Instagram - Jan 2014 Photo-A-Day Challenge (1-10)

At the end of 2013, I had written on how I wanted to make a fresh start with the January Photo-A-Day challenge hosted by Fat Mum Slim.

So here are the pictures from Day 1 to Day 10. As always, it was fun to capture these moments. :)

If you would like to see the pictures on Instagram, go ahead and follow me at @momentsilike.

Enjoy ! :)

Day 1 - Lunch

Day 2 - Begins with G - girl... my girl :)



Day 3 - My town - all snowed up thanks to the huge snow storm



 Day 4 - Words to live by

Day 5 - Found - an old gift lying in my book cabinet

Day 6 - Happens Everyday - Playtime

Day 7 - Upside Down - view from my bed

Day 8 - Lucky Number - 7

Day 9 - Natural - my creeper plant

Day 10 - Man made - my drawing 

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

 

My featured post on BlogHer :)

It's an awesome day ! :)

I started the 100 Happy Days challenge just yesterday and my happiness is double-fold already.

Yesterday evening, I received an email from the BlogHer team that my blog post on - "What Has Your Work Life Taught You?" has been picked as a featured post.

Yippeeeeeee ! *Did a small jump (for the 100th time!)* :)

You can check out the post either on the BlogHer website or click here.

And I received this badge -

Truly thankful to the BlogHer team for picking my post and all you wonderful readers who took the time out to visit this space.

Couldn't have asked for more encouragement for me to keep blogging ! :)

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

Can you be happy for 100 days in a row ?

Like somebody can actually remain happy for that long. It's all gibberish right ?

WRONG !

Source : 100happydays.com

The answer is, yes, you can stay happy for 100 days in a row! :)

I noticed this initiative called "100 Happy Days" in a friend's account a couple of days ago on Instagram. And it made me wonder - "How, in the world, can somebody be happy for 100 days continuously ?"

All you have to do is post a picture everyday of one thing that makes you happy. Do this for 100 days in a row and you have the formula for happiness right in front of you. It's that simple.

Our lives are racing against time and deadlines. We stop for no one. All we now care about is whether there is time on our 24-hour busy schedule for one more appointment, for one more meeting, for one more deadline.

No longer do we stop to smell the roses, or appreciate the weather or to simply sit on the grass and gaze into the blue sky. By doing this initiative, we can start observing the simple and small things of life that keep us much happier than materialistic things.

So starting today, I am taking this effort to stay happy for 100 days.

Will I complete the challenge without a break ? Will I cave and give up on the not-so-happy days? We shall see. :)

I am all aboard this train to happiness. Are you ? :)

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

"Brrrr....... It's cold.... !"

Last night, Baby Girl and I slept like logs. All I remember is tucking ourselves into bed and snoring away to glory. We finally got a good night's sleep after a very long time. On a normal winter night, we don't have the heater on full blast. Thanks to the ooh-so-warm blankets which keep us cozy and warm. *True bliss!*

Source : Google Images

Cut to the morning, as soon as I woke up and crept out of bed, I felt the chilly weather pinch my foot soles and make me want to run. Brrrr.... It was soooooo cold !

Even before I brushed, I had to run to turn on the heater. I think today is the coldest day I have ever seen in my life because the morning temperature was around -25 Celsius / -14 Fahrenheit.

So what did I do ? Made myself a hot cup of coffee, a hot breakfast meal, snuggled with my feet on the couch in socks and enjoyed the chilliness with episodes of "How I Met Your Mother". :)

Source : Google Images

What's the coldest temperature that you have been ? And how do you like to spend a cold winter day ?

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**



5 Blogs I discovered recently...

An important item on my wish list (though not officially mentioned on it) is to get back to blogging on a regular interval and keep this space from going dormant.

So last month, a couple of weeks before Christmas, I got back to my blog. But only to first fix its appearance. I changed the look-and-feel of the entire blog - gave it a new background, changed some fonts, revised all the pages, created a new identity.... basically cleaned up a lot of the clutter. :)  

While I was busy prepping the blog for its comeback, I also made it a point to revisit the blogs regularly read and add some new ones in.

Today, I am going to post about 5 new blogs that I found recently. This post, in no way, is a review of the below blogs. I just find them interesting and thought of sharing them with you too. :)

1. Write Tribe - An awesome stop for all bloggers and writers who need inspiration to just write. Check it out !
2. Rainbow Hues - Lovely posts, variant expressions and creativity at its best would be my summarization of this wonderful space.
3. Words - I love this space more so because every article in this blog paints a new picture. A true play of words, it is !
4. Any Excuse to Write - Simplicity is the best word that describes this blog as the author shares her day-to-day experiences in her own words.
5. Maya.... the eternal dreamer - Currently hosting the Blogathon 2014, this blog is a booster of every kind. I love the way she speaks her heart out in every post.

So, have you come across any new blogs ? :)

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

What has your work life taught you?

If there was one question I could ask all my friends - near and far, it would be this -

"What has your work life taught you?"

Source : Google Images

I worked as a software professional for close to 8 years at my first job. So what were the takeaways from my work life ? Read on.

• Every day is a new learning - We never stop learning and I love this the best about my work. Words to live by at work - 'Every day brings a new experience and with it comes new learning. The day you stop learning, you cease to grow'. :) 
• Independence - Nothing beats the feeling I get when I earn my own money. The sense of independence that comes along with it is such a huge satisfaction that can never be replaced by anything else. :)
• Confidence - Since childhood, there was one thing I was always confident about - that I can never be "confident". That changed once I started working. I get the opportunity to speak to different clients from around the world and my job gives me the platform to garner confidence in order to deal with them successfully. :)
• Communication - There was a time when I feared public speaking. My legs would shiver and my voice would tremble just at the thought of it. Now when I look back, it makes me realize that hosting that event at work or speaking about that presentation wasn't as bad as I thought it to be. :)
• 'Monday Blues' is a thing of the past - When I had just started working, I dreaded the so-called 'Monday Blues'. But only with time comes experience. Hence, after a year or so of actual job experience, there was no such thing called 'Monday Blues'. :)
• Make a new friend everyday - My job involved working with different teams and different people on a constant basis. Just what I want since I love meeting new people. It's weird but my face glistens when I get to add new contacts to my phone book. :)
• Good memories everyday- Today, I recollect the tons of good memories that my workplace gave me right from the first day. Sure, there were some not-so-good memories too, but the good ones definitely outnumber the not-so-good ones by a vast difference.
• Some workplace friends are forever - Just like how we have "Best Friends Forever" at school and college, even workplace friends are forever. I befriended a group of 15 good friends right from the first day of work who are there for me at all times even today. Psssst...... we call ourselves - Oceans' 16 even today. :) 
• Work is fun too - Not only did I enjoy celebrating every festival at home, I equally enjoyed celebrating them at work. Back in India, the favorite festival to look out for was 'Diwali'. And while here in the US, I just can't get enough of Christmas and New Years. :)

Now, it's your turn.

Go on and tell me - "What is your profession and what has your work life taught you?"

You can either reply in the comments below or post on your blog.

I would love to read it. :)

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

My Little Sister...

Source : Google Images

My sister – a trained sniper, had the strength of a man. I wished she were here now.

“Please let me go.” My voice trembled as I begged for my life.

But he threatened with a gun– “You do realize that things would be much easier if you just sign this power of attorney.” But who was this masked person?

I signed the paper. He pushed me aside and checked my signature.

“Thanks. But you know what? Never trust an armed person.” My eyes popped out as he removed his mask and shot me down.

My little sister had shot me.

- Written for Write Tribe’s 100 Words on Saturday Prompt: My Little Sister

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

Are you a Rain Child or a Hot Bird ?

Source : Google Images

Oh dark clouds! I wait by the window watching you...

Curled up in my blanket sitting on the sill...

With a hot cup of tea in my hand...

Waiting for you to thunder and pour...

To engulf this soil in its moisture...

And turn it damp and rich at once...

To drench this earth...

And give it a fresh scent...

To soak the leaves on all the trees...

And give it a new color...

Now and then, I await for a rainy day...

To reminisce those days spent back home...

To recollect those memories close to my heart...

To lose myself in my thoughts...

Oh dark clouds! I wait by the window watching you...

**************

When it comes to cool rains or hot summers, for me it has to be cool rains. I love the rains.

But this was not the case during childhood days. Back then, I used to love summers. Why and when did this change ? Read on... :) 

My baby bro and I were brought up in the Middle East - lands with hot, humid summers and scanty rains. Our academic years used to be planned in such a way that the first term of a new school year would begin in March/April and go until June. This is when the first term exams were conducted.

Once the exams were done and dusted with, our summer vacations would start. And these vacations weren't just 2-3 weeks. They were 2 months long. Yup, 2 whole months of enjoyment and merriment. Summers meant sheer happiness. All play and no studies till the start of the second term of school.

Our schools had summer vacations in the middle of the year was so that kids could escape traveling in the school bus during those hot sweltering days. Summers are pretty brutal there during July-August months with temperatures soaring up to 50 Celsius or 122 Fahrenheit.

However, this scene changed once we moved to India for higher studies. Once there, we got to experience the true beauty of monsoons. At first, it got pretty dull to just watch the water pouring here and there. But my outlook changed.

As the years progressed. I would wait for the monsoons to appear. The things I mentioned in the short poem above, are the reasons I wait for the rains. It's not only an enjoyable time to just gaze and watch the rains sitting cozily at home but it also keeps my mind at peace.

So tell me, what are you when it comes to the weather ? A rain child or a hot bird ? :)  

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

Would you believe me if I told you ...

...that I haven't read the books or watched the movies of the following classics ?

Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Hunger Games, Twilight series... and many more. 

Source : Google Images

Source : Google Images

...that I haven't watched the classic or epic movies of our time ?

Forrest Gump, Castaway, Saving Private Ryan, The Sixth Sense, Good Will Hunting, The Shawshank Redemption... and many more.

...that I haven't had the chance to watch a complete season of good shows like Frasier, the Monk, Grey's Anatomy, Once Upon a Time, Law and Order.... Ok ! I need to stop. You get the picture right ?

As I sit on the couch writing this post, I am also feeling guilty and sulking deep, deep, deep inside thinking how I might be coming across at this moment.

At times, I ponder - Is it too late to watch those classics now ? Will it be as exciting for me to read those epic novels now like everyone found them back then? When I look back to understand why I missed some of these classics, there seem to be like a hundred reasons but none worth mentioning. Sigh !

So high time for a change, don't you think ?

With the Harry Potter series, I ended up reading half of the books and watching the other half in movies. But last month, after taking a look at the very few books that I read in 2013 and inspired by Anisha on how she dealt with the Pottermania, I decided it was time to take things into hand. So I made a quick stop to the library and picked up the first book - 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'. Once I started reading through the few first few chapters, I could not keep the book down.

Is it just me or have others experienced the same situation ? Do you watch the movie/read the book as soon as it is released into the market ?

Tell me, if you were in my place, what would the first thing that you would read or watch ?

Yours' truly,


**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon - 2014 and NaBloPoMo**

Hello 2014

Wishing you a very Happy New Year :) May the new year bring in a lot of happiness and prosperity for everyone.

Source : Google Images

Hope you had a wonderful New Years' Eve with family or friends.

I had a nice, quiet evening at home with my LP and Baby Girl. A couple of hours before midnight - we called up our loved ones and family back home in India and exchanged greetings. My phone was buzzing with a million New Year greetings from all around the world. Everyone right from my school, college, work and close family kept sending in wishes.

Around 11PM, we drove to the nearest park where New Year fireworks were being displayed. The weather was biting cold but the fireworks and the excitement of the people around definitely made up for an enjoyable sight.

I am sharing some pictures below. Apologize for the bad quality :(

 

I also found time to read the last blog posts of 2013 posted by my blogger friends. It felt good knowing that the earlier year has been so wonderful for so many of you. *Touchwood*!

Well, I can't wait to share my end of the experiences in 2014 with you too.

So, did you do anything exciting to bring in the new year ? Do share. :)

Yours' truly,

**Linking to the Ultimate Blogging Challenge - January 2014, Blogathon 2014 and NaBloPoMo**