Silvara: Howdy Partners!

Hello BUFers and the world!! It’s been a while again since I last posted and the guilty feelings have been gnawing away at me for so long that I HAD to see what had been happening. Since I last dropped by And what do I find when I take a peek but a whole new template!! Very nice…I like pink – it reminds me of fairy floss and we could all do with a bit of sugar in our lives.

Been looking at the topics from the last update and the last time somebody pulled a prank on me (despite it NOT being April’s Fools) was this morning when the café where I get my morning coffee told me that they no longer served skinny lattes!! While I was hyperventilating at the thought of having to go full-cream (it’s not that big a deal but you know me – I like to exaggerate just a teeny bit) the guy serving me just winked and said he was Just Kidding. I have to admire his balls though. Joking with me before I’ve had my caffeine fix and ABOUT my coffee was a very brave thing to do. He is lucky he didn’t see my baaaad side :P

As for the other topic on the last time I cried tears of happiness…well….it might get a little too intimate for this blog and shoot the rating up to saying ‘WARNING: Mature Content’ but then I could just say it and all the people who blush at the thought of an orgasm can go giggle away.

Anyways….moving on.

In my life – I finally started my new job at a huge firm and have been on training for the last MONTH. That was boring as hell for the most part but every day we got a catered lunch that consisted of different varieties of gourmet sandwiches which was fine for the first few days but eventually we got sick of the sight of bread and different insides. And I have finally discovered Friday Night Drinks which makes for very interesting times.

I have been devouring books by the dozen having discovered my local library (I moved suburbs after I got married) and have been amazed again and again with the calibre and intensity of Indian authors. I have read most of the books written by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Amulya Malladi, Anita Nair and have discovered and fallen in love with my homeland all over again. I have read about NRI’s looking for love again in India (so Indian chick lit lol), heartbreaking stories of the Partition and massacre at the Golden Temple in Amritsar (which caused me to bawl like a baby), and stories of brave women breaking the mould of a ‘good Indian woman’. So it’s hard to pick just one of the books to review but the current one I am reading - ‘The Sari Shop’ by Rupa Bhajwa is very good and I might come back with that one later.

So this is my quick update on love, life and blogging….

Keep coming back y’all…!

Silvara: Reflections

I wonder what my life would have been like if I was different. If I wasn't Indian. Or Australian. If the colour of my skin was different. If I was taller. If I was the same but born in a different place. Like Europe. Somewhere where the world was more connected. Would I be the same person?

What if I was an only child? Or the youngest, instead of the oldest?

Would I love science and art and fashion and history?? Or would I hate maths??

Would I still retreat into the world of books when I was lonely? Would I like the same books?

What if I was born poor? What if I had to scrimp and save for everything - where survival was more than just making in the business world - it was surviving life?

What if I didn't have one parent - or either? Would I be the same?

If I took away everything from my life that had the potential to shape me - who would I be? Just another human - like an empty canvas, void of anything.

It almost is exciting to think about the potential of starting over again - fresh and new. But what about what makes me now - would I change that to have a second chance?? I don't know.

Tell me what you think.

Is it the journey that makes the person, or the person who makes the journey??

Hope it's not too late to apologize....

Hey guys,

Yes, I come back slinking in here, tail in between my legs, quite shamefaced as I know that I have been away from BUF for a while. So first of all - I am sorry.

*big toothy grin*

Now, how can you resist that smile??? Hmmmmm??? Hehehe, I know you all forgive me (I am crossing my fingers as I type that, so please please please forgive me) and I want to give a bit of an update on life as it has been, what's happening now and a bit of a ramble on the topics and BUF in general.

So....over the last couple of months I have:

1. Gotten married :D

2. Honeymooned in New Zealand where one of the crazy things we did was bungy jump 400m over Queenstown

• Moved in with my in-laws and settled into married life
• Gained weight :(
• Am now currently waiting to start work as corporate bigwig (I wish :P)

Life has been a bit of an adjustment to settle into, as any newly married person will tell you but I am trying to learn how to cook, drive a car, being on steroid medication for my hair loss, lose weight, find a house and not go insane with my time. I am still fairly regular with updating my personal blog which helps me vent, but more often than not I do feel my creative juices have sorta dried up by the time I come round to posting for BUF. Not that that is an excuse because I have seen many wonderful topics come up recently that have got me thinking and enthusiastic about posting - which is why I am getting back into the saddle today.

I have had lots of reasons to smile lately. Waking up in the morning with my darling husband. Reading the paper and drinking coffee. Playing tennis. Taking the dogs for a walk around the lake. Lots of chocolate (which is making me cry at the moment....grrr). My family. Weddings and friends.

My birthday on the 22nd of Feb *HINT HINT* I turn a quarter of a century. Noooooooo! :D

I don't exactly have a smile. With GREAT effort I keep my mouth closed - otherwise it usually turns into a full blown grin as you can see in the pics above. Everyone says I have glow-in-the-dark teeth, that really there isn't any need for the light to be on, because all I need to do is grin and I can light the way for anyone in the dark. It has gotten me into trouble...and out of it :P

So this is a bit of a request to Keshi and all the other BUFer's out there.... SMILE. Or grin. And come back.

World of colour (Silvara)

It all started when I was a little girl. Bright eyed and eager to learn, I listened with rapture to the teacher's every word. I was the first to show her my work, grinning in pleasure when she gave praise and carefully placing each paper she handed back onto my desk.

She showed me that there was a whole world out there, that could be brought to life by me. I was awed at the power that I wielded, even as a child, and have always been amazed.

I'm talking about the world of colours.

Introduced to me, and I'm sure many of you as well, through paints and clay, we were given the chance to explore without boundaries. The primary colours, Red, Blue and Yellow were taught and many pictures of yellow suns and blue oceans and red-roofed houses were made. Then one day, my red paint accidentally mixed in with the yellow (due to an unruly child knocking over my paint tin. The biyatch :P). I ran crying to my teacher, and stood hiccuping as she smiled and pointed.

"Look!"

I watched as she used my paintbrush and slowly swirled the two colours together. "Look what has happened."

And to me it was magic. Red and Yellow, became Orange. The teacher gave me back my brush and quick to pick up, I made Purple and Green. I happily sat and painted for hours, tears forgotten.

Now my world was complete.

Sparkle (Silvara)

Mehndi laga ke rakhna, doli sajake rakhna.....

The sounds of wedding songs fill the house. The air is light, people are smiling and laughing. Work is being done in regards to the wedding, people being called up, often turning into hour long conversations. Sometimes they want to speak to her, and she dutifully obeys, laughing at all the right places, chatting to them amiably.

Her cousin's wife comes over in the afternoon to help. She is young, younger than herself, having been married for just 2 years and already with a toddler son. But the cousin's wife always seems older and wiser and she wonders if this is how she will be as well.

She plays with her hair, teasing it up into a fancy bun. Her sister brings down her wedding outfit, the hand embroidered jewels sparkling. She places it over her head, in the way she will wear it on the day. For a moment, everyone is silent, taking in how the colour complements her skin, how the work on the material sparkles and shimmers in the light. She looks into the mirror and sees how she will be on the day and smiles. But inside she feels a twinge of sadness as she watches them looking at her.

They all move to the other room and put on some songs, the wedding outfit forgotten. They start to play some more of the dancing numbers. The sangeet is coming up and nothing has been prepared. Her mother wants her to dance to an old song. She thinks it's too...well....old. But cousin's wife says it's a beautiful song and it will be very nice to dance to. So she goes off to download the song so they can dance.

The song is nicer then she expected. She had heard it before, but always thought it that wouldn't suit the occasion. But when she hears the words again, tears unexpectedly come to her eyes. There is a verse singing to the mother, telling her that, tomorrow the sun would shine, the birds will sing...but she would not be there. That life will go on, but there will always be a gap.

And she wonders, is this how she will feel. If this is how her mother will feel. She looks at the sparkling material of her wedding outfit, lying on the table, and for the first time she doesn't want to leave.

Fresh (Silvara)

Change is inevitable. We need change to move on, turn a new leaf, use that second chance. I believe BUF has been given a chance to start afresh and so we begin all over again....

Fresh ideas, Fresh sights, Fresh sounds - everything new!

Fresh to me is the smell of brewed coffee in the morning. It is the sound of the magpie whose warbling wakes me up in the morning. It is the sight of the roses in my garden starting to bloom again. It is the sunshine after the rain. It is the cool breeze that wafts over a lake and it is the drop of water that slides down the glass of chilled lemonade.

Fresh is the new fashion season - new colours, looks and clothes. It is going back to a favourite spot and seeing it again after years, with new eyes. It is the rhythm of a new song that enraptures my senses and keeps me grooving throughout the night.

Fresh is the knowledge that I can pick up after making a mistake and start out again once more. It is the reassuring smile of a friend who has given you the chance to make things right again. Or the embrace of your lover after parting ways in anger.

A poem by one of my favourite poets, Rumi says it all.

The garden of
Love
is green without
limit
and yields many
fruits
other than sorrow
and joy.
Love is beyond either
condition:
without spring,
without autumn,
it is always fresh.

Party time! (Chain Story Part..errr..VIII) (Silvara)

When he arrived at his apartment, a party was in full swing. He gaped in shock to see people streaming in and out of the doors, glasses in hands and silly grins on their faces. He felt a tugging on his sleeve and saw Miss Piggy leading him into the crowd.

"Excuse me. Sorry! Pardon me" he muttered, as he weaved through the party all the while trying to keep an eye on Miss Piggy's rapidly retreating back. As he looked around he saw a few familiar faces. Kermit was in deep conversation with Johnny Depp, Beyonce was shaking her booty on the dance floor with King Julien, while the cast from Harry Potter swayed to the music, eyes closed, microphones in hand.

"This is just CRAZY!" he thought, all previous notions of getting cozy with Miss Piggy vanishing. "I gotta get outta here!".

But before he could leave, a glass of bright purple liquid was thrust into his hand. Feeling rather thirsty he took a sip, and was surprised to find it tasted a lot like strawberries and cream.

Suddenly he was overcome with an uncontrollable urge to get up and sing. He walked over and snatched the microphone out of Hermione's hand. standing on a chair, he opened his mouth to belt out his favourite number, when....

Let me entertain you - Silvara!

Hi y'all!

For someone who usually has a lot to say, writing something about myself has got me stumped. What can I say really?

It's hard to capture me in a nutshell, but a nut is definitely what I am :P I am a 24 year old North Indian girl...err...woman from Melbourne, Australia. Can speak Hindi but have been told various times I speak tapori Hindi. I think I was a gangster in a former life. I am the eldest of three (a younger sis and brother) which is usually a curse because I end up having to fight for everything and they get away with it without doing anything. Hmph.

I've been blogging for just over a year now and it has definitely has been an eye opener. I have met so many wonderful people and learnt a lot about myself in the process. Blogging rocks! *does a happy dance*

I'm short and curvy but I don't mind too much because it lets me indulge in a guilty pleasure - shopping! I love fashion and probably spend much more than I should. Well...my shopping habits aren't limited to shoes. More like shoes and bags. And clothes. Actually, pretty much anything that catches my eye. Usually shiny things which has resulted in a large jewellery collection. I have a big earrings fetish too.

I get excited by things easily, which people usually translate into me having a short attention span. I have to sorta agree because my university career has been everything from engineer to scientist to optometry to business consultant. Despite that, I have recently graduated and am due to start in my first job in the corporate world next year. Woohoo! I think officewear is hot and I like the way I look in a suit :P (Probably the only reason I got into the job :P)

I am soon to be married to the guy of my dreams Evan, who is despite my grumblings is the light of my life. How he puts up with me I can never figure out but I like to think I have him wrapped around my little finger :P. He is a Christian Sri-Lankan and I'm a Hindu Indian so I can tell you life will always be interesting.

I am total coffee addict and being in a city where cafes line the streets means I am very hypo. Add a intense, everlasting love for chocolate into the mix and I'll be bouncing off the walls. I love to read, always on the look out for good books and LOVE music. All types, but mainly R&B/hip hop. LOVE Hindi music too and could probably kick your ass in antakshri if I could remember remember the lyrics to half the songs :P

A typical Picses I am very loyal to my friends and tend to get lost in my dreams. I'm not very practical which is why Evs is my rock on earth while I float away in the clouds. I get emotional easily, cry at the drop of a hat but when I get mad or upset I am an expert at giving you the silent treatment.

This is probably just a snapshot or a piece of the puzzle. I could also tell you how I always lose things so while I am here you might discover a new piece or an old photo that may show you the whole me.

And that's all folks!