Three Awards in One

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by Arundhati Basu

The way I look in the photo is how I felt when my dear lady Cherylene nominated me for three awards. Not all at one go but over a period of time. I take my time in getting around to answering these award questions, not because I do not want to do them, but because I take time to babble. You know I take it seriously – the art of talking as little sense as possible.

Through her blog titled ‘Living Vs. Existing’, Cherylene motivates and inspires readers to stay strong through the travails of life. She almost always pops up on my various posts from time to time and leaves lovely thoughts. You can see why she is a great friend to have your back. To get to the task at hand, the questions under each award are all hers.

Thank you Cherylene, I had fun answering these questions. Made me ponder and smile.

 

Sunshine Blogger Award

Do you prefer to smell the roses or grow them?

Grow them, smell ‘em and see them wither away. The cycle of life is inescapable.

Are you the adventurous type or more reserved?

My stomach will tighten into knots and my heart shall pop out of my mouth, but Adventure, you scamp, you’re not getting away easy!

Do you prefer cake as a dessert or ice cream?

There are whiffs of existential crisis in that question.

Do you prefer to drive or be driven?

I drive in my dreams. My husband does not dare to let me drive in reality, yet. But I have agreed to polish up my driving skills by enrolling in a driving school in the US, ‘polish up’ being the key words here.

Where is your ideal vacation spot?

Cornwall.

Can you cook?

Yes.

What is your favourite dish to prepare?

Chicken biryani/ Aglio e olio

Who is the most supportive person you know?

My husband. My brother and father have been my rock during the formative stages of my life.

Who is you favourite singer?

Bob Dylan/Leonard Cohen. How do I choose between them?!

When you think of blogging, list one word to describe the feeling it gives you.

Contentment

Do you pamper yourself as much as you like?

Without doubt.

 

Unique Blogger Award

If you could be any Marvel superhero who would you be and why?

Marvel needs to contact me for a patent. Cuptain Cupcake. Need I say why after you read my name?  I even know what I shall charge Marvel. A lifetime’s subscription to cupcakes from The Hummingbird Bakery.

How do you cope with stress?

Devouring popcorn and reading crime thrillers. Works like magic for me. I also walk around the room talking to myself (so I reveal at the cost of coming across as a certified loon).

If you were given the opportunity to act in any movie, would you take it? What type of movie would it be – action, romance, horror, drama, sci-fiction or comedy?

Why, of course, the superhero genre. Remember Cuptain Cupcake? I think I would be a darling at it.

 

Real Neat Blog Award

Your three favourite foods 

Mustard Hilsa (freshwater fish cooked in mustard, atypical of Calcutta), Chicken Biryani (Calcutta-style biryani strictly) and Lal Shaak (red spinach the way my mother cooks it).

Do you prefer watching sports or playing sports?

Playing sports

Would you choose a vacation in Hawaii or Alaska? Why?

Both. I would love to walk upon the volcanoes of Big Island and soak in the charms of its canvas of environments. I have watched some fascinating documentaries on Alaska which intrigued me. Plus I would feel like I were on top of the world.

If you would go back in time, what year would you travel to?

To the year 2011. Adi and I travelled together through the UK and discovered our common passion for being on the road.

What has been your biggest challenge?

To return home safe each day when I lived and worked in Delhi. Just reminiscing about the incidents that were a part of my daily life makes me prone to ranting about the importance of safety of women in that city.

Something you miss the most from childhood?

The early idyllic years in Salalah, Oman. My brother would visit us from time to time during summer vacations – he lived in a monastic hostel on the outskirts of Calcutta. I remember days spent on the beach by the rugged Jabbal mountains; attempting to steal flowers from my neighbour aunt (who used to open the door just at the time that I reached it – I realise that I used to turn up at the same time every day); heading to the souks in the evenings with my parents for Lebanese bread fresh off the tandoor (the fragrance of which is still lodged in the memory cells); and long drives through the deserts of Oman.

What does a perfect day look like to you?

Just being in the company of my love.

Published by

Arundhati Basu

The great affair in my life is to travel. I count myself immensely fortunate that my partner shares this passion. We are a team that likes to spend time planning and plotting out places to go. Destination check, flights check, accommodation check, cheesy grins check. Off we go.

123 thoughts on “Three Awards in One”

  3. Congrats on the awards! Your style of writing is amazing. I am always thoroughly entertained when I read your posts. Reading a crime thriller and indulging in popcorn is definitely a stress reliever for me too! x

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Lovely Natalie, thank you! Isn’t a crime thriller enough to ease out the cares of life? I am yet to get membership at the libraries here but when I do my nose shall find its way to the thriller section soon enough xx

      Liked by 2 people

  4. It’s okay to go around the house talking to yourself. You should only worry if the furniture talk back. I’ve always heard/read that India is one of the most dangerous places for women, would agree? You and Adi are so cute. The way you talk about him. Not knowing how to drive makes two of us. ❤️

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hah the furniture talking back! Yikes, you know I would run and not return. See about safety and India, there are pockets in the country which are safe, but some places like Delhi are quite the pits when it comes to safety for women.

      C! I know how to drive*swollen face! I just need to hone my skills. I drove last in the year 2001 and it was my father’s beloved ambassador (which is a take on the old Morris Minor) 😛 xx

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Congrats on your awards!! I loved your answers. I think your idea for Marvel as Cuptain Cupcake is brilliant but now I want a cupcake very badly, lol. I talk to myself all the time so don’t worry about being a loon. My grandmother always said it was fine until you started answering yourself…. I can drive but hate to, so I wish my hubby would chauffeur me everywhere although when we’re together he insists on driving since I apparently scare him, lol!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you Stephanie 🙂 I hope you did get your cupcake fix as I turned up hours later to reply. I could do with one too but now my baking moulds are at hand as our shipment from the UK has just reached us. You can imagine the broken backs and vociferous complaints about our materialistic tendencies.

      Grandmothers are just so wise. I shall remember that bit then.

      Hmm when you get a chauffeur to take you place there is no place for grievance. To be the lady (of leisure) – life is good, eh? xx

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I actually had homemade birthday cake last night at my parent’s house to celebrate my husband’s birthday which is today! It was very good but not quite a cupcake.

        I’m glad your things have reached you. I’d go batty for a long time without my stuff…so I’m definitely materialistic and would be complained about!

        Grandmothers are wise. I try to remember a lot of things she told me.

        Oh, it would be very nice to be a lady of leisure! But I’m afraid I do have to drive when needed and just dislike it. Oh well…?

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Cuptain Cupcake, my lovely girl, gets people to fall in line by baking her way into their hearts. If that does not work with the wayward ones, use her ninja warrior skills tucked away into that cupcake-y persona. Layer upon layer at work here xx

      Liked by 2 people

  10. Thank you so much for doing all of your awards. It means a lot that you took time to do them. I loved reading all of your answers. You are definitely one of my favourite bloggers to follow. Hope you are having a great weekend. 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

      2. Erm in this country that seems a bit iffy! 🙂 Where I live, everything is far away from home, and as much as I love walking, in the heat I can feel my skin peeling off. But I think we shall solve that by just getting a car in some time. xx

        Liked by 2 people

      7. Oh, sorry, I was thinking about the driver’s seat. Yes driver’s seat on the left, and we drive on the right. When we went to Australia, they drive on the left, my husband didn’t have trouble adjusting it!

        Liked by 2 people

      9. Yes, he is good. I trusted him in our toughest drive in Maui when we went through the one lane road (both both directions) in the downpour rain! The windshield wipers didn’t go fast enough to wipe off the water for the driver to see!

        Liked by 2 people

      12. Oh he is good enough to drive on the narrow B-roads and high passes of Britain. You have to drive on them to know what I am talking about. If a person comes through on those lanes, you have got to reverse all the way to give the other person the courtesy of getting along with their day. And you know how awfully polite the British are 😉

        Liked by 2 people

      14. Yeah the cars can be quite tiny. I was suggesting getting one of those here and Adi laughed his head off 😛 The first time I visited America, Seattle that is, my eyes goggled at the size of the trucks. They are giants 😀 xx

        Liked by 2 people

      21. When my daughter was learning to drive, she has a book of list of things to practice. One of them was to drive on a freeway. I sat next to her holding my seat with tight grip. She kept her speed. There was a truck in front of her, in order to keep the speed, she passed the truck. The driver was mad, swung around to get in front of her. I was so scared.

        Liked by 2 people

  20. “The early idyllic years in Salalah, Oman. My brother would visit us from time to time during summer vacations – he lived in a monastic hostel on the outskirts of Calcutta. I remember days spent on the beach by the rugged Jabbal mountains; attempting to steal flowers from my neighbour aunt (who used to open the door just at the time that I reached it – I realise that I used to turn up at the same time every day); heading to the souks in the evenings with my parents for Lebanese bread fresh off the tandoor (the fragrance of which is still lodged in the memory cells); and long drives through the deserts of Oman.”- what a lovely mini-memoir here! 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

      1. Yeah. I’ve been thinking about my own parents when they were young (back in the late 1950s) and how they did not realize what was to come or what they had at the time. ❤

        Liked by 2 people

  22. I was struck by your answer concerning safety in Delhi. I’ve been there, it’s one of the worst cities I’ve ever visited in my life. Thank God I travel to more cities in India, otherwise I’d have the wrong impression. I traveled with my boyfriend so I didn’t have an issue with that but I wondered how locals dealt with it.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. You know Virginia, with the wave of patriotism going on in India, I would be the recipient of many glares. But I cannot lie about what I have experienced. If you know what I mean. Such experiences end up making you vociferous about women’s rights. Safety should be a basic element and unfortunately it is not so in Delhi. The other Indian metros are a little better but there is some way to go before Indian girls are advised by their parents to dress a certain way. I cannot abide by of instructions of such sort. It is good that you travelled with your boyfriend! Helps when someone has your back. xx

      Liked by 2 people

      1. I am so sad that you had to live this. I am quite chilled in this aspect always taking the good will of people but I am extremely careful on the other hand (just in case you know). Whenever I hear someone has been in danger I feel so much anger. It makes me furious that in the time being women have to “be vociferous” about our rights. I am glad to hear your were fine and I seriously hope you (and fellow Indian women) don’t have to go through dark episodes of unnecessary fear.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. It will take time for things to be okay for women who live in villages and smaller towns. In the metros women can still voice their concerns. The mentality of men, especially in the northern part of the country runs somewhere along the lines of, ‘How dare she step out of home for work or whatever reason? Let’s teach her a lesson.’ I am not saying all men. But you know what I mean. It is a sorry state of affairs and even if you are driving your own car at night you are not completely safe. It makes me spit up foam when I hear these ghastly incidents that still take place in Delhi. And when some woman suffers in the most horrible way and dies, people deem her ‘Nirbhaya’ (fearless). The reference is to a rape that shook the nation in 2012. That woman could not have been fearless. She would have been mired in fear before she died. I should stop now before I start seriously ranting! Hope you are having a good weekend xx

        Liked by 1 person

  32. Congratulations Captain cupcake!!. i may be a little late to this party but well in Arundhati. You have a way with words that leaves the reader yearning for more!. Loved all your answers ! So funny and intresting.

    Liked by 2 people

  33. Hi there! I really love your blog and I see you already have quite a few awards, so would you like one more? I’m nominating you for the Sunshine Blogger Award!
    This is how nominated bloggers should proceed
: Thank the blogger for nominating them and link back to their blog. 
Answer all 11 questions asked by the blogger who nominated them
. Nominate 11 other blogs and give them 11 questions to answer
. Notify your nominees and list the rules and display the sunshine blogger awards logo in your post.
    My 11 questions for you are:
    Where are you from? Why did you start your blog? What movie can you watch over and over without ever getting tired of? What social stigma does society need to get over? Who do you go out of your way to be nice to? How do you judge a person? What is one thing you can’t live without? What are you interested in that most people aren’t? What’s one place in the world that you haven’t been to but would like to visit? What languages do you wish you could speak? What do you hope people get out of reading your blog?

    Happy Blogging!

    Like

    1. Thanks Kelley! This was so long ago that I had almost forgotten about it. You are certainly going back in time. Much love. xx

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