LOL: Life Of Leo

Image Source Everyone by now knows that I'm an outspoken person who calls a spade a spade. I always speak my mind and never sugarcoat stuff. I have always been straightforward even when I was child. While I am pretty diplomatic at work, because I need to be, I still remain outspoken and express my thoughts freely and as often as I can. I have been often told that I have a dominant personality and that I'm someone who likes to lead. While I do agree on the latter, the former is highly debatable. I've lost count of the number of times people have called me "Bold" (Gosh! I hate that word!), just because I choose to voice my opinion. While most people just nod along or prefer to stay quiet and go through it, I choose not to. It is not that I am trying to be a rebel without a cause here. I just believe in doing things the right way. If something seems off or wrong, I talk about it. I am called bold because of this. I am called dominant because of this. Well, if t...

Image Source Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma got married yesterday, far far away from the public eye and for some reason this makes me very happy. Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of either of them but I do respect Virat for the amazing sportsman that he is. I truly believe that he will create magic in the world of cricket. Together, he and Anushka make a wonderful and a powerful couple. He is a thorough gentleman and has stood up for her ladylove time and again and she has continued to support him silently. As a couple living in the time of social media, they were not too in your face with their PDA or just their love in general. Virat did give us peeks of their love story on special days like Valentine's and Women's day, but apart from that they were in a world of their own. I have never said this about any celebrity couple till date, but they do give love a whole new meaning and make us believe in the concept of togetherness once again. I know most of you are bored by n...

Image Source " What ever I tell you, you shouldn't tell it to your husband ", this was one of the things my mother-in-law told me during the early days of my marriage. I found it extremely odd but did not react. Five minutes later, I told my husband about this. While I'm pretty good at keeping secrets, I do not hide anything from my husband. I never did, I never will. It is not something that is a compulsion, it just comes out effortlessly during a conversation. Same thing with him too. We don't plan a list of things to tell each other. We just talk and end up speaking about everything around. While most couples do not spend time talking to one another, conversations are something that keep us going. If you feel the need to hide something from your partner or intentionally decide to not tell him/her about something, then something is not right. Well, unless it is a pleasant surprise for an occasion, hiding things is not good for any kind of relationship. Esp...

Image Source " When the wife is away, the husband will play. " " Marriage is a workshop where husband works and the wife shops. " " WIFE: Without information, fighting every time. " " It is hilarious when women think that they are punishing their husbands by not talking to them for a few days. " " A husband always has a wireless connection around him. It is called - Wifeye. "

Image Source For some reason, all the articles that I've read since morning have been about marriage and the difficulties that surround it. I am not a staunch believer in the institution of marriage but I do believe hopelessly in love. I married the man I love around four years ago and we have continued to be lovers and soul mates. It worked out very well for me, so yeah I'd like to say that marriage is good. The reason why I say that I'm not a big fan of marriage is because of the forced relationships and responsibilities that come with it. When most couples say that they don't feel married, it mainly means that they do not stay with their parents. The only time that I've felt married is when I stayed with my in-laws for the first two years of marriage. It was no less than hell. Today as my husband and I stay on our own, we're back to being in a relationship rather than being forced to being man and wife.

Image Source You know how well my creative juices have been flowing thanks to the cliched title of this post. So yeah, I turned thirty this month. Also, on a scale of one to ten, ten being the busiest one can get, I turned thirty on that one too. I've been wanting to write this post since my birthday on the 8th, but with 12 hours of work a day and working on weekends, it was almost impossible. Not that it is all done now, but things are definitely better and stable now. So now let's come to my birthday. While I did have a Joey's moment as I cut the cake at midnight, I did not wake up with any blues in the morning. It was a Monday and both Cal and I had taken a leave to celebrate the day. Not having to go to office on a Monday was a gift in itself. For the first time ever, growing old did not bother me. I'm not the one to think much about age and try to act young. For me, when life is going on smooth, I have nothing to complain about. Not even about growing old. ...

Image Source I've always been a fiercely independent woman and I hate dependency of any kind. Depending on someone else for anything completely ticks me off. This is the very reason why I don't have a maid or a cook at home. I don't like waiting around for someone to get my own things done. More often than not a man who is dependent on his mother for everything is called a "Mama's Boy". And every woman hates such a man. Because who wants to be stuck around with a man who waits for his mother to do things for him or follows her orders to the tee. The mother clearly holds the leash of the son and guides his every move. Sadly she refuses to let go off the leash even when he has a new woman in his life now. Yes, we have all heard of the quintessential Mama's boy. What about the Mama's girl? At the risk of feminists boycotting my blog and dissing this post, I'm still going to come out and say this. The concept of Mama's girl does exist and i...

Image Source I'm currently reading a book called ' Lightning ' by Danielle Steel. The story is about the protagonist Alex Parker who is one day diagnosed with breast cancer and how she and her family come to terms with it, especially after the perfect family life that they have been living until now. She's forty two years old and has a four year old daughter who is the apple of her eye. She has a mastectomy where her left breast is removed and she has to go through chemotherapy for the next six months. This takes a toll on her body as well as her career as a successful attorney. Her body has become shapeless thanks to a missing breast, she's gaining wait due to the chemo and is losing her long red locks by the day. But the biggest loss for her during this time turns out to be her husband. Sam Parker is in complete denial about his wife's ailment. He doesn't want to come to terms with it and begins avoiding her completely. After losing his mother to c...

Image Source I've attended quite a few events this month and it was an enjoyable experience. I met a lot of new people and made some good friends. There were a lot of meaningful conversations and I did have a wonderful time. Everything seemed to go fine until I mentioned " my husband " during some random conversation. People gasped and some even choked. There was a round of " You're married? " and then I had to witness quite a few not so pleasant expressions. This is not the first time that this has happened. In the two and half years that I have been happily married, I have heard this question quite a number of times. Although some people would have loved to take this a compliment, I find it a little weird. How does it matter if a person is married or not? While the conversation is revolving around food, writing or fashion, how does one's marital status matter? When someone says " You don't look married ", most women take pride in ...

Image Source He is the apple of my eye. The man whom I love the most in the world. He is the one who I live for and who makes life worth living. He is the one for whom I will do anything. He is the one for whom I shall die or kill. He is my strength and my weakness. He is the only one that matters in the world to me. I give him the biggest piece of cake and the unburnt toast. I give him the rounder chapati and the juiciest part of the fruit. I make food that he loves at any given time of the day. He is the the most important part of me. He is my husband and I love him. But I do not worship him. He is the man of the house and I am the lady of the house. He is no king and I am no queen. Together we both make a home and we are together in everything. He talks, I talk. He listens, I listen. He doesn't help me in doing the chores. There is nothing called my chores or his chores in our relationship. We do all our chores together. More than love, it is the respect that holds us to...

Image Source He had been waiting for the answer for a quite a while now. It was about a week since he had proposed, but I needed time to answer. It was not easy for me as my last relationship had ended badly and I was not in the mood for love. I was not cynical about the feeling, but I wanted to be alone for a while and enjoy the tiny pleasures of life. I had made a list for myself about the things that I can do as a single lady and I wanted to have a check next to all of them. But then he came along and turned my world upside down. It was almost like every puzzle of me was now falling into the right place. It was love, oh yes it was. But was this the right time for it? I was not too sure . Both of us had just got out of failed relationships and now this was happening. We did not want this to be a rebound and yet the attraction was too hard to ignore. We spent almost every free time together. I had forgotten about the list, but he reminded me about it. He helped me check every...

Image Source On 22nd March, Cal and I celebrated our second year wedding anniversary. I still remember scheduling the post for our first anniversary last year and now our second anniversary passed by too. It is true when they say that times flies when you are doing something that you love and with the person you love. Cal and I have been together for over four years now and have been married for two. Nothing has changed since the first day and that is what I think is the secret of our marriage. There still is the same amount of passion, love, respect and everything else that we first came with. After marriage he did not expect me to become something else and nor did I expect him to change. I still am his lover and his best friend. The wife only comes later. I got married when I was twenty six. Fairly young in my own standards as I wanted to get married only by thirty. But when I knew that the person is right, I did not find any reason to wait and I'm so glad I decided to ju...

Image Source She walks into a strange house With nothing but dreams in her eyes Uncertainty hovers over her But she still has to pay the price Be it love, forced or arranged The journey would always be the same She gives up all that she had Losing everything, even her name There is no familiar face around Just a hint of vermilion on her head No one offers to ease her tension They expect her to blend instead The house seems empty at first Since she is away from her comfort zone With baby steps she needs to tread Needs to embrace everything on her own No matter how comfortable the place looks She needs to think twice before doing anything Suddenly her freedom ceases to exist Her new family has now become her king People stare at her with every breath Waiting for her to go wrong somewhere Its almost like they are looking to find fault Every wall seems to scream out beware It all depends on herself Will she survive the t...

My husband was more than happy to take up this challenge. One of the most common terms used for a woman is that of a home maker. This is inspite of her having a regular job. A woman is expected to have been born with the multitasking skills of doing everything perfectly and at the same time. Every mother-in-law expects her newly wed daughter-in-law to be hands on with all the chores at home. What happens in office is none of her business. Such women even bring up their sons the same way. Like that of kings who do not have to lift their fingers all their lives. All that is expected of them is to go to office and earn money. They are not called the bread winner for no reason right? Nobody likes to eat plain bread. Who prepares the soup to go with the bread, who butters it and who pops it into the toaster? There is no need to mention the person who does all this. Why bother about what happens to the bread once the winner has done his duty. Thankfully I am blessed with a wonderful ...

Image Source Some days ago there was this interesting article in the newspaper about wedding gifts. The article spoke about how couples these days mention " No Gifts Please " on their wedding cards and how there are some typical wedding gifts that offer no use whatsoever. I was reminded of my wedding gifts on reading that and how I had planned to write about it. It has been almost two years since my wedding now and yet some gifts come back to haunt me every now and then. A wedding is a very personal affair, but mine was anything but that. Almost half the crowd of Bangalore was invited to my wedding and before I could realize, there was a huge pile of gifts wrapped in shining paper piled all around the house. I always feel that it is better to ask the couple what they want as a gift and then get it for them. If you are not close to the couple, then it is always better to gift cash instead of some tacky show piece. Even hundred bucks is fine as long as it can be used. T...

Image Source Maybe the cold has gone to my head, but I feel frozen inside. Suddenly every emotion and every heart beat tries to strangle me pulling me down with the pressures of maintaining a relationship that was wrong from day one. I feel the walls around are watching me with multiple eyes and judging me in a crass manner, without hearing the full truth that my heart wants to cry out. Every smile is fake and I hate myself for conforming to the regular juvenile norms of the society. I am drowning in this gargantuan space without someone to look at or talk to. I don't even know if I am alive anymore. Robotic routines, painful socialization, household chores all have started to get to me now. Trapped, is what I feel. In every phase of life and maybe within myself too. Do I break out? I'm not too sure if I have the strength to do it. A myriad emotions plague me. Each with a different tinge and different hue, leaving me whitewashed and devoid of any color in my life. I...

The story so far. Image Source: Google Once you have decided in your mind that you want to marry a certain person, nothing, absolutely nothing can change your mind. The commitmentphobe in me was gone for good and I looked forward to spend my life together with Cal. Apart from going back to the same house, we were living together in every possible way. After a busy day at work, I would meet him and stay together for as long as we can. He would then drop me home and head back to his place. Once my parents too knew about our relationship, things were more than smooth. My parents have seen him since he was born and they adored him completely. My mother cooked special dinner for him almost every day and I was glad that he was getting along so well with my folks.  Then came the day when we had to start off the whole wedding preparations from the start. The start here, means the bride seeing. According to the Tamilian Iyer clan, the girl comes to the boy's house, instead of ...

Image Source: Google Respect her always She has accepted this house Because she loves you Because she loves you She will try to blend in it Hiding her problems Hiding her problems She will always try to smile To make you happy To make you happy She will change this place her way And make it a home Written for Haiku Horizons : Prompt - Home .

The story so far. Image Source: Google We continued to meet every single day and the love was blossoming into madness. His parents had known it by then and were happy with us. I was wondering when do I break it to my parents, when one fine day my mom asked me if I was dating Cal. I was shocked. Apparently Cal's grand mother and my aunt had informed my mom about it. My mom was shocked initially, but when I told her this is what I want she was happy too. From the next day onwards, Cal's mother and my mom were on the phone everyday. Thank God we decided to not beat around the bush and directly tell his mother about us. Once the parents knew about it, then there was no looking back. A lot of people spoke a lot of nonsense, but thankfully it did not affect him and me. Or our folks. Some people even had the audacity to call Cal's mother and tell her what a horrible person I was. They told her I smoke, drink, have boyfriends and am of loose character! And that they should...