Words

End of December is the time the whole world takes a break. A majority of us travel to make the best of free time. We plan ahead - buy air tickets, make itineraries and book hotels. In case you’ve not done it already. Worry not! Two years back, I went to Miami and booked plane tickets on 28th November and managed to get a great deal. How, you ask? As an avid traveler, who has wasted a chunk of money, I’ve learned a few tricks over the years. To get a cheap flight deal, follow these simple tips while searching and booking flight tickets online: Browse in incognito mode When we search for flight tickets, website track our activities. Ever heard of cookies? Websites ask us to ‘enable cookies’. With the help of these cookies, websites track our search history. In case we search the same flight again and again, that website will increase the price based on our history. So the best way to avoid being duped by inflated price is to browse in incognito mode. Not sure how to do it? Here’...

At dusk yesterday I didn't switch on the lights I sat till the entire house was in the dark I looked at all the things - Bedside tables, sofa, paintings on the wall Only the edges were visible I tried hard to see the details But I couldn't Even the familiar things were hard to recognize So I told myself Darkness can suck everything into it And make it its own You have too much strength, beauty, magic inside you That you're unaware of Never let darkness come near you You won't be able to see the good things Be happy Stay away from dark thoughts and people with dark thoughts Especially  people with dark thoughts Because they are the ones Who never let you turn on the lights Making it impossible for you to see the goodness inside I wrote these two posts last week. What are your thoughts on these two and the poem?

I’ve put on 6 pounds in the last 2 weeks. It’s a side effect of a medical condition. I got up today and my weight was half a pound more than what it was yesterday. I was extremely sad that time. 6 in the morning and the first thought along with your medical condition is your weight issue. Trust me, every girl hates it. But I had chores to finish. So I cooked, replied to emails, and cleaned before heading for a bath. I switched on the music on my iPad and told myself to take one day at a time. Do good, eat healthy, exercise, and spread some happy vibes. And I wrote this couplet. I hope if someone is going through a tough phase, he/she finds strength in this piece. 'Tez hawaaon mein udte hain jo, Un parindo ke par nahin hausle buland hote hain.' Starting from today I'll post all that I've shared on my social media handles on this blog. I'll make one post every fortnight. Someone told me it's good if you want to protect your work in case of a copyri...

It was my sister-in-law’s wedding in November. Sadly, many of our relatives from Kaithal couldn’t attend it. Dengue cases were on the rise there. And most of the families were affected by it. My husband’s aunt, both of her sons, and her grandchildren were admitted to the hospital. We all felt helpless. As most of my husband’s extended family live in and around Kaithal, at least one member from each of our relative’s families was in the hospital. It saddens me to think about Dengue can be easily prevented. And still, we can’t prevent this disease. We need to be careful and take care of our families. Mosquito-borne diseases, like malaria, yellow fever, chikungunya, dengue, or zika virus can turn deadly and are a threat to the global health. We all have heard cases where a family has lost a loved one. Fifty years ago, only a couple of countries reported dengue or malaria outbreaks, but now it is endemic in more than 120 countries. With high mortality rate, WHO estimates that there a...

I was in India this year for Diwali. It may sound rude but I was annoyed with the manner my mother was managing her home. I live a clutter-free life. I don’t buy things spontaneously. A lot of thought goes into buying even a set of wine glasses. I follow a simple policy - if I won’t use it frequently, I don’t buy it. This principle applies even to gold, which otherwise, is considered an investment. Things we buy and don’t use are a waste of money and space. The worst part is it creates a lot of negative effects that we fail to realize. Take this scenario - you like a sweater and it’s available at a throwaway price. Your instincts would force you to buy it. Great deal, new style, favorite color - you’d wear it repeatedly this winter. But you would not touch a couple of your old sweaters. They would pile-up at the back of your closet. Your closet would be full and you will complain about lack of space in your home. We fail to acknowledge that it was our mistake from the very beginn...