#NaBloPoMo: Day 1 - It's time to take on the challenge!

It's time to make up for all the lost time. It's time to pay back for all the excuses for not writing. It's time to leave sloth behind. It's time to take up a challenge. And it's time to prove to myself that I can do it! And to do this, I am taking up the November Blog Posting Month challenge, commonly known as #NaBloPoMo hosted by BlogHer

The most common complaint about blogging is not being able to find time to write. We all have plenty of time. And yet we often fail to find that creative slot in the day when we can put our thoughts down and post online. I think there's more anxiety of not being able to post than the joy of being able to write. I am someone who writes when inspiration hits me. If writing becomes forced and laboured, it doesn't make sense (Unless you are do it as a part of your work). But waiting for inspiration sometimes, well most of the times, turns into laziness and life just takes over. I have had my share of excuses. But this time I have decided take it up and just do it!

What is life without a few challenges thrown in! And one involving writing has to be the most exciting!

Why this is not a great time to be alive

Photo Credit

A few months ago, I wrote about why these are the best times to live in. But as I delved deeper into this, I realised that everything has a good and a bad side. And nothing can escape this rule of nature. Here is why I feel the times aren't that good either:

Information download is at an all time high

There are several choices to everything. Social media numbers are themselves staggering. Be it social media options, review sites, online shopping sites and apps, travel portals, scheduling apps and then reviews of everything that has already been reviewed. We are so inundated with so much information that it's just too much! It is harder than ever to convert information into knowledge or gain insights from all the fast paced information thrown at us. 

Everyone is an entrepreneur

While the times are conducive to being anything you want to, I feel that the start up space is getting too crowded. Every second person is an entrepreneur. The very freedom for anyone to start what you like is going against credibility and originality. I realised this when I was hunting for someone to manage my social media. Too many names, too many people offering the same services - no way to figure out the real experts. I had to go for the only way possible - spend money and see if it is worth it. It wasn't! 

'Unique' is a rare commodity

Do you blog? So do a million others. Are you an entrepreneur? So is your 20 yr old neighbour who works out of his garage. Are you an independent rock band? Another one will form in 2 minutes with 5 people from a college you never even heard of. There are more avenues to get you noticed but you aren’t unique. Anything that you can think of is more likely already not just explored but done to death. And attempts to flog the dead horse give rise to my next point.

Over marketing is the norm

What adds to the confusion is that it's no longer in fashion to call a spade a spade. There are fancy names to prove oneself unique from the others. Depending on who you are, you can choose to call it a shoveling instrument or a mud digger. And it sells! (I guess). I have come across  a mind reader, a idea chef (guess?), a human scientist (don't even ask!) and a happiness coach. I don’t know what any of that means. And with subjective professional vocabulary like this, it's hard to tell what people do. You may seem fancy, but how good are you at your job? 

Experience has diminished in value

Don’t get me wrong - I truly believe that nothing can ever beat experience. Someone who’s been there and done that will always have know better. But with the exposure that the internet and social media gives, someone a decade younger is more comfortable and equipped to deal with the new fangled technology and the fast paced world that we live in. Youngsters actually know certain things even better than the oldies. It’s a level playing field that way but experience no longer makes you exceptional. 

The peaceful times are over

With every passing day, the dream of ending the day with a quiet cuppa just like our parents did is a distant dream. We are so attached to our devices and the lure of the deluge of information they bring to us is so addictive that life is never going to be the same again. Adaptability is the key and we cannot afford to sit back and relax without the fear of being left out. 

There are a several other aspects that can be added that make these times not so great. This is my list. Would you like to add something to it?

6 Reasons Why 'Comedy Nights' Doesn't Work Anymore

Comedy Nights is reduced to just insipid slapstick comedy (Photo Credit)

While switching channels recently, I ran into a recent episode of Comedy Nights with Kapil. This used to be my favourite program on TV for a long time. I have lived on re-runs of the comedy show. I lost touch with the program as I got busy and couldn’t catch up with episodes online. (I haven’t watched live TV in years!) The last I remember was the revamp of the old set and the repetitive punch lines that had lost punch. 

When I ran into it again, I wanted to see what’s up now. And I could tolerate it for exactly 10 minutes. Here’s why?

1. The current set is garish beyond words. What led to that change is still a mystery to me

2. The gigs have become insipid and repetitive

3. The character acts have become sheer slapstick comedy. I was never a fan of physical fight on the program

4. It’s run for 2 years too long for it to retain freshness/novelty

5. The verbal wife bashing, another thing I have always hated, is almost nauseous now (sic!)

6. It’s just another film promotion program with no original, creative content in it. 

Asking Akshay Kumar if Prabhu Deva wore a vest under his shirt, to check the working relationship between the two, is definitely a new low in the program. And he got a fitting response in the typical Akki style that the question make no sense. Kapil might next ask if Prabhudeva wore undies under his pants. Sheer nonsense! 

Comedy nights did bring back comedy into fashion. And how! But unfortunately it has been dragged for long enough to fall from grace. It's sad to see something so unique deteriorate to this and I have no clue why Kapil or the channel may want to continue to telecast it. It could be a popular film promotion scene and the star power might be bringing in the TRPs. But if you ask me, it's time to call it a day. And maybe come back another day with a fresh look, new characters and better gigs.

I hope Kapil and his team will consider this soon.

These are a few of my favourite things...

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I wanted to make a list of 100 things I love. But the task turned out to be tougher than I thought. So I decided to chuck the counting and just put down things that I love.

Warmth of a comforter

The first, hot sip of coffee

The whole cup of coffee

The goey, choclatey bite of chocolate pastry

A warm hug from that someone special

The smell of books

The notes of my favourite music

Legally Blonde series (the movie)

Shopaholic series (the books)

Initial books of Harry Potter

Watching FRIENDS re-runs

HIMYM re-runs (sometimes)

A great piece of writing

Blogging

Training 

Coaching people 

Chatting up with friends

A good twitter fight

Shopping, even window shopping will do

Watching movies

My make up

Amitabh Bachchan - need I add more?!

Curling up with a great book

People who can have intelligent conversations

Girlie time with best friend

Sitting around with that special someone and music playing

The assurance of that special someone being around

Working in cafes

Bright sunshine on a winter day

Kicking people’s a**es when they think they are too smart

Being the Queen of Sarcasm

Coming up with a good piece of writing

Offering my help wherever it is appreciated

Dressing up

Learning new things

A challenge that I am up to

A quite evening with wine

Hot cuppa with a view of the mountains

Comedy films

Watching the rain from my window

Any dish with chicken and fish in it

Or chicken and fish cooked alone :)

Playing with my superstar nieces

I had fun making a list of things I love. So what are a few of your favourite things? Go ahead, make a list of your own!

Warning: The list is by no means complete. So expect another one some time soon. 

Mirchi and Mime: An Afternoon with Food and A Friend

Mirchi and Mime (Photo credit)

What better times can there be than the ones spent in the company of great friends and delicious food. Last monday was one such day. I went out to meet my friend, Mitu Samar, a leading personal branding consultant. She suggested that we catch up for lunch. And the place we went to only added to the great time we had. Since we live close to each other, we decided to meet up at Powai in the same complex where Cafe Mangi is. I did not know there were more cafes in the area nor had I heard of this restaurant where she was waiting for me. The place is called Mirchi and Mime. Here is their Facebook page.

What is unique about this place is that the waiters/servers are all deaf-mute people. It just shows that when people are trained and given the opportunity, they can do a good job of anything. The menu is a simple one with columns for soups, salads, appetisers (tawa and tandoori), Vegetarian and non vegetarian main course, sides/breads and desserts. At the top of every column is a specific sign for that category which you can use and indicate the item number showing the fingers of your hands.

The menu at the restaurant Photo credit

The meal starts with a person who can speak explain the concept to us and introduce the person who will serve our table who welcomes us in sign language. I think the sign language added a unique aspect to the eating experience. It was so easy to communicate with them with the basic signs we learnt in no time. And the food was just delicious. We ordered chicken and fish. The flavours were great and the service impeccable. It was a unique dining experience.

If you happen to be around, I'd recommend that you drop with for a great meal at Mirchi and Mime.

PS: This is not a paid post.

Re-blogging: 101 Blog Post Ideas To Make Your Blog Hot

101 ideas to make your blog hot! (Photo credit)

For today's post, I am re-blogging a wonderful and insightful post that I came across recently. This post has 101 ideas simple ideas on adding variety to your blog content and keeping the readers engaged. What else does a blogger need! Here are a few of my favourite ones from the list:

1. Run a contest
2. Review books/movies/products
3. Interview someone famous
4. Write a photo post (which is what I did at the beginning of this 7 day marathon)
5. Share travel experiences
6. Jot down lists - the longer, the better
7. Add guest posts so that you can get breathers
8. Bust a myth
9. Write about your success/failure stories and lessons learnt from them
10. Write pros and cons of something
11. Share your blogging story
12. Write a series
13. List your popular posts (which is what I did on Sunday. See! The ideas are already working!)
14. Write a hand written post and post a picture of it. Pretty unique, I'd say!
15. Write A-Z of something you are good at

For the whole laundry list, here's the original blog for your reading pleasure.

101 Blog Post Ideas To Make Your Blog Hot

Do share your most favourite ones in the comments. I'd love to know what's on your list!

Blog Round up - The Most Popular Posts

Writing makes me jump for joy!

While I am getting back in the groove with my blogging, I thought it was a good idea to share some of the popular posts that got maximum views. Since most of you have just starting discovering this blog in the limelight, it'll be nice to see what I wrote in the past. And it has been a great journey down the memory lane finding them for you. I found that there have been quite a few posts with views between 200-400 views. So I have zeroed in on a few posts you might find interesting.

1. Since one of my hobbies is watching re-runs of sitcoms, the first post is, Unanswered questions from F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Having watched the series several times, I realised that familiarity does breed contempt. After the initial novelty wore off, I started wondering about the plot and asking questions, which I thought were pretty valid. Do you agree?

5 unanswered questions from my favourite sitcom, F.R.I.E.N.D.S

2. Indra Nooyi kicked off the hornet's nest when she said that women could not have it all. What do you think? My take:

Should women really have it all?

3. The brutality of Nirbhaya rape shook the nation at it's very core. As a woman, it hit my belief in the very existence of humanity. In this post, I feel no rage, no pontification, just a numb disbelief:

What more can I add

4. I generally don't write about my personal life. But having conquered the 7 year itch in my marriage seemed like a time I could start handing out nuggets of wisdom about the institution. And it got quite a few views too! Here is it:

7 things I learnt in as many years of marriage

5. With feminism and women's rights talked about everywhere, I thought we should spare some thought for the men too. So I decided to jump to their defence and found a lot of places/situations where they might feel left out but we don't care. I think it's a must read for men and women! How far do you agree with me?

Are men really villains?

6. An ode to the zeitgeist of our times, this is a heart felt post for the great times we live in. We have the freedom and the liberty to do what we choose.

Why this is the best time to be alive

Thank you @blogchatter for inspiring me to start writing again. This post has been a pretty great one since I could go back and trace my blogging journey. From someone who wrote as a novice to someone who picked up the ropes along the way, I can see the transition in me as a blogger. My titles are better, thoughts more structured, presentation numbered or sub headed and included images. The journey of learning do's and don't's has been long, painstaking but fun! I can't think if anything else that gives me greater joy than producing a piece of great writing!