Can You Hear Me Now?

Hello bloggers!

I recently made two very short videos for a contest for Jawbone, a headset for your phone that cuts out all background noise so you can hear clearly! Well, they were putting on a contest for people to create a short commercial for this device. The basic rules for the videos were that they had to be 60 seconds or less and also had to show how the Jawbone would come in useful in various situations.

My team created these two very short and entertaining shorts so please, please, please check them out! We get points for number of clicks as well so please watch and share! Thank you and enjoy!

January 6th...an Epiphany?

So, here we are already six days into the new year and here comes the day to take take down all the Christmas cheer. In my house growing up, this we would be when we were to take down the tree and decorations before or on this day, to ensure good luck for the year. The epiphany is a Christian celebration of the incarnation of Jesus, but not being very religious myself, I see it as the end of the all holiday celebration.

So, anyway, here I am taking each ornament down, one by one, looking at them all as I place them in a box labeled: "You won't even touch me for one more year", I somehow find it extra hard this year. As I hug the surprisingly bountifully, and large tree that barely fits into our tiny apartment, trying to swing the lights around the back, I feel an overwhelming sense of sadness. I know it sounds cliche, but it is the straight truth of how I feel at that moment. I keep the lights on as long as possible, not unplugging those beautiful, sparkling 100 count mini-multi-colored lights that will get impossibly tangled somehow by next year. I am trying to stuff everything, all the Christmas decorations into one old printer box that will sit on a the top shelf of our closet.

So, everything is gone; the tree is bare. Sometimes it is so hard to let go, even just a silly, small thing like a Christmas tree. This was my first Christmas away from my family, and it really wasn't that bad considering I got to spend it with my wonderful boyfriend, just the two us. But I think I am just feeling sadness about so many things, and they seem so out of control. It is uncertainty that gets you every time. Not knowing when things will be get better for you or your family, or even the country.

So, as I stand there next to the bare tree, the room suddenly feels freezing, even though I live in California and it is 59 degrees out. I feel a longing for the holiday season to live on. I know it can't though, especially since I just took down all the decorations because I don't want to give myself bad luck. Though, my parents tend to follow this "good luck" thing every year, they have had terrible luck in the past few years. So, maybe it doesn't matter. I know there is really nothing in this whole superstition, but if I don't use this as an excuse to clean the house of holiday, I fear I would never strip it down. Yes, eventually the tree would die, a slow death, and it would have to be removed, but we all like to prolong the inevitable sometimes, don't we?

I will miss most of all the smell of the tree as I walk in the door each day, covering up other not so pleasant scents. The holidays are cruel in these ways, but I would never, ever give them up for anything. I know a lot of people think Christmas etc. is too commercialized and is just one big headache, but the ironic thing for me, is that by not traveling anywhere and not getting to spend the holiday with my family, this was one of the least stressful Christmases I've ever had. I guess that is how the world works, eh?

So, as I finish writing this piece, I am munching on the last few Christmas cookies we have hanging around-surprisingly the still taste pretty good. I guess once I am done with those, the holidays will be completely gone. Well, except for the extra fat hanging around my ass from all those damn holiday goodies. I guess there is no real epiphany for me this year, just the same things I have knows all along. Thank you Christmas, I can't wait to see you next year.


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Day 6 with Mother Singh

We were watching a movie last night, and we were all sitting on the couch together. So, I grabbed this big, warm blanket and proceeded to cover myself with it. Then when my boyfriend sat down, I asked him if he would like it, and he did. Then Mrs. Singh, sits down and I offer her the same. It is queen-sized blanket and can easily cover us all, but she declines. Then a little while later, she says something involving, "thanda", and my boyfriend goes to turn on the heat. She is still saying thanda, and the blanket is offered again. Then declined again.

Well, I don't know what to do! I am trying to help here-seriously! Nothing is good enough and nothing will cease the complaints. It is very tiring to say the least. Also, while we were watching the film last night, North by Northwest (1959), Mrs. Singh asked my boyfriend to fast forward while Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint were kissing! And by kissing, I mean the bare minimum. This was 1959 for goodness sake! They didn't show anything inappropriate in mainstream movies back then. They were barely doing anything and she wanted to skip it. Not to mention it was actually an integral part of the plot because we were supposed to be understanding the relationship between the two characters! I just keep thinking to myself: "What? Are you kidding?"

Day 5...What Happend to the Weekend?

So, things don't seem to be getting much easier. It has now been two weeks since Mrs. Singh arrived, and I thought by this point things would be going smoothly. Again, I am so wrong-this keeps happening! The first few days after she arrived were a little hectic and stressful, then everything seemed to be working out well and the future was bright. Now, here were are on the very cusp of week 3, and the light has faded to the slightest glimmer, barely visible to the human eye. This past weekend was supposed to be a time to enjoy together, the three of us, skipping and laughing with the sun shining down on us. Well, we did actually get a little bit of sunshine, but not so much on the skipping and laughing. This past weekend was a roller coaster, zooming up and down until we all wanted to puke. Ok, so enough with the innuendos. I didn't even get a chance to write this daily blog in the past two days...or maybe I didn't even want to, but now it seems time.

I don't remember too many new things that I have learned through the haze of the weekend, but there are a few things that come to mind that have been irking me since Mrs. Singh arrived, and they were definitely in full swing this past weekend.

So, it is November now, meaning it will only get colder, and colder as time goes on. This being said, we live in California. It's pretty warm here. After living in England, and then Virginia my whole life, I know that it is not really cold here. Even so, I understand that someone traveling from India for the first time could find it very cold here. I get this, and that is fine; it is something we can work with. But something that I can not work with, is someone who is not willing to wear the lovely Snuggie that we bought her! Yes, that is right-a Snuggie! After hearing complaints about being cold for a few days, the boyfriend and I decided to get Mrs. Singh a Snuggie. So, I thought the complaints, and shivering, and exclaiming, "thanda, thanda, thanda", five million times a day would cease. Again, wrong!

When I was growing up, if I complained about being cold, my Dad would say to me, "Put some clothes on". The heat was not getting turned up until we started seeing our breath indoors. So, I would put layers of clothes and blankets on and moved around until I was warm. Not a big deal. Well, apparently that will not be the case here. Mrs. Singh spends most of the day complaining about being cold, and it just seems as though nothing helps. I ask her to wear the Snuggie we got for her, to put a sweatshirt on, or maybe some socks. I do agree that it can get cold inside this apartment during the day, because trees block a lot of the sun, but it just do what I learned from my Father.

Again, we are in California, and do not live in a luxury apartment, so we do not have central air. We have a little heater/radiator thingy in the living room that takes years to heat the whole place. Using this everyday, all day would be ridiculously expensive on the electricity bill, and it just makes sense to use every other method possible before turning that thing on. Still, Mrs. Singh is now taking the liberty of turning it on whenever she wants to, without evening trying the Snuggie first! Then she turns it on, but seems to stay as far away as possible from it, thus not receiving any of the heat. Will this madness ever end?


to be continued to find out....

Day 4 With Mrs. Singh

There are a great many traditions and superstitions in the Indian culture, and though my boyfriend does not care nor believe in any of it, his mother definitely does. The second day after she arrived, she set up a little sort of shrine in the bedroom for her to worship with. Some way, I don't really know how, she figured out that it was that 'time of the month' for me. So, she politely asked me not to touch her prayer area, or anything in it. Then she proceeded to tell me that I should not wash my hair until my period was over, as some sort of cleansing thing. Well, for me that could be 6 days without washing my hair....that simply was not going to happen. Of course, I would respect her wishes about her worship area, but the washing the hair thing, not so much. The hard part is being accommodating without completely losing yourself in the process.

So, this morning the boyfriend is feeling very poorly, and decided to stay home from work. Yet, this is not the most relaxed place to be, and I often think that he might get more rest at the office. I wake up much later than usual-8:40am. I think to myself: Is this the end of the world? but it is no, it just means that my boyfriend is sick and that I was able to reap the benefits by sleeping in a wee bit. So, I find that he is awake, but Mrs. Singh is not. We start chatting softly, as not to wake Mum in the bedroom across the way, but after a few seconds I hear a loud voice coming from the darkness. Of course, I do not understand it. So, the silence has now disappeared for the day, and I wonder how my boyfriend will get any rest in this tiny place.

Eventually, he starts to drift back to sleep as I stroke his hair. I know, 'bleh', you are thinking, but this is important to the story. Then Mother comes from behind and touches a cold hand to his forehead. Awkward! The boyfriend exclaims something in Hindi, and she immediately backs off. Now I can feel her eyes burning into the back of head and she stands behind us. I feel as though I just stole a cub from the mother lion and an attack is looming in the near future. I understand, I really do, that she has not seen her son in years and wants to take care of him like she used to, she is a mother after all. This being said, it doesn't mean that things don't get a little awkward. So, he falls asleep and I lay there looking at him, just thinking to myself and having a little quiet time. Alas, as you know by now, the quiet time will not last. Five minutes later, I can feel her presence behind me, those eyes burning holes in my back. She whispers, "Caitlin, you now study for GRE, and he sleeps." I think to myself, 'Oh no she didn't!' I just give a quizzical look and mumble an "O.K." Sensing that I am annoyed, she quickly says, "If you want". Great, this is exactly how I want to start the morning. I know she means well, and is just trying to help, but I sort of have a schedule going and don't want to be told each second of the day. It is as if she wants to say, but can't, "Leave Mragendra alone". So, I lay there for a few minutes as he snores, then get up to start the day, as it is only 9am.

to be continued....

Day 3 With an Indian Mother

Being that I am unemployed at the moment, I have a lot of time to think and reflect on day to day life. So, with this apartment being tiny and having your future mother-in-law breathing down your neck, there is not a lot of time to stare off into space. If Mrs. Singh sees me daydreaming, no doubt she will direct me to do something. So, often times I stare at my computer, clicking and typing aimlessly when she walks by. I do have a purpose at the computer, but everybody needs a break sometimes. Anyway, having a lot of down time is great sometimes, but when you have three people living in a confined space, this down time is not so attractive. Needless to say, Mrs. Singh and I have chatted a lot. This is not the easiest task in the world for two people who don't speak the same language, but we seem to be doing fairly well and I really enjoy it. She is actually much more open that I thought she would be, and has no fear in trying to communicate. She does know a fair amount of English, and I have picked up a teensy, weensy bit of Hindi, so when you add hand gestures and body language to the mix, quite a bit of communicating can get done. Now, I am not suggesting that it is clear all the time. The stuff that we don't understand would probably almost outweigh what we do, but we manage.

Ohhh the things I have learned in just a few weeks! Whether or not these things are true or useful, I have still to decide. The majority of what I have been told has to do with health. Every spice, food, herb, etc. has some great nutritional or healing power to it, and many others are portrayed as evil. The way these things are eaten also affects their value. Apparently, I should not eat bananas in the morning time because they are a cold food and they will make me constipated. Then, garlic must be consumed raw in the morning, as if taking a pill, as well as put in all meals to get the great value from it. I have also been nagged for days that I should place 5 or 6 almonds in my boyfriends lunch everyday to increase brain functioning. Now, I know that almonds are great for memory and they are tasty, but, of course, when and where my boyfriend would like to eat these almonds with is not up for discussion.

One night, while waiting for my boyfriend to get home from work, she showed me the contents of an entire Hindi magazine about health. We flipped page after page, looking at which food, spice, herb, was good for what. Of course, I couldn't read or understand a single word in that magazine, but I sit back, look at the pretty pictures, and nod my head in agreement. Mrs. Singh explains everything to the best of her ability, and most gets understood, but I spend a lot of time nodding my head back and forth, whether I agree or not.

to be continued tomorrow...

Day 2 of Living With My Boyfriend's Indian Mother

As soon as the noises die down, my next sense becomes inundated with smells from the kitchen. First, there is the stink of cabbage soaking in water, still wafting through my tiny apartment since 10:30am. Now, as Mrs. Singh begins to cook again at noon, masala fills the air. Garlic, ginger, cumin, mustard seeds cooked in oil, ready for the resting cabbage to jump in. The cooking process is like a long journey that disappears without a trace after the last bite; beginning at 10:30am and finishing sometime close to 1:30pm; a process that us Americans take a while to get used to.
Lunch is not a cold sandwich eaten in 10 minutes, it is a whole, well-rounded meal taking hours to create. Everyday since my future mother in law arrive here in San Jose, I have had a huge, warm meal for lunch. It consists of: Daal (a kind of lentil soup), vegetable, as she calls it, which is generally a different vegetable (cabbage, potato, pea, bean etc.) everyday that is cooked in aforementioned spices, plus a few more; then there is white rice, of course, and a small amount of salad-tomato, onion, and cilantro. So, there is already a giant mouthful but, of course, I am not finished. The most important part, and most delicious I might ad, is the roti. A delicious Indian-style bread, made from wheat flour and water, that is rolled very thin and fried in a pan. The roti cooks on the pan, puffing and inflating like a balloon, then falling flat at the finish. All of this is consumed for lunch, and the very thought of it is making me full.

Now, most people tend to think that Indian food is healthy, and for the most part it is, but a lot of salt, oil, and ghee (clarified butter) is used in each meal. These Indian meals can be quite deceitful because I'm gorging away thinking I am being good and not eating meat and losing weight. Boy, am I wrong! While the whole no meat thing is helping, the amount of ghee slathered on the rotis, and the large amount of starchy, carby white rice eaten at lunch is very confusing to my body. I have to say that I do feel as though I have lost some weight, but this could all be in my head. I have also been going on a run everyday to balance out the universe. I will now keep track of my weight over the next month to see if this vegetarian, buttery, carby food is helping or hurting. All I know is that Mrs. Singh is quite thin, and it is very kind of her to serve me this delicious, warm meal everyday. I quite think that it would be difficult to go back to that cold sandwich after eating this meal everyday.

to be continued tomorrow....