Photo A Day: Moon

Day 31 23 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Moon

The last post of this "Photo-A-Day" challenge. And here's the moon that I couldn't post on the 23rd...


Took this pic on the 29th night, from my balcony. It's almost a half-moon. Wasn't expecting to see anything more than a silver speckle in the picture, but, apparently, my camera is better than I think it is.

Took this shot without flash, and max zoom possible in my camera. The toughest part was holding my hand still. I clicked several times, but most of the other pics came out with a blurred moon, because my hands shook so much. A tripod would have been very useful for this shot.

And that brings us to the end of yet another round of NaBloPoMo. My fourth successful one so far. Normal erratic blogging resumes from tomorrow.


This is my 31st (last) post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Where You Relax"

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Photo A Day: Toy

Day 30 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Toy

Here's a picture of MY toy... with HIS toy! :D


That's Yuvraj, with my soft toy balanced on his leg. It's the same toy that he swapped for his "gas-filled zebra balloon" on one of his visits!

Just look at his posture... and the expression on his face! LOADED with attitude! But that's to be expected. He's a fan of Salman Khan after all!


This is my 30th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Feet"

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Photo A Day: Feet

Day 29 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Feet

Five pairs of feet...


This photograph was taken more than 12 years ago, when I still lived at Kanpur. It's actually just a part of the complete photograph, as I've cropped off everyone's faces for today's post. One of them in that group is me. The rest are my old school friends. A 6th one is standing behind the camera, up on a chair or something, to get the view from a height.

Some days...

It's been so long since our group had a proper get together like that...


This is my 29th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Trash"

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Photo A Day: Trash

Day 28 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Trash

Another one from Patna...


I took this pic from my balcony in Patna. Those are the kids of the sweeper of my building. You can see them burning trash in the lane right across my building, the older one in pink pajamas, and the younger one in blue.

At the time of taking this pic, they were not more than 3 years and 1.5 years old respectively. And yet, they wandered about in the streets without adult supervision (despite the fact that this was an area with full on traffic) and (as you can see in the picture above) were even allowed to play with fire on their own! :-|


This is my 28th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Your Name"

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Photo A Day: Your Name

Day 27 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Your Name

For today's post, I made this last evening...


That's my first name, embroidered by hand, on a small carry bag that we use used for buying the groceries. The fabric is a bit transparent, so the dark colored thread is showing through from the back. I should have made this on a darker base, or used lighter colored thread. Anyway, it was fun doing this. Although the bag is not usable anymore. I burnt it while trying to iron it! :P


This is my 27th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Key"

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Photo A Day: Key

Day 26 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Key

This is my house key, on my Ganpati key ring.


Took this picture in macro mode without flash, because the light of the flash was reflecting off the metal.


This is my 26th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Breakfast"

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Photo A Day: Breakfast

Day 25 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Breakfast

This was my breakfast yesterday...



Two hard-boiled eggs, two slices of toasted brown bread, 1 banana sliced, a spoonful of almonds soaked in honey, and tea.


This is my 25th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: An Animal"

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Photo A Day: An Animal

Day 24 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : An Animal

Well, what else did you expect me to post about here in Jaipur? :D


Took this picture on my way back from the market last time. We usually find such camel carts on this particular stretch of the road. So I took my camera along on my last trip, to get a picture for this post.


This is my 24th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Where You Relax"

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Photo A Day: Where You Relax

Day 23 31 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Where You Relax

As informed yesterday, I'm doing Day 31 today, in place of Day 23, because being the new moon, I can't get a photograph of the moon right now. And I don't have one in my old collection either. So I will do Day 23 on 31st of March.

Coming to Day 31's post... this is where I relax... my "den"...


I play online/offline games here on my PC. I sleep here when I'm tired. I do Reiki here when I'm not well. And at times, I just simply stand and stare out of the window... watching the sunsets and the pigeons.

And that treadmill at the far end of the room... that's just a show piece now. We have a fully equipped gym in our building, which is completely free for the residents here. And it's got some heavy-duty motorized treadmills. So I prefer using one of them instead of my miniscule manual treadmill.

So much for today then. Have a good night folks... or a good day if you read this tomorrow... :)


This is my 23rd post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Kitchen Sink"

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Photo A Day: Kitchen Sink

Day 22 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Kitchen Sink

Why would anyone want to show a picture of their kitchen sink on their blog? Weird topic for today's photograph, but here it is... my kitchen sink... after today's b'fast.


And by the way, tomorrow's topic is "Moon". Been looking for the moon from my balcony for the last 3 days. But couldn't find it anywhere. Finally, I asked Dad last night to see if he could spot the moon on the other side of the building. He went and checked, but came back with a negative. Today morning, the maid walks in late, and when asked why, she informs me that she was busy with extra washing & cleaning at her own house, because it is amavasya (new moon) today.

So there. No moon today. Hence, no moon photograph tomorrow. I've decided that I'll swap the "photo-a-day" challenge for day 23 and day 31. I'll do day 31 tomorrow, and will take up day 23 on the 31st of March.


This is my 22nd post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Delicious"

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Photo A Day: Delicious

Day 21 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Delicious

Yummy gajar ka halwa... with tea and papad!


I made it yesterday evening for Dad and me. Hence, two of everything in the picture above :)


This is my 21st post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Before / After"

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Photo A Day: Before / After

Day 20 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Before / After

Before I started working...



9 years after...



This is my 20th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Funny"

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Photo A Day: Funny

Day 19 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Funny

Can't think of anything except Yuvraj, to post under "Funny"!


His eating ice cream like that gave us the picture that I shared earlier on this blog, in the post titled "Each Child is Unique...". His photographs are always such a mood lifter.

P.S. - Dad just reminded me that this was the first time UV ate ice cream!


This is my 19th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: A Corner Of Your Home"

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Photo A Day: A Corner Of Your Home

Day 18 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : A Corner Of Your Home

I don't feel like sharing pics of my new place yet. So here's one of Patna again...


That's UV, in the South-West corner of my old home. And those are the yellow flowers that I wore on my head once upon a time...


This is my 18th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Green"

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Photo A Day: Green

Day 17 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Green

Green trees... loaded with green mangoes!


Took this picture in June 2007, from a moving car. So the picture is not as clear as I would have liked. But the sight was just beautiful. There were mango trees all along the road, and every single tree was full of mangoes!


This is my 17th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Sunglasses"

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Photo A Day: Sunglasses

Day 16 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Sunglasses

The "miss_teerious" me! Nothing is identifiable in this pic, save the ":D"! :D


I took this photograph in Nagpur, in February 2007... extended my camera hand out, the lens pointing to my face, grinned, and clicked.

These sunglasses went well with my contacts back then. They're probably still around somewhere. I don't wear contacts now though. At least not on a regular basis. So I don't use the sunglasses anymore either. My normal eye glasses have photo-chromatic lenses. Which work equally well.


This is my 16th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Car"

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Photo A Day: Car

Day 15 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Car

This is not just any car. This is the car that was adorned with those "4 yellow flowers", by those two "street urchins"! Our 25-year-old Maruti 800... with my sister and me.


We sold this car just 4 months ago. Yes, someone actually bought a 25-year-old Maruti 800... for the simple reason that it had traveled less than 38,000 kms in those 25 years!

We bought it for 70 grand all those years ago. The exchange price offered to us by car dealers was just 5 grand. So I posted an ad for it on Quikr. Sold it within a week for 27 grand.


This is my 15th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Clouds"

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Photo A Day: Clouds

Day 14 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Clouds

I've been waiting to post this picture on my blog!


I took this photograph (along with probably two dozen other photographs from all possible angles) in mid-June last year, during my flight from Delhi to Patna.

None of those photographs have done justice to the clouds though. They looked soooooo heavenly that I wonder if it's even possible to capture their magnificent beauty by something so trivial as a man-made camera!

Although, I suppose, I could have got slightly better pictures, if I had my digital camera with me. I took this pic with Dad's 2 1.3 MP cell phone camera. And the colors aren't quite right. The ink blue on the top was actually a bright sky blue. And what appears to be different shades of gray in this picture was actually pure silver!

A bed of dazzling white, and we were flying above it! Just look at that carpet of cloud in the center of the picture... it looks like a road leading straight to heaven! And honestly, that's how that place looked... like it was heaven!


This is my 14th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: A Sign"

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Photo A Day: A Sign

Day 13 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : A Sign

... in a moving bus. Hence, the blur.


Nothing else to write today. Mind is pre-occupied with other stuff. So "sign"-ing out now. Cheers!


This is my 13th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Fork"

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Photo A Day: Fork

Day 12 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Fork

Made for each other! I'm talking about the fork and spoon below!


That's a photograph of my sister's old lunch box in Delhi. The fork and spoon, tucked in the top flap, always reminded me of our school days... those bright and colorful lunch boxes... some with trays, some with partitions, while my most favorite ones were those that came with a fork and a spoon!

But this lunch box isn't what I originally wanted to post today.

I got a birthday card in school, when I was in class two. It had a fork and a spoon on a light green background. The fork and spoon were in the form of cartoon characters (with limbs and a smiley face) and they were wishing me on my birthday (in some sort of text balloon, I think). I don't remember exactly what the card said. I wanted to take a picture of that card for today's post, but I couldn't find it! That was the first birthday card I got in school. So I'm a bit heart-broken at having lost it. But, I'm sure my heart will be fully recovered after a good night's sleep.

So... sweet dreams, my friends. See you tomorrow now.


This is my 12th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Someone You Talked To Today"

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Photo A Day: Someone You Talked To Today

Day 11 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Someone You Talked To Today

Sister and BIL are here for a visit... two of the guys I talked to today. Although this photograph was taken during one of their previous visits.


Actually, one of my uncles also dropped in unexpectedly. And the icing on the cake: the maid decided to do a disappearing act... yet again!

Crazy people... these maids! Aren't they? No discipline. No time table. And daily drama of husband beating them up after getting drunk. But they won't leave their husband and move out on their own. Despite the fact that, apparently, they are the only ones earning in their family.

(I use "apparently" above, because that's what they say. I haven't really gone to their home and actually verified it with my own eyes.)

Oh and they pass on the same lifestyle habits to their children. While their daughters (even 7-8 year-old ones) accompany them to work, their sons bunk school and wander around with other boys, eventually growing up into unskilled, unqualified, and extremely frustrated adults, who, in turn, get drunk and beat up their own wife!

Try as I might, I canNOT sympathize with them. Ever. Neither can I ever buy their big excuse of "poverty". Poor or rich, there is not a single person on this planet who doesn't have problems in life. But the world doesn't stop for anyone. God helps only those who help themselves. If we are not willing to change, then why should the situations around us change!


This is my 11th post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Loud"

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Photo A Day: Loud

Day 10 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Loud

Whenever there is a gathering of the Singhania family like this, there is only word to describe it - "LOUD"!


The genetically inherited booming voice, combined with the fact that almost everybody talks at the same time, makes for some really noisy gatherings! Add to that UV's own special touch - dragging the center table wherever possible! Or the computer chair, if he can get hold of it without anyone noticing!

Anybody not familiar with these little get-togethers of this family will surely feel that s/he has just entered a mad house! Honestly, if you want yourself to be heard here, then you've got to be the loudest! :D


This is my tenth post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Red"

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Photo A Day: Red

Day 9 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Red

A pretty looking red flower I saw somewhere, and decided to experiment with my camera. That's a very close-up shot without setting to macro mode.


I don't have any knowledge of the technicalities of photography, but I love taking photographs! :D


This is my ninth post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Window"

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Photo A Day: Window

Day 8 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Window

Window art at a friend's place...



Displayed above is a photograph of the bedroom window of one of my friends in Mumbai. She cut out pages from her daughter's old coloring books and made a collage out of them on her bedroom window that needed to be covered up for privacy reasons.

Normally, people use newspaper or brown paper for this purpose, which not only looks dull, but also makes for a sore spot in the visual decor of the room. So I really liked my friend's idea. The window looks bright & colorful instead of dull. And her daughter's best art work is also displayed proudly.


This is my eighth post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: Something You Wore"

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Photo A Day: Something You Wore

Day 7 of "March Photo A Day Challenge" : Something You Wore

Sharing two pics from my old collection. And before you ask... no, I wasn't participating in a fancy dress show!




These are scans of photographs taken in September 2003, at the Mussoorie Lake which is situated about 6 kms from Mussoorie, on the Mussoorie-Dehradun Road.

They have these dresses there, in many different colors, that you can rent for posing in photographs. And these dresses come with a choice of accessories, like the flower basket and the matka above, that add a natural touch to the pictures.

On a side note... photographers usually tell me to close my mouth while posing, but personally, I think I get better pics with my mouth in a visible ":D"! What do you think?


This is my seventh post for NaBloPoMo March 2012.
Link to the previous post: "Photo A Day: 5 PM"

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