Become a Connoisseur of Daily Life !!!

At home with Madame Chic by Jennifer L. Scott is a book that I picked some time ago. The title intrigued me . I was at home all the time and I was dejected at the thought of not going to work and staying at home doing mundane tasks every single day. That was the time I came across this book which said become a connoisseur of daily life. Exactly what I needed I think :-)

I should warn you that this book doesn't apply much to working women or women with grown up kids (to a certain extent) and suits best only for stay at home young mums. The author Mrs.Scott gives insights of her life and how she handles and organises life which she learnt when she was a college student living with a " chic " French family in Paris.

Well I am not gonna discuss what the book tells and stuff. It is a lifestyle book and gives tips for a better living ( nothing new ) . What it does more is tells us what Mrs.Scott does in her day to day life. What music she listens to, how she does her dinner table , her ten item wardrobe etc. Sometimes it makes you feel that there is a constant to do list and activities . It misses to appreciate the "flaneur " part of French life .

All this said , you cant ignore the good things said in the book. I love this book and it goes straight into my beach bag to read and reread. I shall savour this book and try and apply as much as possible.
The book has helped me make attitude adjustment and reminds me everyday can be extraordinary.

I wanted to share what I enjoyed and took away from this book . Fall in love with your home again. When you love your home , you start appreciating the little things in it. Clutter is so not chic. Learn to declutter and enjoy the process which is very important. Else it is gonna be difficult to remain so. Your home is an art exhibit and you are the curator.

Dressing well everyday. This got me thinking. I am one of those who wears pyjamas all day unless going out . My most days are inside the house ( blame the winter :P ) and in sweatpants . The book just changed my thinking about it.  Dressing up every single day has definitely added a spring in my step. So come on girls, dress up today even if you are not going out. It makes such a shift in attitude and sometimes in your spouses too :P . Bringing such small changes ( inspired by book ) helped me a lot in uplifting my moods :-)

Overall my girlie friends, start enjoying your home and life in style !!! In your own style,  in a chic way.. Become a connoisseur of daily life and this book just helps you with attitude change and shows you some of Jeniffer Scotts way. If you want a glimpse of her and the books please read her blog.
http://dailyconnoisseur.blogspot.com.au/ . You might enjoy it and find your own style :-)






 

Paper Towns ...

Here comes the post that I promised . My review of Paper Towns by John Green. I loved The Fault in Our Stars. Hence I picked another book by John Green. My idea of a John Green book is emotional and deep. So I was expecting something similar. This book although attempts to bring deep thoughts , it fails. If you were looking for a sentimental read , I am afraid this is not yours. I love reading sentimental stuff as long as it is not too sappy :P

 

 

It is tough to discuss books without discussing its characters and bit of the story .. This story is about young adults Quentin Jacobsen and his neighbour and childhood love interest Margo Roth Spiegelman.

I liked it when Margo takes a revenge and does it in a scheming well planned way. She looks like a person we would want to be but can not. She is full of adventure and spontaneity . That last night with Quentin was very interesting. After all that interesting things they do , she disappears leaving Quentin with clues to come find her.

Quentin is so madly and deeply obsessed with Margo. I cant actually say that's love. But why is he so obsessed with her ? Why does he ruin his last days at school and with friends by wasting his time searching her ? Why is he trying to desperately find her ?  All that is not explained well but I thought the answers would be understood when they finally find her.

Why did Margo leave? Why did she want Quentin to find her if she wanted to disappear ? Why does she leave clues and why was she surprised when they find her.. All these are not answered well at the end or did I miss something ? I am not so sure. All I feel is Margo's interesting character looses its charm when her purpose is not well justified. The end of the story could have been much better.

Every chapter that I read about the quest to find her and decipher her clues were boring . I kept pursuing with a hope that it will all be worth the wait but unfortunately I feel John Green left me hanging there with lots of unanswered questions.

What I really enjoyed are - the adventurous night of Margo and Quentin ,  the prom night of Quentin and his friends and definitely the road trip. The way the road trip was described was very enjoyable indeed. I would love to go on a trip with my friends like that .

Overall, I would definitely go pick up another book of John Green. It is a nice read but could have been much better if only Margo validated her reason for leaving and the idea behind leaving clues .
So have fun reading friends ..and let me know if you have answers the questions that I had while reading.



 

A dive into 30's ...

Are you in the edge of completing 3 decades on this earth? Or have you just entered the sweet thirties of your life ? I know there is an awful lot of things that is expected of you in the late twenties or before you turn thirty ... All that said and done , there are certain things that you should know and do to dive into your thirties swiftly and come out successful ... Lets learn and follow them to make this transition super smooth..

 

 

The below are my list of to do's and what I have learnt from myself and others .. ( oh yes !! I am in my thirties :-) .. ) .. Well , I am following a certain things and trying to follow the rest. Not sure if I will be successful. Let me leave that to another post in my forties .. hahaha ..

To begin with ,what looks terrific on you in your twenties might look uhh.. little different in your thirties ... So my friends , I think the first thing we should do is update our fashion sense and dress accordingly.. I can see the men reading my blog snicker.. It applies to you as well my friends. The shapes of our body changes and I guess we should learn to embrace it.

Even if you are dressed in your best attire, you wont feel wonderful unless you have learnt to accept yourself the way you are. It doesn't matter if your bum looks big or your tummy pops out inspite of sucking it in... It has survived 30 long years and it definitely needs a hug :-) Learn to love yourself .

Stop comparing yourself with others. I know we have been doing it in our twenties but does it give us happiness ? Constantly comparing yourself with your peers will not help you achieve your goals. People will judge you always no matter what you do. So might as well do what we want to do.

Accepting yourself the way you are doesn't mean you wont strive to become better. Start exercising regularly. I cant stress enough on this point. I know it sounds cliché.. You don't want to look older than you are , do you ? Also, you want your body to be healthy enough to take you through the rest of your life.. Exercising once in a while does not count from now on ( I mean in your thirties .. ) . Make it a regular thing . Bring it into your daily routine.

Speaking of routine, I am sure we wouldn't have had one till now.. I didn't have one till about 3 weeks ago :P . I remember the days when I used to never follow a schedule for my breakfast, lunch and dinner. Didn't sleep on time. Not to mention, never woke up on time :-) Well, your youthful metabolism would have adjusted everything but now my friends, please sleep and wake up same time everyday. Trust me,setting that routine is gonna take you a long way ( I am sure all young parents would agree to this ) .

We have been asked to decide what we want to become at a really young age. Based on which we decide our subjects in year 11 and 12.  But I am not too sure if the decision taken at age 15 is even true. I didn't have the faintest idea of what I wanted to become then... So now is the right time to pursue your life's dream.. It can be anything - buying a house, writing a novel, starting a business, cycling .. Just believe in it and go for it..

You may feel that the carefree life of the twenties is coming to an end. Which is true in a financial sense. I know, gone are those days that could go bankrupt , the evening you received your salary .. You can no longer afford it :P .. That is why we should start saving .. Saving for a rainy day is a must Start saving one third of your salary ( or your husband's salary ;-)... ) as a must.. That's the first step to retire in style :-).

Realise how long your life is .. Don't let anybody else tell you life has to be 1) Marriage 2) Career 3) Kids. There is no time line or time limit. Figure out what you want to do and just go for it . Be the person who is actively looking for new things to learn. Learn a new language. Learn to cook. Learn to swim . Learn something that will help you fulfil your dream .. Learn Learn Learn .. Keep Learning ... Start reading and keep reading which will help you learn in some way.

During this process of growing up, we have lost sight of what we want . We say and do things to please others . I remember the days when I slogged in office simply because I couldn't say " No " to someone . I am sure, we would have gone through many such scenarios in the walks of our life.. All I could say is please Grow a pair and learn to say " No " ( excuse the pun :P ) in a simple way. Never be rude while doing this coz you never know , you can misconstrued and thereby spoiling a good relation.

These relations or say connections are extremely important these days .  They call it Guangxi in Chinese.. It is networking they say. It is not what you know but who you know . Get out there and start building your own network :-)

Learn to tell stories.. Yes , you read it right , learn to tell stories.. I was always told to shut up and speak little as possible but unless you are heard in this big world, you cant make an impact. Just learn to talk in a succinct and engaging manner.

Alright , alright RELAX.. You are definitely doing OK. You are a good person and trying to do better. Nobody has everything figured out. That's the whole point and fun of life.. Don't let the twenties in you die .. It is better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring !!!!

If you have a different list for your thirties, share your thoughts..






 

I am not a Barista :-)

Do you think coffee is just a cup of milk with instant coffee granules and sugar ? Then think again !!! This post is for all the lovers of coffee who think coffee is much more than just a beverage :-)  To me coffee is a source of energy , beginning of fun , appreciation of long work nigh , ecstasy concoction and many more... That is why I cannot stress how important it is to make a super strong, aromatic , frothy coffee ...

I am no Barista ... Neither am I a coffee brewing expert but I am gonna tell you the way to make the best instant coffee .. I understand instant coffee is not as tasty (yay... tasty, I call it ..) as brewed coffee but you can bring it close if you use the below method..  Many call it coffee flavoured hot water .. Hahahahah .. but when you don't have the time to brew coffee or don't have right selection of beans , instant coffee is a saviour...

Lets get into the process.. Firstly spend some time in finding the right instant coffee granules that match your taste. It is important to do this coz the entire ordeal depends on how you are going to like the taste of coffee powder. Makes a lot of difference you see ...

    

Add a teaspoon of coffee granules in a mug. Add sugar as per taste to it and add a teaspoon of water . Make it a paste and whip it with a spoon till the mixture turns light , creamy and frothy. It took up to 3 minutes of whipping ( isn't that a good arm exercise ? ) to make a creamy mixture as above.. You can mix a little longer if you have the time and strong arms.. Add hot almost boiling milk into it to make a frothy , yummy tasting coffee. I cant drink coffee that doesn't have froth :P doesn't appeal to me ;-) .. This instant coffee looks like a cappuccino without hearts on top of it :P

It takes some trial and error to find the right amount of coffee granules and water and milk you need to make the right mug of elixir of life !!!

Please try and let me know how it tasted .. Share your coffee recipes if you think that is the best way .. I am more than happy to try it ... After all , there can be many ways to happiness ....

If I Stay 1 & 2

Hey people .. Although I promised I would review either Book Thief or Paper Towns , I have come back with something else. There was this offer on books going on, in my favourite book store which said 2 for $10.00.. I picked up " If I stay " instantly ( mainly because it said its made into a movie ) .. Not knowing what other book should I pick, the store keeper suggested read the sequel " where she went " ... I thought that would be a wise choice .. Reading the sequel immediately after finishing the first one ..

Before reading any book, I try googling its ratings if possible.. Its not like I don't read books that don't have good rating or are not liked by the bigger crowd of audience. I read it anyway. Its just to create a mood and to set my priorities in the list of books that I have.. The ratings were great and most of them said its a moving , heart-warming , heart-breaking story etc.. So I immediately picked it up.
         
   
                               

Let me first talk about " If I Stay " ... The book was good but not great I would say. It definitely was sad and would even achieve to bring a tear or two at some places. But not heart wrenching .. May be because I have a strong heart or have experienced loss of loved ones .. I don't know ..

( *** Spoiler Alert *** ) Mia has to make a choice to stay or go following a fatal accident . She looses her entire family - loving dad , strong and caring mom and loving brother in the accident. . Her boyfriend Adam promises to do whatever it takes to make her stay even if it is letting her go. This is the story line . Mia has this out of body experience and the whole situation is narrated from the eyes of Mia who is in critical condition in the hospital.

There are places where my eyes welled up with tears. Especially when her grandfather gives her permission to leave. Overall, I found this book good but definitely overrated ....

 

Gayle Forman did succeed as a writer. She has managed to grab my attention and sustain it. So I move on to read the sequel " Where she went " .. It was so sad to know that Mia left Adam inspite of Adam helping her through the whole recovery process. Adam slips into depression and takes his anger and sorrow on others for 3 years. He keeps blaming Mia for leaving him in darkness and utter bitterness. That is a little too much don't you think ? Mia moves on to become a famous cellist and Adam gets famous too with his albums . I loved the lyrics of Collateral Damage written in the beginning of each chapter.

I wanted Adam to at least have a good closure with Mia. The book has a happy ending. Adam gets to question Mia , finds his answers and they give their love a second chance. I still cant understand why Mia would leave Adam who has been described like a fairy-tale lover. If she had problems , she could have spoken to him . He seemed to be so understanding and approachable. Instead she shuts herself and pushes him away. Understand that she didn't want pity but I think Adam had much more than pity. He loved her so much. Anyways , the book was a good read.

Finally, I would definitely pick up works of Gayle Forman in the future :-) . These books are not so bad. They both get a  3 star *** rating from me.

Feel free to let me know your comments even if you don't agree to me . You might have loved the long lasting love of Mia and Adam or you might even agree with me . Share your feelings in the comments .. Bye for now ..

Less is Lots !!!!

With all the important changes in life and lifestyle ( yes , I am talking about marriage !!! ) came the need for the minimalistic living. My husband Mr. S was in UK for an undefined period of time . I joined him in UK not knowing how long we were gonna stay there.. It could be three months or even be a year or more .. All the uncertainties called for a minimalist living. Have less stuff to carry back to India or have less stuff to throw away or have less stuff to clean up and tidy them .. ( I am sure all Indian IT guys and their wives who live abroad would agree to this ) .

My hubby constantly reminds me of the need to buy less stuff and buy only necessities. Sometimes even if there was a need , living space wouldn't allow it. By reducing physical possessions, we can have a cleaner , more manageable living or working space.

Honestly speaking, I respect and relate to minimalist who favour throwing away all the junk stuff but not getting rid of things of value / quality or priced possessions. I love minimalism when it comes to travel, books , decoration articles, kitchen utensils etc .I am slowly trying to apply it on clothes too..

 I am not here to say go minimalistic and get rid of your stuff . I am not here to make people who have attachment to things feel guilty.

Sometimes, objects and stuffs are the way I relate to the world and experience the goodness of the world. For eg : a smart TV with all the modern technology gives me a wonderful experience.. I love my Kindle or my smart handmixer or my chopper. These are little things I enjoy life with.

I feel very happy with FEW nice things around me instead of a whole bunch of stuff that makes me feel overwhelmed. A few quality and pretty little things make me very happy and comfortable .. Less is lots to me but I still like having stuff. I just make a conscious effort on choosing what stuff I want. I love stuff and yet would love to keep them minimum because I value my stuff and those little stuffs make my life incredible !!!

 Feel free to share your ideas on this . You can comment on the stuff you love or how you have been leading your minimalist lifestyle...

Coffee Confusion !!!

Coffee is my favourite thing and talking about my favourite thing ( with my blog named coffee .. ) is such a delight. Have you ever felt you don't know which coffee to drink when there are hundreds of choices in supermarkets / cafes ?

Well, I have. I am a big fan of south Indian filter coffee. Perfect blend of Narasus /Cothas coffee powder and chicory will make the best , well rounded brew. I drink it with hot milk and a small dash of sugar. A lot of my friends drink it black but I cant :P .. hmmm .. I can smell the aroma of hot coffee by just imagining it ..It feels like heaven. Only coffee lovers can understand what I am fetishizing about.

With me moving from country to country , this is one thing I certainly miss. My favourite filter coffee powders. So I decided to switch to instant coffee with a sad face and half heart. Again, with instant coffees, there are various brands and you don't get proper reviews on them before you choose. ( yes, I try reading reviews before I buy coffee :P .. C'mon it is not as easy as you think ) . Hence I decided to write reviews on the ones I have tried. You might ask,  are you an expert on this ? I am no expert but I have tried a few different instant coffee brands and I drink coffee as a fuel for energy sometimes and sometimes as a delicacy, really relishing it . So doesn't that make me a perfect coffee connoisseur :P

Now getting to the point, I am gonna review coffee based on its 4 basic characteristics - aroma , acidity, body and flavour. I actually am not too sure about acidity so I shall limit my comments to only 3 :P

First one is my personal favourite Carte Noire's classic Instant Coffee.
                                   

It is France's best selling premium coffee brand. Made from a blend of arabica coffee and finely-milled beans, Carte Noire’s classic Instant coffee promises a quality and taste “reminiscent” of roast ground coffee. And that's why I chose it. The bottle is a sexy black colour with a golden ribbon ( attractive isn't it :-) ) . The coffee has rich aroma. You can smell coffee from far. The classic has a perfect coffee flavour but doesn't have much body on its own. It needs milk or cream to give a full rounded body. That's exactly how I like it.

If you are looking for a something from mild to little strong coffee in the morning to give you the energy, this is the one you should go for. It wakes you up in its own gentle way.

Next is the Douwe Egbert's Pure Gold Instant coffee.

 

 

What I loved the most about D E is its indulgent varieties and upcycled jars :P . Its true , this coffee brand is pure indulgence. It has a mild coffee aroma, well rounded body and rich coffee flavour. Having said that , while adding milk to it , it becomes more mild and not strong enough to give that badly needed kick in the morning. It is pure indulgence. When you have loads of time , you wanna sit and relax with a big mug of coffee in front of the TV, this is the perfect one.                                      

 

Talking about indulgence, I decided I shall indulge a little more in their different flavours. I like Hazelnut . So I tried the Moccona Hazelnut flavour infused instant coffee.

 

Not all times do we get to visit cafes for the real coffee. This is the closest you could get to the real thing. It has an extremely gorgeous smell of hazelnut and coffee. It is a lovely combination. Makes your heart melt... It has full body , typical of Douwe Egberts. Adding milk just reduces its richness and hence I had to add another teaspoon of coffee powder. It has a sweet taste on its own and so people like me who add sugar to coffee , beware. It has a slight flavour of hazelnut. Overall it is a perfect guilt free treat on a cold winter day. It is definitely not for your caffeine rush.

Arrgh.. I can go on and on about coffee I think. Its never ending topic. Watch this space for more reviews and stuff about coffee :D . Have you guys tried different brands and have your personal favourites , feel free to comment and let me know . I would certainly love to know and try. Coffee anytime anywhere ....

I have tried something new in the past 5 months.. Have decided to keep adding to the reviews :-) This time it is purely Australian owned Robert Timms Premium Rich and Smooth Freeze dried instant coffee ...

I just happened to browse through their website and found the story of their owner Robert Timms' very interesting and inspiring.. The jar did not make a great impression first. Don't ask me , why I still bought it.. Sometimes I listen to my instincts :P .. The jar and the cover is not as fancy as the other expensive coffees.. It lacks the aroma . The smell of coffee doesn't hit you when you open the jar. I still went ahead and made the coffee... You wont regret the buy. The coffee tasted absolutely heavenly. I would rank this next to ( almost equal to ) my personal favourite Carte Noire but it lacks aroma .. It gets a well rounded body with milk. It is slightly strong and leaves a lovely coffee flavour lingering in your mouth for a long time...

More reviews will follow as and when I try new brands of coffee.. Keep watching this space :-)

 

 

Twenties Girl

 

Sophie Kinsella is no doubt called the queen of romantic comedy, coz the Twenties Girl was such an enjoyable read. I can easily give it 4 stars ****

Sophie Kinsella is a best selling author of very famous Shopaholic series. As I am not much of a shopper , I decided I will first read one of her standalone series .I randomly selected " TWENTIES GIRL" . A little bit of romance and comedy in my rather monotonous life would go a long way I thought. So started reading it.

The book was absolutely funny, enjoyable, witty and romantic. I never thought a ghost story can be so funny. Kudos to the writer to have managed to write a funny ghost story. I would like to meet a ghost like Sadie. Sadie Lancaster the ghost aunty of Lara the main character is full of energy and adventure. Although she initially appears to be obnoxious but I think that is to get things done by Lara. You will certainly love the way Sadie brings in love into Lara's life. The author's way of writing was so natural that I almost felt like I was watching it live rather than reading.

Alright guys, there are no spoilers in this post, you can continue reading. I wouldn't like spoilers and hence not gonna do it for others too :-) The book starts with lying to parents for their own good. That immediately brought a smile to my face. From that very sentence I read the whole book with a smile plastered on my face.

The story has lots of circumstances to built that bond between the ghost aunt Sadie and Lara. The male lead character Ed is very impressive. If this book is to be made into a movie, I can imagine somebody like Pierce Brosnan or Richard Gere to play this part. Hahaha.. So see how easy it is to imagine the whole story :P And that description of Charleston music and the dance made me so curious. I immediately googled it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUpAcPAipDA

I quite enjoyed it .It made me become so involved in the book. I didn't know anything about the twenties dance and dress but now I do . Such is the description by the writer. Altogether it was a lovely treat to read.

Disclaimer : I am not an avid reader people :-) I like to read for fun, relaxation and escape.I like characters that are relatable and entertaining. I like to read chick lits :D .... Reading chick lit makes me laugh and that is all I require, light hearted stuff. You might find my stuff silly and sissy ( like my husband Mr.S would call it ) but that's what I enjoy the most. I also read classics , contemporary literature, adventure , science fiction etc but not much into it :P

So, you can expect my next review on Paper Towns by John Green or Book Thief by Australian ( I now stay in Australia, so should read :P ) author Markus Zusak.. I haven't made up my mind yet....It you have read this novel, feel free to share your comments. You can also suggest some good ones for me .. Meet you all soon. Bye.