Preeti Shenoy's blog.

  Recently, when I went to  the Delhi International airport, the mesmerizing sculpture (figures sculpted by Nikhil Bhandari)  of the twelve poses in 'Surya namaskar', caught my eye. I stood and stared at it for some time.  It was brilliant! Yoga and I go back a long way. It was a subject taught in my school and I am now grateful for this treasure of a foundation, laid in my early years. I was in Class seven when I was first chosen to be a part of the team for 'Yoga demonstrations' at various locations and associations, which my 'Yoga sir' was associated with.  I was probably chosen as I was pencil thin as a kid, with an extremely flexible body and could master the poses quite perfectly in no time. Today 28 years later, my love affair with Yoga still continues. I swear by yoga. It is truly the best gift you can give your body. I am proud that I can still do all the asanas (the yoga poses) which I could do when I was 12! That is the magic of yoga. It is

Place: Bentota and Colombo, Srilanka. Year: 2011 Month: December Occasion: My birthday Discovered the beauty of mangroves for the first time in my life. And the wonderfully colourful masks. A kitten which  was smitten. So smitten that it even followed me everywhere as soon as it woke up. I was so tempted to smuggle it back to India! And beautiful baby turtles in a turtle hatchery. Lots of happy memories like the Buddhist temple we visited, the thousands of fish which nibbled at my feet, the beaches, the shopping and the really chilled out feeling. A beautiful place for a vacation (although I must say it was a LOT like Kerala) For Information about Srilanka and holidays there click here. __________________________________________________________________________ If you like my blog, you might enjoy my books :) Grab them   here .   (You don't need a credit card. You can pay cash on delivery) or if you are an Amazon Fan, you can grab t

A big thank you to all of you who left comments on the previous posts, especially the post about mothers and daughters. Each and every comment is read and cherished and appreciated. Apologies, I have not been able to reply individually, because of the blog-marathon i am currently doing. (Forgivable, right, considering you get a new post every single day? thank you--I know you're sweet that way :) ) Today I am sharing with you pictures of cards I made. You can check out the whole album here. I had made so many and now they are all sold! A lot of people messaged me on FB asking if I would sell the cards. Handmade cards sell anywhere between Rs.100--Rs.250/- I think handmade cards are anyday better than the usual ready-made, mass produced, run of the mill cards. There is a LOT of effort which goes into making cards. For the cards I make, the accessories are  all sourced from my various travels. Whenever I see a nice thing which I can use for card making, I buy it and add it t

My daughter is at an age which is wonderful. (She will be eleven soon). She is at a stage where she is not a baby anymore and does not need her mother all the time. Yet she is not old enough to not need me at all. That feels good, actually. She is my hair stylist and fashion consultant. These days we go out together,just she and me--Girlie time. We really have a ball. We check out clothes, shoes and people. We joke and laugh. I love her chuckles, her little snippets of wise observation, her crystal clear logic and her fantastic sense of humour. I see a lot of myself in her, yet she is so different from me.  She loves her art, just like me, and this is a picture she recently made. Her individuality and style is so darn different from mine, and yet I see in her that same angst I felt as a child, when a picture I created did not match up to the expectations inside my head.  Her BEEEEEEESSST friend is Nikita. The other day she came upto me and said she wants to gift Nikita some

Madhuri and me A friend of mine and fellow Author Madhuri Banerjee (who wrote 'Losing my virginity and other dumb ideas') wrote this very thought provoking post on friendships in her blog. Interestingly, I had the exact same experience as Madhuri, for almost all of my book launches. A lot of my fans and readers attended my launches (and I was very happy they did). But the people I considered 'my  very good friends' did not. And it wasn't as though I had not communicated to them how much having them there means to me, and it wasn't as though they had an extremely pressing reason for not attending. There were absolutely no excuses given too nor a call or a text asking how the launches went. They were at home, they chose not to attend as they felt it was 'too much of a bother'. Mayank and me at the Pune launch Some of my good friends did make an extra effort to attend and I felt grateful for their presence. (One friend came all the way

It isn't easy, this modern life. Deadlines, E-mail messages that have to be replied to immediately, meetings, travel, work-pressure, things on the home-front, kids, daily chores and a fifty things that are unaccounted for. It is only natural to feel bogged down, exhausted and unfocussed. How does one keep one's spirits high in this daily hustle and bustle? Here are five instant pick-me-ups that work for me every single time. And they aren't too hard to do either. 1. Music  Billy Joel had said " I think music in itself is healing. It's an explosive expression of humanity. It's something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we're from, everyone loves music. " I can't agree more. I think what happens is that we listen to music as a 'background' track. What we should instead do is take five minutes out. Go to a place where you will not be disturbed. Plug in your ear-phones and close your eyes and  LISTEN to that one song t

If you have joined me just now, this is a series of a blog marathon that I am doing. the first post was about making a portrait and what goes into it. The second asked "Are you in a drift mode?" This is the third. I am sharing some snap shots from my garden. Gardening is something that gives me immense joy. It is indeed amazing to grow something so magnificent and watch it bloom. Such beauty in flowers! I can spend hours in my garden. To grow any plant, you really need just good soil, a container, some manure and daily watering. Even if you live in a flat or an apartment, you can grow them in pots. They instantly transform the place and add magic to it. If you live in India, all you have to do is drive to the local nursery, get a few plants and then call your local 'maali' who will happily re-pot them for you. Make an arrangement with him to add manure and loosen the soil, once in fifteen days or so. All you will have to do is water the plants on a daily basis

Apologies if you have come here looking for a post to read. This will soon appear in my book  which will be like a sequel to  '34 Bubblegums and Candies'. I had to remove it as making it available online would be very unfair to my publishers who have placed so much trust in me. A heartfelt thanks for your support and understanding. Thanks for continuing to read what I write. __________________________________________________________________________ If you like my blog, you might enjoy my books :) Grab them here . or if you are an Amazon Fan, you can grab them here  And you can interact with me on my FB page . I almost always reply :)

Okay folks--Going by the huge encouragement  I h ave got on FB as well as twitter, where I asked if I should do a blog marathon again (have done it for three consecutive years now--2009, 2010 and once  and  2011), I have decided to take the plunge and do my fourth now, starting today. Wheeeeeeeeee :) So starting today, for the next 30 days, this blog will be updated daily! :) On some days, when I am too tired to write a new post, or if I (or you!) feel bored hearing the sound of my own words,there might be guest posts by some interesting people. Some days, there might be just a picture that I might want to share with you and sometimes maybe even an interesting video I found or a dish I cooked. Either ways I promise you  all good stuff :) Not 'filler stuff' written to just make a post. (Readers who have followed my blog marathons do know that). It would be great if you could join me on this journey by leaving me a comment, just so I know you hear me. I might not be able

This is a pencil portrait (it is different from a sketch) I completed on Sunday. It took me about twelve hours of work. I am surprised when people who have read my books, tell me that they did not know I  also paint and make portraits.I do indeed accept portrait commissions, and am currently working on a commission, apart from writing my fourth ninth book. Most people who receive a portrait of a loved one as a gift are indeed delighted beyond measure, and the picture becomes a treasured possession. This is what Swati (one of my first portrait commissions) had said " Hey Preeti Once again thanks so much for making this the best birthday gift I've ever given my husband. The look of pure joy on his face when he unwrapped the portrait will be one of my most treasured memories :). Hoping you get lots more commissions :). I really liked the way you were so involved in the whole process, even messaging me on his birthday and asking how he liked the gift. It'

Painting by Preeti Shenoy. Acrylic on paper. size: 10"x7" Come dance with me Said the Candle to the flame I so badly want to, but I can’t And I am playing no game. Why not, the candle wanted to know Everybody should be able to dance if they wanted to. Ah my friend, if only life was so simple There are rules to be followed, through and through. All you need is a bit of a will A little imagination and lot of desire I will make your wishes come true, And you will fly, you will soar higher. So the flame stepped out Gingerly at first, not used to the candle But oh he was such a gentleman Her fears he knew how to handle. She slowly let go As he led her gently on And as she learnt to trust She found her fears were slowly gone. And so they danced, a  dance of wild abandon, Even the moonlight  seemed to fade The whole night, ablaze with passion They were inseparable and the flame now unafraid. © 2012 Preeti Shen

Youth Diaries published an interview with me which I really enjoyed doing. It was fun! They asked me such nice questions! Sunaina who interviewed me said  on her FB "A writer, a poet, an artist, a mother of two kids-she is an epitome of beauty with brains!! :-) And I am so glad that I got to interview her!! :-D" How sweet is that?! :) Here is the link to the Interview: http://youthdiaries.in/an-interview-with-preeti-shenoy/ And I am disabling comments on this post--so it saves you the trouble of commenting on two posts. Do leave your comments there :) Would love (as always) to hear what you have to say :) ______________________________________________________________________ Pssst: If you like my writing, you might enjoy my books :) Grab them here . or if you are an Amazon Fan, you can grab them here  And you can interact with me on my FB page . I almost always reply :)

Hi there, Its a long time since I did a 'Fun meme'. I have been doing such a lot of 'serious' writing these days (have already started working on my fourth book!) that I wanted to just do something on my blog which was fun. So here is a meme from Sunday Stealing which appealed to me..I am doing only one part of it (It was in three parts). 1) Do you tend to hold grudges against people who have done you wrong? Sadly yes  but only if I was extremely hurt. I do want to let go. Holding a grudge is like harboring poison in your soul. It's truly horrible to hold a grudge. 2) What is your astrological sign? Saggitarius 3) Do you save money for anything? What? Used to save when I was a student. I don't consciously 'save' anymore. Thank Lord. 4) What's the last thing you purchased? Some superb DK books for my children from Pageturner Bangalore. (They have a good collection for kids) 5) Have you ever had a relationshi

The other day a friend and I were talking. She said "All I want is to be happy."  "And what would make you really happy?" I asked. She thought for two minutes and then discovered she really did not know! "Shopping? Watching a movie? Partying? What is it?" I persisted. Ever since I have turned into a full time author, the motivation behind people's inclination  to do (or not do) certain things intrigue me more than ever before.  She said that all of it was important, but the happiness those things gave her were only temporary. "But happiness indeed is a temporary emotion," I said, the quasi-philosophical streak in me, making its guest appearance, sensing an opportune moment. We concluded that we can be content even if we cannot be happy all the time. And a positive attitude really adds spark to life.  Later, when I thought about it, I felt that people by nature are either pooh-bears, Eeyores or Tiggers :) If you do not know wh

It was a few months ago that I discovered the art of paper quilling. I read up a lot about it on the Internet and  I have written a post about it and also posted some pictures of cards that I made here. and some more that I made here .   Of course, one gets better with practice. I find  paper-quilling an excellent way to de-stress. When I sit down to quill, I forget everything! What you need for paper quilling is just some quilling paper, glue, a quilling stick (not essential--you can just start off by rolling it around a tooth pick too) and loads of patience. It is extremely  addictive, once you get the hang of it.  I can sit for hours, creating new designs. Here are some cards I made  over the last two days. (and I am quite pleased with them) .They are all my own designs. I used foam sheets (you can buy them in a shop which sells craft supplies) for the Pig's face as well as for the grass and the butterfly. I think it has combined well with the p