min-myinnersoul

Hey there! Long time no see:o) You would not believe how busy I have been these past few weeks. Ever since school let out, we have literally had almost every day filled with something to do or somewhere to go. I am exhausted just thinking about it:o) That has left little to no time to do any crafting...I have been so busy that I haven't even desired to do anything crafty...crazy, right? So anyway, some of you know that I am in the local homemakers club, and we had our monthly meeting at our house last night. One of our members is expecting a baby in August, so we also had a baby shower..you know me..I jumped at the chance to have a special party:o) The mommy-to-be is decorating her nursery in owls, and as we all know, owls are VERY popular right now, so there were a slew of ideas online to choose from. Below is a picture of our food table. The grandmother-to-be made this whimsical center piece...I LOVE hydrangeas:o)  She also made this cute little fruit baby buggy..she said she fou...

End corruption; a favourite slogan in India, especially in the recent past. Really ?? Beware , what you wish for.  If that really happened, it would profoundly alter life in India, as we know it. Are we actually ready for it ? If we don't pay the bribe to get our driving license, we really have to learn driving to get one.  It is an absolute certainty that if the driving test were to be strictly administered, 90% of Indian drivers will fail We have to really declare the right price of your house when registering the property. Is anybody ready for that ? We probably have to vacate the house you live in - chances are that few of them meet statutory safety requirements. Fire safety - what's that ? If we are "rich" we can't slip those crisp ones to witness/cop/judge and stay out of jail , every time we get up to mischief If we are "poor" we can't accept the Rs 500 and one bottle of liquor at election time We are  most likely evading tax. Even the salarie...

Life is not fair. That's an obvious lesson life itself teaches you, although  interpretations of "fairness" tends to vary widely across the spectrum.  For some, life tends to deal a particularly bad hand. In a poor country like India, you see them all the time, although most of us have developed the ability to "not see" in order to preserve our sanity and not be overwhelmed. But we can't escape the reality of the misery around us. This post is a plea to lend a helping hand to one such group of the unfortunate - the aged. We talk a lot about Corporate Social Responsibility and the philanthropy demands on the rich.  But we rarely talk about Personal Social Responsibility and the philanthropy demands on the common man. This post is also meant to ask the reader to reflect on what each individual can do, however small. In developing countries like India and China, the lot of the aged is particularly tough. There is no social security net - the net is the family. ...

This blogger doesn't mind telling a story against himself. A couple of decades ago, he made his first trip to the US of A. Two experiences stand out in the trip. The first was his  seatmate on the flight. The gentleman was, to put it mildly, a mountain of lard. Having encountered many Rajalakshmis - she of the ample proportions -  this blogger thought he had seen it all. But "he ain't seen nothing yet". The specimen he was now witnessing would put all Rajalakshmis combined into the svelte and petite category . The worthy had boarded the flight first as "a passenger requiring assistance" and occupied the two seater we were to share. When I boarded, I discovered that both the seats had been "taken" (this was before the era which now requires man mountains to buy two tickets). I managed the two hour flight by standing next to the seat ! The second stand out experience was when I ordered a cup of tea at some cafe. Small size please. I got a plastic mon...

Politicians will do anything to win elections; even good things ! You can't blame them , for after all that is the objective in politics. As I observed in the previous post, an economic blueprint is of no use unless a political way can be shown as well. So the task is to show that an economic plan will win an election. Or at least not lose one. I believe the time is ripe for that in India. The Congress government is almost certain to lose in the next general elections due in 2014. They have no plan to win it. No amount of cash doled out to the voter is going to help them win. Therefore they have nothing to lose. Ideal conditions to try something drastic. Make a fresh beginning. Manmohan Singh should retire and a grateful nation should say thanks for a lifetime of public service. Pranab Mukherjee can be kicked upstairs. Chidambaram, Anthony , Pawar etc are to exit with a 21st century Kamaraj Plan . For the lack of any other leader, Rahul Gandhi should take over as Prime Minister. He...

It isn't enough to just criticise. A critic must also state what is the alternative.There have been lots of criticism of India's economic performance in recent times and the government's seeming inability to do anything right, economically. The blogger has been one such critic too. But precious few have really laid down a comprehensive argument of what needs to be done , and equally how this can be done; for we cannot, and should not,  wish away political realities. Government action should be for sustained long term economic development - not short term fixes. Improving "sentiments" , like trying to bolster the stock market, is a waste of time and should not be anywhere in government's priorities. Issues like FDI in retail, fiddling with tax laws, which are getting a disproportionate amount of airtime, are all side shows - they won't make or break India. This blogger is no expert on anything. He is just a concerned citizen. So here's one citizen'...

I'm still here, but I have been extremely busy. School has been out for two weeks, so there has been something planned for almost every single day. That doesn't leave much room for blogging unfortunately.  So, anywhoodles, I have a quick gift I wanted to share with you all today. I have a baby shower to attend, and this is what I came up with for the gift. I needed something inexpensive & quick. I had all of the materials on hand....doubly awesome:o)  I love this little hair bow. I'm not sure if the baby will have hair when she gets here, but if she does, she will definitely be able to coordinate with this little bit of sweetness.   I hope to get back into crafting mode very soon.  I sat down in front of my sewing machine for the first time in 2 months yesterday. I have the sewing itch, and I'm dying to scratch:o) Have a great rest of the day!!

The telly in this blogger's household leads a cushy life. It is in a state of perpetual rest. It is only occasionally called to perform and then immediately sent back to the state of rest with an apology for disturbing the slumber. All that changed a week or so ago. You see, ESPN has bagged the rights to telecast the London Olympics which begin in a couple of months. As a lead up to this event, ESPN has been airing some memorable documentaries of past Olympics. If ESPN marketed those videos they are airing, I will stand in line for 72 hours in Chicago in freezing winter to buy them ! There are some absolutely riveting stories there. This post is about one such memorable sporting event. Atlanta 1996. The rather unglamorous sport of weightlifting. What happened that Monday will go down in sporting legend as one of the great days of sport. It was the 64 kg category - not the man mountain variety. Naim Süleymanoğlu from Turkey was already a legend. Nicknamed the Pocket Hercules for his...