Twisted Trunk (ThursdayTreeLove)

Twisted trunk

What could have been the reason for this twisted tree trunk? Considering its pretty huge and old, and growing in the open, I am sure the curves must be natural.

One of my first posts on the ThursdayTreeLove was Sleeping Trees that I saw in Moscow. Just as I could not figure out the reason for those 'sleeping' trunks, I simply cant find an explanation for this.

Here is another image.

Bonsai artists often 'wire' trees for which they face a lot of criticism. Surely no such intervention was done here. Yet the trunk has acquired wonderful curves that simply will stop you in your tracks.

What do you think?

I am joining Parul in her #ThursdayTreeLove39 bloghop. Do head over to see some amazing trees from around the world. 

2018 AtoZ Reflections

There is huge void at the end of 30 April , a massive lull as it were, after the frenzy of writing, reading and commenting on posts in the April AtoZ blogging challenge. I was travelling part of the month and associated connectivity issues meant I could not comment on as many posts as I wanted. Somehow I never did get around to doing it later.

This was my fifth attempt at the challenge.
2013 was my first attempt and I did not have a theme.
In 2014, I wrote about Exercising for fitness.
In the year 2015, I wrote about public parks around Pune.
In 2016 I posted about herbs from AtoZ.

For some reason, I was unable to comment on some posts from my cell phone. Also, some blogs only accepted comments via Facebook or Google Plus. I did not want to comment via these platforms so despite wanting to say something, I just could not reach out to the author.

The AtoZ Twitter handle was not as responsive as it used to be earlier. It would have helped if they had retweeted posts in which they were tagged.

I found a huge number of Indian bloggers, many from India and some living overseas. There was a fair number of older people participating which means blogging is not an exclusive purview of the younger generation. Older folks are also learning the tools of the tech trade and using them pretty well to get their thoughts heard across the world!

Z for Zumba

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty six and the alphabet is Z. 
This will be last post for the series though I guess I may put up my Reflections later..

The list of things that I yen for should also include Zumba. Its an exercise form that is quite the rage in my city. From what I have read its a kind of dancercise but somehow I have not got down to signing up for a class. 

Alberto Perez created Zumba in the 1990s and it incorporates aerobic movements with dance accompanied by some fast paced high intensity music. This Wikipedia article states that there are 9 types of Zumba, of which the Gold program is meant for older people and beginners. I guess I fall in both categories so this should be the one for me...

Y for Yen

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty five and the alphabet is Y. 

In school we were taught Y is for Yak. This is one animal that is found only in the higher regions of the world, I remember seeing them in Ladakh. So basically its not commonly seen hence I would prefer to go with Y for Yen.

I am sure your first thought would be Yen as in JPY - the Japanese currency. That's correct ofcourse but I am referring to yen which means to have a craving or yearning for something. One of my first posts was related to my blog address (yenforblue) and you can read it here. 

X for Xmas

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty four and the alphabet is X. 

Among the several festivals that we celebrate, Christmas is among my favourites. Technically I do not 'celebrate' Christmas but possibly because I studied in a convent school, this festival has always been special to me. We always had a party in schoolwith each class having its own celebration. Sometimes they took us to the chapel and we sang carols. 

Now years later, I still make it a point to listen to Christmas carols. 

Besides carols, the Christmas cake is yet another favourite. I learnt to bake one from an expert baker and it is really awesome even if I say so myself.The recipe calls for advance preparation but the results are worth it.

W for WiFi

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty three and the alphabet is W. 

WiFi is the first word that comes to my mind for this alphabet. Ofcourse water still is an important letter-word association but my choice for today's post is WiFi.

A receptionist at a hotel in Norway told me, "We get tourists from all parts of the world. Many dont speak or understand English. Yet everyone knows one word.... WiFi!!"

That in itself shows the reach of this technology. Its the gateway to the Internet, the place where one gets information, entertainment, education and almost everything else. We extensively use WiFi. At home. In office. At airports. In hotels. Going beyond the usual ones (phone, tablets, computer, laptop) the range of WiFi connected devices at home is rising rapidly.. Fitbit, Air purifiers, refrigerators, weighing scales and who can forget the latest addition - Alexa! 
Phew! 

Whenever we have house guests, among the first things to be offered to them is the WiFi password!! 

V for Vegetarian

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty two and the alphabet is V. 

One advantage of travelling full fare airlines is that they offer inflight meals. Their quantity and taste factor are open to debate but yes, they do offer food. One of the biggest difficulties is choosing the correct meal option when booking tickets. 

I prefer to be vegetarian. To me, it simply means a meal that does not have meat. That's it. The websites ask me to choose between Asian Veg, Vegetarian Vegan, Vegetarian Meal, Vegetarian Oriental Meal, Fruit Platter, Vegetarian Jain Meal, Vegetarian Lacto - Ovo Meal.

Phew! That's just the veg options.. (The non-vegetarian options are equally varied.) 

U for Uber

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty one and the alphabet is U. 

Taxis were not a part of Pune's vehicle scene until maybe a couple of years ago. I have never understood the reason for this gap but Pune's narrow streets and relatively shorter distances may have been a factor. Plus cycling and walking have been an integral part of this city which has been considerably reduced now. 

Recently app based hail taxis have become omnipresent. Uber is commonest name one sees emblazoned on the vehicles. Almost everyone including women (young and old), office goers, travellers and senior citizens has 'Ubered' to their destination - so much so that the noun has turned into a verb! 

T for Trek

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twenty and the alphabet is T. 

T is for Train is passe. Trains take you to the foothills of the Himalayas which are popular sites for Trekking... For me, trekking is a recent activity, one that I have enjoyed tremendously. Initially I ventured for day long excursions but thereafter I gathered courage to take up longer treks. 
Since the alphabet is T let me take you on an e-trek to Tungnath. 

Located in India's Uttarakhand state, Tungnath is the seat of the highest Shiva temple at a height of about 12000 ft AMSL (3680m). It is one of the Panch Kedar. The beautiful temple is about 1000 years old and can be reached by properly laid out path that begins from Chopta. The route is about 3kms long and meanders climbing steadily towards the peak. 

Arch way to the path 

Initially, the path is through the a forest of Rhododendrons. According to our guide, the colour of the flowers changes with elevation. Trees at a lower height bear bright red flowers, those of trees at a higher level are pink and trees that grow even higher bear white flowers. (I shall talk about flowers at another time!)

The pathway is fully cemented and broad enough for people to walk in both directions. However, if you do meet mules (which is quite often) it is a wise move to step aside and let them pass. Enroute there are a couple of shacks selling tea, some snacks and bottled water if one does happen to finish the one they carry.  

In the beginning, the surrounding mountains peep at you from behind or in between the trees but come into full view as we leave the tree line behind. We got a brief glimpse of the majestic snow clad peaks which took my breath away literally! The tall Rhododendrons make way way for shrubby trees which for some strange reason grow almost horizontally! As we moved higher, the tree line ends to make way for grassy slopes. 

We had a faint view of the mountains at the start of our walk 

Sleeping trees!

S for Smartphone

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day nineteen and the alphabet is S.

S for Sun? Yes, I guess that will be relevant today considering global warming...
But I would opt for something closer and which has now become an inseparable part of our lives ... S for smartphone. 

Years ago, in India, having a telephone was a matter of pride, a symbol of having arrived. Sometimes, there was one phone in a building and it ended up being used by all families who lived there. The owner did not mind taking messages either ... I remember we had to wait a couple of years to get a land line connection and what a day of celebration it was!

With time and tech progress, the device underwent several changes and slowly the cell phone entered our lives. As before, it was a very expensive toy initially. Both incoming and outgoing calls were chargeable which created the 'missed call' phenomenon. After 2004, things changed rapidly, the device has now become as good as a computer and cell phone charges have become quite cheap. 

A Motorola device from 2002 and one from 20010

R for Rat

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day eighteen and the alphabet is R.

R is for Rat. That is what I learnt in school. 
Rat as in the rodent that is a menace and dread in every household. Its cousin the Mouse is probably more welcome in laboratories as its commonly used as a lab animal. 
Outside the scientific setting, even a small kid with relate the word 'Mouse' to the black device attached to a laptop or PC ... 

A close cousin of the rat is the mouse. A mouse is the  वाहन (vahan meaning transport or vehicle) of Lord Ganesha. You will always find a tiny mouse at the feet of any idol or image of this favourite elephant headed God.

This is the famous DagduSheth Ganapati of Pune. Click on the image to see his 'vahan' at the bottom left of the image- at the feet of the Lord Ganesh

Q for Queen

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day seventeen and the alphabet is Q.

Traditionally, Q is for Queen and today I will stay with the word Queen.

The only difference is that I would like each and every woman to be wearing a crown.

Here's what has prompted this coronation...

Women devote so much time for our careers, families, homes that very often we put themselves at the bottom of the priority list. 

Well, ok, it may not be true for everyone.. so I can speak only for the ladies I have met over the last few decades. When in a crunch, it was always 'She' who did away with her free time/exercise/hobby and so on. 

I too am guilty of this. 

Let me add that this was a voluntary decision - one that was forced on me by my conscience. I have never really found out why since I was brought up in an open, progressive atmosphere and married into an equally open and progressive family.

Still it has happened. 

And then, a few years ago, I decided to put a stop. 

That's when I decided that I need time for Myself. 

P for Privacy

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day sixteen and the alphabet is P.

Traditionally P is for Pen or Parrot. But in view of the recent outcry around the world and the Cambridge Analytica scandal, I would say P is for Privacy. Privacy or security of our data-  whether on social media or simply information generated by using our cell phones. 

This data breach has generated a volley of jokes and I will share a couple of them here- both received via WhatsApp. 

O for Oxygen

Welcome! 

We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day fifteen and the alphabet is O.

While in the first associations for O were with Ox, Orange .. today, I first associate O with Oxygen. Naturally you may think I am referring to the ever growing menace of pollution and poor air quality. But maybe that is more of a case of increase in 'bad' gases ...

So which oxygen am I referring to... ???

To get straight to the point, this post is about the oxygen or rather its depleting quantities at higher altitudes. Earlier it would have only affected mountaineers on expeditions to the high peaks but these days, more and more people choose to trek the mountains as a holiday of choice. This includes both young and those young at heart !! 

At elevations of over 10000 ft the effective amount of oxygen reduces. Some people get hit by what is called as Acute Mountain Sickness or HAPO which stands for High Altitude Pulmonary Oedema. It may begin with headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, feeling of uneasiness, vomitting and then worse. 

Ladakh 

N for Netflix

Welcome! 

We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day fourteen and the alphabet is N.

Usually, N would be for Nest. Right? Yet today, the first word that this alphabet reminds me of is Netflix!

Do I hear you laughing? I guess, for a fifty something doting mother and mother in law, Netflix is a perfect alternative to watching cliched TV serials. 
Before I proceed, let me assure you that this is not a sponsored post 
;-)

M for Magnet

Welcome! 

We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day thirteen and the alphabet is M.

As far as I remember, we were taught that M was for Monkey. I have had my encounters with this species when we stayed in Tezpur but I shall save that for another day. Currently, the most relevant M word is Magnet. Specifically Fridge Magnet. 

Over the years, I had seen a few of them stuck on fridge doors but what really got me hooked (or should I say attracted?) is the sight of my friend's double door refrigerator which was totally covered with magnets. Of all shapes, sizes and colours. A wonderful collection of places they had visited. 

That's when I too began to specifically look for fridge magnets. Secretly maybe I wanted to match my collection with hers but I know I have a long long way to go. I have purchased some great magnets but some spots have absolutely nothing. In that case, I end up making my own. 

These magnets are perfect mementos - easy on the pocket, easy to carry and daily reminders of a wonderful holiday. Not to mention being the envy of all visitors to our home ;-)

Magnet collectors are called memomagnetist - something I learnt from a magazine cut out sent to me. 

Here is my collection. A few friends have said I need a new fridge to accomodate these! I think there is plenty more space...

L for Lion

Welcome! 

We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day twelve and the alphabet is L.

Today I will go with the traditional, age old teaching of L for Lion. 

The Asiatic Lion whose sole home presently is the Gir National Park in the state of Gujarat in India. According to the 2015 census mentioned on the website, there were 523 lions which was said to be a comfortable figure. 

Spot the lioness sitting behind the trees in the distance

K for King

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day eleven and the alphabet is K.

K is for King. As in the guy who wears a crown and sits on a throne.

Can something else also be called a King? The Lion is said to be the King of the jungle. Recently I had posted a Ficus Bonsai that was displayed in full royal style.

Today I have yet another candidate for the post of King.

Its a 250 year old Ficus tree that is growing at the Acharya Jagdish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden in Kolkata. The 1786-founded garden has a vast collection of lovely old trees. The main attraction is the Great Banyan (Ficus benghalensis) that is supported by  thousands of roots and is spread over five acres. Despite its loss of the main trunk in 1925, the Banyan is still 'growing' . The authorities have had to increase the protective perimeter built around it as the tree 'walked' eastwards!

Here are some images of The Great Banyan.

J is for Jungle

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day ten and the alphabet is J.

The earliest memory of what the alphabet J stands for is a Jug.

However, I would like to talk about another J word .. Jungle. I guess this is not surprising considering my interest in Field Botany. 

No, I will not talk about how fast and extent of jungles that we are losing to 'development' but instead I would like to give you some glimpses of a few forests. India is rich in natural heritage and there are reserve forests and sanctuaries across the length and breath of the country.

A naturalist once told me, "No two forests are the same. Each one has its own beauty and must be enjoyed for what it has to offer." I had asked him which forest is better - Tadoba or Pench or Kanha.

Then, I had not really understood what he meant but now that I have managed to tick off a few forests from my bucket list, I can truly appreciate what he wanted to say.

Here are some images ...

I for Ink

Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day nine and the alphabet is I.

I for Ink. Ink Pens.

We began writing in school with a pencil. Among the other perks of growing up to middle school was using the ink pen. The fountain pen as it was called brought its own set of difficulties. It often leaked and the stain was quite difficult to wash off. Preparing for exams meant we had to take extra pens as it not possible to refill ink from the bottle at the examination centre. 

Chelpark was the brand of choice and the colour was invariably Royal Blue. I know that other colours were available but Royal Blue was the only one in our home.

I was thrilled when I was gifted a pen which had a sort of pump attached to the nib. This made refilling easy and clean. Then a few years later, we got cartridges of inks that we just had to affix below the nib. This eliminated the need for a ink bottle.