Presentation

Finally took the time to hunt for a free photo editing software on the web and it was worth the time.

Photoscape was the perfect choice.

Crop, edit contrast, add a frame, a text marker..

The same photos look a lot more professional. It is like magic!

Some photos from the recent trip..

Saw this broken fence that streched as far as the eye could see at the Point Cabrillo lighthouse

Route 1 goes across the Little river that goes into the ocean through a small beach

Looks like years roll by and they play the same..

There was absolutely nothing special about the rocks and pebbles. Yet it fascinates the kids for a long long time!

In love, with the sunset on Route 1..

A few more photos follow tomorrow.

Viva Photoscape!

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Mendocino Coast

The last time we were there to take in the sunset at the glass beach in Fort Bragg, San was 7 months pregnant and it was going to be our last trip before Jr. was going to make her grand entrance.

After almost 7 years, we revisited Fort Bragg, the Mendocino coast in northern california (3 hours north of San Francisco) and a bunch of memories.

Had a great time with the kids. Now that all that non stop driving on windy roads for hours on end is over, it is time to literally chill with my girl Volini.

Leaving you with the panorama shots. Like the saying goes, a stitch in time..

Tried that one lying down on the ground under the bridge on the sand sweeping from left to right. Next time, have better ideas for this shot.. there are very few places where there is such an opportunity to be directly under the bridge to take a panoramic shot like that.. (just have to pick a cloudy day..)

Except for the botanical gardens which closed so early we saw all the main points of interest over the 25 or so mile coastline.

It was a strenuous trip but we made it back within two days and still had a day to recover!

We have some choice glass pieces to show for the trip as well. Here is a shot of the glass on the beach (all courtesy of old glass bottles dumped thirty years ago on the shore and letting the waves do their job).

The glass beach is strongly recommended!

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Olympic National Park - day trip from Seattle

The last day of 2008 was spent in Olympic National Park.

Knowing that there was 5 inches of snow expected that day at the park and that there was already 51 inches of snow piled up in most places, it was a risky decision to go. We have made five to six trips to Seattle since 2001 (started way before the BIL became a Softee) and we have driven around this park only once from Port Angeles to Seattle.

This time we wanted to see Rialto beach and Crescent lake. So we started off with hopes that the main road through the park would be ploughed and it was!

Considering it is a day trip, we used the Edmunds to Kingston ferry to cross over and then drove through cute places like Port Gamble, Discovery bay, Sequim and Port Angeles into the park and past an incredibly beautiful place called Piedmont.

We drove through rapidly changing weather, snow, then slush, rain, followed by clear sun, then fog to end up in Rialto beach. The temperature was a warm 33 F (but with wind chill it was 27 F) and the kids and some adults could not handle the winds at the beach.

The group spent 20 minutes there for a quick photo shoot and turned back just in time to beat a sudden spurt of rain. On our way back we did stop at Crescent lake to play in the snow at the edge of the "moment of time" trail. There was this beautiful house in the background and lots of fresh snow.

This is the first place where you see a mountain with snow and five minutes later you are on the other side at a beach!

Little one playing in snow for the first time at an age where she can understand what is going on. At first she was puzzled by the strange white stuff falling from the sky which instantly disappeared when she touched it.. after a few minutes she was thrilled with the possibilities of this new material..

There were snowfights, pictures, smiling faces and all round happiness! That made the trip worth the trouble.

Here are the stitch shots...

Had to wade through 3 1/2 feet of snow across a small bridge to get this shot.

A slice of heaven!

The next two shots were taken with 16 to 21 pictures. Fast moving waves and a fine mist in the air were challenges. (a tip for other stitch enthusiasts : get a flower hood and shoot with ISO1600. I did not have a hood on because it was low light conditions. there are pros and cons of not having a hood. you get more light in but the boundaries of the adjacent shots are visible. Maybe there is software that can correct for that?!)

The ones at Rialto beach were the most difficult because my fingers were numb from the cold and wasn't even sure if I hit the button or not! My appreciation for nature photographers went up several notches after this trip..

All the roads from the highway into various view points and attractions like Hurricane ridge, the Ho rain forest , Sol Duc, hot springs etc. were closed for snow or fallen trees.

That means, another trip to this place is due, preferably sometime when it has just started snowing and the roads are still navigable! Sunset at Rialto beach should be amazing, and we hope to see that on our next trip.

The cottages at the lake front looked very inviting. Someday, someday assuming the Venn diagram for "this body still has some strength left to press on a gas pedal" and "there is no obligation to be in this rat race" has an intersection, Sundar and Sangeetha will be at that cottage and spend a long time there watching the snow fall while sipping tea on the lakefront!

Until then, it is back to school time!

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Rita Reeeeta Rïëeeeta Iscreeeeeaaaaaaammmm !!!

The man, if you could call him that, with his pencil thin moustache and pants that hug his legs to show their bow, would come screaming towards you, pushing a small wooden box with a lid that was covered in an old cloth, with those four letters in big blue lettering, RITA.

This by far, is the best memory of our time at the beach, etched deep into my head.

As a small boy who would visit the Madras Marina beach with his mother, or granfather, the highlights would always be:

1. Eating Rita kuchchi ice (gelato on a stick?)
2. Flying a kaathadi (beach kite, the ones with two sets of boxes and a short triangular tail)
3. Collecting shells on the edge of the waves
4. standing in knee deep water in the waves
5. running around Gandhi statue
6. chasing my brother on the sand
7. watching the horses and camels as they gave rides to people (never rode on them)
8. playing catch with a tennis ball
9. eating soan papdi
10. bringing the beach home with us in our pants, shirts, bags etc. and getting a scolding for spreading sand over the entire house!

Later, we got Kwality ice creams showing up in a shinier plastic/metal box with a well defined lid, an umbrella on top, serving everything from the plain orange or grape to Chocobar and Choconut ice cream. Guess that was the end of Rita!

Anyways, it is time to pinch myself and return to the glorious present day Chennaipattinam. We managed to hit the Marina twice in the 10 days we spent at Madras. The first time, we ended up near the University, and that was not a pleasant experience. The sand is too dirty in this area and there are people throwing half eaten fish on the sand. You cannot walk bare feet in this part of the beach. In our house, we don't even consider that a trip to the beach. Yeah, we are picky. To me, my brother, and sister, the equation simply reads :

Beach = Gandhi statue!

By the time we made it to the waves, the MIL, SIL and her two kids dropped out at a halfway point, and it got dark when we really made it to the water. After a meager 10 minutes in the waves, we had to return because it was too dark. Still not a complete washout, but we blamed it on the call taxi who took forever to get from West Mambalam to the Marina!

The second time, we came to the beach from our house in Mandaveli, in all of 10 minutes. We used to walk/bike to the beach when we were kids and once in a while, use the 21 or 21N buses. Devanathan street, Pumping station, Matriculation School and Santhome, four stops in 10 minutes! (I have no idea if these bus numbers still exist, or if the buses stop at these places, but they do in my head and will do so for a long long time!)

We came early, with my brother and his family in his little Maruti, spent a lot of time on the waves, ran near Gandhi Selai for old times sake, ate Soan Papdi, watched the kids play, and finally made our way back after spending a good two hours at the beach!

Sadly, there was no "Rita" ice cream!

It is no secret that I love beaches and we are so glad that both Jr. and the Little One love the beach as much as daddy, if not more!

Outside of the wedding, this was the best day spent in Madras. I love California beaches because they are clean, but the water is too cold for us to stand in the waves. The Madras Marina, is nowhere as clean as it was when we were little kids, but is still not bad considering how many people live in the city now and how many visit the beach, but the water is just the right temperature for my feet!

And yes, there are pictures!

"Horsies", not the ones that give rides to kids, but we saw many of them!

The kids enjoying a spin on what we called the "ranga raatinam", except these days there are plastic cars and bikes and in those days there were wooden ducks or ponies. This was not on my top ten list because my parents would never let us go on the raatinams!

Jr. walking the little one and her cousin. Of all the people, I miss my nephew the most after returning to the states. Last year he was a six month old boy. This year, he is a two year old toddler! He called me ippa (his speak for Periappa) when I wore pants, and Anna (brother) when I wore shorts.

It was the greatest compliment to a guy who is worried about looking 42 when he is really not yet finished 36! My nephew would also call Sangeetha "aatha", because he heard me call her Sangeetha, and all he could manage was the "aatha" part, which means "mother"! San, my mom, my brother were all upset that I got to enjoy this!

Everytime he would scream "Anna, Anna, Annaaaaah!!" it brought an automatic smile to my lips! I really miss that kid now! Going forward, I plan to wear only shorts at home on future India trips.

Jr. decided to take up a job as "Boat Inspector" for a few minutes, but once she found that the boats smelled "eeewww", she ran back to us.

This beach is really a gift!

Soan Papdi.... mmmmmmmmmmmm... yummy... ate as much as I could and went to instant heaven! Hundreds of thousands of Indians live in California and all they could think of is build temples and have concerts with Amitabh and family! Bah! Someone needs to worry about sprinkling the local beaches with Soan Papdi-walas! Maybe that someone is me?

The little one, is really a beach person, like her dad! Just refused to come out of the waves. Reminded me of, well.. Me!

A mom and daughters moment...

If you happen to live in Chennai, you have no idea how blessed you are! You have the Marina, and living in so called "sunny" California, on the coast, we still envy you!

You have THE Marina!!! Go on, go to the beach and take a bow!

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Trying times

Had many a funny thought in edit mode over the last week, but somehow, never could get in the mood to post anything. No matter how busy at home or work, have always managed to post something here at least once a week.

Yet, once in a while things happen, so fast and in succession that you are just reacting at every level. Last week was one such week.

A colleague died of heart failure. He was 51 years old. Have not managed to get over it. He is already cremated and the funeral service is done and all we have is a plant at home which is now somehow associated with him. His family had requested that we give a live plant instead of flowers! When this was explained to the little one at home, she now points to a plant and goes "is that him?". I guess it is him, now that she constantly keeps reminding me.

Then San's aunt passed away. She was my MIL's closest cousin. San's uncle happens to be my FIL's cousin. As two brothers from one family marrying two sisters from another, they were all very close. San's aunt was struggling with kidney failure, had a transplant, and was living on dialysis for 15 years! She was an inspiration to all of us. She was only 54 years old! The very next day after she passed away, MIL flew back to India!

The kids have now come up with a song which they were singing on their own. (it would make one depressing videoblog). It goes something like this..

Bombay is in India
and we are so sad
Bombay is in India
and we are so sad
Bombay is in India
won't you get her back
1,2,3
she will be back again..

Jr. is a genius. She knew the last line didn't rhyme, and so made a real sad face to compensate for it. The sisters also sing the first two lines in chorus to give an added pleading effect. Maybe she was trying to cheer us up with her antics and song, sensing that the adults in the house are just brooding!

Just when we try to get things going again, open Google and see that Randy Paush passed away as well and that somehow seemed to be the straw that broke the camel! Not that we know Randy personally or anything, but the fact that we have been following his blog and his determined fight with pancreatic cancer and how the words "passed away" would keep resonating in our heads for a straight week! just sent the mood spiralling down.

Last evening, San realized that we could not stay in the house anymore. So we decided to cheer ourselves and the kids by taking them out to the beach. Thanks to the cousins, who came up with an idea to go to the Pidgeon Lighthouse on route 1, we drove for almost 2 hours, saw the lighthouse, let the kids play at Gazos creek and had dinner at a small but beautiful restaurant in Gazos creek.

That was definitely a turn around point. At least it took our minds off the departed for some time and got to see the kids smile and get back to ground zero.

This morning, we went Bike shopping. Yes, Bike shopping.

There have been a couple of new resolutions passed in the house after attending the funeral service.

1. Daddy is giving up his addiction to curly fries. Almost every day when he is at work in the lunch table, he orders a plate of curly fries and puts them in the middle for everyone to share. But fact is that he eats the lions share of the fries. Many a time his dead friend would remark "those things can kill you, you know!". Now that the warning is as real as it can get, no more daily curly's. Maybe, once a month, or at a restaurant....

2. There will be exercise! Hence the bike shopping. The whole family went and visited every bike store in the santa clara, sunnyvale, san jose, cupertino area, found out what daddy needs, and got him a bike. (Jr. has threatened not to get in the van if we ever visit one more bike store. She got really tired at the end, especially when she realized that the whole exercise was for daddy and none of the bikes being selected by her or the little one were being taken seriously by either parent). We now have a Diamondback Insight which daddy already tested in Shoreline park earlier today, and is very very happy with the bike.

3. The per capita potato consumption of this family will be reduced by 50% over the next quarter. Most of it is being consumed by daddy today and he will have to do the brunt of the reducing. Considering that daddy lives on potato, cooked in various shape or form, mostly involving a lot of oil, this reduction might send his body into potacalyptic shock! Maybe my system is a well "oiled" machinery and one fine day when we decide to take the oil and the grease out, it might start squeaking a little.. Only time will tell.

It has been one roller coaster week.

The most profound realization of the week was NOT things that cross my mind in passing like

1. Here today, gone tomorrow
2. We are here for our kids
3. It is important to stay fit
4. Stressing out over little things is not worth it

etc. etc.

These thoughts constantly cross my mind, but somehow subconsciously, I have succesfully learnt to put them in the background and keep moving.

The one thing that I did realize was how much I put San through by not taking care of my health. Somehow we have gotten used to our fights over my health that it feels like a rerun! This weekend, saw her face go really pale, when I mentioned that it has finally dawned on me that "I" should take better care of my health. For once, she did not go into the usual "I have been saying it since the day we got married. blah blah blah.." speech. She just sat there with a look on her face that said "Whatever. If you have realized it for real, I am happy for you!". It was a face that was tired of telling me, again and again.

Here is to hope, less potato, Sundar turning a new leaf.

May all those departed souls rest in peace!

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