Reads and feeds

Hola!

9 years and 9 months old, phew. Been here almost a decade. Thanks for allowing me to thrive and survive, bask in your love and appreciation, dear readers! Love you all. 

I've been reading and I've been out hanging about. So this post brings you some reviews from my latest experiences.

But before that, let me tell you, I watched Logan and absolutely loved it. Brilliant movie, though I'm not an X Men fan, and I'm the types that sleeps through Martian and Expendable like films. While some folks were sniggering about it being a copy of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, I totally adored the father-daughter chemistry. To confess, I actually identified with Laura, what with her quick temper and ability to scar and scratch! I'm a difficult person to be around, and then probably yak the way she does later in the movie. Ha ha. Worth a watch, ya'all.

I've halfway through the third book in the Divergent series. Veronica Roth has kept me glued through Divergent, Insurgent and now Allegiant. While I find my head wandering at some detailed, methodical, fictional descriptions, I find the book has overall appeal for both young adults and oldies alike. I am in love with Four, which isn't a secret really. And I find Tris quite like me, Divergent in so many ways, messed up yet sorted in her own unique manner. By the by, I think I'm equal 30% Candor and Erudite, 25% Dauntless and 15% Amity. Not Abegnation at all. My co-reading friend agrees. He's out and out Amity, so well, we manage to trudge along together, especially as we hang out in the joints that I'm about to describe below. 

Teddy Boy in Baner - amazing ambience, good spread, decent service, wonderful music, amazing crowd. Checks all the boxes as a must visit joint with friends. They have a huge screen as well where you can enjoy a match and a show. 

Cafe 1730 in Koregaon Park - Went there a while ago after many folks insisted it was an awesome place. I found it just satisfactory, nothing extraordinary. Ok food, service and drinks.

Raaste Cafe near Station / Camp - Now this was so much better than 1730. They serve shisha / sheesha / hookah in some pretty stunning flavors and they also have some mindblowing cocktails and desserts. Good crowd, but an expensive place. Considering it still is a part of the old Shaantai hotel. Definite place to visit on your afternoon venue list.

Classic Rock Coffee in Kalyani Nagar - Have been here before, liked it then and loved it now. It's obviously much better in the evenings with exciting crowd, music, food and happy hours. Doesn't have a great variety of soups, though. Why soups? Just thought I'd let you know.

Sin Envy Pride in Mundhwa - Rooftop Lounge and Club. Good food and crowd and music. Expensive, but memorable. 

Elephant and Co and Little Next Door  - Both in Kalyani Nagar - Ok joints both, nothing worth a thunderous applause. Want a change, could make a pit stop. 

Bar Bar, Phoenix Mall - Good one. They have a unique concept of happy hours, where the more you drink, the less you pay per drink. So nothing that ties you down to the time of the day. Interesting spread of starters and satisfactory service and crowd, too.  

Rude Lounge near Phoenix Mall - Had been wanting to go here for a long time, but never managed to for many reasons. When I finally went, I saw that they were an okay place for family as well as friends, and okay in terms of food and drinks as well. The rooftop certainly is a crowd puller as is the location and music. Not bad at all. 

Spice Factory on Nagar Bypass Road - They've renovated a few months ago, and this time round, this place is wonderful. I thoroughly enjoy their menu right from appetizers to mains and desserts.  Their concept of pitcher is a tad warped, it only means a small jug which holds about 2 glasses of beer. But they do have happy hours and theme days, with nice crowd and music so it's a hit for me.

Texas Bar and Grill in Kharadi -  Happy hours until much later in the day, that's what takes the cake first and foremost. Apart from that, their ambience, proximity to my home, music and crowd is all fine. 

There are some old and new pubs and lounges in Seasons Mall and Amanora, which I am not sure if I have mentioned or not, but just to name a few that I have been to that worked (TGIF, TJ Brew works, Agent Jacks, Sigree, Hoppipola, Cuba Libre, Fly High) and haven't been to (Bottle Street and Altitude, heard it's too dear to go just yet without occasion).

So well, all in all, that's my take on the places you can add or strike off your hangout list. Not too many details, I know, but there's got to be some novelty and discovery even in predictability! 

Got some new destinations up your sleeve? Let me know, or better still, take me!

Party on :-) 


Cheerio!
Princess  

Generational Gap

So Simon Sinek has spoken about millenials and that's got me thinking. 
(Watch video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hER0Qp6QJNU) 

Since I'm born in the mid-1980s, I am a millenial by definition and I do find myself identifying with some (not all) of the things mentioned in the video. I do, however, see how it applies to folks (kids!) born in the 1990s and later. For example, instant gratification, which is truly evidenced by the presence of social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tinder. Millenials do not want to cultivate lasting, trustworthy relationships. Instead, what gets them excited and motivated is the prospect of likes and speed dates. How well you can sell yourselves to strangers and almost-strangers is more critical than having that one friend for life, that you can turn to come rain or storm. No wonder then, that they feel lonely and burned out, depressed and stressed more and sooner than folks from the previous generations. 

My parents are Baby Boomers (1946-64) and my elder brother is Gen X (1960-80) while my husband is a millenial (1981-2000) so we have a fair mix of all thoughts and perspectives in the fam. 

I see how failure impacts us millenials far worse than it does the other generations. We often leave the company or the relation because we cannot deal with or accept the lesson that comes with it, making us resilient and far more effective and tolerant. No, so much easier to give up and start again in a fresh place rather than undo and re-do some of the bits that need mending to make life smoother in the long run. Everywhere around us are people who change jobs and partners every 6 months, so much so, that when someone mentions a 5-yr old tenure at work or with a partner, it receives applause and even a snide comment about complacency!  

We want our drinks and showers fast, we want to be told that nothing is impossible, and that nothing is too tough. Anything that we aspire is ours, without trying too hard, since we're worth it and more. 

It makes me sad, this thought that we're setting millenials up for failure - the pressure on them is immense and their heads are so messed up, it brings a sense of foreboding. I know some of them out there, wiser even than the rest. But, overall this simple categorization brings with it a lot of scope for introspection and improvement. 

And opportunity for training in organizations, which is how this actually struck me in the first place.  

So, the next time you pause to either reprimand or recommend someone, do keep this idea in mind - the concept of generational differences. It does explain quite a bit about our differing reactions and thought processing. 

Cheerio!
Princess

Just Another Women's Day

Women’s Day they cheer,

Fortune favors the brave;

And yet this “kick-ass” woman,

Cannot her sanity save.

I marvel at the ladies

That saunter tough with grace,

I fail at half they do

And scamper to save face.    

Fear and anxiety

Are my eternal mates,

I can’t help but wonder,

At folks who accept their fates.

I am my self’s enemy,

I am my own friend,

Everything starts with me,

And I beget my own end.

I’m tired of fighting my soul,

A creature so wild and free;

Taming it takes up all I got,

And leaves not an ounce of peace wee.

Torn between good and immoral,

I toil and douse the fire in my heart;

Doing what the world deems right,

Yet feel so empty in every part.

My soul claims each breath,

Every step I take is mine,

And still at the close of it all,

Nothing seems fine.

Coz some like me who appear,

To have it all together;

Are the weakest when dawn breaks,

As we assemble in our cap each feather.  

When the sun comes up,

We rise with determination new,

Wish all the good we do unto you,

Would come back to us someday, too.

For now we wait and watch,

And go with the flow but fickle;

Veiling our powers and dreams,

That you sell for a dime and nickel.

More power to all of us, ladies.

And the men, who sometimes need more confidence, support and motivation than the erstwhile “weaker” sex.  

Love,

Princess