There is a saying that “the grass is always greener on the other side”. Very often we do not appreciate the inner beauty that we hold and look for greener pastures elsewhere.
Living in this wonderful community, I was searching for the greener side within the “woods” during my regular morning and evening walks. I got them in plenty and didn’t loose the opportunity and “snapped” them with my iPhone.
Here is “Serenity in the woods”. Music is by my 7 year old grandson
Merriam Webster provides the meaning of the term from a biology perspective: a weed as : a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually of vigorous growth specially the one that tends to overgrow or choke out more desirable plants. In other words weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, “a plant in the wrong place”. During my visit to the Hamptons, I did notice weeds in well manicured gardens. But are they in the wrong place?
Photos Courtesy – Laxman Mohansundaram
For those trendy Veggies who are looking for options (other than the traditional exclusive Indian Restaurants) here is the link to the “look up”. The blog is of course from the “pre Covid-19” time and is based on the eating experience of a typical Manhattan based “Veggie Newyorker”.
Feel free to visit the blog and give us your feedback.
After a week’s stay at the Southampton Village it was time to move to Wainscott in the Hamptons for the Memorial Day week end. Wainscott didn’t disappoint us at all. It matched Southampton “leaf by leaf”, “hedge by hedge” and “green by green”. My iPhone popped out of my pocket and started the job even without I realizing it !
The background music is by Dr. Jayanthi Kumaresh in the Raga “Dharmavathi”. Of course, the little birds and the waters of Wainscott added beauty to the BGM score by lending their voices too. Here is a glimpse of that in under 5 minutes in my You Tube channel prabhu53. Pl visit.
Pl subscribe to my YouTube Channel “prabhu53”
30 March 2020
Mmmm. Oh no. Across the world we all are locked down thanks to “Corona”. From a tiny village in the remote corner of India to the the Commercial Capital of the World – New York City there is a near total shut down.
Quite often I have been asked by friends and relatives across the world “How are you spending your time in Newyork City when you are locked down at 150 feet above ground in a confined space of 1000 Sq.ft area? You are so used to be with many people in a busy area where vehicles buzz around, vendors move around, densely packed shops and establishments. Hope you haven’t become mad.”
I was wondering as to what should be my response to these queries. Living in an apartment in one of those high rise property behind the Empire State Building, watching that impressive building is the only visual outside entertainment available during the lockdown. The Empire also reflected the eerie emptiness by covering itself most of the days with clouds and didn’t want to dress up colourfully in the evenings.
Hardly any traffic around compared to the “pre lockdown”. What should I do? Time to ponder.
Peeping out of the window on one early morning, I did get the answer. There was a single light coming out of one of the adjacent property. Wow! There is after all light even in darkness if we look for it. I got it.
That prompted me to go back in my memory and bring out the Colorful Empire that I know. I pulled out all the photographs (some of them taken by my son) from my folder, listened to the bits of music that my 7 year old grandson attempted at the keyboard and here is the link to the “Colorful Empire”.
Who will get into this neural net first – Rain or Sun or Spring and who will know about it ?
The full moon day of the Tamil month of Masi (Feb 13 to March 13th for the year 2020) in Magha Nakshtra ( associate star Rebulus) is considered auspicious. It is believed that during this period,divine beings descend to purify the karma of the human race. As Magha is ruled by ancestors, benefits from blessings of departed souls is expected on this day.It is an important festival celebrated by Tamils. The makam star in this month usually falls on the full moon day and is considered highly auspicious in many temples across South India, especially in Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Kerala. For this year 2020 this was on 08th March.
Sitting thousands of miles away from my home in India, despite the winter, I could manage to get a clear view of the Moon. My 7 year old grandson was practising in his Key Board. I could definitely link the two and I couldn’t help naming my video as Melody in Moon.
Here is the YouTube link
Happy New Year.
Life is indeed colorful. All you have to do is just travel and explore. Here is what I found in Sikkim, the land of Lepchas, the tiny Indian State bordering Bhutan, Tibet & Nepal – “A mystical wonderland of spectacular natural beauty with the heady scent of flower-bedecked meadows, the vibrant culture, the infinite variety of its flora and fauna”.
Lush and thick forests, flush with blooms of exotic flora, hilly expanses embellished by Sikkim’s two main rivers, the Teesta and the Rangeet, the picturesque villages, hot springs and waterfalls – just an amazing hill state.
This is the first part of the Series of blogs from me on Sikkim
Prabhu's Ponder 