9 books that stayed with me. 9

9. The Martian - Andy Weir

I had an aversion towards Sci-Fi books, I had read a few like ‘a wrinkle in time’, ‘ender’s game’, ‘Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the galaxy’ - all of these are well-known books, however, I did not enjoy reading them. I picked up ‘The Martian’ with reluctance and I absolutely loved it, I realized I do enjoy Sci-Fi after all, only if chosen wisely  :). I am now open to reading sci-fi and the ones that really liked are - Replay, The Martian, Recursion and Dark matter. 

Some avid readers say they read anything and everything, well I don’t. Life is too short to read anything and everything also once we start reading and appreciating quality stuff like Ayn Rand and Richard Dawkins it is hard to read anything and everything.

Hope you enjoy reading these books.

Idiot Box: Part 9

Travelers

It is a time travel show that is very light on science. Hundreds of years in our future, humanity is endangered and the survivors have learned to send their consciousness into their past, the 21st century. They then take over people’s bodies in order to carry out missions that will hopefully prevent humankind’s tragic fate. It is fun and freaky. 4/5.

American Vandal

American Vandal is a comedy series that satirizes true-crime shows. While most such shows are built around murders, the crime, in this case, is vandalism: penises are spray-painted on a row of teacher's cars. Those penises are shown over and over again and discussed at length, in silly ways, of course. Despite the language and vulgarity, this series is pretty sharp, sending up true-crime reportage by imitating it. Very different and off-beat show. 4/5.

Broadchurch

LOVED the first season and then it just got boring and tiring from season 2 onwards. 2/5.

Classic Legends/ Golden Years By Javed Akhtar

This documentary series explores the glamour of Bollywood through the stories of the men and women who have illuminated its screens. And as the name suggests it is based on the classic (black and white era) legends and the golden years of Bollywood. 5/5.

Mindhunter

This show is about serial killers, their mentality and why they do what they do. How does the police find out clues/ patterns if the murder was committed by a serial killer and who his/her next victim will be? There is more chatter than splatter on the show (unlike Dexter). I found it just too slow, however, it is very well-reviewed and received TV show. 2/5.

The Five

A thriller that has many cupboards all filled with skeletons, if you know what I mean. 4/5.

Indian Superfoods : Rujuta Diwekar

All my life when I looked around I felt a disconnect with the world. Fancy diets, calorie counting, don't eat this/ that, hours-long workouts... I did not understand the necessity of all this. I eat small quantities after every few hours, I eat simple, homemade, Indian and fresh food, I eat ghee, rice, coconut every day, I can not have a salad for a dinner, I can have khichadi for dinner but not salad (as the fad goes). I spend 60 minutes every day on exercise, nothing more than that.

And when I looked around I thought 'my grandmother never followed any such diets, she ate simple and lived simple and didn't have to see a doctor all her life, why are there so many fads, who should I follow? my grandmother/ mother or the world? There are new scientific discoveries, maybe my grandmother didn't know about them, but then I see that she lived a healthy life and maintained an awesome lean figure'.

And then one day I started reading and following Rujuta Diwekar and it dawned on me that my grandmother is and has always been right.  There was no looking back for me after that, I read all of Rujuta's books, she saved me from feeling confused, pulled me out of my quandary. Did Rujuta Diwekar turn me into a follower of my grandmother's lifestyle? No! I always followed it, all I needed was an affirmation that I am on the right path, the path of logic and simplicity, and she provided me with that affirmation.

Overall I feel Indian food is a superfood and in the book 'Indian Superfoods' Rujuta lists the superfoods of the superfood.

I highly recommend her books.

Book Reviews. 2017. 9

Reviewing the books that I read in 2017.

40. Replay - Ken Grimwood

Different concept, well written, first 3/4th book is extraordinary, then it gets a little repetitive, overall liked it. 4/5

41. Life with Jeeves - P.G. Woodhouse

It contains Right Ho, Jeeves; The Inimitable Jeeves; and Very Good, Jeeves. Jeeves, that noiseless provider of deliverance from the hangover, a bird of the ripest intellect, calm and wise enough to rescue Bertie and his pals from the most fearful scrapes. 5/5.

42. Dark Matter - Blake Crouch

If you have read other books by Blake (eg. WaywardPpines) then the start of this book would be deja vu, people waking up in labs/ hospitals, not knowing where they are. After the start, you need to be open and acceptable enough to read about scientific theories which are not proven yet (and maybe they never will), for the span of this book just assume those theories are true and once you do that the book is absolutely amazing. 5/5.

43. Mum on the Run - Fiona Gibson

I liked the story, did not like the whiny characters. 3/5.

44. Gilead - Marilynne Robinson

Gave up after 3rd chapter. Too much about Christianity, familial bonds, religion, prayers, and stuff. 1/5.

45. The Inimitable Jeeves - P.G. Wodehouse

The adventures of Bertie Wooster and Jeeves are narrated by Wodehouse with his natural flair and brilliantly fun-filled manner. P.G. Wodehouse yet again shows off his comic genius in this timeless funny classic. 5/5.

46. One Plus One - Jojo Moyes

I do not like Jojo Moyes' stories and this definitely is the last book of hers that I read. 1/5.

47. Ana and the french kiss - Stephanie Perkins 48. The Testament - John Grisham

Gave up both books halfway.

49. A briefer history of time - Stephen Hawking

There are better books in the science genre. 3/5.

Age Gracefully

Life is like climbing a hill. At one point or the other, we reach the peak and from there onward we either continue walking straight on the plateau for a long time or else we are on your way down the hill.

Exercise every day, make an effort, put in some hard work today, eat simple food, give some priority to your health and then one will reach that plateau.

Age gracefully.

Happy Memories

Every time I go back home (in India, yes, that is still home for me), unconsciously or consciously I am looking for my childhood and to relive those old carefree days! A doted upon, spoilt brat with not a care in the world!  But now I have made peace with the fact that life is forever in continuous motion. I cannot bring back the days that have passed. But I can smile and relive them in my heart and be thankful that my life is filled with happy memories. 

Girl Code

Never hate a woman you have never met.

Never date a friend's ex. Unless you don't want her as your friend.

Never reveal another female's secret.

Never leave an inebriated friend alone at a bar.

Never invite a friend's enemy to the party. You gotta stay together to survive the war :-).  

Never dine alone with a friend's boyfriend or husband. Unless she is dead.  

Never stay quiet when a friend is falling for an asshole. You will be cleaning the mess later anyways.  

Never trust a girlfriend who dates a married man or never trust a girlfriend who is having an extra-marital affair. There are simply no excuses.  

Never give constructive criticism in public. Give it to her in person.  And most importantly -

Never treat other women disrespectfully. It gives men ideas.

5 combos from 2016 that did not make it to the blog at that time - 

J. Krishnamurti

If you have beliefs then what do you have the intellect for?

I love the talks by philosopher, speaker, and writer J. Krishnamurti.  Recently when talking to a relative I learned that my great grandfather had a camaraderie with J. Krishnamurti, I found it quite fascinating and I wondered if my fondness for J. K. is genetic ;-)

Here is the link to one of my favorite talk by him - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYjYL448-yY

 

Shoes: Vaneli, Jeans: American Eagle, Tee: Nordstrom Rack, Jacket: American Eagle

Hypocrites or a**holes ....

If I like you, life is easy. I take interest in your life and work and am concerned about your well being and supportive towards your goals and I make every effort to keep in touch with you. If I am neutral towards you, life is still easy. I am polite and civil towards you when our paths cross.

If I don't like you or get an inkling that you don't like me/ are trying to avoid me/ are giving me an insulting treatment then - life is again easy because I don't give a second thought about you, I won't bitch and whine about you to people around me but at the same time I ensure that our paths never cross. I do not call you socially, I do not make plans to meet you, you might not even be on my friend or phone list. I do nothing. I don't allow you to occupy my brain space.

You know what I don't get...when people clearly do not like someone or do not agree with their fundamental view on life -professionally/morally/socially - and still continue to be social with them. A lot of people are perfectly fine with everyone around them ONLY they bitch about people on how they can't stand someone or how someone did them wrong (but it can not be told from their interaction with anyone).

If you ask me I am wary of people who are nice to everyone and talk nicely with everyone because you never know who they are really fond of or who are they bitching about... I have realized that straight forward people are considered a**holes (I am one such) but I prefer to be friends with a**holes any day, because if they are friends with me then I know that they are in it with a genuine interest.

2 combos:

Pant: American Eagle

Shirt: J crew factory

Shoes: Steve Madden

Jeans: J crew

Top: Tjmaxx

Shoes: Steve Madden

big bad world

Fashion/ personal style blogging has become a new Vogue, a platform to try and get people to buy more, spend more, want more ... and some times it also sets unrealistic standards for women. Of course not every style blog can be categorized in the same way but it is definitely getting harder to differentiate one blog from another.

When I started this blog my biggest goal and vision was to show how many combinations can be created with just some basic stuff in the closet, and that one can be well and sensibly dressed without spending loads of time or money on it. A lot of people suggested that I should add a variety of locations and better my picture quality... sorry I can't!  I do not want to spend more than two minutes to take pictures because as I said it is not worth spending too much time on clothes :-).

I never get ready just for the heck of taking pictures, I take pictures sometimes when I get ready for office or wherever the heck I am going. Most fashion blogs show women wearing these really fancy clothes, makeup, jewelry, hairdos and wearing the new items in every post, I can't do that, or for that matter, I haven't seen any women around me dress like how they do in fashion blogs. It is simply unrealistic. I want to share only doable styles.

On this blog, you will never find one new item introduced with every post. It is just the same stuff repeating over and over again in many ways possible. Shopping was never my hobby and it never will be, if anything shopping stresses me out. I do not want to encourage mindless consumption with this blog. But I want to encourage feeling excited about even the basic clothes and colors that you have in your closet.

I do think that fashion blogging is already past its peak because every unique idea gets beaten down until it becomes mainstream. There are only so many ways in which clothes can be worn, and someone somewhere has probably already done that, so obviously I am not guaranteeing that what you see here is going to be unique because nothing is unique. You might be wearing a very similar combo as the person sitting next to you but the only differentiating factor would be your personality and the confidence with which you carry yourself.

A lot of brilliant and amazing personalities I have met have had sloppy style sense and I have also met some prim and properly dressed people who were not so nice people, so there is no association between clothes and personalities and no one is forming a judgment about you based on your clothes, the ones who do are idiots so never mind about them. On a day to day basis I hardly ever notice what others are wearing so if you ask me what were your team members wearing today then really I don't know, I wouldn't be able to tell if they wore the same thing for the whole week. I am sure most people don't notice it and what you wear is only to make yourself feel good.

All I can say is wear what you want to wear, it doesn't matter, but again wear what 'you' want to wear, like how 'you' want to see yourself and not based on someone else's idea of styling.

Look for ideas on these kinds of blogs, see how you can apply them to your existing closet and you are good to go. If you plan to get clothes and wear them how the fashion bloggers are, then you are probably going to get lost in the big bad world of mindless consumption, or at least that is what I think.

What the health: part 17 - how to stay healthy continued ...

This is part 17 of ‘What the health’ series. You can find earlier parts here – part1, part2, part3, part4,  part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8,  part 9, part 10, part 11, part12, part13, part14, part15, part16

3. sleep (2)

Sleep is the brain’s nutrition. Most people need between 7 and 9 hours each night. Insufficient sleep impacts your hunger and fullness hormones, including two called ghrelin and leptin.

Ghrelin signals your brain that it is time to eat. When you’re sleep-deprived, your body makes more ghrelin.

Leptin, on the other hand, cues your brain to put the fork down. When you are not getting enough sleep, leptin levels plummet, signaling your brain to eat more food.

Put the two together, and it is no wonder that sleep deprivation leads to overeating and extra pounds.

Then there’s the cortisol spike that comes from too little sleep. This stress hormone signals your body to conserve energy to fuel your waking hours that means you are more apt to hang on to fat.

Sleep deprivation makes you ‘metabolically groggy’ that means - your body’s ability to process insulin - a hormone needed to change sugar, starches, and other food into energy - goes awry. When your body doesn't respond properly to insulin, your body has trouble processing fats from your bloodstream, so it ends up storing them as fat.

So it’s not so much that if you sleep, you’ll lose weight, but that too little sleep hampers your metabolism and contributes to weight gain.

to be continued...

Jeans: Abercrombie and Fitch

Top: J crew factory

Shoes: Steve Madden

What the health: part 16 - How to lose weight and stay healthycontinued...

This is part 16 of ‘What the health’ series. You can find earlier parts here – part1, part2, part3, part4,  part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8,  part 9, part 10, part 11, part12, part13, part14, part15

3. Sleep -

In today’s world, snoozing can be difficult, particularly when all your screens (computers, TVs, cell phones, tablets) lure you into staying up just a little longer. A lot of people also have ‘missing out on life’ syndrome so they don’t want to spend time sleeping. A lot of us make a mistake of popping sleeping pills (like I did for almost 2 years - it was a very bad idea).

The most important thing that I fixed after my diet and medicine usage is my sleep.  Why? Because… being short on sleep can affect your wellbeing and your weight too. While you are awake at night, your body cooks up a perfect recipe for weight gain.

When you’re short on sleep, it’s easy to lean on a large latte to get moving, I used to have a venti coffee from Starbucks every day. You might be tempted to skip exercise because you are too tired, get takeout for dinner, and then turn in late because you’re uncomfortably full.

Skimping on sleep sets your brain up to make bad decisions. It dulls activity in the brain’s frontal lobe, the locus of decision-making and impulse control. So it is a little like being drunk. You don’t have the mental clarity to make good decisions, it can also affect your mood and the way you behave with people around you. Plus, when you’re overtired, your sleep-deprived brain may have trouble saying no to the second slice of cake.

to be continued...

Skirt: Modcloth

Shoes: Me Too

Shirt: American Eagle

What the health! Part 15 - How to lose weight and stay healthycontinued...

This is part 15 of ‘What the health’ series. You can find earlier parts here – part1, part2, part3, part4,  part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8,  part 9, part 10, part 11, part12, part13, part14

Diet (4)

9. And last but not the least Alcohol - Call me uncool if you had like, I really don't care - but DO NOT drink alcohol (I know it is for some reason considered a status symbol these days), some people drink wine every day saying it is good for the heart, it sounds ridiculous- there are so many better options for the heart like running for example - opt them and not wine.

Alcohol affects the acid levels in the body, it affects the quality of sleep, it can cause many health conditions like heart ailments, it affects the liver and pancreas, it also increases the risk of cancer (throat, mouth, esophagus, breast, and liver). Cocktails and hard liquor are loaded with unwanted calories that you just wanna avoid piling on.

I am high on life and I don’t understand those who are dependent on alcohol to do that job and those who drink do not understand how can one be high on life… some people come under social pressures and drink to give the company, I don’t do that (not anymore). I have been asked many times at parties that if I don't drink alcohol or carbonated beverages then what do I drink. Stupid question. I drink many things - tea, coconut water, lime juice, freshly squeezed orange juice, turmeric milk, buttermilk, and mostly water!

I am not a fun bob (someone who needs to be inebriated to have fun, loose inhibitions or enjoy life). I enjoy life even when things are painful or not going so smoothly. Accept that hardship is part of life. Pain, sickness, and sadness is as much a feeling as healthy and happy - embrace it, sooner the better - it is useless to be afraid of the existence of unhappy feelings and to forget it getting numb (and dumb) under the influence of alcohol/drugs.

Food and water are an important part of a balanced diet, yes, we are what we eat…. and drink.

Jeans: Abercrombie and Fitch

Shoes: Steve Madden

Stripes Tee: TjMaxx

Jacket: J Crew

Repeat!

I have heard this from many people - we get bored with the same clothes. I would get bored too if I didn't wear it in a different way every time.

Take pride in repeating clothes, spark some creativity in repurposing what you already own, buy things that really add value to your closet and don't go for hoarding.

Skirt - Modcloth

Top - Guess

Shoes: Impo

Halter neck tank top: b'tempted

Go To Dress

Do you have a go-to dress? the one that you like to wear irrespective of the season, occasion or mood... This one is my go-to...

Dress: J crew

Jeans: American Eagle

Shoes: DSW

Modern Romance

My new post 'Modern Romance' is available here

Jeans : American Eagle

Stripes top : tjmaxx

Sweater : J crew factory

Shoes : Vaneli

Belt : Target

Back!

Back to blogging after almost 10 months of a break! I have started a new Pinterest board for this personal style blog, you can visit it here

Skirt  - Modcloth

Top - white house black market

sweater - Nordstrom rack

Shoes - Circa Joan and David

More ways I wore the stripes skirt:

Good Movies on Netflix

Jeans: 7 for all mankind

Top: Tjmaxx (also worn HERE)

Shoes: Steve Madden (non leather)

Scarf: Target

My new post Good movies on Netflix is available HERE

Colors

Every color has some comrades and a few foes. When the friends are juxtaposed they make each other appear charming. When two enemies are put side by side they don't just make their own manifestation dull but also spoil the appearance of the other. In the case of clothing/ accessories, it is important for the friends to be next to each other, also the look wouldn't appear delightful if it is ruled by just one color. Every item loses it's own identity if you are covered with several other pieces in the same color, for example, faint yellow/ red shoes would look smart if you are wearing a blue dress, both will then have their own intrepid and bold guise (rather than matching yellow shoes with a yellow dress).

The same is applicable for skin tones, every skin tone looks great with a wide range of colors, and some shades do not look so great. For example - red tops look the best on a tad dusky skin tone, for lighter skin, you can modify it a bit (so that it reflects better with your skin tone) - just layer it up with something black or gray - maybe a sweater, scarf, jacket, big necklace, etc. The same thing goes for lipsticks (if you use them). I recommend - try on everything before you buy it. Not being able to test how the color looks on us is one big problem with online shopping (don't go for how it looks on the model).

Top: J crew factory

Denim: Banana Republic

Shoes: Lifestride (non leather)

Have you seen...?

Have you seen these 2 types of Indian women?

1. Wearing gold bangles, anklets, earrings, necklaces, toe rings, rings, nose ring, bindi - along with flip flops, formal skirt, and formal shirt? - There is nothing wrong with wearing Salwar Kamiz or a Saree (even if you live outside India) than wearing a funny combination like that.

2. Wearing nighties at public places! Please ladies, I mean it looks bad even if you are in India.

Jegging: American Eagle

Shoes: Nine West

Button Down Chambray: American Eagle

Stripes top: Tjmaxx

Similar combo HERE