It's that day again.
Happy birthday, me!
As usual, I wish I had some pearls to share with you, especially some profound thoughts. Unfortunately, wise words often come to me in the middle of the night and I wonder if I should keep a little moleskin by my head and scribble them down as they arrive. But that usually involves waking up, detracting from my favorite activity. Come morning, I am lucky if I can remember anything beyond being thoroughly impressed with myself.
So instead I will share some of the highlights of my past week with you.
A hot air balloon landed in the Open Space in our neighborhood last Tuesday. It first huffed and puffed like a giant dragon in the sky before floating effortlessly to a smooth landing. Since my neighbor's deck seemed to have a better view of the landing strip, I ran into her house only to bump into her as she rushed out. We ran out together, collecting more people as we did, rather like the children of Hamelin.
The excitement and joy of watching this balloon land persists even now.
The week ended on another high note. I was Houston-bound for a day, along with three others who were flying in from the UK, Switzerland and Canada. We were going to be meeting at a friend's house after over 30 years for a primary school reunion of sorts. It was overwhelming in the most pleasant way; inspiring; and brimming over with love. It was the best way to start my birthday weekend, with a tiramisu cake for breakfast!
Our hosts, Ambi-Auntie and Monica
Skyping with Morna in Mauritius
Caroline, with Monica's Life of Ganesh painting as the backdrop
Katherine
Laura
Monica's painting
I returned home from the airport, only after stopping to admire my first Navratri golu, followed by German food at our annual Oktoberfest. Many thanks to Aparna for explaining the South Indian Navratri traditions to me!
Mr. and Mrs. Narayanan
Mr. and Mrs. Subramaniam
Mr. and Mrs.Iyer
Musical Ganeshas
The Karate Kids
Unlike last year, I won't be climbing any peaks or doing any steep hikes today. But, I will be out in my most favorite place, the mountains, on what is hopefully a gentle yet invigorating hike. And, I will be with my peeps.
Celebrate my birthday with me by doing something with the people you care about, whether it is a huddle over a board game, a bike ride, a walk, a hike, or even a trip to the ice-cream shop. Thank you for celebrating with me!
Happy birthday, me!
As usual, I wish I had some pearls to share with you, especially some profound thoughts. Unfortunately, wise words often come to me in the middle of the night and I wonder if I should keep a little moleskin by my head and scribble them down as they arrive. But that usually involves waking up, detracting from my favorite activity. Come morning, I am lucky if I can remember anything beyond being thoroughly impressed with myself.
So instead I will share some of the highlights of my past week with you.
A hot air balloon landed in the Open Space in our neighborhood last Tuesday. It first huffed and puffed like a giant dragon in the sky before floating effortlessly to a smooth landing. Since my neighbor's deck seemed to have a better view of the landing strip, I ran into her house only to bump into her as she rushed out. We ran out together, collecting more people as we did, rather like the children of Hamelin.
The excitement and joy of watching this balloon land persists even now.
The week ended on another high note. I was Houston-bound for a day, along with three others who were flying in from the UK, Switzerland and Canada. We were going to be meeting at a friend's house after over 30 years for a primary school reunion of sorts. It was overwhelming in the most pleasant way; inspiring; and brimming over with love. It was the best way to start my birthday weekend, with a tiramisu cake for breakfast!
Our hosts, Ambi-Auntie and Monica
Skyping with Morna in Mauritius
Caroline, with Monica's Life of Ganesh painting as the backdrop
Katherine
Laura
Monica's painting
I returned home from the airport, only after stopping to admire my first Navratri golu, followed by German food at our annual Oktoberfest. Many thanks to Aparna for explaining the South Indian Navratri traditions to me!
Mr. and Mrs. Narayanan
Mr. and Mrs. Subramaniam
Mr. and Mrs.Iyer
Musical Ganeshas
The Karate Kids
Unlike last year, I won't be climbing any peaks or doing any steep hikes today. But, I will be out in my most favorite place, the mountains, on what is hopefully a gentle yet invigorating hike. And, I will be with my peeps.
Celebrate my birthday with me by doing something with the people you care about, whether it is a huddle over a board game, a bike ride, a walk, a hike, or even a trip to the ice-cream shop. Thank you for celebrating with me!
18 comments:
We're going to have some apple cider on you tonight! Cheers and happy birthday! xoxo
Happy Birthday Manisha and here's to another wonderful year for you. Hope this one is full of good food and joyful moments with the people that count.
You're so funny! Happy birthday Sneesha. :-D
Happy birthday Manisha, wishing you a fabulous year ahead.
Happy Birthday Manisha! Hope you have a sooper year ahead. It was my bros BD on the 27th and after 6 yrs we celebrated it together. Followed by a trip to Pondicherry and Mahabalipuram. It was priceless time together.
Hey Happy Birthday Manisha. We share a birthday so I will remember yours.
Awesome post,..:) toys are so cute ,,,thanks for sharing ,,,
And ya happy birthday,..wish you he best in life
We had ice cream! A very Happy Birthday to you, Manisha!
happy belated, my friend! i hope you are snuggled up in bed right now, sound asleep after your day of birthday festivities, dreaming good dreams. let's celebrate when i get back from this shoot. xo
Happy birthday Manisha. This year's celebration sounds as exciting as last years. You always know how to have fun.
We played for an hour with some Legos that the kid has become addicted to. :-)
Happy Birthday again Manisha, the photographs are simply GORGEOUS!!
...& yes, we did have one of those infrequent outings when ALL four of us, (the 2 full tickets & the 2 half tickets) plodded out for a GRAND lunch (decided with 110% conviction by Ishaan) @ chipotle grill!!!) & the cherry on the cake, the other half actually agreeing to plod along to buy a kettle!! So I guess it was a mini celebration of sorts!!
Glad you had a great birthday week! We are celebrating with the Durga pooja celebrations here in this Bengali neighbourhood in Delhi!
Belated Happy Birthday Manisha. We had a friend visiting whose birthday is the same day as yours and it was also Durga Shashthi, so rest assured that your b'day was celebrated with much food and joy at our home :)
Your friend is an awesome artist.
Happy Birthday :) Every time I come here, I get lost in your words. Your writing is so beautiful .. i start visualizing it .. like I did today about the hot air balloon!
Guess what I too started my birthday with a Tiramisu cake for breakfast :D :D
www.sunshineandsmile.com
Gabi, apple cider sounds really good, especially since we are heading into cooler temperatures over the next few days! Thank you!
Nupur, thank you! I hope so, too! Much love to you and your lovely little girl!
Pel, danke, my friend! Thanks also for being such a good listener!
Sunita, thank you! I hope all is well with you!
Anjali, thanks! Time with family is always priceless! That's the only gift I ask for each year! So glad you were able to celebrate together.
Vindya, thank you and belated birthday wishes to you, my astro-twin! I hope your birthday was even better than mine!
notyet100, thank you! And I've asked before but when will your count be 100? :-D
Anita, yes! Thank you! Given how much I love ice-cream but can't eat too much of it, that's mighty perfect!
Jen, at that hour, I definitely was! Looking forward to seeing you soon!
DSM, Thanks! It's not every person's cup of tea. Last year, the very day after my birthday, a woman told me that a strenuous hike was the worst way to celebrate a birthday. Hers, maybe. Mine? No way! Legos are so much fun! Medha never really got into them much to my dismay!
Niv, thank you! It sounds like a great evening! I hope your kettle is whistling away, warming your kitchen and there's a bottomless supply of chai on your table!
Miri, thanks, I did! Have fun with Durga puja! I just remember the Ram Lila being screeched out by old ladies in our neighborhood. It was usually exam time for me. The only way around it was to sleep during the day and study at night.
BM, thank you! And please wish my astro-twin for me! It's been fun keeping up with your Durga puja updates. And, yes, Monica is very talented!
S&S, thank you! Flattery will get you everywhere so please keep at it! (j/k) Isn't tiramisu cake the best thing at breakfast? Who knew?! Maybe I need to make a tradition out of it. Maybe, I need to gather my girlfriends together each year, too! Now, that would be super awesome!
a very belated happy birthday manisha !! i agree with you...simple ways of celebrating are the best :D
thepickyeater, a belated thank you!
Post a Comment