btweenthepane

new year

2010-01-06T17:27:00.000+05:30

Its been awhile since I made a post..A lotta things have happened, good and bad, life changing and lessons well learnt. I got engaged to the man I love :) I saw my best friends get over hurt n open up to new possibilities. I saw 2 of my closest friends get married. I realized that the greater your capacity to love, the greater it is to get hurt...But I learn..

happy new year folks..
lotsa lessons. lotsa love n good wishes..

and much more..

2009-10-07T15:23:00.001+05:30

Its 5 in the morning when i get up. dad was off to blore and so had to make bfast. i go out to get d milk and its quiet. peaceful. an old grandpa was taking a walk.

i think i'd like to call it a day. sit at home for a while. eat. sleep. pop badams and have spoons of milk maid and toast with honey. Read. i want to read, read and read. sleep. and learn yoga. i want to sit and talk to jayram. shop with amma and talk to amma.

i want to goto calicut. stay with ammamma and achachan. sit with velliedathi. goto ernakulam, make ellechan sing ridiculously funny songs and chase and konjify casper.

i want to goto blore and bond wit my sis chi. buy 100rs ka sandals and then buy some more in all colors! cheap thrills! :)

nice :)

happy birthday di

2009-09-30T12:27:00.002+05:30

To you dear di, :)

There comes a time when u ask what,
What would you do and would I see?
This world all alone,
Without a friend beside me.

There come a time when you ask why,
Why should I leave my best friend behind.
She stood by me through all the pain,
The joys and sorrows. She'd do it again.

There comes a time when you ask when,
When will I ever get to meet you again?
Some time comes when we have to part
Utimately friends live their lives apart.

There comes a time time when you ask how.
How do we stay in touch again?
But the bond is strong. This friendship wont fail.
Thank god for facebook, mobiles and email. :)

There comes a time when questions cease.
You go down on your bended knees.
And thank god for givin you such good friends.
It stands the test of time till the end.

So to you dear Di, i dedicate these lines
Happy birthday dear friend. you are such a find!
May you have all the happiness, joy and fun
May the madness and the laughter continue on the run!

happy happy bday di :D

Off!

2009-08-06T16:45:00.001+05:30

Its been long, but i am still alive
but the poet in me no longer resides.
My poetic muse has taken an off,
and while she's at it, I have switched off!

the end..

2009-07-20T18:43:00.002+05:30

:D :D

to food we move..

2009-07-20T18:26:00.003+05:30

hot tea sounds good enuff
but mango juice!
now tats good stuff

so lets jus make a trip, i implore
to ananda bhavan
for tea, juice and more!

BURP!

home says she!

2009-07-20T17:56:00.006+05:30

the idea is good i think me friend
but aint no car here tat no one can lend
so maybe a couple more hours to go
then home it is, heigh ho heigh ho!

:D

so let put the plan into action..

hmm..i query more..

2009-07-20T17:25:00.006+05:30

y no smiles me friend?
find urself in a dead end?
wats the prob i ask of u
u find urself so in the blue!

Okie and for divs's answer..

D y?

2009-07-20T17:09:00.001+05:30

Divs here tries to blog,
but wats this she finds?
her sentences dont unwind!
her brain's fighting the smog!

:D

aaand i query further when she says this!

A Paen to the Perserverance of the Persistent Pigeon

2009-07-14T13:14:00.001+05:30

Oh fair bird, i fight against ur will!
Ur looking for a dwelling,
and the bathroom
fits ur bill?

The ventilation shaft,
does have its use
but actually currently
its housing my muse!

ur twigs and ur leaves
and other materials,
are dressing up the loo
with an effect surreal!

so I called Mr Raja,
the handyman u see.
he boarded the shaft
n threw away the key!

but did u give up?
oh no sir no!
u pecked and u crooned
REVENGE.. u swore!!

u finally made a breakthrough
u entered the shaft,
shit all over the place
n left with a laugh

so who is the loser?
Lakshmi just sighs
she takes the broom n pail
as the pigeon bids goodbye!

over the days..

2009-06-22T16:40:00.003+05:30

I have learnt..
to panic less
to be more patient
and de-stress

I have learnt..
tat if things
dont go my way
its my stupidity
tat got in logic's way

I have learnt..
though relationships never retire
friendships, n family life
can often go haywire

I have learnt..
that nothin can beat
this outta d world feeling
of love so complete..

I have learnt..
that technology is a blessing
a >:D< smiley hug
can get my spirts lifting..

I have learnt..
that such corny poems
are great fun to write
n i am goin to keep at em'

I have learnt...
that somethings must stop
this blog for instance :)
people.. i'm signing off!

ur number..eh?

2009-05-25T14:51:00.001+05:30

our hero swaggers in
with tat confident air
lean, mean, action hero,
not any of tat i swear! :D

so he sits in his seat
and looks around
and sees some pretty faces
doing the rounds

our hero, he gets ready
combs his long locks
but tat half-french beard
makes him look like a dork

but then again he's our hero
he's confident u see
tat the gals wil jus louuve him
n ask his number to speak

and yes!! one did!
a babe inquired
"excuse me wats your number"
his number she required!

happy days! our hero felt,
maybe the cologne did the trick
he leaned over to her seat
and reeled off his mob no really quick!

"get real dude" she said
who wants ur mob number?
ur seat no is wat i asked for"
could our hero get any dumber

so off he went dejected
to tell his friends the tragedy
some laughed, some hooted
and one wrote this poetry!

hehehe..dedicated to u joe! :D :D :D

n the first of us goes... :)

2009-05-14T19:43:00.002+05:30

We were returning from a really good trip to palghat from Mulla's tharavaad* home. In the auto we were goin to the station... Mulla, Di and me. We were discussing what any other gal discusses when she's 20 or 21 years..marriage trousseau!! :D So we decided that when one o us gets married we'll color coordinate our saris..hehe..in the auto, wit the breeze blowing our hair like mad, tryin to precariously balance our bags, dicussing our future..what fun!

to mulla..
she joined alpha in the 8th..we grew close in the 11th..connected maybe cos o the mallu factor..was my college buddy too, my union member, my sanity check partner, my confidante, my best friend..i relied on her for strength, for discussing the impossible tasks our principal wud expect us to finish, she was my guide, my mentor in many ways.. :) n now she is engaged..

to neel..
U THIRD CLASS RASCAL (very affectionately meant of course :)).. met neel through some common friends of ours and struck a friendship that would introduce me to the world o Gujaratis, his circle o friends, who are now, some o my best buddies.. neel, his warmth, his intelligence n his love n respect for his elders is truly inspiring..his love for mulla tho was truly shocking..we were truly stunned and so was she i believe.. :D he is one o the most understanding, loving and affectionate friend i have met n there are lotta ppl to vouch tat! :D his love for food is phenomenal..all the best mulla! :P

and these 2 are now engaged to be married..

happpyyy!! congrats guys..to 2 o my fave ppl..

where's my stuffed tiger??

2009-05-12T11:51:00.003+05:30

i love you guys.. :)

yaawwnn..

2009-05-08T14:53:00.000+05:30

For the eyes are closing,
ever so slow,
heavy lids and sleep in tow,
this calls for action immediately,
splash of water and a cuppa tea!

thathastu..!

2009-04-18T14:09:00.000+05:30

lakshmi was bored, her hunger sated
rasam n rice n watermelon mated ;)
all this made her think really deep
its time for a blog identity leap!

started with a "pre-blog" lord knows why
"Y this name lakshmi?" many ppl would pry..
a shrug o the shoulder no longer sufficed
so the pre-blog committed an early suicide.

lakshmi remembered looking out the window,
at grasses green, farmers-a-winnow.
women dreaming and children waving,
bidding farewell to strangers unseeing..

so isn't that what life is all about she thinks
contenment, sadness and love on the brink
She sees all this on life's everyday lanes
and blogs it down in betweenthepanes..

ta daa! name changes.. :)

calicut..

2009-03-19T08:51:00.000+05:30

I suddenly yearn for my grandma's house,
and rooms with its long glass windows,
looking out the garden and its lush rich greens,
and grass fighting with weeds overgrown...

Its afternoon now n everyone's asleep,
Everything's quiet, and time is still,
There's a hum in the air and the soft drones
of the neighbouring old paper mill..

There's a room full of books and genres many.
A romantic classic with an old history.
The cover is faded and the pages are torn
and a silverfish is scurrying out all alone..

But now I have to stop cos' i cant go on.
I might book a train ticket and be long gone
to my grandma's house wit its glass windows
and grass fighting with weeds overgrown..

bits of peace...

2009-03-13T14:45:00.000+05:30

It was about 6 years ago, amma was returning from Calicut, Kerala and the scheduled arrival was 5.45 a.m. Now to pick her up one had to wake up at 4-4.15, struggle with the jaali door, utter a couple of curses and then go down to the parking lot and shout at the watchman (snoring away to glory mind you!) to get up n open the gates, n then drive out.. dad n I would head out in the car, the roads at 4.30 would be empty, trees seeming larger, with street lights throwing eerie shadows on the pavement dwellers.. the long straight stretch of mount road, the billboards on gemini flyover, the smooth constant hum of the car. Achan n I would exchange jus one piece of info "have u called amma? is the train on time?"..n then relapse into a comfy silence..there was peace then..15 mins drive of silence, quiet and darkness..peace..

D,M, n me took this trip to kerala. I took em' to calicut n M took us to palghat..I dont think I have ever slept as well anywhere as I had slept there in her house..We woke up one early mornin at around 7 (:P), the kids were running about, D,M, n me took our steel tumblers of piping hot tea and went to the back yard..Beautiful twas!! lush greenery, the good old solid well and the washing stone in all its splendour! I sat near the washing stone, D on it and M close to the well n we said NOTHING!! Pretty tough you would think for us chronic blabber-ers but that moment was a moment to be savoured in silence..I guess a lot more was communicated between the 3 of us than words cud have possibly achieved.. snatched a bit of peace there.. And M, "I am coming there babes. Atleast once for tat peace.." :)

It was the morning of our 2nd day's journey to calicut, D's sleeper seat was unfortunately taken over by one really obnoxious lady..We had the side lower.. D fell asleep soon..But I was awake..lookin out of the window...fields going by, half naked kids waving n ppl at tea stands gettin their bit of early morning news.. the steady comforting rumble of the train, the constant rocking n sips of really bad train tea. :) didnt hold onto the tea, but held onto the moment for as long as I could :)

my bits of peace... :)

zzzzz....

2009-03-13T14:30:00.000+05:30

Ye Gaads! Help Me! I am falling asleep,
words mixing up, and it looks to me,
that an hour in the dorm is necessary
or I'll fall on the laptop,
and squash the keys :D

of days goin by..

2009-03-04T16:50:00.000+05:30

life is goin on as it should, with incredibly busy breathless moments, of long lazy days, of tears, of relief, of love n excitement and quiet contentment..

of teary farewells,n emptiness inside, of long drawn instructions with a mother by ur side..

of carefree sundays, with a book n a pillow, of long long chat sessions leavin u hoping for more..

of giggles with D over nothin important, parents constant worries and my reassurances...

of worrying over dad's health, of him sleepin, tired on the front seat of the car and the love i feel for him..

of worryin over why V ain't eating or sleeping, of surviving on grapes or always wishin to be with him..

of wishin tat maula was nearby n answerin my friends prayers..

of why i need a yoga or a tai chi to move, these muscles o mine, maybe a salsa to groove?

i love these days, as n when they go by, i wish i cud catch em, they are mine, all mine..

her humble mumble...

2009-02-10T16:14:00.000+05:30

This blog is dedicated to my friend, my best buddy, my soul sis, D. But no, this isn't a paean to our friendship or understanding or great times that we have shared. This, in fact, is a testimonial to my ingenious powers of "mumble decoding".

Mumble decoding? "What is this?" you ask. When D gets up in the morning she refuses to talk before she brushes her teeth. No she doesn't have any extra special germs in her mouth. Its just her policy. she will not talk. She will "hum", "mumble" and gesticulate. She will even do the sign language, write on walls, write on paper n etc. But ask her to open her mouth, n thou shalt receive a glare!!

Its all the more tough when we all go for trips somewhere..We had recently gone for one out close friend's engagement to Salem... About 10 of us in the train.. Picture the scene..

We are all laughing n talking, clicking pics and doing some general gup shup. We all turn in for the night. The next morning everyone gets up and the chatter starts pretty soon enough except D is smiling, nodding her head n then smiling some more..! Another half an hour of this exercise and with the puzzled looks thrown around, it kinda screamed for an explanation... :). And since I have been pretty used to this, I take on the interpreter's role!

So thats D for you. Mouna vrath in the mornings b4 brushing her teeth..Anyone breaking the rule Bewaaaare..U only get a blank staaare! :D

I am a Brahmin, I am a Muslim, I am a Christian!

2009-01-30T20:19:00.000+05:30

For all u ppl wondering if i have lost my head you can be rest assured tat apart from certain periodic moments of insanity, i am SANE!

Scene I
2 weeks ago i was back in Calicut, Kerala and taking a walk down the lane. I was thinking of nothing in particular, apart from "eeeks" , footwear n greens when this typical mallu lady walks upto me. She smiles the smile, i smile back. She come close to me, whispers "molle nee Muslim aano??" (*Child, are u a Muslim?). Lakshmi tells grandma, grandma takes lakshmi's holds lakshmi's forehead, whips out her eye liner n fervently draws a bindi stamping her religious roots on her forehead!

Scene II
Dad's surgery is over. He's recovering well. So the water can was empty and I decide to take a walk to the cooler and refill. The nurses come over and ask me ''which sect molle?" Me thinking 'sect' is a (medical?) term for a hospital room no. (!!!) answer in all innocence (read stupidity), "540". Response? Blank look! she asks again "No no..ur a christian elle, which sect?" sigh.."No sister. My name is lakshmi, remember the goddess? the Hindu equivalent of the World Bank?? I am a Hindu"

Scene III
I am at work and trying to work (heh!) and a new tech writer (who is a sweet gal) comes to me to solve a query. we do the general gup shup. She asks me "where do u stay?" Me "Sembakkam". She says "you are a Brahmin na" Me, "No i am not. long live chicken, long live fish n other animals"..

Moral of the story.. Lakshmi has a lot of options and alternatives :) Long live Secularism..Jai Hind! sniff* :)

bday pains!

2009-01-21T18:11:00.000+05:30

Twas' the night of my birthday
the town was asleep,
not a soul stirred in slumber
except for poor ole' me..

No it wasn't birthday excitement.
nor was it any spooky encounter
but a nagging pain starting from,
somewhere around my denture.

And then around around 4 a.m.
an explosion in my ear
accompanied with writhing pain,
what a way to start my year!

I screamed, n cried,
n yelled some more
but that didn't help the pain,
oh no sir no!

So off to the hospital
in my pajamas i left
along with a worried dad
and a terrified mother wept!

I bawled at the doctor,
the nurses and the peon,
woke everyone up,
n conveniently swooned.

The next thing i know
the pain is dull,
injections and medicines
made the torture totally null!

The bday gal slept
relieved from the pain,
knowing that her hearing,
will never be the same again!

"happy bday lakshmi!!"
said friends n loved ones
she smiled serenely,
with a blocked ear drum!!

the toes that WERE bejewelled...

2008-12-19T14:05:00.000+05:30

Oh! a short romance it was!
as short as it can get,
when a pair of silver toe rings
with my elegant toes met!

When i have rings on my ears,
and rings on my finger,
would it seem fair
if my toes alone linger?

It was a short-lived honeymoon,
I know i shouldn't have fiddled,
when I took it off yesterday,
it broke right at the middle!

sigh...The End!

Yes, truly 'great' poetry stems from extreme grief! Not that I am acknowledging my poem is great but it was written in deep grief! :D over it now though and time to buy another pair of stronger toe rings!

wake uppp!!

2008-12-16T16:33:00.000+05:30

Post-lunch work comes to a grinding halt
I think its my digestive system's fault
Gimme a bed , a pillow and a sheet,
A pest to curl up with, and go to sleep! :D

And with such and more profound thoughts racing through my mind, I fight sleep (in vain!), give up the fight, go to the dorm and sleep for about 15 mins. Its 4.45pm now and time for my second sitting with the dentist... sigh!

eloquence thy name is dentistry!

2008-12-15T16:39:00.000+05:30

Ye gaads! It's 4 pm and I haven't got any work done! sigh... I just gave Di* a happy news that I could chew from my left side of the mouth!! After 7 long years of using only the right side, yes it is great news!! :D was actually getting down to making an Oscar acceptance type speech too! ;)

Tomorrow is the second sitting of my root canal therapy.. The first went off okie except the parts where I wished I was dead n mummified.. What with the babbling dentist and my mouth filled wit instruments of all kinds..sigh.. twas' an experience in itself! The conversation went off something like this...

(victim on the chair) Lakshmi-"aaarrrgghhhh"

the dentist- "oh! does it hurt??"

lakshmi-sigh.. "did u pass med school??"

Dentist-"i will put these pins into your mouth, don't swallow them, they are very expensive!!!! hehehe" sniggers*

Lakshmi-WHAT THE F****!!??

Dentist-so, TELL me, what does ur father do? what does ur mom do? what does ur brother do? what does ur husband do?

Lakshmi (with a drill, a suction instrument and a clip in her mouth answers)- ughh..aackh...baaakk...khathoo!

Dentist- oh really?? i was also working in Saudi Arabia!! (Lakshmi thinks"DUDE I DONT CARE!!! GET THE JOB DONE!")

Dentist-"now please hold still...don't shake, don't make any movements with ur mouth..so tell me what all languages do u know??"

Lakshmi-"DUDE!!!" n answers (refer to the 7th exchange o dialogue*)

Dentist-"always remember language is important. It is the thing!"

Lakshmi- (makes a silent resolve never ever to marry a dentist or go to Saudi Arabia!!!)

The End*

Its grey out..

2008-11-26T14:46:00.000+05:30

Its raining.. n REALLY raining as against the usual scenario of water overflowing from the overhead tank and splashing on my window pane.. Apart from being a pretty ingeneous pane cleaning system the overflow doesnt serve any real purpose. So gettin back to rain, why is it that when it rains, n the weather becomes dark and gloomy, we feel the same way inside.. There's a literary term for this i think called pathetic fallacy... I get up in the morning , fighting sleep and doing the zombie walk to the bathroom when i look out..its a grey day out. With a light breeze and a feeling that the night has still not decided to give up its stay to the morn.. Well anyway it took Me a long while to give up my cosy bed and fight the urge to curl up right back to sleep!
The weather hadnt changed much by the time i'd gotten outta the house.. I reached work resolving to get out early but these kinda resolves have been made and broken time and again.. :)

I remember...

2008-10-16T17:14:00.000+05:30

Its been a while since I've posted something...and the reason is sheer laziness and a lotta office work, though more the former than the latter! ;) I was talking to one of my friends recently about how i wanted a break, to go someplace n unwind...i told him that i want to go to Rajasthan and Mumbai and other places..it was then that i realized that i have already been here, lived in all these states and yet my memories of them are vague..

I was born in Calicut, Kerala and dad was stationed in Zawarmines, Rajasthan then..so I guess we must have lived there n of course since i m no super woman my memories of tat place is zilch! I know we stayed in G too...n I know we have a lotta photos to show tat we have lived here, the huge house, amma standing outside the kitchen n achan sporting a terrorist-like beard carrying jram.. but i don't remember the place , the house or the friends that we made..the didi who used to be very fond o us, the kaka who would play with us...these are all just characters in a story narrated often by amma...

I do however remember the house in delhi, our second house in east patel nagar, my school, Faith Academy and for some reason the garbage collector... i have vivid memories of this old lady bejewelled and colourfully dressed with a pallu around her head almost like an old bride.. she had this big bin made of steel and would dump the garbage in it..
i remember the man who used to sell video cassetes..he had no tongue and for a long time i was fascinated with the way he tried to converse..
There are so many memories of Delhi that come flashing by me sometimes...I remember an afternoon when i was plodding through a late lunch and i was more interested in the new ring on my finger...silver with a shiny green paper stuck on it...n when the sunlight fell on it I was a super hero throwing green rays across the dining table.. :)
I remember.. and i want to go back again to that afternoon, quiet and of a childhood long ago where a paper ring meant more than anything in the world to me...

the MTC travelogues

2008-06-06T14:38:00.000+05:30

I was early to the bus stop yesterday. One of the neighbour uncle's had good naturedly agreed to drop me off at the bus stop everyday so i could actually save up on the auto money. So there i was, all bright and early at the Sembakkam bus stop cos uncle has to go early u see. By this time some of u may be wondering as to why this brouhaha about the droppin me off to the bus stop saga.. u see it's about 2 kms from the stop to my dwelling, through a colony, a forest, on a sorry excuse for a road! So any help to the bus stop is whole heartedly appreciated!
Back to me on the stop. One bus goes, 2 bus goes and a 3 and a 4.. By this time everyone looking askance at the gal standing at the bus stop..
Okie so i'm early, i'm killing time by counting all the buses go by and waiting for one where i dont have to balance myself on one foot and say the lord's prayers! And there it comes in all its orange splendour, the M21!! Its empty, there's a window seat and its a vestibule, which means it should just trundle along, slow and steady. :) I'm happy! I pay the ticket the fare, look outta the window and think of nothin in general..

my 1st blog

2008-05-28T11:33:00.001+05:30

Hello blog world!
This is my attempt at blogging and basically testing to see if i can post a blog from Zoho Writer. So i here I am, its 10.45 here on a hot chennai morning and plesantly cold inside Adventnet. After my harrowing experience inside the MTC bus from Sembakkam to Vijaynagar bus stand, the peace at my work place is almost heaven-like!

the pre-blog

2008-05-28T11:31:00.000+05:30

Testing...Testing.. ek, do, teen!