Category: Life Style

I need to talk to you!

The theme for RXC#234 is 

Isolation, Communication, Conversations

You get the drift. Come up with wherever your thought process takes you.

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( I wrote this post in October’18 and it fits perfectly with this week’s theme, so I sharing it again with a few changes!)

How many times in a week/ month, does it happen? We are planning to talk to a loved one and then get caught up in something and either forget or postpone it for tomorrow!

Time seems to be the enemy of family ties! There is work, studies, or social commitments. It is like a race that we are constantly running and the time usually wins.

It’s usually okay with our immediate family where through constant reminders and struggle with schedules we manage to make that ballet practice or the little league match. Anniversaries and birthdays are often remembered with the help of phone reminders. And I did say”usually ” as some people have trouble with those too, due to their hectic schedules.

But with long-distance relationships we often flounder! Be it siblings, parents, grandparents, cousins….. and the list goes on. Childhood friends are often in this group of people that we “always mean to call but something came up”.

Another reason that hinders inter-family communication is the small misunderstandings that have occurred over some long forgotten and trivial issues. Lay aside these differences and you will find that the other side has either forgotten about it or has grown above it.

The wake-up call sometimes comes when for some inevitable reason it is too late to talk to our loved one! The regret that strikes at our hearts at such a time is usually very sharp. We are assailed by ” if only” scenarios. And then we do realize that calling someone doesn’t take such a big effort. As little as 5 spare minutes can connect us to a person with whom we haven’t spoken in a long ( ish) while.

So the time to make that call or write that email/ letter is now. Don’t remain silent. Don’t put it off. Don’t procrastinate.

hands coffee cup apple
Photo by Stokpic on Pexels.com

Connect and reap the reward of making your loved ones and yourself happy. Remember if you stay Silent, you may regret it later.

Written for RXC # 234, hosted by Reena

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#Connectwithyour family

Seven stones ( Pitho)

June 6, 2022, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that features stone-stacking. How does the activity fit into a story? Who is involved? What is the tone? Do the stones have special meaning? Go where the prompt leads!

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Pitho was a very popular game when I was growing up. Two teams of minimally two players each could play this outdoor game. All you needed was a tennis ball and seven flat stackable stones.

This game involved hitting and scattering the pile of stones with the ball and then trying to put it together again without getting out. It was a wonderful way to run, use excess energy and have lots of fun.

Seeing this photo took me back many decades. We kids were able to entertain ourselves without any gadgets or devices.

Beautiful, fun-filled youthful days!

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Word count; 99

Pitho, or seven stones was/is a very popular game of the Indian sub-continent.

In response to 99 Word story, hosted by Charli Mills of Carrot Ranch

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It’s clear now!

It’s very clear to me now that the energy I had even 5-6 years ago has dwindled with age. The recent shifting that we did has totally exhausted me out.

It wasn’t as if I was the only one doing the move as my daughter was fully involved too, but the stress of getting everything up and running gave me a very bad stress headache for the last two days.

Many pills later……

Now I can finally admit to myself that I’m neither invincible nor infallible. I should not presume that I would be able to;

A. Do it all in a day

B. Nothing will be lost/ misplaced

C. Smooth transactions occur only in movies or dreams.

Since I’ve attained these pearls of wisdom, I’m going to believe that all this has taught me a valuable lesson. Don’t volunteer when you don’t have to!

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Your prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “clear.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!

Written for Linda’s SoCS- Clear

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Going wild while decorating!

Something like what we used to have!

As a kid, I shared a room with my younger brother. When a room became available, I was given my separate room but never had the autonomy to make any changes to it.

My first experience of decorating my space was after I got married. I had full control over what I deemed right within the budget. I took the input from my husband but majority decisions were mine. And I went quite overboard with it.

It’s not that I spent a lot of money, but I the décor I chose was very elaborate and over the top. Three layers of curtains, pelmets and whatnots! I also bought a lot of decoration pieces, wall hangings, etc. it was quite a busy space.

I remember how excited I felt when someone visited and showed them proudly my interior decorations. I guess it was excusable as it was my first attempt at it.

It’s gradually that I have downsized my home to something more reasonable. Now I feel less is more and something elegant is better than something ostentatious.

I wish I had photos to share with you of the contrast from then to now.

This week’s prompt is: Decorating Your Space

Written for Throwback Thursday- Decorating your space, hosted by Lauren

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Hillside abode

Islamabad, where I am currently living is right next to Margalla hills. It’s one of the beautiful features of this city. There are a few restaurants on the top of the hills which provide the onlookers with a beautiful view of the city, specially at night.

Islamabad at night

The road up is pretty steep and has a high gradient so only a driver who is expert at hillside driving should attempt it. It takes around half an hour to go the 9-10 kilometers but the view is very much worth the drive. And of course there is food. One Resturant that is the oldest there serve all types of food, catering to all sorts of palates.

Anyone who visits Islamabad should visit these hills. And sample the food at various eateries here.

Sue W and GC are the hosts of Weekly Prompts

“It’s easier to go down a hill than up it, but the view is much better at the top.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher.

Weekly Prompts Weekend Challenge – Hillside from SueW and GC.

This week partner GC and I have chosen Hillside as our challenge for the weekend.

Collections that I collected!

Lauren and Maggie are the hosts of Throwback Thursday

This week’s prompt is: Collections – Take this prompt wherever it leads you.

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I remember collecting many things as a child but the nature of collection changed very often. Some days it was beads that I collected so that I could make small pieces of jewelry from them, and then I would switch over to paper dolls and their dresses. But the only permanent collection was of books.

I started with Enid Blyton and at one time I had all of her books available in the stores. It included old books shops, in fact these shops were the major source of my books.

As I grew, the titles of the books that I collected changed too. I fell in love with historical romances writing very cleverly by British author, Georgette Heyer. Then there was Barbra Cartland, Conan Doyal, Victor Canning, Alister MacLean, and many more. I could afford to buy their books second hand and had quite a big collection.

Over the years I added to this library and when my kids grew up, they added their own favorites. Until a few years ago, we had many bookcases filled with our beloved books. But when we moved 4- 5 years back to our latest homes, we decided to down-scale our library. Now we have two smallish book shelves and have given away many books.

The scarcity of space is one factor. Another is the ease of carrying and reading ebooks. Perhaps it’s the need of time to downsize personal possessions.

I can say that I’ve enjoyed my book collection for many years and I hope those books are still giving joy to someone out there.

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#TBTMemory

Weekly Prompts Wednesday Challenge – Preserving Food

Sue W and GC are the hosts of Weekly Prompts

“I feel blessed to have had such a background, where animals, food raising, harvesting and canning were a natural part of life.” – — Trina Paulus

Wednesday Challenge – Preserving Food From GC and SueW.

This week, my partner Susan and I invite you to write about PRESERVING FOOD.

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When I was growing up, my paternal grandmother was around a lot. She was a woman who never wasted anything, least of all food. So whatever food was in excess at home or cheaply available in the market, she would preserve it to be used later.

Her forte was jams and jellies. Apple, apricot, and guava were made into jams and distributed among the family. She was a wonderful cook and anything she made, tasted great. I would assist her as all of that chopping had to be done by hand. And she was obsessed with cleanliness so either she did it herself or I was allowed to do it. I remember my fingers getting discolored when I would cut apples.

I learned the process by watching her. She wasn’t a very literate woman so she followed her own recipes. And they always turned out so well. When tomatoes were cheap we would make tomato ketchup and at the beginning of summer, we would pickle green mangoes with limes and chilies in mustard oil. This pickle, known locally as “achar” is such a yummy treat that it makes the blandest of food heavenly.

When I was a young mom, I made lots of jams and jellies. Strawberry jam was the easiest and the yummiest one. Now I am either too lazy or too old to do it.

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5 Things- My favorite cold remedies

Tanya is the host of 5 Things

Today Tanya asks us for our favorite 5 home remedies for the common cold.

• Honey;

I believe honey to be very effective in fighting a cold and scratchy throat. Either by itself or in warm milk does wonders for the cold.

• Hot beverages;

Tea, coffee, green tea are all helpful when under the weather from cold. They warm up the body and elevate the mood pulled down by being sick.

• Soup;

Even the doctors recommend soup when we are not well. Any soup would do as long as it’s not too spicy. But tomato soup and chicken soup are specially good.

• Vitamin C;

I find vit-c lozenges useful in cold. Oranges and orange juice are excellent source of vitamin C as well.

• Turmeric and ginger tea;

This is not my favorite but it is very effective. Boil ginger root in water for about 10 minutes and add a bit of turmeric to it. Add honey to make it drinkable. Both ginger and turmeric are anti-inflammatory and give relief in cold or cough.

These are my go to remedies for the common cold. What are yours?

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Friday Flashback- Do’s and don’t’s of ketogenic diet

I am sharing this post from 23 October 2018 as a part of Fandango Friday Flashback

Most people who try to follow Keto diet are confused as to what they should eat and what to avoid. Here I have compiled A list of dos and don’ts of Keto diet.

In one of my previous post, you can read it here, I gave an outline of my initial daily food intake.

Now I want to help people who have started Keto diet and haven’t much information about how to go about it.

1. Meals and their timings:

It is a vital part of Keto diet to eat your meals according to a fixed schedule. Now don’t get the idea that this would tie you to an unreasonable routine. By a schedule, I mean that the time between each meal should be around the same, daily. Now if you have breakfast early in the morning, you don’t have to have it at the same time every day, but make sure that the time difference between dinner and breakfast stays (almost )the same. And apply the same principle to lunch and dinner.

2. If you are not hungry at mealtime, don’t eat. The idea of 3 meals a day or short frequent meals is not good for health. Frequent eating releases Insulin, which will hinder your weight loss and can make you Insulin resistant.

3. Appetite management:

It is natural to feel hungry initially when you start on Keto. The Macros of Keto as I explained in my previous post are:

FAT:70%

PROTEIN 25%

CARBS 5% 

You can add non-starchy vegetables to this.

Vegetables allowed on Keto: 

Eat as much as you want:

Green leafy vegetables like ;

Spinach, Iceberg, Rocket( Arugula), Mustard greens, Collard greens, Kale. Lettuce

Cruciferous vegetables like;

Cauliflower, Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussels sprouts.

High water content vegetables like;

Squash ( all types), Peppers( all types ), Cucumbers, Eggplant, Turnips, Zucchini, Celery, Asparagus. Mushrooms, Olives

Eat less of these:

Tomatoes, onions, green beans, okra, carrots

These vegetables will not only fill up your tummy but will also provide essential nutrients like Potassium, iron vitamins, especially vitamins B and C. 

Start your meal with a large plate of salad. The daily recommended amount of vegetables/salad per day is around 7-10 cups. Divide it into two servings one with lunch and the other with dinner. If you find it difficult to eat that many vegetables, then you can try a veggie smoothie.

     Avoid completely

Potato, peas, lentils, beets, yams, corn.

All the products made out of potatoes and corn also must be avoided.

4. No snacking:

This is a difficult habit to stick to, especially in the beginning. But to get your body into ketosis, you must stick to this important rule. If you feel hungry in between meals:

a. Increase your intake of fat in your meals

b. Have a glass full of water with a tablespoon full of Apple cider vinegar in it. You can also add some lemon juice to it. It will lower your urge to eat.

Hope that these tips will make it easy for you to follow Keto Diet.

I will follow up with another post of foods allowed on keto!

Thanks for visiting.

Please let me know how you like my post.

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Friday Flashback – Chasing happiness

I am sharing this post from September 2018 as a part of Fandango Friday Flashback.

(It’s one of my early posts. I think you will see a difference in the style of writing. I made no changes!)

Who doesn’t want to be happy? We all do! But what exactly is happiness? Happiness is described as a state of being happy!!! And then again, what is being happy? Happy is equivalent to a state of joy or pleasure

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So now that we know what is the emotion that is happiness, how to achieve it? And why do we have to attain this state of mind?

The usual expectation people have about a good life is, that it is a happy life. I agree with you and so would about 99% of people in this world. But what makes a person happy is a big variable. If riches are one person’s idea of a happy life, a good home/ marriage would be another ‘s. A great and fulfilling job can be the ideal happy life for someone else. And so on and so forth.

We usually base our expectations of being happy on certain conditions and circumstances in life. Nobody would expect to be happy just because he/ she felt like it. Except for a CHILD!!! And here lies the difference which is between adults and children. We are gradually programmed to co-relate the happiness with other things in life, like success, money, a good home, or a congenial environment. This conditioning changes our perception of joy and pleasure. A child can be happy for no reason other than he/ she is feeling buoyant. Children have not yet learned that they need certain conditions to make them happy. I guess what I really want to say that the pure unadulterated feeling of joy or happiness need not be an elusive phantom to be chased all our lives. Joy can be found in everything around us, we just need to perceive it. A beautiful vista, a bird’s song, the laughter of a child, or a loved one can bring us untold joy, only if we open our hearts and minds to it.

The onus of being happy should lie on our own shoulders. ( Or in our own perceptions). Don’t give others this job. Decide to be a person who can look for joy and pleasure in little things in life. Don’t wait for earth-shattering events to experience the highs of pleasure. Find your happiness in the little day-to-day event. For example:

1. Getting up at time in the morning

2. Finishing your daily chore on time

3. Having a good meal

4. Listening to your favorite song

5. Reading an inspiring book

6. Seeing a good movie

7. And my favorite, have a good talk with your bestie!

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These are a few of the things, ( I am sure, once you start thinking on these lines, you can find many more) and situations where joy and happiness are just waiting for you to find it!

Another thing much ignored in today’s life is the feeling of contentment! It is much more valuable than transitory happiness. Contentment or peace can bring never-ending happiness as it means that we are satisfied with our lives. We are now at that place in life where little disappointments have no power to disturb us. We have done a good job and are proud of it!

Wishing happiness and joy to you all.

Please comment and say what you think of my post.

Like and comment.

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