Why Didn’t God Give Me a Stopwatch so that I Could Stop Time?

Posted on June 20, 2008 by Poonam

How quickly time flies right…..it was just a few weeks ago that I was dreading to start our MBA class (statistics) for the summer. Now we are just one lecture and then the final exam away from it being over :!: Time flies quickly…

Time flies quickly in so many other ways…..such as it was just a few months ago that we didn’t even know whether Hillary or Barack Obama were going to be the Democratic nomination. Now that has also been decided. :smile: GO OBAMA!!!! :grin:

Or how quickly time flies when we think about the price of gasoline. I remember when it was 99 cents a gallon….then $2 a gallon..and now look at us…. reaching a whole $4 a gallon! :shock:

Time flies…to think that a year ago this time Neeraj and I were looking at houses…..just the thought of searching was big on our minds…and now, we live in this beautiful house. :smile:

Time flies….Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hai had started on Star Plus, and now I have heard that it is going to end in July! :shock:

These days time flies faster for us…we don’t have enough time in the day, may it be for work purposes or our own personal life. We are always on the run, and it has just become that way. One thing that I really like is that Neeraj and I have started to take time to enjoy things that we love, such as playing tennis. We played last weekend, and we will be out on the courts tomorrow evening as well. We also go out and do other things as well such as bowling, miniature golf, etc.. You must enjoy to enjoy life. :smile:

At the same time, time flies when you are having the most fun. I am really enjoying the life that I am living, and sometimes I think it is going too fast for me. There are more things that I want to do in life, but at times I think that you know I am 25 years old, soon I will want to have a family, but at the same time, I want to work with Neeraj to open our own company. How will all this happen? Will events past right by me because time goes by quickly?

There are days that I wish if I could just stop time because I want to do more at the office or because I just want to enjoy the good times that I am having with my family and friends. But no, it just can’t happen in that way.

So I am taking it all in….just living it the way that I want to live it and as our motto remains: plan ahead to stay ahead. :smile:

Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

Posted in Random Thoughts | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Neeraj’s USCIS Hike to a 10 year Green Card Continues…

Posted on June 13, 2008 by Poonam

So after not much delay at all, Neeraj has received his biometrics appointment for next week. We don’t have to go far, which is good, because previously when we lived in Morton, we had to drive two and half hours to Schaumburg (a suburb of Chicago) for Neeraj’s biometrics appointment to get his Green Card.

Now that we have moved to St. Louis, we just have to go downtown, a mere 40 minutes, to get his biometrics done.

So far I have been surprised that this is going so quickly – and touch wood, the process will complete soon.

Once the biometrics are done, then we will wait to see whether they call us for an interview. If not, then Neeraj will get a new 10 year Green Card. :smile:

Let’s hope for the latter to happen. :wink:

Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

Posted in K1 Visa | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Sarkar Raj – A Review….

Posted on June 9, 2008 by Poonam

So Sarkar Raj was playing this past weekend in STL. Of course it had my favorite actor, Abhishek Bachchan, so I really didn’t want to avoid missing this film. At the same time, Neeraj was too excited to see it because he loved the first one, Sarkar. Even though we had a jammed packed weekend with being in Chicago for a baby shower and then being in Morton, and needing to studying for the midterm exam tomorrow, we still made it over to the theatre in St. Charles to see this movie.
Sarkar Raj - Released on June 6 2008

Now I am not going to talk about the story of the movie because you can find that on any other site. I really would like to talk about what Neeraj and I discussed about this movie once it was over. So if in case you have not seen the movie, you may want to stop here because I may give away the ending. :smile:


Overall, we both thought the movie was a bit of a let down. :sad: The first movie was such a hit, and I don’t think that Ram Gopal Varma would have not expected that he was going to make a movie that would top the first one. Well, if that wasn’t his strategy then he should have made it because he didn’t top the first movie. :no:

There are many reasons for that, and I will discuss it further. First the villians in this movie were really weak. You didn’t see them as villians, they were businessmen, but you couldn’t see that they could do some real damage to anybody. :no: The only one that could have was Govind Namdeo who they killed off first. Secondly, the movie took too long to develop. At the time of interval, you really didn’t have a good idea of what so far has happened, and the roles of the characters were not as clear. :no: Was Subhash Nagre going to play an integral role after the interval? You would say yes, only if Shankar Nagre is out of the picture. The first half was much more informative but not a lot of action. At the interval you were not sitting at the tip of your seat to find out what is going to happen next…. it was like, “Okay the first half of the film is over.” :no: I think that’s a letdown.

All of the action happened in the second half of the movie. Unfortunately you would think that Shankar Nagre would be the one piecing all of the puzzle pieces. Not the case. :no: He gets killed by an assassin sent by the villians, and game is over. Subhash Nagre again takes over and figures out how his son got killed and eliminates them all…one by one. That I don’t think was a great idea for the story. If Shankar is suppose to be the next “Sarkar” then they should have kept with that feeling. At this point you lose faith in the fact that there isn’t going to be another “Sarkar” until Subhash Nagre himself dies. Shankar throughout the movie mentions that he will take care of anybody that tries to get in his way, but unfortunately at the end it shows that he isn’t able to – then.. how could he have ever been able to become the next “Sarkar”?

Then they killed off just about everybody – Shankar and his wife die, the villians die, the assassin dies, Somji dies,….not alot of people are left by the end of the movie. So the next movie is going to be more based on Chickoo, Subhash Nagre’s grandson, who is too little at this point, but eventually will be groomed to take over as the next “Sarkar”.

In this case, I think the story was poorly designed. Yes, staging a story around Shankar Nagre made sense, but letting him die so easily, and now going with the angle that Chickoo will be the next “Sarkar” was not the best move. I think it would have been better if Shankar would have recovered from the assassin trying to kill him, and potentially be still the one who would be able to take over for his father.

The direction itself was not at Ram Gopal Varma’s best. He really needed to do a better job, like he has done phenomenally in his previous films, in keeping the audience more involved. It was hard to determine what has happened in the first half of the movie where usually by interval you are thinking about what will happen in the second half.

Again, this had my favorite actor, his wife, and his real father, so I wouldn’t have missed the film for anything. Everybody’s acting was genuine and great – but it was more around the story that should have been worked on more properly. This could have been awesome film instead of a so-so film. :sad:

Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

Posted in Bollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Tagged – You Are It!

Posted on June 4, 2008 by Poonam

So I haven’t been tagged for……ever. :smile: The remember the days when we would do the tag in blogs more often but so many of my blog friends have moved on and have stopped blogging. :sad: Oh well…

Now that I have been tagged by Monty … here I go. :wink:

4 Jobs I’ve Had (Starting with the most recent)

  • Senior Security Analyst, Information Security – #1 credit card processing company
  • Security Consultant – Rose International (client – AT&T)
  • Security Consultant – Accenture
  • Information Security Intern, Caterpillar

    • 4 Movies I Could Watch Over and Over
    Like Monty, I am an avid Bollywood fan, so the movies are only of the best. :wink:

  • Andaz Apna Apna
  • Hum Aapke Hain Koun
  • Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Ghum
  • Jab We Met

    • 4 Places I’ve Lived (starting with the present)

  • Dardenne Prairie, Missouri
  • O’Fallon, Missouri
  • Morton, Illinois
  • Encino, California

    • 4 TV Shows I Like
    I watch majority Indian serials, so if you are confused with the names that is why. :???: :smile:

  • Baa Bahoo Baby
  • MTV Roadies
  • Dil Mil Gayye
  • Sai Baba

    • 4 Favorite Foods

  • Mattar Paneer or any other paneer dish :wink:
  • Tortellini
  • Enchiladas
  • Mixed vegetable with paratha… yum :smile:

    • 4 Places I’d Rather Be

  • Home with my dear Neeru :smile:
  • Paris, France
  • Some beautiful place in India (no I am not talking about Delhi :rotfl: )
  • Frankfurt, Germany

    • 4 People I’m Tagging
    I don’t think I know four people anymore that blog. :lol:

  • Beth
  • Sankar Anand
  • Ankur
  • Indu

    • Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

    Posted in Random Thoughts | Tagged , | 7 Comments

    Good News!

    Posted on June 2, 2008 by Poonam

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    Today is a day of good news! We received a letter from the USCIS, and Neeraj’s Green Card status has been automaticaly extended for one year. :smile: Neeraj will still have to go for a biometrics appointment, but atleast for the next one year he will have no troubles traveling and working. :yes: So now Europe here we come! :yes:

    Also Kaush’s B has reached the USA safely…. congrats to the both of them on the new chapter in their life. :smile: May your life be always filled with happiness and love for each other. :smile: NP.com is very happy for you both. :thumbsup:

    This song dedicated to you… :wink:

    Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

    Posted in Aaj ka Din, Dosti, Hum Tum | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

    Aarushi Murder Case – Too Many Holes

    Posted on May 29, 2008 by Poonam

    So I have been following the Aarushi Murder Case because that’s all you can hear or see about when you turn to Aaj Tak, Sahara Samay, or Headlines Today (the only 3 Hindi newschannels that we have) when they are not showing about the Great Khali or IPL.

    Aarushi Talwar's Murder Case

    For those who don’t know about this case, its been believed that Dr. Rajesh Talwar, a dentist, murdered his 14 year old daughter, Aarushi, and also his servant, Hemraj, in Noida (near Delhi). At first, there were many more suspects, but since then the UP (Uttar Pradesh) police have deemed Rajesh Talwar to be the main culprit.

    The reason of why he would have murdered his own daughter? That is not clear….atleast not to me. Once the police had given their statement after seeing the autopsies, it was determined that Rajesh Talwar had come home (I think this was now two weeks ago) and saw his daughter Aarushi and the servant, Hemraj in an objectionable position. :roll: Ok so who knows what the heck that really means. So when Rajesh questioned his daughter on what was happening, she talked back to him mentioning that how could be upset with her when he too, Rajesh, was having an affair with another woman. :shock: So then Hemraj either goes to the terrace or taken to the terrace, by the waythere are blood stains that were found on the terrace steps that haven’t been questioned yet, where he was allegedly killed by Rajesh with a hammer and slit his throat with a knife. Then Rajesh came downstairs, drank some whiskey, and then went and did something similar to his daughter.


    Then the next morning, Rajesh and his wife, Nupur, who was in the house when all this was happening, told close relatives that they found their daughter dead at 6am that morning. They do not mention anything about the servant. Later when the servant’s body was found, the first suspicion was that the servant had killed Aarushi before taking his life – without any explanation of why he would have done that.

    Since then, Rajesh was deemed as a suspect, taken into custody, and is being held for questioning without bail. His wife, and the alleged mistress, Dr. Anita, are also being questioned. Today in the news it was mentioning that they had found chat transcripts or emails from Aarushi to her friends, particularly boys. Now her social behavior is being questioned, I guess it seemed that she was having “boyfriend type” emails with 3 different guys.

    This is what I took out of all of this:

  • There is a major problem between how working parents are handling their teenage, or to-be teenage, children
  • Extra marital affairs are happening more frequently in India than ever before
  • State police leave too many holes in such cases which causes higher level of suspicion

    • Having both parents working in India is now becoming more common because of its booming economy. The liberation of women have occurred, and it is great that both are participating in the workforce. However, somewhere those same parents forget how to raise their children, how to communicate to them, and how to make them great human beings. How can you not know who your child is meeting with, talking to, hanging out with, or even realize that there might be even a slight infatuation with your own servant? Clearly shows, if all the above information is true, that the parents in this case didn’t pay close enough attention to Aarushi.

    Extra marital affairs – you didn’t hear about so frequently previously in India, but now you do. I don’t really understand why people go down that route anyway, but that is a whole different post. :smile: So it was mentioned that Aarushi and possibly Hemraj, the servant, knew about Rajesh’s alleged affair with Dr. Anita. Aarushi disapproved this and hence did a lot of back talking to her father. Its bad if your spouse finds out, but I think its worst when your son/daughter know that you are having an extra marital affair. After all, what are you teaching them? :roll:

    Police in India need to do a better job of investigating such cases. There are too many holes, and when they get up to talk to the public, it doesn’t sound like they know what they are talking about. :smile: They just don’t sound credible – potentially because they have that type of reputation as well. Quite sad when you can’t trust your own police or CBI/FBI to do a decent job on such cases. :no:

    I am going to keep reading and listening to this case because I want to see where the twists in the story happen from now on. There will be more, and really, sometimes I think its the media who does a better job investigating then the police. :grin:

    Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

    Posted in India | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

    USCIS Saga – Removing Conditions

    Posted on May 23, 2008 by Poonam

    So the USCIS saga continues again. So after Neeraj had gotten his Conditional Permanent Resident Green Card in August 2006, we weren’t going to have to deal with the USCIS until…….now. Yes, two years later, we are now ready to get the conditions removed, and for Neeraj to have a 10 year Green Card.

    The process for the Removing of Conditions is different. You have to wait 3 months before your Green Card is going to expire, for Neeraj, his expires on August 21, 2008. So as of May 21, 2008, we would apply to have the Conditions removed.


    Here are the things that we had to send to them:

  • The I-751 Form
  • Supplement to I-751 form because Neeraj had lived in another address after becoming a permanent resident, so those had to be listed
  • Mortgage papers – to show joint ownership of our house
  • 2007 tax returns – to show that we filed jointly
  • Bank statements to show that we live at the same address
  • Credit card bills and any other bills (some are in my name & some in Neeraj’s) – to show that we live at the same address
  • Car and House Insurance Policies – to show joint ownership
  • Health insurance policy
  • Vacation itineraries – to show that we went places together
  • Family photos

    • So you might have catch a hold of what they are trying to do with all this information. They are making sure that people just don’t come to the US as a free tip here, but in fact are actually doing the right way. So all the proof that we showed two years ago – we had to show again.

    Neeraj and I sent the package to the Nebraska Service Center yesterday via Priority Mail. It should have reached by today. Now we will wait to get the Biometric interview information. Then we will go for that – and then after that we will get something that will show that Neeraj’s green card has been extended…..for one year :!: Yes you read that right. We are diong this for a one year extension. Why do you ask? Because the USCIS is so behind, that right now they are extending Green Cards for one year so that it gives them time to look at your case. Ridiculous isn’t it? :banghead:

    That’s the system, I guess. Oh ya, forgot to mention that they slam you with a $545 fee too. :irked:

    So the wait………………….begins. :roll:

    Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

    Posted in K1 Visa | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

    Happy Anniversary!!!!!

    Posted on May 17, 2008 by Poonam

    Current Tune – Pehli Nazar Main – Race

    Every day passes with a smile…..2 years have completed so quickly, I can hardly believe it. :smile: I love this day so much because there are so many great memories that joined with it. It is the day that Neeraj and I got married in Jaipur, then last year a day that we spent with Neeraj’s parents here in the USA, and this year a day that we will spend with my parents, Suraj, and friends. :smile:

    Prior to getting married, Neeraj and my conversations always were around, “Hum log ko yeh karna hai….woh karna hai“. “We will do this after getting married, we will do that….” Its amazing how much we have done in the past two years….just like we had planned. :smile:

    Happy Anniversary!!!!

    Neeraj, you are the most important person in my life today. You have always been there for me when I needed a suggestion, idea, thought, and you have always come through to solve my problem. :yes: You care so much about what I want, what should we do, what would be best for our life. I know that i try to do the same, but there is so much that I want to learn from you. May Mata Rani shower us with blessings on this special day. :smile: :angel:

    I love you very much. Wishing you a very Happy Anniversary!!!!!!!

    Alvida. Jai Mata Di.

    Posted in Aaj ka Din, Hum Tum | Tagged | 7 Comments