Do you ever feel like a plastic bag drifting through the wind…

You know, there’s a saying that every household in India has a giant plastic bag somewhere that is stuffed with more plastic bags. I keep making fun of my mom because she hordes plastic bags with a passion. If it were a valuable heirloom, I’d be one of the richest people in the world today. Ha! Now kindly take a look at my kitchen.

Exhibit A: Secret stash of plastic bags hidden in reams of plastic bags stuffed into a giant paper bag. Kind of like Inception, starring plastic bags instead of dreams. Also on display is a paper bag full of menu cards.

Exhibit B: More examples of my carbon foot print legacy

Duty free plastic bags

Exhibit C: OMG, that can’t be another plastic bag full of more plastic bags. I should be seeing someone about this.

And then some more

My biggest fear is that one of these days, I’m going to return home to find the plastic bags somehow tangled around my gas cylinder in the kitchen, causing the gas to leak and the kitchen itself to eventually explode into shreds. And by the time M and I enter home, we’d be breathing in toxic fumes which will choke us and cause us to die, right there. If the explosion doesn’t kill us, that is. Either way, everyone dies.

But on a serious note, really, is it practically possible to eliminate plastic completely without having to pay a bomb for containers and disposal bags?

Also, does anyone else mourn the cancellation of Happy Endings? I know it was discontinued some two years back, but sometimes I think about it and it makes me sad. I love that show. There’s a new one called Marry Me, created by the same guy, and it looks promising. I never got on the GoT bandwagon, but give me a good sitcom any day and I’m grateful to be alive.

Home is where the clutter isn’t

This is where I work best

Today I tried working from a cafe. It’s the in-thing these days. Most freelancers, especially bloggers and writers, seem to be doing it. So I braved the 40 degree sun and headed to hipster central – Shahpur Jat, which in reality is quite an inhospitable area choking under the ugliness of its buildings. But I must say that it has character, mostly because of the amazing street art. I wish I’d taken some pictures.

In any case, the area has always had this oh-look-at-me-i’m-chaotic-and-chill vibe that only modern urban-chic villages have. High-end boutiques and designer studios thrive amidst chic cafes and pretty restaurants – you know, that kind of stuff. Which I like. But definitely cannot afford. It’s the clutter that I do not like. I guess creative people thrive in chaos. No wonder then that the place is full of artists and designers. I do not consider myself a creative person in that sense – I mean, I’m not an artist or a designer – and to function well, I have to de-clutter, organise, clean up. Even at home, things have to be in their right place; if I take something out, it has to go back immediately. No, it cannot wait. How can I focus on work when the floor rug is crooked. *promptly straightens it before proceeding to type

As usual, I have digressed majorly. So the thing is, I realised I work best from home. And while Pot Belly, the restaurant I tried to work from, has great wi-fi, tasty and reasonably-priced food, I’d choose my couch any day. It’s where I can slump sloppily, listen to any kind of music I like and wear loose comfortable clothes – yes, I am allowed to wear my favourite giraffe-printed shorts. Also, I’m most productive while working from home. It’s quiet, clean, everything is in order, and I can always saunter into the kitchen and eat/cook/drink whatever I want, whenever I want. It’s free.

Maybe next time, I’ll try a different place, where I can meet more people. Like this. For now, I’m stoked about watching Nucleya live here in a couple of hours.

Someday, somewhere…

You know, there are days when you want to have the most amazing dinner but don’t want to go out, or get ready, or cook. Today is one of those days for me. I have work to do, but I cannot seem to get much done. So, an endless loop of blahness ensues and I’m stuck to my chair, listening to music, looking up droolworthy recipes I have no inclination of trying out. At least not today.

I returned from an extremely satisfying and super relaxing work trip to Mashobra last night. The best part about travel assignments – hotel reviews, in this case – is that it hardly seems like ‘work’. I’m really thankful for these opportunities and I’m proud of myself for making a start in this direction in a new city where I’m just about making friends and building contacts.

I’ve always considered myself a beach bum, but after several trips to the Himalayas, I think I’m turning into a mountain person. Of course, I feel sick to the stomach every time I travel past steep and winding mountain roads. But I would do it over and over again, because the rewards are priceless. Clean mountain air, greenery, pine forests, meadows, stunning views, gorgeous weather, Maggi, chai, great food, friendly locals, beautiful night skies, peace, long walks.

I’d like to retire at the hills, build a small yet tasteful little home with an organic farm, cook food farm-to-table, bake, read, write, invite friends and strangers, musicians and artists. The walls would have photographs, interesting art works, so we never get bored, and never run out of interesting stories to tell. There would always be music playing in the house; I’d have a little verandah overlooking the mountains, which is where we’d chat endlessly and create new memories and make new friends. Someday I’ll share a more detailed plan of what my imaginary home in the hills would look like.

All things nice!

I’m feeling quite content after having some hot soupy Maggi and a paper cup of hot ginger tea.  So while there are a gazillion things I could write about at the moment, I have chosen to make a list of some of my current favourite things. Just like that.

This beautiful book by Yoko Ogawa that I’m reading now.

The Housekeeper + The Professor

This lovely, colourful lamp that M picked up at Dilli Haat. He spotted it and wanted to buy it, but as is his typical style, he insists he bought it for me because I liked it. Well, I’m not complaining.

Pretty Rajasthani lamp from Dilli Haat

I absolutely adore Bath and Body Works, and I made my poor friend who was returning from Philadelphia, pick up an entire suitcase of Bath and Body Works products. Clearly, I have gone bonkers. But on the bright side, I have enough body scrubs, body mists, lotions, hand sanitisers and the like to last me half a lifetime. Not a big fan of the Country Chic body lotion – it’s a wee bit strong (and I normally use very mild ones) but the Warm Vanilla Sugar body mist is super sexy. The blue Promod shrug was an absolute steal at INR 700 and the Anokhi stole has been one of my treasured material possessions since 2009. The bead thing is something I picked up from the streets of Udaipur two years back. I love a pop of colour.

Stuff that I’m wearing A LOT these days

This lovely beer mug that my brother-in-law and his wife got us from Germany. I’m ashamed to say that it is filled with one rupee coins and loose change. When it’s summer,  it will hopefully be used to lug down lots and lots of beer. I’m also obsessive about this rug from Dilli Haat – I keep straightening it out and unfolding its edges compulsively.

Beer mug on the new rug in the living room

This amazing broth of bulgar wheat, roasted garlic, mushrooms and saffron (zafran) with a big dollop of garlic-flavoured sour cream that we had at a Moroccan restaurant, Zerzura, in Delhi. I simply can’t get over how simple and comforting it was.

Zafran and bulgar broth. Slurrrp! That little blue bowl is gorgeous too!

Moroccan lights. Lanterns. Any kind of lights. I WANT.

Lights so beautiful I can stare at them all day long like a crazy person

This gorgeous curtain from Anokhi that I’m lusting after;  I’m like a kid in a candy store when it comes to Anokhi and I love love paisleys.

Pic sourced from: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anokhi-curtain-with-top-ties-red-with-gold-paisley-print-100-cotton-/121085638844?roken=cUgayN

Finally, (yes yes, it’s ending) this messy study table, which is going to be my new workspace starting next week. I will be working from home – it’s going to be a new experience for me, and I’m excited about all the fun things I can do! Picked up that striped bag from a second-hand charity store in Edinburgh and it’s my new favourite thing at home.

My future workspace – which I will deck up pretty soon.

Among other things, I clearly need to work on better photography, considering the fact that all my pictures on this post are out of focus.

So what are you folks (read: imaginary readers of my blog) digging currently?