Joke again...

A wife woke up in the middle of the night to find her husband missing from the bed. She got up and checked around the house. She heard sobbing the basement.

After turning on the light and descending the stairs, she found her husband curled up into a little ball, sobbing. 

She asked, "Honey, what's wrong?" worried about what could hurt him so much. He answered: "Remember 20 years ago I got you pregnant and your father threatened to send me to jail for 20 years if I didn't marry you?"

She replied: "Yes, of course!" He then said, "Well I would have been released today."

Joke...

(Do not want to portray women as stereotypical. I am sharing a joke, take it for what it is)

A young Indian man excitedly tells his mother that he has fallen in love and that
he is ready to get married.

He says, "Just for fun,  Ma, I'm going to bring over 3 women and you try and
guess which  one I'm  going to marry."  The mother agrees.

The next day, he brings three beautiful women into the house and sits them
down on the couch and they all chat for a while. He then  says, "Okay Ma, guess
which one I'm going to marry."

She immediately replies, "The one on the right."

"That's amazing, Ma. You're right. How did you know?"

The Indian mother replies, "I don't like her." 

Book Reviews.2017. 4

Reviewing books that I read in 2017.

16. Wedding Night - Sophie Kinsella

I did not like it, even though it is written by Kinsella. 2/5.

17. Into the Water - Paula Hawkins

The second book was written by the author of 'girl on the train' (which I loved and couldn't put down). Into the water was a letdown, did not enjoy it. 2/5.

18. Mrs. Funnybones - Twinkle Khanna

I didn't know before buying the book that it is just a collection of Twinkle Khanna's blog posts, which I had read already. I loved reading them again, as the name suggests the book is very funny. 4/5.

19. Joy in the Morning - P.G. Wodehouse

Edwin was my favorite character in the book. Wodehouse at his best again. 4/5.

20. Mindset: the new psychology of success - Carol S. Dweck

The growth mindset is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts. Although many people may differ in every which way - in their initial talents and aptitudes, interests or temperaments - everyone can change and grow through application and experience. Liked the book and would definitely recommend it. 4/5.

What makes us happy?

They are right when they say happiness is just a state of mind. And yet I do feel agitated, anxious, stressed, sad and unhappy at times, over the years I have figured out six things that keep me in my default happy status -

1. First and foremost is good health. If I have bad health, I stop being myself, I stop enjoying anything that goes around me. Any ailment, however trivial, deducts from my happiness. So I work hard on staying healthy - as much as I can. Bad health is also a waste of time... already in our short lifespan.


2. The second is, being able to earn. Working and mainly earning for myself gives me a sense of pride, joy, and confidence. I saw a shift in my personality after I finished my masters and started earning. I have seen this happening with other people as well, shy and introvertish people start walking with an erect spine as soon as they start earning.


3. Money, in general, does provide happiness because it provides for your basic comforts, for recreation—travel, holidays, hobbies or in time of ill-health. A couple of years ago there was an article based on research conducted by Princeton University - on how much money one needs to earn to be happy and the magic number was 75,000$ per year (for the USA). I guess the number would vary for people living in different states/cities and also the number of dependents in the house etc. Money has a dangerous and unhappy side to it if it turns into greed.


4. The fourth is definitely family, friends, and people, being around them makes me happy. Companionship, camaraderie, socializing is rejuvenating, but at the same time, I stay away from the negative people as it robs me of my peace of mind.

5. The fifth is hobbies. I feel a void, big dent in my life if for some reason I am not able to spend time on stuff that I like to do, be it reading, writing, painting, dancing, biking or being with nature.

I feel going to clubs or parties every single weekend, gossiping, criticizing, watching TV constantly, or just being a lazy bum is a criminal waste of time. Social service and such also provides happiness. Basically, it’s important to concentrate on something that keeps you occupied meaningfully.

6. And last but not least is sunshine... Places like Seattle - which are constantly cloudy - are not meant for me. I felt low, gloomy and depressed in Seattle. I see a whole new shift in my mood and energy since I moved to the Bay Area. I feel back to my own self.

Video Log - Traditions

I keep making youTube videos on various topics - this one is about Traditions.