Scavenger Hunt Sunday

...is the brain child of photographer Ashley Sisk and is basically a photography challenge wherein she gives you themes every week and you need to photograph them as per your creativity or interpretation. Sound fun? Yup it is. All you have to do is follow a few simple rules, and you are good to go!

I first stumbled upon the event on Kamalika's blog and she herself has done a pretty good job. Do hop over to both the spaces to see how incredibly creative people can be.

Since I am trying to improve my photography skills, I thought I'd give this a shot. Its my first week on the hunt and im pretty excited at what I've come up with.

Hopping on to this weeks themes:

1. GOLDEN

This is my wedding ring, something which signifies 5 years of togetherness for me.

2. SMELL

Baking one cake fills my house with the awesome smell..imagine two!!! Need I say more?

3. FRUIT

Left over oranges after baking an Orange cake. Yes, I bake a lot of cakes:)

4. SIMPLE

An orange gerbera daisy in a used cider bottle now adorns my side table in the living room..simple yet gorgeous!

5. SPORTS

I'm wondering if I should start playing Badminton again.

Self proclaimed Hypochondriac and a few insignificant things

Ok I'm definitely a hypochondriac or there is something seriously wrong with me. My latest worry is my diagnosis of various ailments (well nothing less than cancer, if I may add) and Ro has had it with me and has threatened to cut internet connection if i didn't stop googling every little thing. Easy for him to say, he's not hypochrondiac (I just found out this term btw).

Last months PMS caused a whole lotta dilemma...i bawled my eyes out one night saying I was going to die and Ro didn't make it any easier, saying out loud he wouldn't make the same mistake again and will marry someone with a bit more brains the next time. Then I bawled at that for a while which confirmed it was PMS.

The thing is I see these symptoms online and then force myself to believe i have it, because the very next day I seem to somehow have that very symptom i read about. Oh my god, that sounds even more retarded out loud. Sigh! I also think its because I suddenly have a wee bit of time on my hands after a very hectic summer..which brings me to my apology..sorry about not being a regular here. A whole lot of you have asked me to continue writing here and I would be lying if i said i didn't miss this page.

The thing is, I started this space to vent out my anger and frustration and i have done it quite a bit. I guess I'm a much happier person now (touch wood) and have come to love London even more than Chennai. I just don't miss India any more. Should i be happy about that??? Still wondering.

Anyhoo, summer went by in a whiz and now signs of Autumn are here. I almost cried out loud when I saw a yellow leaf on the road recently exclaiming fall was here...and it is!

Leaving you with a few pics we took during summer.

First day of summer...Pub lunch at the Fullers Inn

Picnic at Regents Park followed by a game of Frisbee

Pretty Bonsai collection at the BBC Good Food Show, Birmingham (I won tickets to this show yaaay)

A bright and sunny day at Hampton Court Foodies Festival

White Cliffs of Dover

Durdle Door, Jurassic Coast in Dorset

Mayfield Lavender Field, Surrey

Autumn Showers

Heaved a high sigh!

I am such a sucker for romance...really. Last night i saw this old chick flick Maid in Manhattan and it made me so badly want romance in my life...and that movie is not even that great a romantic movie. But as i sat there sipping a glass of wine, watching hunky Ralph Fiennes hold JLo...with 'Come away with me,' by Norah Jones playing in the background...i was all queasy and wondered for the hundredth time why romance just dies in a marriage...why we don't bother to keep it alive even after the honeymoon period, why we just take things for granted and why i so badly want it. I mean i know life is not like how it is in the movies, but it just cant 'not be there' right? Or am i just naive and refuse to accept reality?

'Spring' into action

I get so excited when i see the trees and plants in full bloom. I guess, when you have bad weather for the majority of days, and when you see the sun out once in a while, its definitely a day to celebrate. Yesterday was one of those days..after 4 days of terrible weather during Easter break...and so I went out and clicked a few pics. We live by the Thames river side and it is quite beautiful in summer. We also have a pub nearby that serves Sunday roasts and is a frequent stop for us. I did mention that it was Daffodil season and boy are they a pretty sight. Here are some pics:

Pilot Inn..the pub

The white variety

The bright yellow ones

Daisies

I think its a dandelion, or maybe just a weed...I'm not sure

Bluebells

I'm a year Old

My blog that is....and i don't have anything interesting to write about, which basically means there's nothing exciting in my life at the moment. I'm bored talking about the weather and the plants and trees and evil birds...there is nothing spectacular to write about that as well. I did 50 posts in one year and that's awfully sad...I again blame my food blog for causing this drift between me and my personal all-time-favourite blog...so this year I'm gonna try and keep this one more alive, even if it means posting just a one liner or a picture on and off.

On a positive note, I started my gym sessions and boy does it feel great to work out again. I'm aiming at being trim and well-toned to fit into my swimsuit and look as ravishing as Cheryl Cole (if not now, at least in my next life) if at all we go to Spain this summer or if we don't, I'll just have to flaunt it for Ro (grin!)

Hope all you guys are living life to the fullest whichever part of the world you are in. I'll check back in a few days. Adios!

In Full Bloom

My Daffodils are in full bloom and i love love taking pics of the same.

'....When all at once i saw a crowd, a host of golden daffodils' William Wordsworth

Well that's kinda what the scene is right now, in all the common areas around our apartment complex. Its like a lush yellow carpet and absolutely gorgeous. Although it was a bummer to know they grow like wild flowers, when we kinda paid for the potted ones, but nonetheless, i love it and if I'm not too lazy, i'll go out and click a few pics of the daffodils 'fluttering and dancing in the breeze.'

My basil, coriander and parsley have also started to sprout after we moved it from the balcony indoors. Even if the temp. is in double digits, the wind chill is quite unbearable. The Serano Chilli Seeds which we got from Wahaca restaurant is still shy to come out i guess...no signs of growth there.

Do i have a green thumb? I'm still not sure. I love to look at the plants and take pics, but not take care of it, like water it and think of 'how to create the green house effect' like Ro does. I just stand back and make fun of him :)

I can also see fresh green leaves appearing on the trees and shrubs and we have never been so excited about the weather this way. I even dared to go out to the store next door in my track pants and open shoes. The wind screwed my happiness, but atleast i didn't have to wear my thermals. Spring cleaning should start soon and I cant wait to stack away the heavy jackets and woollens. We used to make fun of the locals who used to get out when the suns shining and now we do the same, and have endless discussions on how Summer, in London this year, will be brilliant. I thoroughly look forward to it. Anyone who wants to visit UK..Summer should be your aim.

Back with a Bang!

I have ignored this space for so long and am feeling horrible about it. Even though my food blog seems to be more popular with 23 followers, Open Book is still my favourite space. I can actually blurt out whatever i want to and not care a damn about being judged, although i know a lot of em out there do judge me..but seriously, I couldn't care less.

My previous post was quite heart wrenching for me and now I'm embarrassed at having written all that. So you can say this post is to cover up the awkwardness. And as weird as it sounds, I got the maximum number of comments on that one. To an extent it comforted me...that i was not the only one going through emotions like that. Thank you all...

So whats been happening at my end..well, lets see...

1. I thought i should start job hunting seriously. I have a few projects in hand that i need to submit. But truth is, i haven't started work on that, neither have i started work on my resume. Honestly, I'm trying to figure out if its PR or Publishing or Editing or Writing or Events i want to work in. I have to undergo a proper interview if and when a consultant calls me. So i should be very clear on what i want and realised i cant play my way around like back in India..its a very serious issue here. And life would have been so much better if i could just for once decide what i wanted.

2. I have been putting off gym sessions for a while now. I decided to finally get off my comfort zone and start gymming on march 1st only to realize the package i wanted was not available in the gym nearby and i had to do a 15 minute bus ride to another gym to avail that package. If i took the one nearby, it was a 10 pound extra for facilities i would rarely or never use for that matter. After brainstorming with Ro, i am now pissed and am still in the process of deciding which one i should succumb to. Again we come back to making decisions.

3. I miss my girlfriends...I saw the Sex and the City 2 trailer the other day and wished for the 100th time i had them somewhere nearby, so we could all go watch the movie together and then go out and have Cosmopolitans and partay. Ro asked me why i miss them and i very openly told him i was so bored of hanging out with him. I got even more upset when i took a voice message left by one of Ro's colleagues about a project of theirs and i could clearly understand what that guy was talking about....IT related security solutions. That was an eye- opener. I need girl company and that too immediately.

4. I'm thoroughly enjoying baking. Its one thing i think i wouldn't mind doing even when I'm extremely tired. Like the other day, I was so craving some yogurt cake and at 10 in the night I decided to bake against Ro's wishes and it was one of the yummiest cakes I've ever made. Yes I'm blowing my own trumpet..somebody has to :)

5. I am gonna make it a point to go to church every Sunday henceforth and then compulsory brunch after that...that way i get to review various restaurants and enjoy brunch in one of the worlds greatest culinary cities. Although I'm now wondering if I'm doing church to have brunch on Sunday or vice versa. We went to St Pauls Cathedral the other day and what drama i must say. It was like theatre. Be it the sermon or communion or whatever it was, all had a bit of glamour added to it by the priests walking up and down with a sceptre and chanting and lining up and all sorts of stuff like that. It was highly touristy i guess. The choir was brilliant, but the echo was way too irritating. Ro- the non believer- attended the communion and he said the bread was stamped St. Pauls and that i missed it. I had to remind him it was a holy communion he was talking about and God would not leave him alone to which he replied there is not god. I wonder how ill convince him to head to church every Sunday.. maybe the brunch would do the trick.

6. The new DSLR has given a whole new perspective on photography..at least to me. We lug it around wherever we go and Central London is never out of new things to capture. Its so full of life and excitement and crowded and i love it. This pic was taken at Regent Street near Picadilly circus after a visit to the National Geographic Store and Cafe that was hosting a photography exhibition.

7. We very rarely have a full moon night or rather a clear night and when we did, we had to capture it. Didn't have a tripod back then, so its not picture perfect. Ro and me huddled together in the cold and managed to get this:

8. Its still cold and windy and pathetic and i cant wait for summer (note: I'll crib about it being too warm then). The only relief is that Spring has slowly made its way through and it wont be long that we are back in the green. To celebrate Spring, we went and got a few flowers and plants. I wanted fully grown plans with flowers and all the works and it just had to look pretty on my balcony, whereas Ro tried explaining to me it was a pleasure seeing the plant go from scratch..well..whatever that pleasure is...i really don't think I'll have it. We picked up Tulips and cypress and Iris and Daffodils and even a few herbs for cooking. I am not a gardening/plants/ flowers person at all. I don't even know how to appreciate it. You might wonder why i got them in the first place..have no clue... I wish I knew. Its like all other things in my life...after the initial excitement, I'm bored with it. A friend asked if we were watering it and I said its Ro's duty to which he didn't reply but gave me a stare that lasted a while. Our orange tree is so shattered, I think it will die completely by end of summer.

Some of the flowers bloomed and i clicked a few pics. I'm loving the new DSLR!

TULIPS & HERBS (in the pot..i am yet to plant it)

CYPRESS

IRIS

DAFFODILS