Plain Jane

New weekend haunt.

Blissfully quiet and homely.

The Little Things

Quiet Saturdays when you need them the most 🙂

The Meeting

Last night, I attended a meeting within a local professional body.

I am unfamiliar with their structure.

Unfamiliar with their relations, their dynamics with each other.

I have never worked with any of them before.

I’ve not even stepped into my role as one of them.

I’m still establishing my identity as one.

Still searching for that part of me which is sure that she will be a good one.

I was looking at them, and thinking that they are nice, committed people, but also wondering how deep could our relationship go, remembering the fact that we are just connected professionally, after all.

And because of all that unfamiliarity, I was Quiet.

I think what was most disappointing was me thinking that it’d be ok for me to be quiet this once.

Thinking that they’d accept me being myself this once, because it was my first time after all.

But the prick came when, at the end of the meeting, when we were closing by answering a question and going around in a circle, the nice chair of the meeting quipped to me: “You’ve been so quiet!”

And suddenly all other eyes in the room were on me.

Deer in headlights mode on.

And I remember feeling disappointed, thinking: “Not here, too?”

But I guess Life has been a pretty good teacher, and I’ve found myself in enough situations like that to know how to react and respond.

So I simply smiled, put on my Teacher voice, and responded to the question which we were discussing.

Everyone laughed at something I said, and the moment passed.

 

But the process sure felt like it took out a lot of me.

 

Sounds like a few more hours of solitude is in order.

Signature Art Prize 2014 – Finalists’ Exhibition

 

Being able to wander around museums and explore cafes with friends who understand you is truly a wonderful feeling.

 

Nostalgia

On a cold tropical island Friday night.

Truffs

 

Thanks to the newly-opened Downtown Line, getting here has become so much easier. Immensely enjoyed the solitude time here, as half the time I was left alone and in peace 🙂

There’s also a very good reason why they’re well-known for their speciality in Chocolate!

Seeing Double

 

 

 

Another escape from the city. Another corner to think, write, and watch.

Another place to breathe … and experiment with funny iPhone apps 😉

Quiet Times – 1/20

Friends, if you’re wondering how am I able to update this blog from a remote Indian village (which, by the way, HAS internet access, except that there are only about 10 computers to be shared among thousands), I have scheduled posts 🙂

Over the next 20 days, posts which I have written over the past few weeks will appear on a daily basis (because I have scheduled them so).

Like the cat who sits on her owner’s blankets when her owner is away, you could come and sit on my blog if you miss me too much >.<

—

Anyway.

Because I have gone away to seek physical and mental silence, I thought the theme “Quiet Times” might be suitable for the next 20 days.

Pictures from Quaver the Golden Half camera.

Taken between October and November 2012, when I tried to seek silence on this urban island, and capture moments of it.

 

1/20.

Somewhere I’d always rather be.

Quiet

“Introverts may have strong social skills and enjoy parties and business meetings, but after a while they wish they were home in their pajamas. They prefer to devote their social energies to close friends, colleagues and family. They listen more than they talk, think before they speak, and often feel as if they express themselves better in writing than in conversation. They tend to dislike conflict. Many have a horror of small talk, but enjoy deep discussions.”

“The highly sensitive tend to be philosophical or spiritual in their orientation, rather then materialistic or hedonistic. They dislike small talk. They often describe themselves as creative or intuitive. They dream vividly, and can often recall their dreams the next day. They love music, nature, art, physical beauty. They feel exceptionally strong emotions- sometimes acute bouts of joy, but also sorrow, melancholy and fear. Highly sensitive people also process information about their environments – both physical and emotional- unusually deeply. They tend to notice subtleties that others miss- another person’s shift in mood, say, or a lightbulb burning a torch too brightly.”

;

Managed to finish this book while in Chiangmai. An interesting and identifying read. Started off wondering if this would be a book which “make excuses” for “anti-social” people, or a book which dismisses extroverts as the lesser species, fighting for more people to “be” introverted as the right way to go. But it did none of that. She simply asserts that everyone, as different individuals, have our own strengths and weaknesses, and uses concrete research data to advise on we should play to them. Our neurological make-up also plays an important role on determining our personalities. More than trying to out-do each other, we all need each other to do well, mentally, physically and emotionally.

And Susan Cain really amazed me with this talk at TED – It’s only 19 minutes; Worth a watch as she summarizes her book wonderfully.