I am interrupting this involuntary blogging break to make a mini feminist comment.
While skimming my Facebook feed this afternoon with an inattentive laziness I reserve for the weekends, I came across the image pasted below. It jolted me into the Facebook equivalent of a double-take, which I guess is this alarmed, brisk rubbing of the phone screen to gobackupwhatthehellwasthat. The caption that accompanied this picture said, "Gotta love being different. I know I do!"
Read MoreThis is a belated post in that it deals with events from a few months ago, but I guess now is a good time to write this as I'm only beginning to process my first real rejection as a writer worth her salt - which also means I should probably re-consider calling myself that.
I have long been a fan of McSweeney's Internet Tendency and when they opened the call for submissions from potential columnists this fall, I couldn't help but dream of my name appearing month after month on the holy white of that webpage. I even had the perfect idea for a column - something I'd been working on for a while - and it was lying half-naked in a "drafts" folder on my laptop. "Today is your day," I said to the Word doc in question as I opened it lustily.
Read MoreFar too much writing advice in the world is serious, predictable and frankly, dreary. (Write everyday! – Umm, yeah, okay. You clearly don’t have a day job. Or a boyfriend. Or a Netflix account.) As well-intentioned as it may be, it isn’t practical for most writers (unless that’s what they do for a living, in which case they don’t need advice in the first place), and let’s face it, quitting their day jobs and living off their rich uncle while they write The Novel isn’t a feasible solution for all writers because some of their uncles are dead now.
For aspiring writers, pretend writers with lazy intentions of getting serious at some point, and serious writers with writer's block, I offer below unconventional but useful advice on how to find the time, energy and inclination to put pen to paper – or fingertips to keyboard – whatever floats their writing boats.
Read MoreSpotted at Strand Bookstore in NYC this week, the admonishing note pictured above. I was about to walk out after controlling my daily urge to spend $30 on a bag of books that was too heavy to carry home anyway, when I saw this sheet of paper lying face up on a pile of books, looking at me very invitingly. So I gave in.
Read MoreUmmm, no.
Ummm, no.
Last week, I was riding the subway when I came across this ad. I know half of it is cut off - a shaky, crowded train is not the best place to be taking pictures - so let me tell you what the full headline said: Give your boyfriend a lesson in how to bring home the bacon. Seems innocuous enough, right? Well, this was followed by the sentence that offended me, visible in the pic above: Gift idea #3: Pig-butchering classes.
Read MoreSix years ago, when I was studying journalism, I was required to write a personal essay for one of my classes. "It can be about anything as long as it's personal," said my professor. "Save your social angst for another time - make this one matter to you as a person, not as a journalist." After a week of thinking long and hard, I settled on my topic: I would write about my brother, that little human that had been living alongside me and my parents for almost 18 years.
Read MoreToday was not my day, so on the walk back home from work, my feet led me to the bookstore near my apartment. The boyfriend wasn't around to supervise, so I ended up spending almost an hour in there. During this time, I:
Last weekend, I found myself in the unusual situation of having to wait for someone who was late for our rendezvous. And I say "unusual," because true to my Indian roots, I am normally the one giving others the honour to wait for me, my annoyed significant other being at the receiving end of this ill-treatment too often. Anyway.
Meet me at McSorely's, said the text from my friend, directing me to a bar I'd never visited, even though it is fairly close to my apartment. I assumed it was going to be like the many other "Irish" bars I'd been to - hardly Irish, dank, with cheap beers, average food and friendly staff. I was only partially correct -- it was dank, alright, but with a genuine Irishness and amazing other-worldliness to it. Let me explain.
Read MoreRandomized list of thoughts and questions I had on a recent trip to the beautiful state of Maine:
Growing up, I was a rather ordinary child -- I had no special talents; I was an average student; I didn't play any sport or musical instruments; I was awkward to look at; and my only extra-curricular interest was writing. I was sweet, but not memorable by any standards. There was only one thing that set me apart from most people, and it wasn't something that came up in casual conversation: I could read. All. The. Time. I could out-read anyone else my age, older or younger. I could read anything and not be bored. I ate up books like a pregnant woman devours Belgian chocolate chip ice cream at 2 a.m. My parents were adamant on teaching me the value of money and frugality, but they never denied me any number of books my 10-year-old heart desired, and for that, I will always be so grateful. My library, which proceeded to smother the walls of my home inch by inch over the years, still warms its various nooks and crannies. In my life so far, books have been my #1 expense after food - I have bought them indiscriminately, passionately and far too frequently for my own good, with absolutely no regrets.
Read MoreWhat a perfect follow-up to the last post on the bullshit-y concept of having it all. Word, Alanis Morissette. WORD.
Read MoreI don't know how you could have possibly missed it, but because it is important for you to fully understand and engage with this post, let me just re-state the News of the Quarter: ex-Googler Marissa Mayer is now the CEO of Yahoo. She is also very, very pregnant, to which news she responded by saying that her maternity leave will only be a few weeks long, and that she'll be working right through it - which makes sense because she does, after all, have an abysmally failing company's fortunes to turn around.
Read MoreFirstly, please note that I made it to the second installment of my adventures in domesticity - first installment here. Accepting congratulatory notes and donations now. Now that we've established that I can cook (which I can, I swear) I'd like to draw your attention to another skill I can happily add to my domestic résumé - decorating! (Apparently, calling it "interior design" is overstating the case.) Getting the chance to exercise this "skill" is also the only thing I like about moving apartments, which should explain this post's timing.
Read MoreI have three degrees. Lest you think I’m putting this out there to seem pretentious, let me clarify - this does nothing but make me sound old (and over-educated, if that was a real thing). Even though I’ve spent a fair amount of time studying, and have been working for a few years now, I would be lying if I said I never thought about returning to school. The only thing that keeps me from going ahead with it is the extensive time commitment a Ph.D. would require (because getting another Master’s degree would amount to stupidity.)
Read MoreThe only time I've ever wanted to cook was right after I watched Julie and Julia about three years ago, and even that bout of inspiration lasted approximately 17 minutes, which is probably how long it took me to get home from the movie hall anyway. My mother has always lamented my lack of domestic skills, worryingly predicting that my future children will grow up on microwave dinners. (In my defense, I've been eating microwave dinners for 4 years now, and I'm fine.)
Read MoreUp until three days ago, I had never heard of Ben Howard. Today, I want to be the mother of his children. Why, you ask? Because, my dear friend, the only thing more attractive than a good-looking bloke with a British accent is a good-looking bloke with a British accent trying not to laugh as he asks you to call him maybe. I'm sure you've all heard Carly-Rae Jepsen's positively peppy invitation to drop-dead gorgeous Holden Nowell (who, as a side note, needs to lose the ridiculous poses, tattoos and jewelry) to call her maybe. And if you haven't, well, it's a great song to dance to after you've had five cocktails on a Friday night that marks the end of the most hellish work week ever.
Read MoreAs many of my friends will tell you, I am a big fan of The Walking Dead, a show about -- wait for it -- post-zombie apocalyptic life. (And don't you dare scoff in disgust.) This is unusual because the blood spurting from every episode of Grey's Anatomy is enough to make me pass out. But somehow, I have not only tolerated, but also loved watching TWD episodes where clumsy zombies rip out organs from human bodies and feed on them. Of course, the fact that I close my eyes at just the right moment helps.
Read MoreIt is a truth universally acknowledged (sorry, Jane Austen) that if you work in the communications industry, you can't help obsessing over money - you never have enough of it to just sit back, relax and order a third cocktail at the fancy rooftop bar. And while this has been true for all of my rather short career, I've found myself thinking about money even more recently, probably because - 1. I live in Manhattan - Here, the 1% and the 99% battle it out. The -0.05%-ers, like myself, are too busy making ends meet to participate. 2. It's tax season - I filed weeks ago but the State of New York still hasn't given me my money back. Ggggrrr. 3. I got promoted - And then I went ahead and paid for celebratory dinner and drinks with eight friends. Consoling myself with the thought that far worse things happen when people are intoxicated. 4. I've been reading about money - Thanks to a finance-related client, I've been introduced to a few great blogs such as Budgets are Sexy and TeacHer Finance. I'd thought posts about money management would whoosh over my head (and let's face it, we PR people can't do basic math to save our lives), but they didn't!
Read MoreIn the past week, I must have heard (and overheard, I'll admit) at least five people talk about how desperately they want to write a book. I consider this a noble ambition to have - the world could always do with more good writing - even as I feel fiercely protective of it. You see, this is something I've wanted to do, and have worked toward, since I was 10 years old. Heck, I even put it in my Twitter bio, a public declaration that puts additional pressure on me to follow through. So when others talk to me about how they have a story "brewing" inside them, and how they plan to put it to paper the first chance they get, I immediately regard them as competition and probe further. What do they want to write about? When are they planning to have a first draft of their manuscript finalized? Do they have relationships with any publishing houses that could help them? Have they been published before? - so on and so forth.
Read MoreAt the turn of the new year, my amazing company gave all its employees a wonderful, wonderful holiday gift - an Amazon Kindle Fire. (Yes, that's pretty awesome and yes, we are hiring!) When I heard the news, I was very excited - much to my own surprise. Don't get me wrong; I was more than grateful, especially for the champagne and cupcakes that I was being treated to while this announcement was made, but I didn't think I would welcome an e-reader into my life with such unabashed glee, given my long-standing, stubborn crusade against all and any books that weren't made of paper. So I gave in. I played with my new, shiny toy by downloading books left, right and center. I introduced myself to Kindle Singles and thanked fate and fortune for bringing such good writing to my doorstep. I finished The Hunger Games in 37 hours - work and sleep included - on my latest favorite gadget. The Kindle also traveled with me halfway across the world as I made my way home for the holidays - and oh Lord, it was SO convenient to be carrying the one Kindle, as opposed to the five books and magazines that my hand bag would normally be stuffed with.
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