Melange

Zipped up

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Archana K B / 4 Comments

#atozchallenge alphabet z archanaonline.com

I did not had to look twice to confirm that it was her.
The bubbly flashy smile on the dark skinned round face with those big eyes was unmistakable. She was walking around in the mall with a lean dark-colored man carrying a young lad in his arms, without noticing my prying eyes.

The memories of good old days of hushed girlie giggles came flashing across my mind. And the fateful night, when she survived her act of sin in that small dingy clinic and our sighs of relief after the tense moments.
I wondered…
Did she remembered those days when she lost the zest for life.
Did the man who looked like her husband was aware of her past secrets.
Maybe not… Maybe yes. ..
But it didn’t mattered now..
Some secrets were just meant to be zipped up.

blogathon/Stories

Yamini

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Archana K B / 0 Comment

#atozchallenge alphabet Y archanaonline.com

Yamini sat there, reading near the balcony window. It was a self-help book, which she had ordered online last week. In between, she looked out the window to replenish her eyes and free them from fatigue.

The breakfast had been done. Seethamma cleared the table and did the dishes quietly. It was the same job and same routine towards her same lady owner every single day.

The sun was harsh. The pigeons were struggling to find a resting place in some of the balconies.One of them flew to her balcony.

Yamini looked up suddenly and remembered. She wheeled her chair to the nearby table and scribbled on a piece of paper. The pigeon kept on flapping its wings to find her way out.
“Akka..Parvai..”

As she tied the string with the piece of paper onto the pigeon’s neck with Seethamma’s help, it struggled to get free, and few pecks landed on her hands.
And then she was set free..

“I hope I get some calls or mails this week..”
She told Seethamma with a fake smile, who went on caring both their hands to soothe the pecks they received.

Bangalore life/blogathon/Photography/Thoughts

eXperiments

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Archana K B / 3 Comments

#atozchallenge alphabet X archanaonline.com

This week, we finally took a plunge.

An unpacked new OTG(Oven Toaster Grill) box is staring at me in the hall as I write this post. In most of the blogs I stumble across, I have seen many references to baking, as a skill or as a hobby. To pacify my creative side, I tend to do try such things at least once. So this week, the Google and Evernote will work harder to give me streamlined baking recipes. Though I have a sweet tooth, the main intention is to create one-pot dinners and snacks to save my time!!!

Since, this week also marks the end of the A to Z challenge, I am thinking of next set of experiments to keep my momentum. This would be the second blogathon I attempted this year, the first one being in January. And I realize “free-writing” is the genre I would really love to focus on this blog. And occasionally, the spread of 55-fictions and long descriptive stories. Yes, I could get hold of one category I love through these writing experiments.

Now, its been a long time, that I wanted to do a photography based challenge. From the time I had been active on Flickr after the photography classes, I had stumbled on many challenges on photography too. I am more inclined towards the phoneography, since its more practical with a toddler around, and with the plenty of instant effect/photo editing apps available in the store. But instead of the popular iPhone, it would be with a Nokia Lumia 520.

What say. which challenge are you gearing up next?

blogathon/Internet/Links/Thoughts

Small Whispers

Posted on April 26, 2014 by Archana K B / 2 Comments

#atozchallenge alphabet W archanaonline.com

For the letter W, I had the story theme “Waiting” in my mind. I tried to do a story based in Venice or London, where the main lead is waiting at the same place for the partner, recollecting all the moments they cherished. That would have been a sad or poignant theme. But over the weekend, I was in a happy mood, which is not that common, and so did not wanted to get into the sadness mood, to dug out the words.

Then there was the theme or writing itself, and my thoughts on it. I thought I could shower some blog love on Write Tribe community and other bloggers, but that would be repetitive and very common topic.

And then I chanced upon the whispers. The verb, noun and the product.

Long back when we were asked to write inspirational post on Women’s Day, I had encountered on an article about Murugananthan and his business story of creating sanitary napkins.

That would be one of the basic inspirational steps towards woman empowerment. India as a country may boast of the metro cities, the culture, the religions, and the history, but the sad plight of women living in the villages, who still doesn’t have enough amenities, is something we need to be bothered about.

This article from Menstrupedia, yet again shows how modern and new people are yet to embrace the topic more freely, just like other so-called taboos like sex. (Did you saw the Ranveer Singh ad?)

The steps surely leads to a better future…

blogathon/Stories/Thoughts

The perfect vacation

Posted on April 25, 2014 by Archana K B / 11 Comments

#atozchallenge archanaonline.com alphabet V

The clear memory of the moments spent with him on that fateful night on the beach shack tingled her senses and sent waves in her body.
Similar waves which crawled upon the sand to touch their feet, as their feelings and the relationship slowly took a different direction over the conversation.

vacation five-sentence-fiction

Unable to resist, she called him up again to plan for another meeting the coming winter. She smiled to herself, as he revealed how he too was craving to meet her very soon..
She then sat down to chalk out the alibi plans to escape from her husband while she met her lover in the dreamland.

***
Linking this to five-sentence-fiction prompt by Lillie McFerrin.

blogathon/Stories

The Blue Umbrella

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Archana K B / 6 Comments

#atozchallenge archanaonline.com alphabet U

She always carried a blue umbrella. It was a lovely shade of memorable blue resembling the clear sky…

Clad in black purdah from top to bottom, revealing only the black staring eyes which spoke to me, she passed by everyday, while we boys sat on the wall, ogling the girls.
She was my first crush!

PS: Inspired by the bollywood movie name, The blue umbrella. There is also another animated film with the same name released in 2013 under Pixar Studios.