The Year That Was...

Life-changing! That's the word I would say best describes the year 2011 for me. Life has changed so much in this one year that looking back at it, I can't believe what an incredible lot has happened in what seems like a blink of an eye. Time sure does fly!

Some of the 'highs' for the year were:

-Finding my Prince Charming

-Visiting Mauritius-breath-taking!

-The month long US honeymoon-better than Mauritius ;)

-Getting a job that meets all my criteria, well almost!

There were some 'lows' too:

-Leaving my first love, Google.
-6 months of unemployment & being a bored housewife.
-Expectations Vs. Reality clashes

Some of my 'firsts':

-Being in love. And getting married

-Para-sailing, white water rafting & camping-trying to get a taste of adventure.

-Living abroad for a month-an absolute delight!
-Stepping out of the pampered Google environment. And surviving it.
-Tireless kitchen experiments-most of them yielding some truly delicious outputs. (verifiable claim :D)
-Non-stop, hectic travel: Hyderabad-Chennai-Coimbatore-Bangalore-Calicut-Goa-Mauritius-US
-One of the not-so-pleasant firsts: getting admitted in the Emergency room. A different experience nevertheless.

Things I could have done better:

-Utilized the 6 months of free time effectively
-The obvious one-got back in shape
-Read a lot more
-Dealt with disappointments more maturely

That pretty much sums up my past year. I can't wait to see what 2012 will unfold. Lots of awesome things, I'm sure :)

Guess How Much I Love You...

Can love be measured? Can one express how much they love someone?  I found this lovely story that answers exactly this. The brilliance of this story lies in its simplicity and innocence. I personally adore this story which appeals equally to kids as well adults. Here's Sam McBratney’s 'Guess How Much I Love You.' I'm sure you'll love it too!

                     

Little Nutbrown Hare was going to bed held on tight to Big Nutbrown Hare’s very long ears. He wanted to be sure that Big Nutbrown Hare was listening.

“Guess how much I love you” he said.

“I don’t think I could guess that” said Big Nutbrown Hare.

“This much” said Little Nutbrown Hare stretching out his arms as wide as he could go.

Big Nutbrown Hare have even longer arms. “But I love you this much” he said.

“Hmmm. That’s a lot” thought Little Nutbrown Hare

“I love you as high as I can reach” said Little Nutbrown Hare.

“I love you as high as I can reach” said Big Nutbrown Hare.

“That is very high” thought Little Nutbrown Hare. “I wish I had arms like that”

Then Little Nutbrown Hare had a good idea. He tumbled upside down then reached up the tree trunk with his feet. “I love you all the way up to my toes” he said.

“And I love you up to your toes” said Big Nutbrown Hare swinging him up over his head.

“I love you as I high as I can hop” laughed Little Nutbrown Hare, bouncing up and down.

“But I love you as high as I can hop” smiled Big Nutbrown Hare---and he hopped so high that his ears touched the branches above.

“That’s good hopping”, thought Little Nutbrown Hare. “I wish I could hop like that”.

“I love you all the way down the lane as far as the river”, cried Little Nutbrown Hare.

“I love you across the river and over the hills”, said Big Nutbrown Hare.

“That’s very far,” thought Little Nutbrown Hare. He was almost too sleepy to think anymore. Then he looked beyond the thornbushes, out into the big dark night. Nothing could be farther than the sky.

“I love you right up to the moon” he said and closed his eyes.

“Oh that’s far,’ said Big Nutbrown Hare. “That’s very, very far”

Big Nutbrown Hare settled Little Nutbrown Hare into his bed of leaves. He leaned over and kissed him goodnight. Then he laid down close by and whispered with a smile. “I love you right up to the moon---and back”.

Get-Set-Go

During my previous job at Google, at the beginning of each quarter, our managers asked us to write down Objectives & Key Results (OKRs) or goals that we need to set and achieve during the quarter. I found that process a very tedious one and honestly I didn't think much about it in the beginning. But over the quarters, I've come to realise that these OKRs did give me a sense of direction and served as a guideline for me to work towards. It brought in a high level of accountability and a sense of achievement when I compared the results to the goals that I set.

Now that I've quit my job and am a full-time homemaker (at least for a while), often, I end up questioning myself about what is that I've achieved so far. What am I working towards? Do I see any sort of improvement in myself? To answer these questions, I've decided to set a few targets or OKRs for myself, just like I did back at work. The only difference being that these are not quarterly but for a much shorter time. I'm setting myself up for a few challenges which I will review at the end of the year, a month and a half from now!

1. Lose weight:

Those of you who know me well enough will not be surprised that this is the obvious number one goal. Just so I make it more measurable, I'm making it more specific and aim to lose 5 kgs by new year. I'm starting my diet from tomorrow. No easy goal this one!

2. Blog regularly:

Since I've just joined the blogging world, I want to continue to be active here. To set a realistic goal, I want to post at least 3 entries by the December end. I hope I find the inspiration and the will to push myself and make blogging a part of my life.

3. Read:

Thanks to joblessness and ample free time that it brings, I've managed to read a few good books in the last few months. But I definitely think I could've done better. I can pat my back if I finish reading 'Millionaire Mindset,' a good number of Sherlock Holmes stories, 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' and re-read 'The Alchemist.' Lots of reading to catch up on!

4. Travel:

I love traveling and I want to ensure that I go on at least one weekend trip during the next month. Although I've had a bit of a travel over-dose since my wedding, the enthusiasm for traveling and seeing new places hasn't died down one bit. I could also add blogging about the place to my to-do list!

This seems to be quite a list for my first non-work related OKR. I'll be sure to update this with the results soon.

A New Beginning

This is my second attempt at blogging; the first one died a premature death owning to lack of creative ideas, time and sheer laziness. I intend to be more regular this time around in posting my thoughts and views.

The very idea of starting this blog came during one of those bored afternoons when I questioned myself as to what is it that I'm passionate about in life. I thought. A lot. And I couldn't come up with a single activity/hobby which I was passionate about. Around the same time, during one of our innumerable chat sessions, a good friend Vidya, (an avid blogger and a wonderful & enthusiastic writer herself) suggested that I try my hand at blogging.

Like most other things in life, I was pretty kicked about the whole novel idea of writing and publishing a blog of my own. But the stars were never perfectly aligned for that idea to transform into a reality. Today though, seems to be a different day. I have finally managed to bring myself to create a blog of my own.

The purpose of this blog will be to discipline myself to write more often, express my views freely and confidently (unlike in real life) and to have an activity that I can say I'm passionate about!