Urban matchmaking 

Hello readers! Today one of my friend once again reminded me to read one article which was shared by him few days back. Thanks to my "being mommy" job that I keep forgetting things easily. Or maybe I keep delaying things for myself. Like writing this blog. 

Yeah so coming back to what I started with. I finally finished reading one article on the current changing scenario of modern society in Urban India. How well-travelled, well-read, highly educated and cultured young single Indians are traveling around the globe and coming back to their native places in the hope of finding the right match. To my surprise this has also become a career opportunity for many creative minds. People have started up their own groups and limited member clubs of like minded people. These groups allow random people to meet and to know each other. They have their rules and eligibility criteria too. If you fit into the criteria of that particular group you will be entitled to be a part of it. People measure you on the basis of how many times you have travelled abroad and how many places you have already been to. Other than what you do, What you eat, how you dress up and which University you went to decides your position in the society.

My friend asked me to share my thoughts on it. And that's how I decided to share it with everyone here on my blog. Somehow, I'm not liking the change. The change in the emotion of people. I'm not liking how everyone is becoming more practical and less emotional. The other day only I was having a discussion with my husband on the same topic. And he told me that he's amazed how practical people around us are! I told him that I like him because he's not like one of them. Humans without emotions are not humans for me!! But the challenge is how to deal with it.

Such kind of mechanical set ups don't let you know a person better, in fact it's a disguise. And it also shows how lonely we are becoming day by day by keeping ourselves away from each other. We judge people all the time and form a wall around us of our opinions. We only let limited people enter our zone and eliminate most of them because they don't fit into the eligibility criteria of our respective social status. I also strongly feel that the young generation is becoming more and more confused because of plenty of options available. They themselves don't know what they want, with whom they really want to be? Thanks to Watsaapp and Facebook for making indecisiveness more popular and cool. If you have seen any of the last  YRF or Dharma production movies you know what I'm talking about.

Falling in love with someone is the most natural form of human emotion which people are not understanding these days. They are dressing it up into fancy clothes, putting up the best make up and thinking to find true love. Love doesn't happen considering which brand you are into but  what you truly are! Finding a right person can be difficult or challenging or might take some time. Falling prey to such agencies and wasting your money on it is completely foolish. Just be out and be yourself because you can't pose who you are not for too long. Let people see you, love you and accept you the way you are. That's the best way to find your match 💖

HAPPY READING (:

STUPID, CRAZY BUG OF BLOGGING 

Hi everyone! I know you all have been missing me a lot and my short stories😜 But never knew writing and blogging can be so challenging and time consuming. Undoubtedly it has its own charm too which doesn't let you go away and keep you hooked to it. Writing is, just like any other creative art, an addiction. If you don't write means you haven't fed your mind. For me putting down my thoughts are a great way of letting myself feel I'm being heard or read. Even if it's just my assumption 😂 This is a great stress buster too. In fact I would suggest you to start penning your thoughts down. It helps you to connect with yourself and stimulates your brain cells much more than surfing social networking sites or playing games on phone. 

Have been wanting to write for so long but because we all have some commitments and priorities so sometimes our creativity has to go on a short break too (gets tired you know 😝). I don't know what's encouraging me to be so funny tonight. Or may be I'm trying hard to make you laugh or smile after a long tiring day. Hope there's a smile on your face too😊 

In past few weeks I have been trying different painting mediums. Watercolours or aquarelles have become my favourite now. Fluidity allows you to be spontaneous and more creative. Yes it's challenging too but once you know the technique you seriously start enjoying it. Bright nice colours flowing on the white blank paper and converting it into something which is pleasing to look at is an amazing experience. 

Creating something with your own hands and becoming the part of process is extremely satisfying and joyful. Learning at any age in life is an incredible feeling. Will share some of my work here soon or meanwhile you can check my Instagram gallery by "artsyshana". 

HAPPY READING (:

HELLO SIR VALENTINE! 
ARE YOU READY TO MEET ME?

(Image courtsy : artsyshana)

As the long and short hands are about to tick at twelve Sir Valentine will be here for a day long special celebration. Though it is an extremely debatable topic whether we should welcome him and be the part of this celebration or not. But I would like to escape from any debate or argument as I'm always game for celebrations ;)

Why do we celebrate this day and what is the history behind I guess we all have already read enough about it. So for something new and interesting to discuss or share would be how we can make the most of this opportunity of expressing our love for anything or anyone. 

For past one week I have been doing lots of my artwork and really falling more and more for such creativity. My constant interest shows my love for art. I have created few themes on "love". Enjoyed writing new quotes. Even getting a new red rose nail art was also an exciting thing to add on. Whatever people say or talk but I want to be my own valentine this year. Yes!! Why not?? 

In this fast pace life where everyone is so busy that they often don't have time to move away from their screens and shift their attention onto someone who's sitting besides them in the same room. Where after long tiring working hours when you come to hit your sack you look forward to checking your mails, Watsaapp or Facebook than checking the mood of your spouse. Why to wait for someone to come and gift you something to make you feel special. There is no shame or harm in pampering your own self and spending some quality time. Go and meet yourself on this Valentine's Day. May be you get to know yourself better. May be you start liking yourself a little more. Or may this turn to be your best Valentine's ever ;) 

Happy reading (:

Goodbye 2016 and cheers 2017!!

 (photo credit: artsyshana. Live colored pencil sketch)

When I closely observed the glass many tiny bubbles were appearing and disappearing timely. If you give it a jiggle more bubbles start appearing on the surface of the drink. Life is also like a glass of cocktail. It has lots of fizz inside and dews outside. You just need to give it a jiggle from time to time. Mixing it up with citrus brings the pungent and balance the taste. Consistency is the citrus of the cocktail of life. It brings out the best in you and helps balancing your mind.

The beginning of my new year was really great. We went for a short holiday with kids which was long awaited. We all had a rocking time. A great start of anything is often considered as a good sign for a brighter future. It makes us believe that whatever will happen now, will be good and keep us away from negative thoughts. Although what future has in store we never know but staying positive and hopeful is what we all should do.

Whenever a year is passed I always make sure to go through it all once again. This process of taking myself into flashback really helps me to find different phases of that particular year. Some amazing memories and some things which I wish shouldn't have happened. Mix of thoughts appear in mind like a heavy grey cloud and after retrospection mind and heart becomes lighter like a rained cloud. By doing this I learn to grow and evolve as a person year by year.

Setting new resolution is always exciting!! Completing that resolution becomes quite challenging ;)
"So what if i couldn't follow what i decided for myself"- is the voice which we often hear in case of failure. Nonchalance is not good in the path of success. Align your thoughts from the beginning to sail swiftly throughout. Look forward to a rocking year ahead !!

Happy reading (:

"A celebration worth being a part of-  is a celebration of life"

Hope whatever I'm going to write here I'm able to do justice to the title. 

Sometimes we witness some such beautiful instances in life which get etched on our heart. Meet some such amazing people that a part of their personalities is left within us. Recently attended one such great event and made memories for a lifetime. 

Though it was a 40th birthday celebration of one of my very dear friend but I felt like it was a celebration of life. The sequence of events was planned and designed to be continued in a span of a month. Her better half who's a dear friend too, worked day and night (and I don't mean at office desk) to make that one special day most memorable for his beloved wife. Here I see the power of love. It really compels you to go out of your way to bring just that one smile on the faces of your loved ones. You connect with the universe and try to make the impossible possible for that one person who means your world to you. He truly did a fab job. Not in terms of the quantum of money spent but most amazingly the amount of effort and love he had put into it. Hats off!!

Such occasions make me wonder how beautiful it is to have at least few memorable celebrations in life. It shows us how much important we are for somebody. Our life is also worth living for and there are people who truly and dearly want us. Though at times you are critically judged also for living a larger life. People can't resist talking behind your back especially when they see you extremely happy in your space. When it might be a pompous show for few, for me, it is the true way of telling each other - 

May hell or high water come,

I'm always there to hold you in storm.

We might not have wealth to dine with wine,

I'll still try my best to bring sunshine.

Live,love & laugh should be the mantra to conquer your journey. As all three are interdependent. When you are happy, you can identify the true value of love and hence can live a great life. So to conclude I want to say - raise your toast, come and join me in the celebration of life.

Happy reading (:

"TAKE ME IN YOUR ARMS AND SET ME FREE"

"Love" - this feeling and meaning of the word is learnt by us the moment we breathe inside our mother's womb. Since then we keep learning different perspectives about this expression through our life experiences. It is a very powerful and strong emotion felt by every living thing. Like a strong tree has many branches it does too have few - care, sacrifice, honesty, giving, patience, faithfulness, strong will. But if it is very beautiful it has a grey side too. It can really be ugly and devastating. There's lot of love out there, yet everyone seems unloved, detested and deprived. 

We often hear people saying - "love has really changed me as a person" or "I have become a better person after falling in love". While love is so empowering it's challenging too. It demands your heart and soul. It is like a flowing river in the deep valley of emotion with difficult rapids. Such beautiful feeling but has complexities of it's own.

Once you have let this emotion absorb you, you can never come out of it or would not want to so. It's an addiction without drug, an adrenaline rush without bungee, kind of lightheadedness without a sedative. It's a game changer or a life saver. 

When it's new, it's your world. But as time passes it turns into a mundane routine. We look for options in the desperation of change. We try to find the true deep meaning of it. And sometimes we eventually find ourselves in the process. A feeling which was pious than any God or religion, which was important than any work or relation, which was everything in this world changes into a burden. It seems like a trap with full of this and that. All of a sudden we want freedom, drugs, sedatives, independence, and yet want to be loved. Modern way of putting it is "give some space". 

When did your space was occupied? Or you let somebody come in? How much you practice what you expect? Who sets these parameters? All you wanted was me and now all you want from me is to take you in my arms and set you free....

HAPPY READING :)

ARFÉ

Every morning a freshly brewed cup of coffee and some latest news is what makes our mornings perfect. Other than just drinking coffee in various ways we can use it creatively as a medium to paint. Paintings which are made with coffee are called Arfé, which is an amalgamation of two words "art" and "cafe". But more often termed as Coffee Painting.

I have painted a portrait of princess Diana. This medium works like watercolor and likely to be used on watercolor paper. You can choose any technique either wet brush or dry. It's texture is sticky and gets thicker if gets in contact with air. 

Steps to create your own coffeelicious masterpiece :

Take a white watercolor sheet, some brushes, palette, waste cloth piece, instant coffee powder water and some good music ;)

Now draw your sketch on the paper. Start with some easy one like a leaf, door or tree. Once it's done dissolve your coffee in various shades of brown. You can do that by adding more water to dilute the concentrated coffee.

Depending upon the drawing, choose your brushes. I chose round tip brushes for detailed work. Coffee has a very unique quality, it can be lifted from the paper even after drying up. So beginners don't loose your heart if you make mistakes. Another thing to be kept in mind is how to use your graphite. Pencil marks can't be erased if once they are coated with coffee. Finish your sketch, hang it in your hall and enjoy while having a delicious cup of coffee looking at your masterpiece. Let the aroma of coffee fill your heart and soul!!

Happy reading :)