LIFE AS IT IS

Thanksgiving in the past three years came and went by and I did not feel the festivity around it. To me, Thanksgiving was synonymous to Black Friday shopping. But last Thanksgiving was different for me, and it was because of a group of people, who shouldered all the trouble of cooking a traditional turkey meal for themselves and their friends. There were baked turkey, mashed potato, sweet potato, corn, green peas, gravy, vegetable casserole, garlic bread and pumpkin pie on the menu. I ate to my heart’s and stomach’s content, it was my first traditional Thanksgiving meal after all. As I devoured the scrumptious food, I wondered if the first Thanksgiving celebrated by the natives and the Pilgrims, the first colonists to build permanent settlement in New England, had a similar menu. It turned out that the food served on the first Thanksgiving did not really have anything common with the kind of food cooked today.  There are mixed opinions though. While some believe that the feast h...

That day I left work for half-hour to grab something to eat. One step outside the building and a gush of wind almost blew me away. I put my hands on my freezing ears almost reflexively. This is just the beginning of the long winter, and I'm falling in love with it. The trees still have some yellow leaves left on them. When I look at the horizon, I see colours that I can't always describe in words. I think I see beige, golden, brown, yellow and perhaps, a light shade of green too. On some days, I feel like buying a long-distance bus ticket and leave home for a day-long road trip to another state. The reason? I can devour the beauty of the season in the streets, houses, trees and fields while on the move. I usually leave home about ten-fifteen minutes before time so that I can stand at the bus stop and look at the balding trees, the grey-blue skies and the distant yellow fields, where children frolicked even a month ago. I always take a window seat on the bus so that I can...

I was watching a film called The Joneses last week. I happened to bump into it on Netflix, and after reading the synopsis thought that it might be worth watching. At the end, I admitted that my time was not wasted, not at all. Starring David Duchovny and Demi Moore as Mr. and Mrs. Jones, this 2009 flick is on “stealth marketing,” a type of marketing where consumers are unaware of the fact that they are being marketed goods and services. Professional salespeople disguise themselves as normal people and show off their clothes, shoes, accessories, furniture, electronic devices, cars, phones, food and drink, in short, everything, so that the people around them feel an indomitable desire to buy them. The film also shows the tragic death of a man, who, after seeing that his credit card bill skyrocketed, commits suicide in his swimming pool. His spending spree to keep up with Mr. and Mrs. Jones, the undercover marketers, cost him his life. The film reminded me of a similar competition fo...

Nicknamed Sin City, Las Vegas is the most populous city of the U.S. state of Nevada. A major tourist destination, the city attracts millions of visitors from all over the world every year. Las Vegas is famous for its hotels, resorts and casinos - 15 of the world's largest hotels and resorts are located in this city. The architectural beauty of some of its luxurious hotels might leave you with your eyes and mouth wide open. The New York-New York Hotel; Casino, for instance, was built to bring to mind the famous New York City (NYC) skyline. From a distance, this hotel will give you the feeling of standing in the bustling New York City. The hotel's towers were built in likeness of NYC skyscrapers, for instance, the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building. A replica of the famous Brooklyn Bridge graces the front of the hotel; there is even a 150-foot-tall replica of the Statue of Liberty, the iconic symbol of freedom, right in front of this New York-New York Hotel. Ho...

Some of the things in life come sugarcoated and we love them. Close your eyes and try to remember the sweetest of things that ever happened to you, you will feel you are smiling. Memories are that special, they can make us smile even in some of the saddest hours of life. Now think of a relationship with a friend that went sour or a group discussion that turned so sour that you swore that you would never again express an opinion. The smile on your face will disappear as you think of something like that. Memories are that powerful, they can foil your effort to be happy. So, let's make an effort to put behind the hours of melancholy, for they seldom help us move forward. In order to keep our spirits soaring, let's make an effort to read some passages from life's diary, those specific passages on life's beautiful moments. Turn the pages of the diary at the end of a busy day, before going to sleep or while sipping a cup of tea on a quiet afternoon. I know watching a s...

I never went fishing in my life, not until May 2011. But for people who reside in the U.S. state of Minnesota, fishing is a favourite recreation. In a state where more than 10,000 lakes and the mighty Mississippi flow, it is only natural that people buy hooks and baits and drive to a lake or river to fish. We have been living in Minnesota for nearly three years now, so my husband and I thought it was perhaps time we too tried our luck in fishing. Our acquaintances also fuelled our interest by saying that few things are as delicious as pan-fried freshly caught fish. The first thing we needed was a fishing license, so we got one from the local Walmart store for $18. It is illegal to fish without a license! We purchased only one license, because I was not sure how much I would really enjoy fishing. I thought that I should perhaps begin with helping my husband as he angled. On one sunny afternoon of summer we went to the Mississippi River with our brand new fishing rod, white...