Don’t listen to them

They’ll be the ones who make an effort to come and talk to you, not because they care, they pretend to.

Because they want to hear some news from you.

They talk in such a nice and unassuming manner, you’ll be fooled into thinking they’re good.

They talk so softly, so sweetly you’d almost miss the barbs from their mouth.

They talk to you, and ultimately all comments about you would be a critique on your actions.

I’ve met so many of these people that I now can register them the instant they talk. Somehow I see through their facade.

Inside my mind, I raise an eyebrow as they speak. Outwardly, I listen intently.

A great man once said, It is the mark of an educated mind to entertain a thought without accepting it.

And I realise the true value of that statement today, now, as I deal with such people who try to bring you down.

Guess what, the first step is realising who are your true friends…the rest will follow.

No matter what, have faith in yourself ❤️

Office aka Arctic Circle

The first one hour would be fine, because you would be too busy with work to notice anything. It’s when your energy and time starts slowly sliding into the second wind phase that it creeps upon you. And creeping is right.

The chill starts at your feet and fingers. You wouldn’t notice it at all. Then your limbs slowly freeze into a solid mass. This is the point where small twinges are felt. You unconsciously flex your body, but your mind is still engrossed in work. The third phase is when your muscles start cramping. The sudden pain catches you off guard. You are startled off work. You rub yourself down and stretch. The fourth phase, you realize that your whole body is shivering, and you jerkily get up and rush out of the office.

Once you reach outside, where the temperature is normal (21-26 degrees as compared to the 14-18 inside), your body relaxes. You now know it’s time to gear up. So you go and get a hot cup of coffee or tea and make your way back to your seat. For the next one hour, your hands will either be clicking the keys on the keyboard or around the mug.

Other tips for you people out there…(these are tried and tested methods)

1. Carry a woolen shawl inside your bag
2. Layer, layer, layer. Thermal inners, Shirt, Blazer/Cardigan/Sweater, Shawl
3. Leg Warmers – yes they help, no they won’t be visible.
4. Sip hot water – warms your core temperature, good for your stomach/health
5. Fingerless gloves to the rescue!
6. Cover your neck – turtlenecks, collars, shawls, hair, pet…ok no pet….
7. Obviously don’t wear sleeveless or skirts (wonder how the ones who wear, wear!)
8. Skin colored wool socks – yes they exist, just make sure they look like stockings. Or buy opaque ankle stockings.
9. Ask for the temperature to be changed (it’s illegal in some countries to lower the temperature below a certain point)
10. Go to the AC control room, switch it off, come out, enjoy.
11. I’m all out of ideas at this point…if there’s any other unique and innovative method you’ve tried and actually helps…then please share!!!
    Help fellow heat-seekers!

And that my friends is how you survive the Arctic Circle.

 

One Year and a New Belt

One fine morning, as I clatter away on my keyboard, I get a mail that said – “Congratulations! It’s been a year…” and I go “Say what?!”.

It has been a year. A year. A YEAR!

If you ask me what happened during that one year, it’s all a big blur. Was it a good year – no clue. What were the best and worst moments? No memory at all.

Whole day I was sweating ‘coz I had no answers to these basic questions.
I mean, what exactly was I doing all this time?

Apart from the fact that I remember the past year in terms of food joints, rather than anything else, made me rethink. Was food the only thing worth remembering about the one year I had ventured tentatively into adulthood?

No no…that couldn’t be right. Right? 😕

Well thankfully, I was able to compile a list of good things that happened at 2 AM in the morning, coz hey….what else to do at 2 AM!

My list went something like this…

1. Tried a lot of good food
2. Made new friends
3. Learned a lot
4. Bought my own shoes (with the money I made)
5. Went shopping a lot
6. Discovered awesome restaurants/cafes
7. Started cooking good food (other than noodles and dosa!)

and so on…

I know that my list and my priorities revolved around food a lot, but it’s still good. 😛

In a year, I found that it was extremely difficult to live life on your terms, because one had to work for it.

I understood that getting a paycheck meant nothing unless you knew what to do with it (did not mean shopping!).

I learnt the hard way that your time, your health and your life is purely your responsibility – no one, and I mean no one would ever tell you that you have to prioritize your work and personal life.

That you have to eat on time, that you have to exercise to release the stress, that you need to always focus on balancing your work with your personal time.

That was the biggest struggle for me – to understand when one should stop working.

I was so used to 2 AM snacks and huge dark circles when I realized I could go nowhere unless I reined myself.

Unless I knew how to sneak in quick naps between meetings and calls.

But its all good. I finally started to adult! 🙂

Although I kinda hate that time doesn’t stand still, that I am not forever 20 and apart from all those times where I dislike adulting, I’m just lovin’ it.

It’s been a revelation for me.

I never knew I could actually cook and clean and do my own laundry without major catastrophes (minor ones are acceptable and expected).

So here I am, a year older, a year wiser and a whole lot of moments under my new shiny belt.

🙂

Good Luck & Happy Adulting!

❤

Eternally Grateful it didn’t happen!!!

Hindsight.

Something that makes you realise that everything happened for a reason. The only reason why I still believe things that are not turning out right, right now, are for a reason.

Because, always, always, in hindsight, I found that they shaped my life, changed me who I was for the better.

Why I say this?

Recently, something happened to me, or rather, something I put a tentative step forward for didn’t happen.

It was a very confusing time. I wanted to stick out one toe and check the situation – and wanted it to work out.

Then, once I set things in motion, and saw the kind of people I was dealing with (many masks came undone), I realised that I had miscalculated by a huge margin.

But the things were already progressing and I was helpless but to watch it move forward. I had somehow found a way to deal with it, but to my surprise it came to a grinding halt.

Suddenly, I found myself freed from what would have been shackles to me.

And I am eternally grateful it didn’t work out!

So, yes, I believe that “Things always happen for a reason.”

🙂 ❤

How to get away?

Hi guys….and girls……

I’m not sure I know how to get away from toxic people at the work place.

I find myself searching on Google ‘How to deal with mean people’ every now and then. Somehow the options given – ‘File a case’, ‘Complain to the higher ups’, ‘Quit the job’, ‘Change the team’ – all sound attractive but I don’t want to do that!

I’ve already lost enough sleep analyzing and cross-analyzing the way they said things, the way two or three people ganged up and mocked (seemed like they were praising) and trying to figure out when they would do something to jeopardize things.

Saying something back doesn’t seem to be a good choice…complaining too much would make me a whiner, getting angry would make me the loser….

I was so confused as to what to do…then I found this article that made sense!

Actual sense. It was talking about something I could actually do.

Like wear headsets while working, so that I can avoid unnecessary conversations with people who seem to praise you/be nice to you when actually meaning something else.

So I’ve decided I’ll do the following things from now onwards

1. Wear headphones.
2. Just smile.
3. Keep myself occupied.
4. Make sure I have work away from my table/building/office.
5. Take breaks from life.
6. Stop thinking about them!!!

That’s all for now people!!!!

Gunnit and sweet dreams 🙂

Stay strong!!! ❤

Kodaikanal : A to-do list

I recently travelled to Kodai and had done a bit of reading up on the places to see.

However, I found that while many sites listed many places, only the reviews from people made me understand what was in store.

All blog posts I saw boasted of stunning views. But since I know the place a bit and have travelled there before, I felt that there was too little info.

So, I’ll try to incorporate the things I saw when I went and try to update the info on places I tried but couldn’t see due to improper planning due to lack of proper info. 😦

OK. So the thing is, Kodai is a tourist place where the locals earn an income for the year from a few months’ time. I truly sympathise with their seasonal income problems, but as a tourist/visitor myself, I couldn’t help but be skeptical.

Things to do before the trip:

1. Confirm the accommodation. Also, make sure you have covered taken-for-granted items like heater, breakfast, towels, soaps, parking, wifi etc. You have to ask for these specifically. Although many hotels boast of parking, they do not have a parking lot. They ask us to park outside on the roadside. So be careful.
2. Make sure you have a good hotel. Pictures online are deceptive. Read user reviews before booking. This is for budget accommodation. For 4-star and 5-star, they will list out room amenities while booking.
3. Have a local driver and car who is confident enough to drive steep Ghat roads without making you motion sick.
4. Be ready with a medical kit. It’s a basic thing, but I’m just emphasising it again.
5. Be ready to walk. If you’re planning on some trekking then make sure you have trained a bit before. The treks to ordinary viewpoints are steep (Eg: Dolphin’s Nose). You need to walk around a bit anyways.

 

Places to see:

1. Coaker’s Walk

I loved the views, whether it be morning or noon or dusk. It is a walkway on the side of the mountain offering you vast stunning vistas. Entrance fee when I went was Rs 10 per person and Rs 20 for the camera. The trail is only a kilometre long but there are vendors of fruits, snacks and woollens and many benches on the way. There are even some mehendi artists and game stalls put up. You can easily spend a couple of hours here drinking in the fresh crisp air and the panoramic views. There is also a telescope observatory for views of the town, but I was disappointed when I saw only some random roofs of houses. They could have zoomed out a little, I thought!

This view is from Coaker’s Walk

2. Bryant’s Park

Right opposite to the entrance to Coaker’s Walk is this Park. Again a nominal entrance fee is required. There are various flowers in bloom and lush lawns. Perfect for a picnic, but the monkeys are very notorious so be very careful. You can relax on the lawns and enjoy the midsummer azure skies. However, it has been mentioned a lot that the park is in a state of decline/disrepair. A one-time visit for sure.

3. Bear Shola Falls, Silver Cascade Falls etc

All the falls are majestic and truly awe-inspiring right after the rainy season but in summer you might see only a small body of water flowing down rocks. Make sure you know the condition of the waterfall before you go. I was not surprised to see a very narrow stream flow down in the middle of summer.

4. Berijam Lake

I got contradictory info regarding the entrance to the lake. While one said a pass can be obtained any time, another said we had to wait from 7 AM onwards at the Forest Office till it opens at 9.30 for a pass and that too there won’t be any guarantee you’ll get one. So, due to time constraints we decided to put off this place. But I’ve heard amazing reviews about this place. It is a still lake in the middle of the reserve forest area and I believe has no boating. The thrill lies in the forest ride and the scenery it affords.

5. Pillar Rocks

A view of the beautiful rock formations. A visit to be done for the views again. You can spend maybe 5 mins for the views and the pics to be clicked. Outside the park, you’ll find many shops to buy stuff.

This view is from the Pillar Rocks View Point

6. Moir Point

One-time visit. A small memorial park with views of the mountains. Max 10 mins.

7. Pine Forest

Most famous for selfies and group pics. You can admire the age-old trees and have a mini-trek going through the forest. Pretty place.

This is a view of the Pine Trees

8. Upper Lake View 

A view of the Kodai Lake from a nearby hill. The view is good and is on the way to the Observatory.

9. Solar Observatory

I loved the way to the observatory more. The walk was truly beautiful with pine trees surrounding you, the fresh air you breathe in and the very beautiful selfies you just can’t ruin with your clumsiness.

10. Green Valley View Point

Another viewpoint but with huge barricades due to its inauspicious past. Didn’t visit it though.

11. Kodai Lake Boating

Take an extended boating for yourself to enjoy the serene winds and splashing sounds.

12. Cycle around the Lake

No words but one “YES!”

The Kodai Lake

13. Dolphin’s Nose

Although I went upto the place, I didn’t go trekking. But, had I known I would have to trek I would have prepared and gone. Most of the sites mentioned it as a viewpoint but it needs hiking down to get to it. And hiking back up. This is one place I know I would have loved going to and am sorely regretting not being able to. The drive to the starting point of the trek is a bit scary (according to me). Only a single car can go, the roads are winding and sinewy and not in a good condition. On the right side you have a rock wall and on the left you have just a cliff. Either hire a very reliable driver or go walking. I found that walking seems to be a safer option for people like me who hold on to the handle bar all the way to the point. But countless vehicles come and go without any problems, just good manoeuvring. Be prepared with food and water and half a day’s hike. Good boots are definitely needed. The trek is maybe 2 kilometres. You need to hike down a forest path. Many who thought could go without good boots have slipped. You can buy/hire long walking sticks right at the entrance. Buy one, don’t be miserly here. You will need it. There are 3 viewpoints on the trek. Going down is slippery but easy, but climbing up is steep and a bit difficult. My advice: Start around 9.30 or 10 AM and return before 3 or 4 PM. Have a reliable guide with you.

14. The many trekking trails

Kodai is trekker’s paradise and you will find many forest trails that you will love. According to me,  these trekking trails are the best. I’d say go for the trekking or you’ll regret it. The best views and the closest you’ll feel to nature are then. Of course, you should have a reliable guide to take you around. PS: Always stay safe guys…

I remember only these. Of the above I just loved Coaker’s Walk, Boating, Cycling, Pine Forest and the overall forest driving!!!

Had I been a trekker, then I would have done that too!

Enjoy the beauties of nature, people! 🙂