I am who I am .

OK this has to be written ...its been a couple of days but the event is still bothering me...and it is an oft occuring thing so I guess it has to be said... a couple of days back I went out with a couple of people ... 1 is a close friend and the other 2 are people i have met once earlier. It started off as a pleasant enough evening....and then when it came to ordering our drinks I asked for a fresh lime soda ..there were raised eyebrows and you DONT DRINK ?????  I said no.... but felt odd. then ofcourse - you dont smoke either ....oh what a nun u r , how boring.... and so on and so forth..and  i felt a bit defensive , had to explain -no u know i am running, training for a marathon so ...avoiding all that ...
 later when I came home I was quite irritated and it got me thinking ... I know i will sound like my Mom but at the risk of sounding old and dated - When I was in college915-16 yrs ago),women who smoked and drank were scandalous ,rebellious and also 'easy' - but look where we are today - If you DONT drink and smoke u r considered boring !!i dont condone EITHER stand btw - i dont htink people should be judged for their habits /appearances but come to think of it we are such a judgemental society and also what a 360 deg turn those judgements have taken! and then why should I or ANYONE for that matter have to explain their choices in life to anyone else ? I just dont get it - and look at me - I have to justify why i dont smoke and drink - errr. these are unhealthy habits and I have to explain why i dont indulge in them -LOL , that is ironical :-)
Anyway -  i decided a couple of things for myself - I love running , I have been running now for 4 years and to be honest this has been my BEST YEAR so far... I am not a natural runner and its been a struggle for me to really take to this sport but this year i am feeling good about the way its going and i am really really enjoying it.Having said that _ i am not one of those evolved runners who can sleep at any time after a night of drinking and still get up and run...when i get to that stage i will be very happy till then i need to prioritise my running . and what does that mean for me - Fri,Sat & Sun are my long run days - i do 10 K everyday . To be able to do that i need to eat simple, sleep well, not drink or smoke and get up early . So Thurs,Fri & Sat I will NOT go out in the evening. Will I make an exception - YES for a friends birthday /a big party I will but lets just go out and drink - no way... Maybe I am selfish but I dont judge you for what you want to do on a Friday night so please dont judge me. Going to bed early,with a cup of hot milk and a book does not stereotype me as boring or a nun just like partying till dawn and drinking yourself under the table does not tag you as modern and uber cool. These are preferences and choices that we make about how to spend our evening and are not the full manifestations of who we are as people !
And YES - I DONT smoke and I DONT Drink - and I DONT NEED TO EXPLAIN WHY !!!

How you get from a 5K run to a 6K run ...a conversation with myself :-)

6.30 am..... Mind(M) - Oh shit .....y did u put the alarm for 5 am....you never get up at 5 and then sleep late...6 am would have been so realistic.
Heart(H) -too late to go for a run now...let me just sleep in ...
M -no no - get up its Ok we can still go  - do a short run but dont miss it .
H - oh come on....i dont want to....no no no - its too late !! Cant run at 7am ..
M - get up get up - its ok ...a cup of black coffee will do the trick....
On the road now....
H - lets just do a short run. Yesterday was the first 5 K in ages , legs are still hurtin....lets just be happy that we did not miss it.
M-yeah that makes sense - lets just do a short run.
In the park now.....stretch your legs,adjust your watch.
Legs (L) - ooh i love this stretching but hey M & H - take it easy today ok - its late ,already 7 so even a 2K is good.
M&H - yeah yeah ..we get it.
L - hey dont go all sarci on us now.. we are the ones that need to do all the work !
"main kahoon to saala character dheela hai" H - ooh thats  a nice number - that Salman khan really knows how to move!"..Ok here we go Ls hope you are ready..
Ls- oh yeah this feels good - one step at a time....this is feeling good...
M - look at those fat women - walking like that aint gonna help sisters - run ,watch us go.
H - oh look at that - that awesome runner is here...man some day we will be running like him - what does he do - like a 10K every day .. .hmmm....we will get there too maybe like in Sept.
Ls  - hey hey - now dont get any ideas ! sure we will get there but today its only 2K.and we are almost there......
"Hud Hud Dabang"
H - ooh cant stop on this number , come on Ls Salman will be insulted....!
M - yeah I agree -lets go ...only for this number.
Ls - guys guys come on .. oh ok  - this is a good song - ok only for salman...
Lungs (Lu's) - god this sports bra is tight..breathing is tough - why cant she get a larger size! all her extra weight seems to have filled up here....hello what ever happened to the 'even distribution' of weight!
M&H - hey guys dont blame us - u know how she excercises - its all running ...we do try to coax her to work out her upper body but she doesnt like it ! so all the action is down there and no scope for weight going down to that part of the body !
V ;-) - ahem....excuse me - before anyone gets any ideas....i aint getting any action !! they mean the LEGS !! I mean -  i deserve some action too - but not her! M&H - all your fault - u just dont let her!! oh well....
M- hey V ..no depressing thoughts now ..and shhh...before the Ls find out - we are already at 4 k !! :-)
Ls - hey who u trying to fool - trust me we know and we want to STOP !! Now !! Now !! Now!!
"errrr...guys,guys,come on - stop it ...lets not give up,not yet - come on whats the point....after doing 4 21Ks this is nothing ...ok lets try and complete 1 more K !"
All together - who the F are you ? and y r u whispering...
"Umm I am her Spirit - i kinda have been a but low and hurt ...just getting back into shape!"
H - OMG !! Hello S ! Where have you been ! We have really missed u - u do look a little pale and sick to me ... hope u r Ok ?
M - Well S grows in strength as she acheives more ....so the more we run , the more S shines and sparkles !
L's & Lu's - excuse us for stepping in - what do u mean WE ?? Its US - the Ls and Lu's that are doing all the hard work ....and we are tired.
H -oh come on guys - guess what we have done 5K already ....and S is right -whats the point of resting on our laurels - lets just go for ONE MORE K ....lets do it for "S" - she needs our help to get better !
Ls and Lu's - no no ! its too difficult !
"Pyaar to hona hi tha" ..
H & S - what an awesome number - oh come on ! we have to run to this ... come on Ls - lets pick up the pace ..we can do it !
L's - we are so gonna regret it later today but what the hell ...well  guess we can so here goes.... one step at a time .....on and on and on !
OMG - we did it ... 6.25Ks.....did it did it did it !!
H - i am so flushed ,this was a great workout
Ls -we feel so good....and tired !
Lus - the bra still hurts but what the hell - loads of fresh air...the best breakfast ever !
M- hmmm... i am wondering if we can do a 7K tomorrow?
S - i feel 50% there !this is awesome ! lets go get that brownie - well deserved!
And that is how we do a 6K!!

just talking....

Missed calls , a smile ("she called"..) call back, no response....sms - sorry i was sleeping...another missed call..another call back and then we finally talk - across cities....laughing,giggling....discussing our 'very important jobs'.....our trips to far off places...exchanging notes...i crack a joke about her weight and she joins in...she laughs about my obsession with eye liner (yes that's correct!) and i laugh along.....we talk about fashion and corporate life and managers who give us hell...sameer is back and she has stuff to do and i have dinner to eat...thats me and anila...
Chat session...hellloooo roo, hi api....chummis and gaalis are exchanged..i tell her to see my pics ,read my blog and she sends me the link to her ad - mutual admiration happens (super film,nice pics)..then got to go....ziba is waiting  for her and J Depp is waiting for me...more chummis and gaalis and we log off...thats me and roohi
call on my mom's cell.....she does not pick up...call on the land line and "u never pick up the mobile'..'its upstairs and i am downstairs'...laugh at the same old joke...she asks if i am ok , have i eaten ,i must be tired...'mom i am ok let me tell u about my trip!'...i talk she listens....and laughs as i describe the food and the fun and how skinny the women are, i tell her about my shopping..she tells me the latest on the noida gossip and the family intrigues ...i listen and laugh...ok where is dad i want to talk to him...she calls him and then his hearty laugh ...we discuss vietnam , their military...their politics and then he needs to go watch discovery and i watch mtv...thats me -mom and dad...
so many conversations ...different people...different lives....random conversations interrupted by the to-dos of life and yet connected..........little conversations...huge part of my life....