He said: Wan't to go for a walk?
She said: Are you crazy? In this rain?
He said: I thought you loved the rains.
She said: I do, but not the Mumbai variety.
He said: So what do we do? Want to eat out tonight?
She said: OK. Let's go to McDonalds.
He said: McDonalds? That's hardly suitable for the occasion.
She said: Who cares? The kids will love it. Moreover I don't want to change out of my track bottoms and sneakers.
He said: What happened to your high heels?
She said: I packed them off. Mumbai monsoons are shoe-killers. Moreover, I get my sciatica pains if I wear heels for a long time.
He said: Alright, that's settled then. I have to check my mail and make some calls. We'll leave at 8.
She said: And I have some groceries to pick and vegetables to buy. 8 seems perfect. Oh, don't forget to sit with the older one with her math problems. I will be teaching the younger one for her tests tomorrow.
He said: Right. Remember to buy Ma's BP medication when you go out.
She said: And you don't forget to return your cousin's call. He has called twice already.
He said: Sure. Hey kids, guess what? Tonight is special and we are going to celebrate it by going out to McDonalds!
They said: Awwww, can't we order some pizza instead? We don't want to miss our TV show.
He said: (Looking slightly relieved) Well, we can do that, what do you say?
She said: (Looking relieved too) We can certainly do that. Let's order pizza. I have to get up early tomorrow morning. And I have this book to finish. May be this Sunday we all could go out.
He said: I have to go over some reports. And make a con-call. Fine, next Sunday kids. Meanwhile let's call the pizza guy.
They said: Yayyyyy!
The story actually started like this. And then continued like this. But that was some years ago. He is still gallant, she is still romantic. But for both of them, the definition of love has somehow changed...
Showing posts with label Woman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Woman. Show all posts
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Technology-Disconnect
My computer went on a self-imposed exile.
Two weeks ago, it sighed, coughed, sputtered and then became completely inert.
I can not really blame it. My chats on gtalk and my comments on Facebook have been on the rise lately. The chats, specially the ones I have with her, lean on the scorching side. Plus, all that unrestrained use of the web to search for school projects, recipes, craft ideas, blog ideas, music download... the poor thing could not handle the pressure and simply burnt itself down.
So, I experienced what my daughter's friends call a total ' Techno-Disco' for a fortnight. For the uninitiated, that is Technology Disconnect. A space where there are no World Wide Web, Facebook or gmail. Can't say I enjoyed my hibernation, but it had its moments. Like when I started watching the saas-bahu serials out of sheer desperation. My journey into the Indian television world almost made me want to hit the escape and the F1 keys. But that's another blog post.
We women, tend to use our social networking sites as family chat sessions. We build relationships here, we nurture them here and we make our voices heard over here. Here, we offer advice, seek help and generally have a good time, with plenty of laughter thrown in. Men on the other hand, do not seem to be so emotionally connected here. They use the internet perhaps as a transactional tool. They book tickets online, pay for their bills online, and do their banking online. No relationship building over the net for them. Even the games they play here are the solitary kind. They tend to be objective and analytical in the cyberspace. We, I guess, tend to be more creative and emotional.
I read somewhere that there were more women users of Facebook and other networking sites than men. I can not speak for other men, but I know my husband looks at these sites with utter disdain. He thinks moments spent on Facebook is a total waste of time. He would rather pick up the phone and call someone up if he wanted to connect. I on the other hand, thrive on the comments that my status updates get on Facebook. I love the witty one liners, the cheesy replies and the juicy gossip. I absolutely adore my 10 minutes- a-day Facebook interactions. It is a huge stress buster for me. The same goes for blogging. More than my love for writing, it is my love for social interaction that draws me to it. My readers are more like friends who come over for a chat. And that is why, when I can not blog, I tend to miss it so intensely. More than the technology, it is the emotional disconnect with my friends that gets to me.
Apparently the female brain has 11% more cells in the area of the brain called Planum Temporale. That is the area that perceives and processes language and music. Women tend to be better communicators and that is why the networking sites are popular amongst them. So all you men who accuse us women of talking too much, it is simply because we know more words than you do.
No wonder the poor chap burnt down. Women outnumber men pretty substantially in my family.
But this techno-disco thing was not all bad. Once I got over the initial despair, I quite enjoyed chatting and catching up with some of my long lost friends over the phone. Facebook and gmail may be great, but nothing like letting your voice do the talking. Try it sometimes, I bet you will not be disappointed. Your voice will be a little rusty from lack of use but soon you will get it back.
And that, after all, has been our intention all along, right? To make our voices heard?
I wish all of you a very colourful Holi. The header picture was taken by my daughter, Ishita.
Two weeks ago, it sighed, coughed, sputtered and then became completely inert.
I can not really blame it. My chats on gtalk and my comments on Facebook have been on the rise lately. The chats, specially the ones I have with her, lean on the scorching side. Plus, all that unrestrained use of the web to search for school projects, recipes, craft ideas, blog ideas, music download... the poor thing could not handle the pressure and simply burnt itself down.
So, I experienced what my daughter's friends call a total ' Techno-Disco' for a fortnight. For the uninitiated, that is Technology Disconnect. A space where there are no World Wide Web, Facebook or gmail. Can't say I enjoyed my hibernation, but it had its moments. Like when I started watching the saas-bahu serials out of sheer desperation. My journey into the Indian television world almost made me want to hit the escape and the F1 keys. But that's another blog post.
We women, tend to use our social networking sites as family chat sessions. We build relationships here, we nurture them here and we make our voices heard over here. Here, we offer advice, seek help and generally have a good time, with plenty of laughter thrown in. Men on the other hand, do not seem to be so emotionally connected here. They use the internet perhaps as a transactional tool. They book tickets online, pay for their bills online, and do their banking online. No relationship building over the net for them. Even the games they play here are the solitary kind. They tend to be objective and analytical in the cyberspace. We, I guess, tend to be more creative and emotional.
I read somewhere that there were more women users of Facebook and other networking sites than men. I can not speak for other men, but I know my husband looks at these sites with utter disdain. He thinks moments spent on Facebook is a total waste of time. He would rather pick up the phone and call someone up if he wanted to connect. I on the other hand, thrive on the comments that my status updates get on Facebook. I love the witty one liners, the cheesy replies and the juicy gossip. I absolutely adore my 10 minutes- a-day Facebook interactions. It is a huge stress buster for me. The same goes for blogging. More than my love for writing, it is my love for social interaction that draws me to it. My readers are more like friends who come over for a chat. And that is why, when I can not blog, I tend to miss it so intensely. More than the technology, it is the emotional disconnect with my friends that gets to me.
Apparently the female brain has 11% more cells in the area of the brain called Planum Temporale. That is the area that perceives and processes language and music. Women tend to be better communicators and that is why the networking sites are popular amongst them. So all you men who accuse us women of talking too much, it is simply because we know more words than you do.
No wonder the poor chap burnt down. Women outnumber men pretty substantially in my family.
But this techno-disco thing was not all bad. Once I got over the initial despair, I quite enjoyed chatting and catching up with some of my long lost friends over the phone. Facebook and gmail may be great, but nothing like letting your voice do the talking. Try it sometimes, I bet you will not be disappointed. Your voice will be a little rusty from lack of use but soon you will get it back.
And that, after all, has been our intention all along, right? To make our voices heard?
I wish all of you a very colourful Holi. The header picture was taken by my daughter, Ishita.
Friday, April 24, 2009
He Said She Said
He Said : And what was wrong with Agra? Why could n't we go there for our honeymoon?
She said : Because I am from Delhi and no one from Delhi goes honeymooning in Agra. We go there for school picnics , weekend trips or simply to show Taj Mahal to our relatives who visit us.
He said : What convoluted logic. The Taj is the symbol of love. Of course we could have gone there for our honeymoon.
She said : Moreover it is a congested town. You can't go on long walks.
He said : We are going for long walks on our honeymoon?
She said : Yes. Long walks and impromptu picnics.
He said : (Said nothing, just gave a " Women are from Venus "look).
He said : I have motion sickness. Mountainous roads make me throw up.
She said: Poor baby. You can have an Avomin before we start. We will take breaks on the way.
He said : But Chail? I didn't even know there was a place called that. I have to figure out the logistics...the train and bus connectivity.
She said : It's a beautiful place. The clouds come really down and envelop you completely. Very romantic. You will love it.
He said : It also rains? Good, we can stay in the room and order room service.
She said : ( Ignoring the second part of the statement ). Yes it does this time of the year. We will need the jackets when we go out for our walks.
He said : We will go for walks in the rain?
She said : (This time she didn't say anything, Just gave a "Men are from Mars" look).
She said : Because I am from Delhi and no one from Delhi goes honeymooning in Agra. We go there for school picnics , weekend trips or simply to show Taj Mahal to our relatives who visit us.
He said : What convoluted logic. The Taj is the symbol of love. Of course we could have gone there for our honeymoon.
She said : Moreover it is a congested town. You can't go on long walks.
He said : We are going for long walks on our honeymoon?
She said : Yes. Long walks and impromptu picnics.
He said : (Said nothing, just gave a " Women are from Venus "look).
He said : I have motion sickness. Mountainous roads make me throw up.
She said: Poor baby. You can have an Avomin before we start. We will take breaks on the way.
He said : But Chail? I didn't even know there was a place called that. I have to figure out the logistics...the train and bus connectivity.
She said : It's a beautiful place. The clouds come really down and envelop you completely. Very romantic. You will love it.
He said : It also rains? Good, we can stay in the room and order room service.
She said : ( Ignoring the second part of the statement ). Yes it does this time of the year. We will need the jackets when we go out for our walks.
He said : We will go for walks in the rain?
She said : (This time she didn't say anything, Just gave a "Men are from Mars" look).
He said : I am all done with my packing.
She said : Are you taking that sweater? That's way too big.
He said : Of course it's big. I borrowed it from Rahul who is at least a foot taller.
She said : You borrowed clothes from your friend? This is your honeymoon!
He said : Of course I borrowed a sweater. What will I do with this later? We are going to stay in Bombay. We will never need sweaters there. Don't tell me you bought brand new clothes for this trip?
She said : Of course I bought new clothes. This is my honeymoon!
He said : Whats all this stuff here?
She said : My shoes. And these are my bags.
He said : You are carrying four pairs of shoes. That's three pairs too many. You can just carry your sneakers you know.
She said : I am not going to wear sneakers with my skirts, that looks plain awful. These open toed sandals are for my skirts and these stilettos are for my salwar-kameez. This pair is extra, in case of an emergency.
He said : They didn't teach me all this in IIT.
She said : Do you have some some one rupee coins? I will need them to make STD calls.
He said : Here. Who are you going to call?
She said : My mom. She will worry otherwise.
He said : Why? You will be with me.
She said : That's precisely why she will worry. I have to let her know once in a while every thing's fine. Don't raise your eyebrows to the sky. I know you have plans to call up your boss very often.
He said : That's different. We are working on an important project. I have to keep in touch. He will start worrying otherwise. I guess we need more one rupee coins...
This conversation took place when Mumbai was still Bombay. There were no cell phones and laptops. Men were gallant and carried their wives luggage (hence the worry about extra weight) These days I have been told that women spend a long time scrutinizing the spreadsheets on their laptops on their honeymoon .(You go girl !) Men worry incessently about their appearances and frequently visit the best salons before their weddings. They also at times own more pairs of shoes than their wives. Men and women both call up their respective bosses regularly. Mothers, thank god, continue to worry about their daughters...
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