The Winter of Despair

You know that recession has ceased to be an economic term and become a personal reality when....

*Your husband just got let go from his firm
*The rental office spaces in our office building have all but emptied out
*Storefront after storefront in my neighborhood - sometimes nearly 7 in a row have 'For Rent'signs
*A popular Indo-Western design store (that was overpriced anyways)sent me a 'Going out of Business - 90% discount' sale offer this evening
*The NYC subway system seems eerily empty
*Everyone, and I mean everyone I meet asks, "When will it get better?"

This fall and winter has been the fastest lesson in capitalism and business cycles I have ever had. I knew that we were into a recession back in February - but it seemed like a faraway statistic that wouldn't arrive at my doorstep.

How quickly things have changed. This morning, someone I know very aptly quoted from Charles Dickens - A tale of Two cities :

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us ..."

PS - The pic was taken by Tariq on his iphone as he walked through Central Park this afternoon

First Words

Isaac is babbling and it melts my heart. The other day he pointed to the fruit basket, brought his lips to a perfect 'O' and said, "OO-P-L-E". He took such care to be as precise as possible with the syallables. And just as T and I thought it was just a random babble, he surprised us and said it again - this time quicker and with more certainity. I am beaming - my son said his first word !

Porn?

I read somewhere that design magazines are like porn for Manhattan apartment dwellers. Sitting in our cramped 450 sq.feet apartments, we fantasize as we flip through pictures of spacious walk-in-closets and sun drenched patios.

Even as I complain frequently to my husband about how I am irritated with our ever shrinking apartment, I am aware of all the back-issues of my design magazines that could free up space for more 'practical' things.


My first ever design magazine was 'Inside-Outside'. Back in college when I could ill afford it, I just *HAD* to buy that 12 Rupee copy. I still have all the back issues from the 1990s stacked neatly in a cupboard in my parent's home.

Musical Diplomacy

Reading all the articles about NY Philharmonic's performance in Pyongyang made my hopes soar - maybe North Korea was finally opening its doors.

Watching a short video clip on NY Times brought it down with a thud.

Collecting cell phones from the international contingent to restrict 'open' communication, watching a traffic officer directing cars like a wound up toy soldier and a NY Philharmonic musician saying she saw darkness outside her hotel window. It painted an even starker image in my mind.

After the red carpet has been rolled back and the banquet hall cleared, the world will fast forget how its citizens struggle for food and freedom alike.

Adoholik

I got thinking of the Onida advertisement from the 80's and that brilliant tag line that has stayed with us - Neighbor's Envy, Owner's Pride.

I 'googled' it to check for the print ad and came across this advertising site Adoholik that compiles creatives that Indian agencies put out.

I really do miss watching/seeing Indian advertisements both in print and on TV.

Rain

It has been one of those rain-drenched New York days. Everything looks gloomy in a cozy kind of way...

Walking out of a meeting and into the slick rained covered street reminded me of two childhood memories.

Returning from school one day, I got caught in the rain and my notebooks got drenched to a pulp. I remember being upset and my mom trying to salvage everything she could. And then I have this vivid memory of her making little paper boats and floating them on puddles that had formed on our balcony.

And I was reminded of those little wiggly brown earthworms which you see in India when in rains.

The sweetest sound

Today Isaac and I turned 5 months. Or to be precise, this turbulent whirlwind relationship called 'Parenting' turned 5 months. I haven't had 6 continuous hours of sleep for 5 months. I haven't read a book for 5 months. It's been tiring to say the least.

Often as I have sat half-asleep in my rocking chair at 3am nursing my baby, I have thought of those picture perfect moments you see in a J&J baby soap commercial and wondered why the 'joy' of parenting eludes me?

But today it happened. Isaac laughed for the first time. Not just smile or gurgle... but LAUGH. And it was the sweetest sound that I have EVER heard.

Our nanny was pureeing his dinner and that's when we heard it. Just like that!

I managed to capture some of it on video after we figured it was the blender that amused him.



Isaac choosing to laugh today (of all days) was such a riot! It melted away all the exhaustion of the past 5 months.

My husband and I chose 'Isaac' because it's derived from 'Yitzchak', a Hebrew name meaning "he laughs". Isaac is going to live up to his name and I am so looking forward to it.