Monday 31 December 2012

mundane monday - # 11

a collection of some of my personal favourites from the past year - a little rewind mode to bring the curtains down on 2012...


From mundane monday

Monday 24 December 2012

mundane monday - # 10

this is going to be another 'almost wordless' post, since i'm running short of time with a long to-do list on hand, and the rest of the week to be spent in travel, starting tomorrow.

merry christmas to all those who will be celebrating, and happy holidays to everyone !

hope all of you enjoy the last week of the year, see you soon !

From mundane monday


Monday 17 December 2012

mundane monday - # 9

hi ! and hope you've had a good start to the week ...

there are days when i plan an idea in my mind ahead of time and put a lot of effort to have a 'set-up' for the subject i shoot (though the final outcome may not look so)... and then there are days like today, when i just see something across the room and immediately know what i want, and how i want it to turn out.

i guess i'm incurably romantic. that accounts for the fact that i see two zippers on a suitcase worthy of attention. and more importantly, i find the idea of two zippers fitting perfectly into each other, and becoming one, an expression of harmony, of unison.

just think. either one of them existing without the other would pretty much defeat the purpose of their very existence, without the means of locking and securing the suitcase. being just one without the other would simply make their function incomplete.

now, if that isnt romantic, what is ? :)

From mundane monday


is it just me, or do you ever get the most unlikely thoughts about the most unlikely things ?!

Wednesday 12 December 2012

channapatna/chennapatna toys - ethnic wooden toys from india.

if you are one of the (3 or 4) regular readers of this blog, you probably realised i didnt post this week's mundane monday picture.

i had been travelling over the weekend and monday, and didnt quite have the time to squeeze in a post or prepare it in advance.

i was on a frenzied visit to Bangalore, and the agenda of the trip was such that i was on the road for most part of sunday and monday.

by dinner time on sunday evening we were in the vicinity of one of the many malls in bangalore, and decided to just hop into the food court to grab some dinner. tucked away in a corner of the mall were a few stalls that were selling ethnic indian artifacts and crafts. one of these had a bright display of channapatna toys that enticed me to stop in my tracks before dinner.

Channapatna is a small town about 60 kms from the south indian town of bangalore and is home to a wooden toy & doll making industry. the wooden toys are brightly coloured with natural vegetable dyes and their glossy finish is a treat for the eyes. there were tops, rattles, trains and lots of other toys, as well as stuff like beautiful wooden bangles...

i just picked up a couple of pieces quickly... sometime in the future hopefully i should make a trip to channapatna to see them at their source !

here are some pictures for you to enjoy the cheerful burst of colour ...

channapatna toys, tops, wooden toys
                                     
  brightly coloured spinning tops - ( and you still think beyblades are cool ? :) )

chennapatna, channapatna, wooden toys, ethnic toys,dolls     

rows of baskets filled with toys... 

channapatna dolls, eco friendly toys, wooden toys, ethnic art
angry elephant - or is he more of a surprised elephant ?!

chennapatna channapatna toys, indian crafts, ethnic wooden dolls
for those of you who thought he had just looks - thats the cutest pencil sharpener i've seen in a long time !


and a train of not-so-happy looking people - maybe they tried booking tickets in the irctc site !

Monday 3 December 2012

mundane monday - # 8

today's pic is from the archives, taken a few months ago...

its nothing great, but kind of sums up my feelings and what i'm going through now - lonely in a crowd...

since i'm feeling a bit low and drained of energy, this week's post is being almost 'wordless' :)

have a good week y'all, and thanks for peeping in ! take care !

From mundane monday



Sunday 2 December 2012

Calvin, corporate ducks, and the story of our lives...

i saw this cartoon strip in the news paper a few days back. of course one cannot but love each and every strip of calvin and hobbes, but this one especially struck a chord with me. it felt like an allegory of life itself. (or maybe i am overly philosophical and all, trying to read too much between the lines when there are no lines at all - whatever !)



often in life, we are surrounded by people who want us to draw ducks, want us to believe drawing ducks will ensure us everything, from a comfy life on earth to a velvety cushion seat in heaven.
and these 'well-wishers', with all their good intentions, believe that they are making your life easy by placing all the dots - "all i'm asking you is to just connect them and enjoy a duck happily for the rest of your life ".

sometimes you just want to yell at the top of your lungs that you dont want a duck. however precious, rare and golden egg-laying it might be.

sometimes you just want the choice of a blank sheet to draw whatever you choose. even if it turns out to be a meaningless doodle. its all right. i can live with it. its the pushiness to force me into drawing ducks that i resent.

because you dont want a life that is a perfect duck from the dots of someone else's idea. you just want a  scrawl or scribble that you came up with yourself and that works for you. however imperfect it may be.

if you too feel the same way about life, my friends, the only consolation i can offer you is that there are more of us sailing on the same messy boat.
dont worry about it too much for now, lets just hope that some day we summon the courage to say out loud like calvin, "i'll connect the dots in my own way".