CONSULTING, nay!

We do have serious conversations at times. Most times though we are just pulling one another's leg and having fun at the expense of each other. Seldom, its families and friends. Mostly each-other though. Again, goes back to prove how content we are with one another. Just kidding!

Before I digress again, one of these serious conversations was about me deciding not to pursue a career in consulting. Raghav had just returned from a dinner with a consultant friend, who's wife is also a consultant. So either set of grand-parents live with them at all time to take care of their kid.

Deep in thought, Raghav theorized how our parents would feel terrible if they had to leave their homes and social circles to stay with us.

(Yes, our parents do have a very active life. My grand-mom & mom have a huge social circle, social organizations that they work with and kitty parties. My dad has his own gang of guys who have a pretty good time, I say. Raghav's parents have a different type of active lifestyle, which is a healthy mix of thought-provoking and religious activities, if that makes sense. Ah well!)

He also contemplated if we would be content with not spending much time with our kids during the week. Then he suddenly said, "I am sure you thought the same way when you decided against consulting".. "You know, you would feel guilty if your parents had to give-up their life to stay with us to take care of our kids."

Without contemplating over it even for a minute, or articulating myself to sound more sensitive, I just blurted, "Honestly, I don't care that much about the parents or the hypothetical kids. The only reason why I didn't choose to go into consulting was because I WANT TO COME HOME TO YOU EVERYDAY... see you everyday, cook dinner for you everyday and sleep in your arms everyday. LIFE WITH YOU IS SO BEAUTIFUL and why wouldn't I want to spend every moment possible with you!"

That is how I truly feel about it, and at times I wonder whether Kellogg was the right choice.

Random updates on my life!

1) I was subscribed to word games through some random website where I entered my email and was being charged $10 every month for the last few months. When I called AT&T to cancel it, they offered to install a 'purchase blocker', a free service that prohibits any subscription on my line without my prior approval, and I naturally opted for it. Immediately, my husband, whose the primary account holder for our 'family plan' received a message stating that 'PARENTAL CONTROLS' have been established on my line.

Result: He immediately called me up to tell me how adorable I am and how I really am 'his baby'. Of-course the conversation ended with how with me being around, he really doesn't need 'another baby' (a literal baby). Talk about not leaving any occasion to drive the hidden agendas!

2) I recently got upset with Raghav for not calling me back in a minute, as he had promised, and decided not to answer his zillion calls thereafter. (I admit, I was PMS-ing). He kept calling for a long time without any break, so I felt bad and decided to text him back. Now we weren't talking, but we were texting. For an hour. Here's how it ended.

Me: ' Thanks to you, I am not reading my case anymore. Can you not disturb me now?'

Raghav: 'No, I will keep disturbing you for your entire life. I am sorry but that's what you signed up for'

Talk about having no ego in a relationship, which makes the special something even more beautiful!

Domestic Violence, right here!

After reading up more about the laws dealing with domestic violence in India, I am convinced that Raghav can file domestic violence charges against me. Haha!

Raghav & I (Part 1)

"I wouldn't have been even one-tenth as happy (as I am) if you hadn't married me", whispered Raghav while trying to wake me up on a Sunday morning. In deep slumber until then (despite having been asleep for 9 hours), I suddenly woke up with a jolt and asked with an annoyed expression 'What! That's not true!'. He replied defensively 'Of-course it is!', raising his voice, 'I am sure I wouldn't have been even one-tenth as happy.' Most of my weekends indeed begin with Raghav telling me how very much he loves me and how he can't live without me. It sure makes me feel very special and appreciated, and makes me wonder what life would have been without love or without expression of love. Not half as beautiful, I bet!

At times, I also wonder what is it that binds Raghav and I together. We are so very different in every conceivable way. I dislike so many things about him and am always nagging him for those but if I asked him about what he would change about me, he looks utterly puzzled and says 'Why would I change anything about you? I love you so much!' (and usually follows it up with a worried 'Please don't become like me. I don't like myself as much as I like you!'). I can almost hear him add 'However, I would like you to read The Economist every week, and sleep for maximum 7 hours if you absolutely should sleep that much, and please don't ask "who the hell is that" when I talk about the Indian cricket captain' but at the end of the day he considers these trivial. For me, everything is a deal breaker. (After all, I tell him to wash his face thrice a day so that he doesn't get acne)!

I feel very responsible and protective towards him. Does he feel protective? Nay! He values freedom, so he gives me ton of it and wants ton of it in return. However, he does feel accountable to me, so I get to set his limits. Within those limits, he is pretty much independent to do whatever he wishes. Of-course the limits are pretty constrained themselves, a tad bit oxymoron-ic, which can be restraining at times. He also feels accountable for my happiness. Just as I feel responsible for his! My hypothetical difference between both is responsible is backward looking whereas accountable is forward looking. So if I didn't celebrate his b'day with him, I feel terribly guilty, can't eat, can't sleep, and am extremely apologetic, to a point where he almost exclaims 'enough, not a big deal' while I resolve never ever to miss his b'day. Whereas, if he misses my b'day, he would instead try to make-up by doing something super fun that I would have never conceived, but every girl would silently wish for, or  even celebrating it twice or thrice on a much grander scale to make-up for that one occasion. Although its great, I must admit that the fact that he is not sorry for missing the occasion, makes me quite mad at times. This isn't all. I have more to crib about, but by and large, we do accept each-other with one another's idiosyncrasies and feel blessed to wake up by each other's side. Life couldn't have been more beautiful!

To be contd.

Heart-to-heart!

Me: "How's dad?"

Mom: "Ah, he cares only about his work. He doesn't care about me or home anymore." Then after a brief pause (while I was thinking really hard about something), "How's Raghav?"

Me: "He's been fine. However, you got me little worried now."

Mom (perplexed): "Why?"

Me: "What if he turns into a workalcoholic like dad, and stops loving me by the time he is 55? Even worse, what if he stops being scared of me (more appropriately, scared of upsetting me, hurting me and losing me)?"

Mom, just laughed, and followed up with a quick, "Raghav would never cease loving you. I've noticed the way he looks at you and treats you, and I promise you this."

Silent prayer - 'God, please let mom be true.'

I like it when Raghav calls me to ask trivial things such as 'where can I find the quarters' or 'my cuff links'. Makes me feel indispensable in a silly way, and makes me wonder how he feels when I call him for everything - be it for my accounting questions or which shirt shall I wear for my interview.

I decided to take advantage of a deal, and order a Chloe optical glass frame for my mom. In my mind, the process that I outlined was to call mom, tell her to select a frame and call me back to tell me which one it was. I always thought that my mom was quite web-savvy given that she uses emails and Facebook, but had no clue that my baby bro had setup icons for those on the desktop. So when my mom called me back for detailed instructions when she was infront of her laptop, I could see it turn into a marathon. I had to get back to my assignments, and this made me feel annoyed! I could feel myself getting impatient and upset when my mom couldn't figure out how to open different frame designs in new tabs. Then suddenly I realized how exasperated my mom would have been while teaching me how to walk, eat, read, write... and just about everything in life! And I felt extremely guilty and very ashamed. My brother, Namit, on the other hand, is so passionate about teaching her how to browse, or even play Need for Speed. He spends hours with her, taking her through the same steps, patiently. I really have a long way to go to beat his spirit and love for everyone, and can never ever beat my mom!