i><span style="color: #741b47;">---------- By MocktailMommy Prasanna</span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Word Count : 150</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #616161; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"> Linking this post to #FridayFotoFiction by <a href="http://www.tinabasu.com/" style="color: #3d562d; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Tina </a>and <a href="http://www.sirimiri.in/" style="color: #3d562d; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Mayuri</a></span></i></b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8WGtFcXcpdMo0uJvAw7tfK9iKJVyyBpN0hhG0P8HTiaOez3xzxMOguIzXzVwEX5RQAEJavLW_kcpnSJ0aoDRE9RKax913tQIYuiambzWmh3K0rrNw99OmQace4NM3zOQAL0l0XtlVJEA/s1600/Friday-Foto-Fiction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8WGtFcXcpdMo0uJvAw7tfK9iKJVyyBpN0hhG0P8HTiaOez3xzxMOguIzXzVwEX5RQAEJavLW_kcpnSJ0aoDRE9RKax913tQIYuiambzWmh3K0rrNw99OmQace4NM3zOQAL0l0XtlVJEA/s1600/Friday-Foto-Fiction.jpg" /></a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-45169270153980438712017-10-08T18:19:00.002-07:002017-10-10T10:43:35.633-07:00Last Seen At The Terminal <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 18.6667px;">Its been her dream to occupy that coveted corner cabin. It had the best view of the open skies. The very skies that fascinated her since childhood. Looking up, darting her eyes towards the starry deep blue skies, she always had thought of being one amongst them. How wonderful it would be to float in the crowd of the galaxies, she had wondered, all thorough out the days of growing up. <b><i>Utter silence, floating in anonymity… aha what a solace! </i></b>Solace that she was searching for since childhood.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><b><i>“She is a star material”</i></b>,
most of the teachers had opined about her while growing up. May it be
academics, extracurricular activities or sports, there was not a single corner
of the life that she had not sparkled with her achievements and
participation. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Following her
passion, she took up Astro-Physics and was soon selected as the research
scientist at world renowned Space Center, post her masters. Aided by out of box thinking and hard
work, a rare combination one would note, she managed to acquire the position of
the Team Lead soon. </span><b><i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">A Team Lead at </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">Extra-galactic</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> Explorations division, at an early
stage of life, was no mean feat!</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">She was happy.
Not for the perks that fetched the promotion, but for two distinct reasons. One was getting the corner cabin, that was pretty isolated. Here she could carry out her trials without
any disturbance, she had thought well in advance. And second, she would now be able to lay her hands on reserved
resources of the space center. She now
was so near to realize her dream, she had thought. <b><i>Just one more milestone and
she was done! </i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Soon, her cabin
turned into a miniature R & D lab. She was found most of the time experimenting
with the light sources and gauging devices. Tweaking various algorithms and
programs was another thing that she was busy indulging at her terminal. At times, the fire alarm went off courtesy her failed experiments. Occasionally thin sheet of smoke and burnt smell enveloped the entire top floor owing busting of circuits and the gadgets. The in house fire and safety department also got
used to it. Her
sheepish grin was enough to melt away the cobweb of lines on the forehead
of the Safety Chief! <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 18.6667px;"> </span><span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 18.6667px;">The notice board in her cabin was half filled with the clipped "Show cause" notices, though!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">On hearing the
loud bang and then the subsequent fire alarm, one fine day, no one was
startled. However as a part of the duty, the Safety Chief brought himself to
her cabin. A thick layer of smoke covered every inch of the cabin. Coughing and
adjusting his eye sight, he called out…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><b><i>“So what’s the
celebration this time around, Ms Asta! Found a new supernova, eh?”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">His question was
lost in the smoke. Sensing something ominous, he reached out to his walky-talky.
A waft of air whispered in deep tone…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><b><i>“Don’t worry
mister, this was the last”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Before he could
pull it out, he felt a gentle breeze passing by and the smoke was cleared, as
if something had vacuumed it. Not a trace of it was left behind.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The charred
remains of the terminal, innumerable wires and circuits and a revolving chair
greeted him. <b><i>And then where was she? There were no human remains to be seen.</i></b> As the
support staff banged into the cabin, they saw their chief standing in the
centre of the cabin, dumbfounded! The silence was broken by the fluttering of
the pages coming from the diary at the corner of the table. He walked towards it almost hypnotized and held the
diary in his shaking hands. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“Tomorrow, I will
be one amongst them. <b><i>I will be in the company of many orphans, just like me, my clan… Yes,
these stars and galaxies are orphans.</i></b> No one mocks them for being abandoned at birth. Isn't it cool that they are not bothered about their origins! <b><i>I am Asta, the star, and will remain one forever</i></b>.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The dairy fell off the chief’s hand as it stopped echoing the words.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Umpteen server
dumps from Ms Asta’s account later, confirmed that she was working on
tele-porting ! "</span><b><i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">A bright star is spotted from the M42 nebula", announced the official </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">statement</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> from the Space Agency…</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The case of mysterious disappearance of Ms Asta was
marked <b><i>unresolved and yet closed </i></b>with the statement of the Safety Chief… <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 150%;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">“Last seen at the
terminal” </span></b></i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"> </span><b style="text-align: right;"><i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-----By MocktailMommy Anagha</span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">*<b>Asta</b>- Name with a Greek origin, meaning "a Star"<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">*<b>M42 </b>nebula is 20 light years across earth and can be seen with naked eyes in the night sky. It is the nearest nebula from earth.</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">* All pictures courtesy Pixabay</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 28px;"> </span><span style="font-family: "papyrus"; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">I am taking part in <a href="http://writetribe.com/" target="_blank">The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge</a> </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Linking this post to <a href="http://www.everydaygyaan.com/" target="_blank">#MondayMusings</a> by Corinne</b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com46tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-42987886222902568692017-10-08T04:25:00.002-07:002017-10-26T02:34:37.071-07:00Migratory Wings<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Looking
out of the plane's window, the vast expanse of the blue skies came greeting
me. The loneliness of the skies was dotted with the fragmented and scattered white clouds. Just
like the wandering threads of thoughts in my mind! Or may be it was simply mirroring my mind! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The plane had taken off the Mumbai air space and was heading towards UAE. To
give me company this time was my kiddo and many random thoughts!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">He
never thought even once, I reiterated this sentence. Probably this was the
anthem for me in those days. My better half had decided to take a leap and go
beyond the boundaries to better his resume. I was left with the choice, <b><i>join me
or otherwise, no issues</i></b>! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I
had my high flying career and family life at war heads, courtesy his decision. Reluctantly
and after giving a considerable thought, I took the decision to join him. It
took me almost six months to take this step. So here I was on board with my son flying off
to Sharjah. From take off till landing at Sharjah, I was cursing my decision.
<b><i>But I could no way reverse the clock now… </i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Things
do settle down in life. One needs patience to see the dust settling. And it
did. Life was back on track in less than six months. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Courtesy
my son, I soon had many new friends. Mothers of his friends, were my new bunch of
friends too. Coming from an orthodox background, accepting the friends from
different faiths and countries was little difficult. <b><i>But being alone and lacking
the support of the extended family in the foreign land were good enough the
reasons to cling to this bunch!</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">My
first two friends in Sharjah were a Lebanese mother of twins and Syrian grandmother. They both did not know anything
other than Arabic and French and I was helpless beyond English. Kids then
turned our interpreters! Beyond the barrier of the language, lived and thrived
our friendship. I woke up to the reality that no matter what country you belong to, no
matter where you pray, no matter whether you are a vegetarian or otherwise, <b><i>the concerns of a mother remain the same... her brood, her family!</i></b> Sick kid worries every mother alike irrespective of
the language she speaks. And one more surprising discovery was our common concern…
Getting a good maid!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><b><i>Celebrating
Eid and Christmas along with the Diwali became the norm of the year for
us</i></b>. Thanks to friends from every state of India, we learnt about Baisakhi,
Onam, Vishu, Karava Chauth and many such. Feasting on Kadhi Pakoda Chawal on Baisakhi
was enjoyed with same fervor as having scrumptious Sadhya on banana leaf on
Onam. I learnt a lot of Punjabi and South Indian cuisine too! My gurus were
none other than my friends, who not only taught me to cook but also pampered me
with their delectable preparations!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">My
vision broadened and so did my identity. <b><i>I started identifying myself as an Indian
rather than anything else.</i></b> Over these years I learnt that relationship need not
only be sealed by birth or blood. Strong and lasting kinship can also be built gradually
over mutual trust beyond blood relations. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Seven
years stint at Sharjah made me a content and tolerant person, compassionate and accommodating as well than my earlier avatar! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;"><b style="font-style: italic;">It was a blessing in disguise, </b>I now contemplate. Migratory wings have ushered new colourful horizons in our lives.<b> </b></span><span style="font-family: "bookman old style" , serif; font-size: 14pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Happiness
doesn’t has just one address, isn’t it?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>-----By MocktailMommy Anagha</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;">This post is a part of</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;"><a href="http://blog.blogadda.com/category/write-over-the-weekend-wow" style="background-color: transparent; box-shadow: rgb(15, 15, 15) 0px 0px 0px inset; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; transition: color 80ms ease-in, box-shadow 130ms ease-in-out, -webkit-box-shadow 130ms ease-in-out;">Write Over the Weekend</a>, an initiative for</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.blogadda.com/" style="background-color: transparent; box-shadow: rgb(15, 15, 15) 0px 0px 0px inset; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; transition: color 80ms ease-in, box-shadow 130ms ease-in-out, -webkit-box-shadow 130ms ease-in-out;">Indian Bloggers</a></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;">by BlogAdda</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "libre franklin" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; text-align: left;">.</span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17123727611003668906noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5543614215564347323.post-4977916268533643352017-10-06T09:21:00.001-07:002017-10-06T09:21:31.702-07:00Arrival<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">School mates then… life partners now!
Coming from different faiths, but harbouring same feeling helped us sail
well. Was it easy?’ Varun mused. Of course not but with Valeria by side, I
can handle anything! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">His thoughts were aptly listening to
self.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Migrating to Australia, we have left
the scrutinizing eyes back at the borders. However, something is amiss now a days. She
is not so much into me. Why otherwise, Val, would like to meet me here, at
the café, halfway through the day? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Tap on the shoulders brought Varun back
to present. Here was Val. She was glowing. Settling in the opposite chair,
she pressed his hand.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">“Someone has arrived in my life, Varun”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Varun was shocked. His face turned purple,
mouth went dry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 14pt;">“Why are you wearing this look? What’s
on your mind? <b><i>Graduate up to be a “Papa” now! </i></b>Is this not what we longed for?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><b><i><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">------By MocktailMommy Anagha</span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><b><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Word Count: 150 words</span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><b><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Linking this post to #FridayFotoFiction by <a href="http://www.tinabasu.com/" target="_blank">Tina </a>and <a href="http://www.sirimiri.in/" target="_blank">Mayuri</a></span></i></b></span></div>
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