Bloggerina!?!?

Blogging has become a new hobby of mine. I may be a late bloomer in the world of blogging but I am enjoying this new role of mine – Bloggerina!

Definition : Bloggerina – A girl who loves blogging.

[May this post stand testament to the fact that I was the creator of the word Bloggerina, if it already exists then … Oh well… tough luck I guess ]

What would be the male equivalent of a Bloggerina?! Nothing comes to mind as of now… Bloggerino perhaps?

Though I read a lot I never really tried my hand at writing (is it just me who sees the pun there? Hand…writing…? Oh boy, this blog sucks!), so this blog is giving me the opportunity to organize my thoughts and express my views, and I must say … I am enjoying it .. a lot!!

I do not know if this blog will ever be read by anyone except for the few people close to me in my life but this is turning out to be a good creative outlet. If this is read or not it will still serve me as an online journal that I can look back and reflect on sometime in the future to better understand myself.

Moms and scraped knees...

Today I fell and hurt myself pretty badly. Despite the severe pain I felt in my foot and knee, feelings of embarrassment overshadowed the pain that I was feeling in my leg that was now starting to turn black and blue. All I did was dust myself off and walk away as if nothing had happened. This is in stark contrast to what would have happened if I had hurt myself when I was a kid.

As a child I have hurt myself innumerable times. Split finger, twisted ankle, fractured foot, torn ligament, cut lip, scraped knee, elbow, chin, nose bleed - you name it, chances are pretty good that I would have injured myself that way; I still have the remnant bumps on my forehead to prove some of my past adventures.

When I hurt myself I would bawl my eyes and lungs out. Though the howling could pretty much be heard around town, it was directed to one person in particular - my Mom. It was so that she could know that I was in pain and needed her undivided attention from that point on. To be honest, I quite enjoyed being hurt and sick, because those were the times that I would be the center of attention of my family. Though not being an attention seeker in public, I must say I enjoyed being fawned over by my Mom, especially when I was hurt or unwell.

I don't think I am the only person guilty of this behavior as a child. Have you ever noticed that when a child falls or hurts itself it only cries when its Parent or loved one has witnessed its injury? The crying has got even louder when the Parent tries to soothe and comfort the child. There have been several occasions when the child has hurt itself the same exact way but just walked away without making a scene after looking around and observing that no one had noticed its 'boo-boo'. The greater the attention, the louder the crying gets. Of course, these are minor injuries that I am talking about and not something serious and life threatening.

Looking at my fading scars of an era gone by, I must say I am now quite fond of sharing the stories, behind each one of them, to ears that are willing to listen. I'm starting to think that kids enjoy the occasional scrape, here and there, while playing, though they will never ever admit to it.

Ode to a Cookie

O cookie, sweet cookie,
how scrumptious are thee
you make me think twice, before every bite,
because of your calories.

Chocolate chip, walnut, peanut butter cup,
your variety is amazing.
Small, medium, large
you have me salivating.

With your delicate, crumbly texture you make an ideal snack.
So tempting are you
A gym membership I have to take,
because of the pounds on me that you pack.

Sweet, warm aroma of freshly baked cookies
O you entice me;
I can pair you with anything -
Ice cream, warm milk, even freshly brewed tea.

I prefer you any day over a slice of cake.
Writing this has now made me hungry,
I'm off to buy some ingredients,
so that a fresh batch of cookies I can bake.


I have a sweet tooth and am always on the lookout for new places that have good dessert offerings. You might think that New York City with its diverse food culture would have places with interesting and tasty desserts around every block. Unfortunately, it does not. Most of the sweetmeats available are pretty standard fare like cheesecakes, puddings, pies and cookies. Don't get me wrong, they are pretty good, but they do not hit the spot when you are craving something sweet yet exotic.

So having formed this opinion, I was pleasantly surprised when I came across the Levain Bakery which has made a name for itself solely on something simple such as cookies. Nestled in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, close to Central Park, it is a small quaint place that sells these ginormous cookies. Each cookie is larger than your palm and weighs in at an amazing 6 oz. (~ 170g).

Each one of things could easily contain more than a week's intake of dietary fat, but who cares right? Especially, when you are experiencing cookie bliss.
This spot easily takes the cake (or should I say cookie?) for the best chocolate chip walnut cookie in NYC. Sample some yourself and let me know what you think.

People first, then Money, then Things

Being the frugalista that I am, I enjoy watching Money-Saving-Guru Suzy Orman's show now and then, mostly to watch how other people are squandering their hard earned dollars in this recession hit economy. The most rib tickling episodes are the ones that have her 'Can I afford it' segment where she analyses the financial situation of the person calling in, who in most of the cases wants to splurge on something extravagant, and advises them as to whether they are making a wise choice.

$1000+ Gold Covered Strawberry Dessert - DISAPPROVED!

She ends each episode saying 'People first, then money, then things'. I never really thought much about this statement, instead passing it off as a mantra that she was trying to associate with the brand that she was building. I do however think that statement holds some gravity in our daily life and have to agree with her.

I feel that most of us take the relationships in our life for granted. We do not value people enough and instead spend our time and efforts on material things that will never truly enrich our soul. We take for granted that a parent, brother, sister, spouse will always be by our side and do not make an effort to cherish and further build upon those relationships with them. It is only when those relationships are snatched from us that we realize how precious and irreplaceable they were.

We are so caught up in our daily lives trying to earn money, respect, fame, perfection that sometimes we are willing to sacrifice time with our loved ones, assuming they will be around forever. We work late nights foregoing family dinner time, so that we can get that project done quicker and hopefully earn a word of praise from the big man.

That being said, I do feel that each one of us has to strive hard to fulfill our dreams, be it big or small, because the sense of achievement that one feels when a goal is achieved is priceless. The price of unfailing love and support from your family and friends - Priceless! Is it worth it to sacrifice one priceless feeling with another priceless blessing? Obviously a balance needs to be struck somewhere.

Money is no doubt an important factor in our lives. But, is it the most important? No! Money can be used to buy a lot of things, it however cannot be used to buy the warmth that you feel in your heart, knowing that you are loved and cared for by someone.

With good solid relationships in your life you will have the emotional strength and mental peace to go out into the world and build the financial empire that you want and buy the things that you please. However, the converse does not hold true. You cannot buy loving, caring, well intentioned relationships no matter how much money you have in your coffers.

There will be ups and downs in financial situations during one's lifetime. Material things can be bought and sold. Good relationships, on the other hand, once lost are gone forever.

All this being said, would you prefer driving a Ferrari, all alone, with a wad of cash in your wallet? Or, would you rather prefer to drive a mini-van with a loving spouse by your side, kids in the back seat with their pictures in your wallet?