September Favourites

Aloha! September has been a beautiful month for me personally. I just decided to breathe and not let things get to me and wow it’s been refreshing!  So let’s hop on to what I’ve been loving this month😉

Decor : Iris Apple Cinnamon Reed Diffuser

I’m the person who has fairy-lights and burns a candle in their room. Yes, being the decor-addict, pinterest is my holy book of sorts. So I have always been a candle person and I’m currently burning Ocean from Lifestyle. It’s disappointing because none of these candles are strong enough for me. Unlike in other countries where fan is not an issue, we have the ceiling fan running and hence the problem of candles-blowing-out automatically (it’s like magic!). So I use the fancy glass cover-thingy for my candle and that shuts out any little fragrance it gives out!  So I implemented the reed diffuser concept much to the pleasure of my mum who HATES candles. And damn, this Apple Cinnamon is such a calming fragrance with a mild note of spice. Love how the room smells <3 

Book : The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee

I’ve been reading this book along with A Court of Mist and Fury this month. The main concept that sold me was, this story takes place in 2118 Manhattan, where everything is so futuristic and New York is a 1000 story tower.

Ooooh… I know ! 😀 It’s a pretty cool teen drama where sci-fi meets Gossip Girl.  

Beauty: Miss Claire’s Soft Matte Lip Cream

I always keep beauty, skincare and fashion away from my blog. I don’t know why, I’ve never been very comfortable telling the world (and by world here, I mean the people who are going to read this and then meet me later tomorrow  😛 ) what I wear and what I like. But since there is no apparent reason to avoid it, here is the grand beauty debut with Miss Claire Lip Creams! I got this from an instagram store as we can’t really purchase this in stores. Sad, if only I could swatch these!  They’re matte and the shades are gorgeous xx

Food : Chilly Panneer Pockets from McDonalds.

I’m a seasonal-eater. I like things only for a specific time span. And it’s always junk. And I eat that for breakfast lunch and dinner, until I eventually get sick of it and never wanna go near it again. This time, it’s the Chilly Panneer Pockets from McDonalds! OMG. Thank God it is so close to where I live; I drive-thru atleast 4 days a week and get this particular thing alone and come back. Ofcourse the counter lady became my friend. Until suddenly they went out-of-stock (not entirely because I got them all *eyeroll*) because of lorry strikes between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Now they don’t give us Chilly Panneer Pockets too???! :( 

App: Musical.ly

It’s no surprise I’m on every social media app known to man.I’m just extremely social on social-media. Only. And musically has been so much fun, just upping the dubsmash-game.  If you’re on it, do comment your id below :) 

Music 

I’m not much of a music person because I can’t focus with music ON.And I really don’t have time to spend ONLY on music, with so many books to read and YouTubers to catch-up on. Life is such a paradox, innit? lol. But I’ve been listening a fair bit lately and my on-loop ones had been..

Closer – Chainsmokers (ft. Halsey) 

Treat You Better – Shawn Mendes #nowplaying

Perfect Strangers – Jonas Blue (ft. JP Cooper)

Heathens – twenty one pilots

In The Name of Love – Martin Garrix & Bebe Rexha

iPad Pro joins the family! (and that too in Rose Gold, I’m dying❤ ) Definitely crushing over this BIG time this month. 

I’m not sure I did this tag right, it’s a bit longer and more chatty than how people do it right? Okay, hitting publish before I change my mind :D 

Let me know if you love these too and music recommendations are always welcome  x 

Sharu

iPad Pro :)

Yayy!

iPad Pro joins the family! (and that too in Rose Gold, I’m dying❤ ) I’m a person who is always online; I rarely disconnect. So this has almost my replaced laptop for me. And my mobile is out-of-sight when I come home to this beaut. All the amazing stuff they say about the impeccable display, four stereo-speakers, 12MP iSight camera, 4K videos and all that jazz is truer than it’s true tone display. (see what I did there ? lmao) SO happy.

I honestly thought it’s a bit too late for a review (and I still feel the same way) because, although I got my hands on it just now, it’s been around for quite a bit some time. But it’s a HUGE part of my life, and deserves a spot on the life adventures and shenanigans of Sharu AKA, this blog. Also the media is still not over it apparently.. so I might as well add an update!

We got the 9.7 inch WiFi 128GB model in Rose Gold. I’m not reviewing this, although you could find the spec and details anywhere on the internet.

Some shots for your viewing pleasure (and also a little nudge if you were plaaaaaning to get one! ..)

I’m only the photographer. I’m so proud of my mum for having such a beautiful balcony garden and being so bloody brilliant at it! 💖

That’s it then.. Ciao! 😉

Sharu 

 

My Netflix TV Show Recommendations

This post has been in my drafts for far-too-long. I’ve become so sluggish lately and finally, it has found it’s moment of dawn! So without further ado.. *insert drumroll..umm, or tap on the octapad if you fancy* 

Stranger Things:

Even before the whole world started going crazy over this one, Netflix uploaded a teaser for this series just saying “coming soon”. I immediately added it to my Netflix watch list and binge-watched it the day it came out.  Everything was intriguing in this show – the 80’s vibe, kids are the leads, paranormal meets science meets retro theme, and fabulous acting by every single member of the cast!

Gist: Takes place in 1983, when Joyce Byers lives in a small Indiana town When her 12-year-old son, Will, goes missing, she launches a terrifying investigation into his disappearance with local authorities. As they search for answers, they unravel a series of extraordinary mysteries involving secret government experiments, unnerving supernatural forces, and a very unusual little girl.

Mr.Robot:

This show, OMG. If you’ve not seen a single episode of this one and now you decide to, you have NO idea what you’re signing up for.

Elliot is an IT-security engineer by day and vigilante hacker by night. He uses his intelligent hacking skills to do good in the most subtle ways; like exposing a cheating husband, turning a child pornographer over to the police etc. But things take a bigger turn when he is approached by a leader of hacker-group, identifying himself as “Mr.Robot”.  Elliot always wants to save the world. How much is he willing to do, now that he actually can, is the mind-flippin story.  It’s bloody well scripted and really messes with your head on what the society deals, expects, wants and does. Pure gold this one.

F**k society.

Update: I remembered it’s not a Netflix show, I just added it on impulse because.. if I publish a recommendations post without Mr.Robot in it.. I’ll be damned. 

Gist: Elliot, a cyber-security engineer suffering from anxiety, works for a corporation and hacks felons by night. Panic strikes him after a cryptic anarchist recruits him to destroy the same corporation.

Daredevil:

Daredevil is a superhero series but just so much more agreeable with Charlie Cox being a blindly adorable (pun intended) lawyer in the day and vigilante at night. He uses his Daredevil alter-ego and fights off villains who always seems to escape the law.

Gist: As a child Matt Murdock was blinded by a chemical spill in a freak accident. Instead of limiting him it gave him superhuman senses that enabled him to see the world in a unique and powerful way. Now he uses these powers to deliver justice, not only as a lawyer in his own law firm, but also as vigilante at night, stalking the streets of Hell’s Kitchen as Daredevil, the man without fear.

 Suits:

 

Who wouldn’t love a character who could manage a good sarcasm-laced comeback every single time? And when he is New York’s most sought-after attorney, it’s that much more cooler when he seals the deal😉

Gist: Mike Ross, a talented young college dropout, is hired as an associate by Harvey Specter, one of New York’s best lawyers. They must handle cases while keeping Mike’s qualifications a secret.

Sherlock:

The fact that this show takes place in London – the land of British accents, high collar coats, and Bennedict’s high cheekbones are enough reason to fall head over heels with this show. And we are floored furthermore with this awestruck script, screenplay and performances that takes Sherlock and his adventures to a whole new level. Jim Moriarty is the most classic super-villain; you can’t do anything, but admire!

Gist: In this modernized version of the Conan Doyle characters, using his detective plots, Sherlock Holmes lives in early 21st century London and acts more cocky towards Scotland Yard’s detective inspector Lestrade because he’s actually less confident. Doctor Watson is now a fairly young veteran of the Afghan war, less adoring and more active.

Brooklyn Nine Nine:

This might not be one of the widely popular shows unlike others in the list. But if you want a good laugh from a bunch of detectives who are not stupid, but still manage to make everything funny – you have arrived at your destination. They’re real cool actually ; it’s just that the dialogues are so well-written and extremely hilarious with everyone just oozing sarcasm word-after-word! You really need to have a quick wit, to catch em all.

Gist: Jake Peralta, a talented detective, along with his diverse but carefree team, struggles when a new commanding officer, Ray Holt, is appointed to their precinct.

I watch about a ten more shows, but if I have to recommend the best, these top the list!🙂 And ofcourse Game of Thrones is there on top of my fave list, but this is to Netflix and chill  :D Literally folks!

Do you watch any of these too? We’ll discuss the plots and spoil each other *squeaks* x 

Sharu

 

 

Of sensitivity

1. Do you feel everything. A bit too much?
2. You observe everything. I repeat, everything.
3. Your degree of reaction to a matter is more than others.
4. You just cant not control tears. Ugh.
5. You overthink, if you’re overthinking too much. You get the point.

Welcome to Fight Club.

I mean yeah, there have been terms like over-sensitive, short-tempered and introvert thrown around a lot. While I happily accept that I’m introverted, the first two terms battle for dominance all the time. When you are a little more sensitive to people and situations, you should know how to cope. Trust me, I suck at this. That’s why I know what not to do.

 

When something bothers you, talk it out. Communicate. It might just be something normal to others and give an impression like you’re over-reacting to a situation. But keep in mind, not everyone feels about it as deeply as you do. No one is wrong here. Stop beating yourself up that they don’t give the same attention to it as you do. Everyone is different. Acceptance is key. You are over-sensitive and that is okay. But just learn to handle it correctly. Sometimes we tend to lash out all the pent-up emotions that are brimming up to the surface and face such hard remorse that will swallow us whole.

The one worst thing for Highly Sensitive Personality is, everything is HUGE. You’re very angry, very sad or feel extremely sorry. Nothing is mediocre. You invest hundred percent of your emotions into one feeling alone and it will knock you out. Just try to balance out your emotions. Accept that you are going to feel it all in a totally different dynamics than some people and handle the situations more appropriately.

Keep one thing in mind, you are not different and don’t expect special care from people. You’re not a beautiful or unique snowflake (who got the reference)!  Everyone has their own battles. Overthinking makes you over-analyze and takes the fun out of everything. Use this sensitive-trait to your advantage and do everything with passion and treat everyone with love. Take risks, feel deeply, love unconditionally, laugh uncontrollably and live freely. You’ll be fab😉 !

Side Note: I just realized that almost every article I could find on this topic in the interweb has a picture of a girl looking very sad and melancholic in a field or wrapped up in comfy blankets. Duh. Since when did having emotions become gender-specific? We have a long way to go apparently.

Mini Vacation / Yelagiri

At the beginning of this month, I went on a quick trip with cousins and family to Yelagiri. We wanted to go someplace cool and this had the shortest climb up the hill. Grandparents were coming along and we didn’t wanna put them under a long hill travel.

We left around 10AM from Chennai and reached a little after 1PM. Our place of stay was Sterling Resorts and my roomie was my cousin! We got the only room with the view and had so much fun with boombox, so many mugs of hot-chocolates and watching late night final destination! (this movie never fails to feed my paranoia!) We visited this lake there, went boating and came across this adventure sports arena right next to the lake. There are three such places in Yelagiri and this one was super fun, that much I’m sure. I thought I’d never do this, but when the tiny tots were signing-up (with the trainer supervision ofcourse) I jus had to go! It was so much fun. I also decided ATV is just not for me. I’m power-steering kinda gal apparently  But looooved zip-lining!

We hit the pool that evening although it was freeeeeezing (19-ish degrees) and we were a crazy enough bunch to dive right in. Then after a bit of chess, monopoly-war, absolute nonsense karoke with the kids..we were off. It was a fairly short vacay, but much needed break!🙂❤

Tip: Take more pictures of the place!
I just realized while scrounging for pictures to upload that 96% of pictures taken during the trip are selfies (either solo or with the cuz). So I’m left with very few shots of Yelagiri here.

 

Kabali | Movie Experience

Kabali is a movie that has to be experienced. A review doesn’t do justice to Superstar and his fandom !

I repeat, just like a million other people on the inter-web, this is a very old wine in a fairly new bottle. Director Ranjith of Madras fame has delivered a movie that’s very simple, direct and point blank. He is honestly stuck between showing the reality of Tamilians in Malaysia and the pressure to make everything that Rajinikanth does massy.

“Script is the hero” goes out of the window.  As we all pretty much figured it out from the trailer, Gangster is hunted down, arrested and comes back and becomes a even more badass gangster. I mean, really now? Well, that is the story line. Atleast the baddies could have been… well, bad? They are the 43 Gang *that’s supposed to make you scared oooooohhh* who just couldn’t give out any bad vibes with all the purple blazers and blue bow-ties going on!

Songs by Santhosh Narayanan fails to impress other than Neruppuda BGM and Maya Nadhi <3 (and the scene in which it comes up! *cries a little*) . 

Supporting characters like John Vijay and Attaakthi Dinesh were too good! Dinesh’s over-enthusiasm was a breath of fresh air in the movie😀 Dhanshika was killer and Radhika Apte was portrayed like someone who is a very integral part of the movie, but at the end of the day, she didn’t do much either. The script that Ranjith had created with a star like Rajinikanth on board is honestly a little confusing. Is the point of the movie is to depict the struggles of Malaysian Tamils or show how true love waits for you (although not enough back story was given to support this theory), or gang-wars or just what?! We’ll never know.

Rajinikanth has given it his all. Exudes charisma and signature charm wherever possible to satisfy the audience, but the man can only do so much with a script as weak as this one.

The movie is, wait for it, bad – but it’s not Rajinikanth who let us down.

Not hot enough. #NeruppuDa

Paradise Biriyani OMR /Review

Well well, here we go. Paradise opened up its first branch in Chennai earlier this week and ofcourse I went right-in on day-2😀 A quick summary for y’all below🙂

📌 Place: In Kandhanchavadi.. After Max showroom, just before seashell.

🚘 Parking: Nightmare at peak hours. Vallet should be introduced as service lane is always choked here.

⏰ Waiting: 20mins waiting. We went just a day after the launch. So maybe that’s even more a reason. But waiting lounge available.

✨ Ambience: just like any Buhari or Zaitoon.

🍗 Food : Ordered a Full Chicken Briyani (serves two) , Full chicken kebab for starter (8-10 pieces) , Paradise spl chicken curry (with bones) . And coke to go. The kebabs were TOP CLASS. We wanted it extra spicy and damn, cooked so soft, so flavourful and spicy. The Biriyani was just like the Hyderabad branch. No difference in taste. It’s white rice, masala rice, meat layering. With lots of spices dominating in your tastebuds! Had lots of chicken pieces in it.. Yet again, boiled very well and so soft. Loved it. We probably should have done with chicken tikka as usual.. This gravy was OK types and we didn’t even eat a single piece. It was humongous !

💰Price : Total damage was 970 including tax and two glasses of coke.

I promptly posted this on Zomato the same day, but took me multiple reroutes before I realized, “Wow, I have a neglected food review category on my blog!”😀 All said and done, you’d love it only if you are open to try new flavors. Hyderabadi style is very unique and you;ll have to relish the flavors🙂

Happy eating! :’)

Oh, hello July!

Half a year just whisked past me and I have no clue. What have I done? Six months down, nothing remarkable yet.. Maybe 2017 is THE year😀

I always get back from a blogging hiatus with “oops, sorry I ignored my blog (to whomsoever it may concern) ” or such stuff. But this time it was different. I stayed away from blogging because I didn’t have enough inspiration in me to create something and I didn’t want to BS on my blog just for the sake of publishing content regularly🙂 If time is what I need to get back the blogging mojo, then so be it.

And whilst I was waiting for the return of the said mojo, July greets me. I don’t know how to feel about time atm. I mean, it’s going too fast but it’s filled with lots of white spaces and noises if you know what I mean. This seriously sets back my mood like, there goes another year.. What have you done?

I’m not complaining or venting by any means. But are we all happy? Are we where we wanna be? If you wanna be sipping champagne in Paris right now, that’s not what I’m talking about. If yes, God bless your soul; I’m happy for ya. And a teeny bit jealous frankly. But if not, what are you doing to change that? Do you even try? Do you even KNOW what you want from your life ? Because without a destination in mind.. I’m not sure I can handle with I ll go where the map takes me attitude. I need a plan. For that I need to know what I want. And I very honestly don’t. I mean, I’m doing fine by all means. But it’s not the jump outta bed, it’s another day josh that’s going on here. And without that my darlin, we are all just existing, not living.🙂

So my word for July is KNOW.

Know what you are.

Know what you want.

Know where you stand.

Know if it is enough.

Know what you are getting yourself into.

Know if it is worth it.

If you don’t know any of it… Just do it anyways. You’ll know by the end of it😉

Stay smiling🙂 !

Love,

Sharu xoxo

Of buzzing and awakenings

I wake up to the sound of buzzing in my ears. Not the concrete jungle’s construction noises that I’m used to, but a warm buzzing which is vaguely soothing to the soul. 

I crack open my eyelids and search for the source and spot it behind the curtain of my bedside window. A bee. A big cute stupid bee that is frantically buzzing aloud and banging itself face first into the glass panel of my window. Banging it’s little head so hard, to  reach out to the freedom of free air and limitless space. 

I sighed and got out of bed to slide open the window right above and directed it outside. 

Shouldn’t we all live little more  like the bee? We have endless opportunities and limitless choices. But we choose to live in ignorance of it all.  It’s a wise little bee indeed.🙂

 

Chapter 7 |Queen of the Cursed Land

The story continues from Chapter 6 – Want To Be or Not to Be written by Katie Nathan.

The throne room blurred out of focus as she drew closer and closer. What is going on? What is this place? If I’m dead, then so are these people? What even is the point of crowning someone as Queen for one day? Her mind was spinning out of control and she couldn’t take it anymore. She needed to get out of this place and at once. But it is not easy to even device an exit plan without having no clue where to exit from! Priya decided then, that the wisest thing was to maintain the image and go with the flow and figure out as much as possible before her time is up in this godforsaken planet, land , century? Priya sighed aloud at the uncertainty clouding her mind and didn’t notice what was ahead of her.

She looked up when everyone ushering around her slowed down. There in all the magnificent glory was the throne. Made of glass and reflecting light coming in from all the windows in the throne room, it was sight to marvel at! A gasp escaped her lips against her protest and Nach snickered. She pulled her gown up and ascended to the throne and looked at the crown waiting for her in a plush velvet cushion. She couldn’t believe in the turn of events that made her land here, but if this was all a dream, it was one hell of a night.

Music started floating around her and rising up to a higher note, more enthusiastic and with purpose. The ceremony began and she was crowned the Queen and she later learned that apparently she is now the Queen of Irea. That name struck a chord somewhere in her mind, but she couldn’t place it right away. The day wore on and so many faeries and elves asked her for a dance. She tasted the best wine she’d ever had and drunk herself silly and chatted away to everyone who came to wish her. Many even gifted her presents to congratulate her on her coronation. She zoned out for sometime and decided to just enjoy and relish this deceiving royalty and not search answers.

Priya’s eyelids were so heavy and took monumental effort to crack open. It was 5:42 PM. She was in her bed, in the same dress she was crowned in. She hurriedly felt around her head and was a little relieved despite herself to find the crown beside her pillow. She breathed a sigh of relief and rolled over already cursing this dress with multiple layers of lace. That’s when her eyes landed on the pile of gifts that she received, meticulously arranged in one corner of her room. She walked over to the pile and began unwrapping the gifts. Empty Leather Journal, Candles – lots of them , a tiny jar of glitter power (?) later and more mirrors which reflected nothing later,she came across a black leather pouch. She doesn’t remember whom she got it from. She could just vaguely map this gift to a tall man with a hat, and she hadn’t even bothered to ask his name or take a closer look at his face.

She loosened the thread of the leather pouch and peeked in, only to be greeted by shiny hazel eyes. She dropped it and rushed to the other end of the room shrieking very unladylike. Definitely not Queenly, she assessed a moment later. She hid behind the post of her bed and waited. Then the frog came out, and jumped on her dressing stool and then on top her jewellery case. It faced her and croaked out “You will not solve this mystery without some answers. But the curse on this land prevents everyone from telling you the truth. So answer my riddles and then ask me the right questions; I promise to answer with the truth.”

Handing over the baton to Krupa Kadir here. 

This post is a part of the “Tagged” contest organized by writer Kaarthika and the Chennai Bloggers Club.  The book, “Tagged” by Kaarthika is releasing on May 29 in Amazon.