March 2009 - Posts - Life etc...

March 2009 - Posts

Losing weight: It's simple maths

Posted by Kavita Devgan at 
When actress Renee Zellweger was asked how she gained the weight for her role in the movie Bridget Jones' Diary and lost it again after the movie, she said, "It's really just maths." In other words, if you eat more calories than you use, in the long-term, it will lead to weight gain; and if you eat less than what you expend, you'll...

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The enduring romance of sarkari accommodation

Posted by Elizabeth Eapen at 
It is a truth universally acknowledged (with apologies to Jane Austen) that Delhi's denizens live in different cities within the city, and there are probably many more than the generally accepted seven. I've lived the last 16 years in one of them, largely protected from power cuts, dry taps, phones that don't work and traffic snarls - in...

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A techie's guide to Berlin and Hamburg

Posted by Arjun Jassal at 
Moving around in Berlin or Hamburg is no easy task. Reading road signs, with the omnipresent beta (β, pronounced like a very hard ‘S' sound) is even more difficult. Try asking locals for directions with German names, in your distinctly accented Indian English, and you would know what I mean. The Queen's language may have taken over the Internet...

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A breath of Japan. In California.

Posted by Himanshu Burte at 
Whenever I travel I am glad to have been trained as an architect. After all, except for wild landscapes, most places we visit are shaped by buildings, streets and open spaces. And we visit them because the buildings, streets and open spaces are special. As are the people, and the way they go about their lives in those spaces. So then, the work-life...

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Watch that waist!

Posted by Kavita Devgan at 
"The numbers are totally wrong. I am sure something's very wrong with that contraption the doc had wrapped round my arm," my cousin bellowed on the phone yesterday. "I am only 26! How can my BP be high?" --- the tone was almost accusing. Let me explain. By numbers he meant the high blood pressure reading. Contraption was his...

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I become a fashion victim... again

Posted by Bobby John Varkey at 
I should have seen it coming. It was a simple urge to see a fashion show. But, when you are on the wrong side of 35, and have never been anywhere near one of those talk-of-the-town celebrity parties, it is not easy to convince your friends that you are actually interested in fabrics, patterns or, even design. With two fashion weeks happening in Delhi...

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What's in a name? Ask the Election Commission

Posted by Elizabeth Eapen at 
We've tangled around with our name long enough. Not many know that Eapen (my husband's name and my surname) is typically Syrian Christian (and for those onomastically inclined, I believe it has its origins in the Greek Stephanos and the English Stephen ). But try explaining all that to the world at large. Rare are the occasions when it's...

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Sourav Ganguly and keema naan in Lahore

Posted by Malavika R. Banerjee at 
The Indian cricket team was in Lahore exactly five years ago. They had reached the city for the last two one-dayers of the Samsung Cup. The Indians landed in Lahore trailing 1-2 in the series, and needed to win both games at Lahore's Gadaffi Stadium. Our team, led by Sourav Ganguly, was staying at the Pearl Continental, which during that week could...

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Me, my daughter and Enid Blyton

Posted by Vandana Vasudevan at 
Last weekend I introduced my seven-year-old daughter Prakriti to one of childhood's greatest reading pleasures: Enid Blyton's adventure series. I began with the Secret Seven, which is meant for the 7-9 age group. I let sentiment override sense while making the selection. I chose Secret Seven Win Through, which is certainly not the best in the...

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The lost art of customer service

Posted by Elizabeth Eapen at 
Is the customer really king? Marketing moguls may say yes, but I have my doubts. Have had for a long time. In fact I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve ended up feeling cheated. Not in the literal sense, but in subtle ways, and those are actually the ones that hurt. This was reinforced last month on two occasions. I bought a new car and felt...

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Audio books: Not music to my ears

Posted by Ashish Bhatia at 
I love the idea of audio books and e-books. Over the last 10-12 years, I have even acquired quite a few of them. But, somehow, I can never bring myself to hear them. Or read them. I have tried many, many times over the years... on a PC/laptop, on an iPod, on a phone, on a tiny 26gm Sansa Clip... And repeatedly attempted to fill my ears with varying...

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What's your child's daily bread?

Posted by Manidipa Mandal at 
Bread and jam Maggi Packet of chips Packet of biscuits Juice drink Dry cake slices Puri-sabzi or paratha These are some of the kiddie meals for school most popular with their moms, I found, talking to a few in the lead-up to my article on food safety for the lunchbox . What worries me about these food choices is not their un-safety, though. What scares...

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Don't presume you are overweight. Calculate your BMI

Posted by Kavita Devgan at 
I am just very tired listening to my best friend’s bleats about how much angst the (nonexistent) extra tyre around her waist causes her… And I am also equally exhausted with trying to explain to a colleague that his beer belly is not cute, it’s downright unhealthy. And these two really are just two of the reactions I get from almost everyone around...

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Mind your (driving) manners

Posted by Manoj Madhavan at 
With several hundred new cars hitting the city roads every day and the Nano scheduled to launch soon, things threaten to spin out of control. Here are some things you need to know and act on if you want to drive in our cities and remain sane. Slow drivers in the right lane. Most people are unaware that the extreme right lane is meant for overtaking...

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My Facebook experience

Posted by Vandana Vasudevan at 
If this blog had a name, it would be called Urban Juggle. For that's what negotiating present day urban life is for many like me. A dexterous juggle between being Family Person, Corporate Denizen, Cyber Trawler, Clueless employer of domestic help, Exploited Customer of wily companies.... the roles are myriad and transitions require lightning speed...

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