Tagged!

I've been tagged by Cariad in Crete - my first time! So here goes ...

Just so those who are not interested in these details don't get bored, I've interspersed the answers with goofy pictures of our cats. :)

This is shy little Shadow

1) Clothes Shop

I am totally distracted while shopping for clothes in India, for cotton skirts, blouses, saris and more. But here in the US, I rarely go shopping for clothes unless I need something in particular. I do enjoy looking at outdoor/athletic gear at Academy or REI though.

2) Furniture Shop

We have a working collection of stuff for now - I didn't enjoy the process of shopping for them! I am not very attached to my furniture - want to be able to sell it all at a moment's notice and move to far off lands. ;) I like the designs at IKEA or Pier 1 Imports though.

Gundu is an expert in the art of sleeping - you'll see

3) Sweet

I am more of a hot, spicy food person than a sweet person ... but when in the mood for sweet stuff, I like Hit chocolate cookies or chocolate wafers. And Indian milk+cashew sweets of all kinds!

4) City

There are many ... in the US: Santa Fe in New Mexico, and anywhere on Maui! Outside the US, of the places I've been to, I liked & wish I could live in Alleppey in Kerala and Cusco in Peru.

He's working hard here, holding the papers down

5) Drink

Ginger chai - I am addicted to my evening cup of ginger tea, especially on cold or cloudy days! On hot days I love coconut water, and spinach-pineapple juice from Mr. Naturals, a Mexican vegetarian restaurant here in Austin.

6) Music

Too many kinds to list here ... it depends on my moods, and I have many of them. Then I listen to ghazals, jazz, salsa, indian classical, bollywood hindi songs, tamil songs, pop music, or any other world music. Looks like I've listed all the music I know, but I really can't pick one and it does all depend on my mood! :)

He is scared of rain and hides when raindrops start to fall

7) TV Series

I haven't watched regular cable TV in a few years now, so I'm not in touch with what's happening now. But my all-time favorite TV series has to be Seinfeld. I have watched ALL the episodes multiple times, and can still watch them again. :) I also like Keeping Up Appearances, and Frasier.

8) Film

This is like the music question! But let's see - my all-time favorite movies are: O Brother Where Art Thou, Dirty Dancing, Out of Africa, Before Sunrise, Office Space, Roman Holiday ... you get the idea!

"Are all the guests gone?"

9) Workout

I've been into sports my whole life - so any chance I get, I like to play basketball or volleyball. Am addicted to hiking, and though my knees don't cooperate anymore, I like to run and bike as well.

10) Pastries

Not too much into cakes or sweet pastries, with the exception of black forest or tres leches vegan cake!

11) Coffee

I love the smell of fresh ground coffee, but hate the smell of brewed coffee! So I don't drink any. The only form I like coffee in is ice cream!

Even watching them sleep is relaxing!

I guess I need to pass along the tag - so I pass it along to: Blu (Blucamels in Brittany), Sydney (Adventures in Nature), Chris (of ShadyGrove), & Pinkdogwood (Wandering Mind) ...

Late night inspiration

I concentrate best late in the night, after everyone has gone to bed and it's dark and quiet. Now with the readings piling up for my classes, I've gone back to this habit of staying up late and reading. But the distractions don't seem to stop! :)

Last night as I sat reading at our dining table with a glass top, I noticed how well things were reflecting on the glass surface with the one overhead light, and had to bring out my camera!


This little pot-bellied terracotta Ganesha is one of my favourites because he's so pudgy and cute. Some selective color on Picasa made the pictures a little more interesting ...



A few nights ago, as I sat reading on the couch very late in the night, our schizophrenic cat Shadow decided to join me. He has his moods, so when he wants to cuddle, you feel privileged and oblige. :)

I ignored him for a while because he can get very demanding and I didn't want to get distracted. After a while he settled down with his head on my feet and fell asleep! He was so cute that I wanted to take a picture to show Raghav in the morning. But I couldn't get up to get my camera, so I ended up making rough sketches with my pen. It was really comforting to have his company as I studied.

It's hard to stay focused and not get distracted ... !