Tender Heart- A classic

I love the song "Tender Heart" by Lionel Ritchie (of the "Hello" fame, for people who have not heard the other songs sung by him).
I am listening to it in the middle of the day and still find it as stirring as I found it when hearing it at midnight.
I especially love these lines -
"I never thought I'd be the one who would play the fool
But I know love can feel so good and can be so cruel
It's clear to me the writing is on the wall
It's clear to me that you don't really love me at all
.................................
.................................
We don't stand a chance
In this wild romance, my tender heart
Maybe it's wiser to walk away and love again
With my tender heart.
We don't stand a chance
In this wild romance, oh it hurts so bad
Knowing that I'm not the one you want
I can't hold on to my tender heart"

Ramblings

Ever got the feeling that things could be a dash better when it comes to life, here you are, going your own way, doing your own thing, when, something comes out of the blue to gobsmack you on your face, turning your beliefs inside out!
A cousin visited us yesterday, (of late it has been pouring relatives in our house), with her seven month old son, to visit my grandmother, who had returned to Chennai after a long time.
The poor mite was suffering from a cold and the mewls were pretty heart breaking, and everyone was fussing around. Now, I have never been handy around kids, I just do not know what to do with them. But this thing tore at me, he seemed to blame the adults around, almost bawling out, "Why don't all you lummoxes do something to cure me?", and I remembered how I would expect my mum to make everything alright when I was a kid, she was my invincible Goddess, and no one could hurt me as long as she was there.
Now I look across as she croons at her grand-nephew and see the longing in her eyes, and I know I am condemned, its not going to stop anymore with just "Get married soon", its soon going to be "Give us a grandchild soon"!!!
And inspite of all my hangups on marriage, I guess I do have something to look forward to, a little bundle of joy, the funny thing is, until yesterday, it was precisely this that made me say "No" to marriage all this time.

A little change

I have been asked a number of times whether I really keep in touch with all my friends, and unfortunately I had to reply in a negative.
I grew up in a hostel with 40 odd girls in my class and I am in touch with two of them (one of them being my sister).
I have said a hi via orkut to about 15 of them and I have no idea what the rest are upto.
As for my engineering college, I am in touch with two people again (about once a month, we scrap or message each other) and am more in contact with my business school batchmates (a grand total of 8 people fall in usually dialled numbers list).
The remaining friends are from work and people I met through the others (at a party/via other common friends).
There are no excuses that I can make for this behaviour (I could say no time, my work is too demanding/the others have no time anyway/distance matters), but in the end, somehow providing such flimsy excuses for not keeping in touch with people who once meant so much to me seems, kinda, excusing myself for having lost a part of me (if that makes any sense).
So I have made a new resolution now, make time (whether I think I am running out of it or not)and talk to these people. Its so easy to get carried away running around trying to achieve success in the material sense, that once you get there, you realise that you are alone, with noone there to savour it with you. And do we really need to measure success by the pay packet?
I consider anyone who is happy with their job and their personal lives as successful, unfortunately, in my firm atleast, I see so many people working from 9 to 9 everyday. When do these people have the time to catch up with their families?
Do they have any hobbies they pursue? Do they take the time to stop and just savour the day for what it is?
I do not want to end up like that and if it means taking an hour of a impossibly packed day to try and get my life on track, then thats what I will do. And I have been trying to convince my colleagues to do the same, and some of them seem to be sitting up and paying attention, so lets hope that together, we try and make a difference to this "work culture" that has descended on us all.
Call you friends now and then, just to say a Hi, surprise your families with treats more often, and take time off to read that book that you have had on your bookshelf for ages.

A song to reflect my mood

I heard this song by Emilia today (Big Big World) and loved it.It is a pretty old one but this was the first time I heard it and associated myself with it. It rings true for all those old friendships that have begun to gather dust and fade away in these erratic times. The lyrics are reproduced here:

"*Chorus*
I'm a big big girl
In a big big world
It's not a big big thing if you leave me
But I do do feel
That I too too will
Miss you much
Miss you much

*V1*
I can see the first leaf falling
It's all yellow and nice
It's so very cold outside
Like the way I'm feeling inside

*Chorus*
I'm a big big girl
In a big big world
It's not a big big thing if you leave me
But I do do feel
That I too too will
Miss you much
Miss you much

*V2*
Outside it's now raining
And tears are falling from my eyes
Why did it have to happen
Why did it all have to end

*Chorus*
I'm a big big girl
In a big big world
It's not a big big thing if you leave me
But I do do feel
That I too too will
Miss you much
Miss you much

*V3*
I have your arms around me
Warm like fire
But when I open my eyes......
You are gone

*Chorus*
I'm a big big girl
In a big big world
It's not a big big thing if you leave me
But I do do feel
That I too too will
Miss you much
Miss you much

*Repeat Chorus*

I'm a big big girl
In a big big world
It's not a big big thing if you leave me
But I do do feel
That I will
Miss you much
Miss you much"

An American in Paris

I have been a sucker for classics throughout and when it comes to musicals, I guess I lead the fanatics who believe that movies have never been the same since they stopped producing them.
"An American in Paris" is one of my all-time favs and I have been spending this weekend watching it again to the detriment of my dad who wanted to catch something else (I think it was some sci-fi movie).
Gene Kelly's movies are characterised by extravagant sets, dance numbers that set any philistine's legs tapping and music that you can swing to and this one is no exception. Leslie Caron (of Gigi and a countless other classics) was introduced to the silver screen through this movie, and though the chemistry between Kelly and Caron is not really enough to cause any sizzle, the movie is carried through by the sheer brilliance of Kelly alone.
The story deals with a struggling artist in Paris who falls in love with a girl engaged to a leading singer, and the story that falls is a dazzling piece of music and romance that makes a cynic sit up and smile in appreciation.
The songs are on my list of must listen to atleast once a week and include "It's Wonderful", "Oom Pa Pa", "This time its really love", "I got rythm" and "My love is here to stay".
While many people believe that "Singing in the rain" was better than this movie, for me, this has a special charm, it almost makes me believe in love at first sight.
A movie that allows me to forget reality for sometime, it will be in my collection to be handed down to the little ones later as must-sees.