Showing gratitude and being mindful are the top priorities in my life recently. I realized the happiness and satisfaction of being grateful for whatever I have. Loving family members, own house, enough money for needs and satisfying career and business - I can't ask more from God. 

 

2023 just flying by and we are entering a new year. Since blogging has taken a backseat, I couldn't write any gratitude lists in 2023. So, here is one for the whole year!

Gratitude List for 2023

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Family

A supportive family is the biggest strength for anyone. Don't you agree? If you can vent out your frustrations without inhibition to other family members, that itself is a great deal. If you can be YOU, that is the ultimate happiness in a family. Iam grateful every day for that.

Dance

Our dance school grew a lot in this year. It is a productive year with many performances and watching students getting better day by day. I am grateful to see determined students who wanted to learn more and try to give their best in performances. I love watching my students practice at home everyday and getting better.

I have never experienced the beauty of being a teacher earlier and I am feeling proud. We have successfully performed on our Annual Recital in September. 

Travel

Why this has to be on top 3? You know me :-) If there is one part of life which keeps me motivated, it's travel. We could visit Utah and some of the wonderful national parks - Zion, Bryce and Capitol Reef. The beauty of Utah is gorgeous and there are no words to explain. 

We visited the remote parts of Oklahoma for thanksgiving and enjoyed our boat tour around bald Cypress trees at Caddo lake state park. That travelogue would be up soon on my blog!

The beauty of Bryce Canyon National park

We are planning for a trip to theme parks by the end of the year and kids are very excited. I am excited to cross a few more states in our checklist. 

Work

This year, I learned a lot and experimented with a testing tool called 'Cypress'. Java Script is not as comforting as Java in the beginning, but I am happy to getting used to it this year. I explored a lot technically and improved my skills on creating a test framework for a web application. 

There is still a lot to learn, but overall, a very productive year in my professional life. I am grateful to my mentors and leads. 

Photo by Lukas: https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-retractable-pen-574070/

Settling in New House

It's not in the top of the list, but I am happy to settle in our nest this year. A ranch style single storied home as per my wishes :-)

 I don't want to use stairs everyday and stress my knees further (doing that already with dance, anyways - no extra burden). I am grateful for our backyard view and the colors of sky that I get to see for every Sunrise and Sunset. 

There is a lot more today at home-front, but as usual it's not on my high priority list. I wanted to buy more indoor and outdoor plants and setup a cozy corner at home with our artwork. I want this cozy corner to be our place to read books or do yoga and meditate. That's for next year.

Parents Visit

I went to India and brought my parents for their first time visit. I am grateful for them as it takes a lot to travel so many hours on flight and the journey is not that comfortable to US. 

I cherish all those moments I got with them this year - Celebrating Diwali, Visiting Big bend and White Sand dunes last year, Celebrating our housewarming this year, kids' birthdays, kids' band recital, temple visits, showing them Christmas lights and Halloween decors blah blah.. Our family made wonderful memories.

Books

I have read a lot of books this year. I have set a goal of completing 20 books which is below my capacity, so I achieved it many months ahead, I think in around August itself. Cool :-)

There are many good books I got to read like these.

Photo by Lisa Fotios: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-person-flipping-book-page-1750566/

I am grateful for the suggestions of fellow book bloggers and readers whom I follow on Instagram. I am also grateful to the local library where I can get so many books for free.

I am thankful to all the authors who send me great free books to write a review and share my opinion.

Podcasts

Podcasts are my new found interest. I enjoyed listening to many podcasts while driving to and fro to office this year. I especially liked huberman labs - A science and neuroscience research podcast.

These are a few other suggestions if you want to try podcasts.

Image by Kirill from Pixabay

So, that's about my gratitude list for 2023. What are you grateful for? Please do let me know in comments.

I wish you a happy holiday season, and best wishes!

Until next time,

The Gardens and Sculptures - Zilker Park & Umlauf Sculpture Garden in Austin, TX

 Here it is - My Latest travelogue from Austin.

Zilker Park came on the top of the list from the suggestions of friends on places to visit in Austin. Umlauf Sculpture Garden has some good reviews too, but our visit was a coincidence.

Starting our travels this summer, we drove downtown on a Saturday noon to visit Zilker Park. We weren't sure where to park, thus, we drove towards a parking lot opposite Umlauf Sculpture Garden, which is also the parking for Barton creek swim area.

Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum

The Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum is an art museum and an outdoor sculpture garden, with the artistic works of an Americal sculptor - Charles Umlauf. This garden is adjacent to Zilker Park. 

This peaceful 6-acre garden has over 40 sculptures set under shady native Texan plants. The area is serene and very relaxing. 

Admission is $7 for adults and $3 for students below 13 years. Parking is limited but there is free parking available on the opposite side of the road.

 Zilker Park

This 351-acre park is the most loved park in Austin. But, beware, as it's always crowded.

Entry is $5 per car. The place is popular for botanical gardens, Barton Springs pool, fields for volleyball, disc golf, and nature trails.

We can also board the mini train called Zilker eagle which circles the park. Zilker hillside theater, Mcbeth Recreation center, and Zilker nature preserve are some other attractions.

I loved strolling through the rose garden, herb garden, Japanese garden, and Hartman Prehistoric garden. We also loved the Woodland Faerie trail which will be on display every year till August. Every year Faerie architects create homes for fairies. Aren't these mini-homes artistic?

Hope you like these photos. Let me know in the comments how they are!

Until next time,

Linking this to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne at everydaygyaan.

Top Gun and The Great Indian Kitchen #MondayMusings

 It has been 3 weeks since we returned from India, still, our brains are set in Vacation mode. Not our fault, when we are pampered so much by the family members :-)

We took one week of complete rest watching just movies and tidying up the home. Overcoming Jet lag also took around 5 days, so you can guess that one week has gone so quick.

So, this post is about a relaxing week that we had and 2 movies that I watched.

Top Gun

Have you watched Top Gun by Tom Cruise? It's an old movie of course, but fortunately, I managed to watch it along with my kids. 80's movies are much different than our current movies. We all loved it. The plot, actors, photography, and action scenes are very good.

Since Top Gun: Maverick (sequel to Top Gun) is released the same week, we all watched our first movie after covid in a theater. It's a great experience. The first half is a little slow like 80's movies but it slowly catches up in the second half. 

The combination of emotions and action is well depicted. Like everyone else, I also couldn't see much difference in Tom Cruise when compared to part 1. Part 1 spirit is maintained and emotions are carried from it.

It is not that easy to explain war strategies to the movie audience in an engaging way with emotions. Top Gun team has done well in that aspect. The background score is a big plus to the movie. 

Overall, a must-watch for anyone who loves action with emotions. 

The Great Indian Kitchen

This movie is on Netflix and you can catch it in Malayalam with English Subtitles if you haven't watched it yet.

What's the movie about?

There are only a few characters and the female protagonist is an educated lady who enjoys classical dance and teaching. It is her story of trying to be a submissive wife married to a person in a traditional Kerala family. Like any other bride, she tries to adapt to new customs and traditions but reaches a saturation point atlast. 

This is directed by Joe Baby and it is critically acclaimed for the way it is bang on patriarchy and the rules set for women in the majority of traditional families.

This movie talks about many subtle things about patriarchy that women can relate to. Cleaning the dirty dining table , washing the dishes, mopping the floor, cooking, and performing Pooja in the evening.. there is no end to the list of tasks that we see the protagonist performing.

The movie also touched on the traditions related to menstruation. The age-old practice of sleeping on the floor during periods, and not being allowed to touch anything, etc., The scene where the woman is scolded for trying to help her husband get up when he falls from the bike sparks our thoughts on why menstruation practices are considered more important than taking care of another person.

I also liked the way the movie ended. The man marries another woman and our heroine takes out her anger on her in-laws and starts her life as a dance teacher as she wanted to. It feels bad that the man marries another woman, but that's how society is and the movie didn't try to hide the truth for a good climax.

Overall, it's not an entertaining movie but a natural movie that Indian women can very well relate to. This movie tries its best to show the ignored unpaid work done by homemakers with a zooming lens.

If you are an Indian woman, then it's a must-watch. If you don't prefer natural movies with social issues, this is not for you.

Until next time,

 

Linking to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne at everydaygyaan.com

One Year through the Pandemic #MondayMusings

 It's been more than one year that I traveled on a business trip on March 1st. The Pandemic has just started while we were returning and no one guessed then, how much damage it will cause to the world. 

We might have attended office just a week or more and we didn't see our colleagues directly after that. Working from home, Managing kids' online learning setups, coordinating with their homework, meetings, my office work, cooking - it was a lot to take in suddenly. 

What's changed after the pandemic?

After 1 year, the world changed a lot. We even got a vaccine and I got the first dose as well. We all settled in working from home, managing zillion tasks effortlessly. Kids got used to playing at home, learning online, got used to spending time without meeting their friends. I think, everyone suffered and I feel, kids have seen a new world due to covid at home. Around 10 days ago, kids played in the playground heartily after a long time.

Is it over yet?

It's not over yet. Everyone should get vaccinated. We don't even know the side effects or efficiency of vaccines yet, or if we have to take it every year like a flu vaccine. Kids didn't get an approved vaccine, but still, we are gearing up to send them to school for the upcoming school year. It's a bit scary and of course, not over yet. We are not sure about the second wave. 

Impact on our Society

Many businesses got losses. Many people lost their jobs. Many died, many got sick and many survived. It's a mix of emotions really. Here in the USA, we are hopeful that everyone will get vaccinated by American Independence day(July 4th). Things have already started to get normal. 

What the Pandemic taught us?

• Nothing is more important in life than our family's health and love. 

• Every Cloud has a silver lining.

• The world needs kindness more than money.

• We should have an attitude of Gratitude.

• We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. 

What do you feel about 2020 and Covid? Do you feel hopeful now?

Do let me know in the comments.

Until next time,

Linking this to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne at everydaygyaan.com.

Also, linking this to Anita's Inspire me Monday weekly linkup. 

Million Dollar Highway and Telluride - A Travelogue

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Here is the Day #3 itinerary of our Colorado SouthWest trip. We visited Black Canyon of Gunnison on Day#1 and #2. 

Due to Covid, we stayed in the same hotel in Montrose all 3 days to cover the places around. Hampton Inn Hotel in Montrose made sure that they followed all safety procedures for Covid. Rooms are exceptionally clean, contactless check-in available and they provided to-go complimentary breakfast as well. 

We started to Telluride from Montrose in the morning after breakfast. On the way, we made a quick stop at Dennis Weaver Memorial Park in Ridgeway. Just to see this Giant Eagle up close. This park also has river access, so you can get your feet wet and relax.

Dennis Weaver Memorial park, Ridgeway

We reached Telluride by afternoon. The drive was scenic. We took the free telluride Gondola and had lunch in the downtown area. 

Biking paths from Telluride Gondola

Bridal Veil Falls (the tallest falls in Colorado) is not far from downtown. We could see the falls and the powerhouse from the parking area but didn't have enough time to hike to the falls. This seemed to be a busy area with parking lots full. Someday, we would love to drive on the dirt road to reach Powerhouse on Jeep / 4 wheel drive. 

Bridal Veil Falls, Telluride

I am not sure what these 2 blue lakes are. Seems like they got color from some mineral deposits. But, they looked cool!

Telluride

Our next destination was Ouray. We had to skip Box Canyon falls on the way, as we thought we need at least 2 hrs time to explore the falls.

The US route 550 between Ouray to Silverton is known as Million Dollar Highway. It indeed gives million-dollar views!

Ouray

The highway got its name as someone in a planning meeting mentioned that it will cost million dollars to construct the road between Ouray and Silverton.

The scenic drive starts after the Ouray lookout point. The first stop is Bear Creek falls which can be viewed by the parking lot.

Bear Creek Falls

Later, the road goes through several switchbacks, narrow roads without guard rails with 360-degree views of majestic mountains and valleys.

Million Dollar Highway

The Switchbacks

The next stop is Hayden lake on the highway. A beautiful lake surrounded by mountains. Then, we drove through the red mountain pass.

Hayden lake

A few more views

We could capture a few more beautiful scenery before reaching Silverton. Trees were just turning yellow, it was around Sep 20th.

No Gaurd rails

The beautiful Yellows

We couldn't drive to Durango as we had to reach Montrose back by night and we don't want to risk driving the Million dollar highway without daylight.

But, If you plan a trip, stay in Telluride / Ouray so that you can explore the beautiful mountain town, Durango, as well.

By the way, While returning, we had a great Mexican meal at a local restaurant (GNAR Tacos) near Ridgeway. I highly recommend this restaurant if you love Mexican food.

Side Trip Ideas :

Even though we didn't have enough time to cover all places, I made a list of places and Side trip ideas. Hope, these are useful!

• Telluride - Try Lost dollar road (4 wheel drive required ) and snap a picture of the mountain you see on Coors Beer bottle :-D This is also best to visit during the fall season to enjoy the fall colors.
• Ouray - Visit Box canyon falls on the way, expect to spend 1-2 hrs.
• Durango - If you can spend a day in Durango, catch the Durango to Silverton Narrow gauge train / hike the Animas river trail. A dip in Durango hot springs would be relaxing too. 
• Silverton - Try the gold mine tour

On Day #4, while returning to Colorado Springs, we drove through Crested Butte and covered 2 more scenic drives. Those details will be in my next travelogue. Stay tuned.

Here is a map to book accommodation in Montrose:

Until then,

Stay safe.

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Linking this to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne at everydaygyaan. 

Word of the year 2021 #MondayMusings

I usually, don't make any resolutions for the new year as I believe anything good can be started any day of the year. But, I started this tradition of choosing a Word of the Year from other blogger friends. I choose a word, keep that in mind for the whole year as guidance.

My Word for this year 2020 is Self Care. Read this post to know why I set it. 

How did I follow this in 2020?

If I should rate myself, I followed it 7/10, and then I was carried away with work pressure and technical learning for the remaining 30% and completely ignored the Self-care part. Not bad though, I never expected myself to follow my word of the year 100% though it's an ideal case. 

Self-care to me means spending some time on myself which makes me feel happy. I love to travel, sleep, read books, learn new things, dance, blog, and so on.

Covid didn't allow us to travel as much as we wanted to, but I am grateful to have explored many local places instead. I kept blogging and book reading aside mostly to not stress myself more. I might not have spent more than a few hrs on painting. Most of my 2020 went to work, family, dance school, and nothing else. 

Increased my sleep time more than the earlier years and took care of my health. I could improve a bit on yoga which helped with my health too. But, I was not successful in removing my stress completely in daily life. This in turn impacts Self-care. 

So, as a continuation of this year's goals, I choose my word of the year for 2021 as Relax. 

The work, family, cooking, and all are a routine, but I am planning to take things easy, slow down, and not be more ambitious / be a perfectionist in whatever I do. 

I don't want to go by the plan as I usually do and go with the flow and situations. I want to make decisions on the fly, respond as per the situations. This is so unlike me as I always plan too much. I am thinking to enjoy my present instead of planning more for the future.

What are your plans for the new year? Any resolutions/goals / any word that you want to focus on? Do let me know in the comments. 

Until next time,

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Linking this to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne @ everydaygyaan.