Catharsis

 Jan 2022 As we navigate the uncertainties in the current environment, hubby felt it’s best to travel when we can and not wait for a particular date in the future 😉. Hence we embarked on an impromptu trip to Goa and that’s how we found ourselves waking up at 3.30 am on a chilly winter morning for the train journey to Goa.                                               Go Goa 🏝                                                                                                                                                                      The moment we stepped onto Platform 18 at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), my brain went into overdrive with a flood of memories of train journeys during childhood. I was travelling by train after more than a decade, and I felt nostalgic just walking around and hearing the announcements  over the loud speaker 😂. In this era wherein one either prefers air travel for speed or road travel for flexibility, this train travel experience was re

October 2021 I took the decision of quitting my job and embarking on my second sabbatical in June 2021 - this was not a knee jerk reaction to one event, but a reevaluation of pri orities owing to various factors over a period of time.  My previous blog “Musings of a Sabbatical-eur”  ( https://ac-catharsis.blogspot.com/2016/09/ ) talks at length about why it’s worth taking a sabbatical; this blog is more about my journey on a less-travelled path.  (Source: Google) The onset of the pandemic has changed all our lives in more ways than one. The second wave hit closer to home, and listening to the harrowing experiences of friends & family made me see things in a new perspective. Somewhere along the line, my life had been on default mode, just rushing from one task to another; neither taking the time to enjoy the moments in life, nor reflecting about things that truly mattered. Simba, our boisterous golden retriever pup, coming home and the Pawrenting journey was the clincher for me tak

 June 2021 Hubby’s sabbatical was progressing well - contemplating life ✅; focus on health ✅✅; adopting a puppy 🐶…. Hold on ! While I like dogs and have fond memories of our amazing German shepherd Fluffy while growing up, I am not one who can be categorised as an Animal lover. While Hubby continued to do copious research and showed me tons of puppy pics , status quo persisted until one adorable Golden retriever came along 🥰😍🤩. The pic instantly captured our heart and seeing his golden fur and cute snout, the name Simba spontaneously sprung to mind. We didn’t have too much time to get the house in order since Simba was arriving within a day of us choosing him. The day passed in a flurry of pet proofing, figuring out pet supplies & essentials… And our love of planning was reflected in Hubby reading so much information that one could easily apply for a PhD thesis 😉 Simba, our little ball of fur, joy and entertainment ☺️😆🤩 (Source: Author’s file photos)  While I have never real

Dec 2018 One of my fondest memories of food is Ma leafing through recipe clippings painstakingly collected from newspapers & magazines; and whipping up mouth watering delicacies. Sunday lunches were a much awaited affair, with varying degrees of contribution from all of us - home grown vegetables from Dad's garden, me sitting on the kitchen table and regaling everyone with entertaining stories, and Aaru lending a supporting hand ;) While I would love to say that I was the most well behaved kid (ahem!), looking back I must accept that I was actually one of the fussiest eaters around. If the food had something green, was not deep fried, didn't have potatoes as one of the components, my first answer would be naaaahhhhh! It's amazing that my mom found solutions for all my food tantrums and full credits to her on making mealtimes something to look forward to. Moving away from home and staying alone in Chennai made me realise that I was definitely not a fan of