In this past week, I

... made an unnecessary splurge on a black empire-waisted dress from Kelly Felder. I don't know why I bought it. Made a mental note to self to quit being so materialistic.

- Made the discovery that I will never stop wanting to live in Galle amidst araliya trees and the charm that is enveloped around the Fort.

- Sorta pulled off playing a main character in a play about HIV and youth.

- Tripped to Kandy and stayed over in a haunted (?) colonial bungalow with members of the cast.

- Also discovered that currently, the only thing I ever want to have at Coco Veranda is their Coco Caramel. And their lamb burger.

- Decided that my favourite breakfast is string hoppers with kiri hodi and pol sambol.

- Made flip flops my new best friend. Screw the fancyass embellished slippers.

- Remembered that I haven't had a thambili in ages.

- Realized that love for oldies music equals love for old cars.

- Understood that people can look SUPER SCARY with short tshirts and bright green leggings.

- Landed with three bruises. All in one day.

- Came to the understanding that the 'I'm so fly like a G6' song is pretty catchy.

- Didn't understand why that guy on the bus wore white trousers and pointy white shoes. He didn't look like he was going for a funeral.

- Also didn't get why people get into mad shopping frenzies during December.

- Wrote my fiftieth post on this blog. :)

- Decided I'm going to chop off all my hair. To a short short boy cut.

melman

:) there is a pleasure in forgetting the crowd around you and staying put in your own little world.

meeting the rascals in november

double chocolate chip

chocolate chip

choco nut

date and nut

Out of this world cookies!! A true treat on my birthday. :D

cookie monster love.

Walking out of Quintessence of Spun Sugar always makes me realize that whatever I ate was different to any other dessert/baked product I've ever indulged in. Be it a mint cookies and cream cupcake or double coloured chocolate brownie, I find the place terribly unique and a lot of passion put into their food. We walked in the other day for cookies for the cookie review we were doing for the column and found ourselves bowled over! In between munches of this cookie and the other handed over to me either by Shabnam or Nisal, I decided to whip out my trusty camera and photograph a few of them cookies.

Jam Window

Biscotti

Chocolate Heart

Rainbows

discovering solace

• Eating rice and curry on a rainy Sunday afternoon. There's nothing that warm basmati rice, dhal, pol sambol and chicken curry can't cure. Besides, nothing and I mean nothing tastes as great and fulfilling as rice and curry.

• Sitting on the beach at Buba on a Sunday evening. Breathing in the salty air and the soft breeze rippling through your hair whilst watching the sea is quite relaxing.

• Curled up on a chair in boxers and a huge tshirt and watching Nigella Express.

• Ditto for Gossip Girl, Bones and Glee. Friends too.

• Walking by myself on the road while on my way to work in the morning. Allows me plenty of time to just think about anything. I love how the voice inside my head sounds at that time of day.

• Catching a whiff of really great perfume. Something that makes you stop in your tracks and look wildly around for the person wearing it.

• Hugs. Warm. Safe. Breathing in the person's perfume and letting it linger in your memories.

• Sitting on the wall at Galleface Green and watching the sunset with your friends' laughter in the background. Always makes me feel happy.

• Curling up on bed with soft pillows at Nanna's place during cousin sleepovers.

• Plus playing childish games with them cousins like Robin Hood, Boys and Girls and Hora Police.

• The warmth and aroma of Mama's brownies baking in the oven.

• Looking out the window during long car rides to Seenigama and listening to the Beatles.

• The first few days of a developing crush. When text messages make you smile unknowingly. When smiles from the 'other' make the butterflies in your tummy seem as though they're on a Red Bull high. When the very innocent flirting takes centre stage in your life. When, all of a sudden, you love how your name sounds when he talks to you or calls you. When eye contact with him keeps you wide awake at night, still thinking about it. When you are aware that the attraction is mutual but silence and exchange of shy smiles is all you need.

• Paying extra close attention to the tortoises and their antics.

• Cream crackers with ice cold strawberry jam. Fresh out of Nanna's fridge.

• Those occasional moments when inspiration hits you hard and you're frantically typing down thoughts into your phone. Almost giddy with excitement and scared that the inspiration will perhaps fade away.

• Suddenly waking up in the middle of the night, hungry and in desperate need of comfort food. Usually taken care of by shifting feet downstairs temporarily for warm soupy noodles or a mug of chocolate icecream sprinkled with Milo powder. Mama always finds this activity of mine rather strange.

• That awesome time of year when your school besties come down for vacation and you can spend hours catching up on school gossip, boys, life and that irresistible piece of chocolate fudge cake you had the last time vacation rolled around.

• Whipping out my camera and getting close-to-perfect shots of food.

just so you know

picture courtesy of Flickr

I hadn't remembered that I don't feel giddy or lightheaded any longer at the sight of you. Or that the word euphoria didn't make itself a constant presence in my mind's vocabulary. I will go through the tagged pictures without any feeling inside me. Cos yeah, that's how I feel about you. I'm guessing you wouldn't even stop to think how much you made me happy but I guess the 'happiness' wasn't really worth it.

The incessant text conversations make me go a little nostalgic and the important dates saved in my phone calendar do make me go a bit more nostalgic but that's it. Constant whiffs of the fragrance you so famously wore makes itself a regular presence in my life. Remember the day we went to the beach with our friends one Sunday evening? How we carelessly kicked back sand and held hands amidst the emotional waves and bright blue sky is still imprinted on my mind.

Just like those picture perfect postcards I used to collect back when I was younger. I'll miss your hugs and that flashing smile. And once how you quickly changed a song on the stereo system in your car just cos I casually mentioned that the song was my current favourite and also my ringtone.

But that's it. I hope you know now that you cease to exist in my not-so-perfect life.

Ward 47

Yesterday we visited Mama's uncle Penny Muda at the General Hospital. As we walked past the various male wards, we finally spotted his family and came to the bed where he sat. He was at the top right bed in Ward 47. Most of his family members had come to visit him during the regulated visiting hours and he appeared to be in high spirits. It was fun for him. Mama's other aunt and uncle came too and everyone joked and spoke to him. I chose to watch the other patients around me and I sort of regretted it almost immediately.

Several patients around us stared at our company and it was then that I realized that some of them were alone during visiting hours. No one had come to visit them. I caught them looking wistfully at where we stood.

There was the lonely man opposite from Penny Muda's bed. He was sitting right up in his bed and was observing everyone and everything around him. Another man languished on bed next to where we were standing. The entire right side of his face was swollen. He stared at the ceiling listlessly and shifted from side to side on bed. I saw the young man on the bed situated in the far bottom left of the room. Earlier, I saw him limping from the washroom and was assisted onto bed by his wife or girlfriend, I couldn't exactly tell. He seemed happy. He was young, sorta attractive and he probably had the best visitor see him. Smiling and holding hands with the girl next to him, he too lay on bed and didn't allow anything to distract him.

It was sweet watching that couple. The girl stroked his face and he truly appreciated her company. It's like they failed to let anyone else into their comfortable world. After watching them, I saw the other elderly man on a bed who had appeared to befriend another patient, most probably his own age. Again, I felt sorry for them because they had no one. No relative or friend to visit them during visiting hours. No one to come and provide them with a meal packed from home. Or help them put on their shirt buttons. Whilst walking away from the ward when visiting hours were over, I saw another elderly person who was talking to himself.

I left the hospital feeling dejected. What happened to those people? Who admitted them to the hospital in the first place? Did they get themselves admitted alone? Didn't a relative or a friend understand that the hospital can get pretty morbid and depressing most of the time? Didn't anyone care about their situation?

Why can't people be a bit more caring? I know this sounds super cliche but certain things do make an impact in this world and in peoples' lives. We may not think it does but it truly does make a huge difference.

Dedicated to all the people who haven't had a visitor at their hospital beds today.