A Defining Moment

There is time in ones life when one is faced with a defining moment in which life pauses and what in front of you slows to a stop. Its only a fraction of a second but within that second is wealth of possibilities, hope and relief. For me that was this last Friday when the Masilamani/Morlock family and some friends had the first "real" dinner where we were the preparers as well as the eaters and cleaners. Friday started out with some friends from Starbucks, (ol' coworkers of mine) Etta and Heather come over to watch a Hindi film (Paranitha) and then dinner with the family. Heather and Etta were such troopers as they witnessed the chaos that was in the kitchen as we started PREParing the dinner at 7 p.m...and dinner was at 8. (what? Indians always start late...its a known fact!). Elizabeth and Nathaniel came over around 7-7:30. Elizabeth made this amazing chocolate pastry thing...i have no idea what it was called but she learned it in cooking class...(who said you never learn anything in high school?) and of course her specialty...brownies. I made bow tie pasta and heated marinara and Alfredo sauce. Prianthi had work so did not start helping until the end of the cooking. She set the table and helped with the chicken. In the end there was bow tie pasta, sauce, asparagus (which was only eaten by Pants and I) mashed potatoes (though it was very dry...i made it is all i can say in its defense) rosemary Italian bread and salad (that is all i can remember one week after it happened so bear with me).The dinner was great. My friends got to partake in this grand gesture as this was officially our first 3rd generation meal solo...no parents or grandparents. this in a way was a glimpse into what it could be like when we are much older and having family get-togethers, of our own, especially when our parents are not around anymore (unfortunate as that sounds, its bound to happen...its part of life right?). It was nice having all of us together, especially my brother and sister as I don't get to eat with them often, its usually my brother upstairs eating (cause he is doing other things, or sister and I have work so is not home for dinner...it was just nice to all be together even if it was for one night. After arguing over who was going to do the dishes and having some dessert, I got to sit outside with my friends and just chat bout ol' times and new...didn't realize how much i truly missed that, the conversation with others. Not that i don't talk with my siblings or cousins, its just that its a different part of my life that i was so used to having as a constant (sometimes more-so than others) and to have it gone for so long really left a whole inside me...I think its something that will always be there...hollow(but that is for another time, another blog). Sitting back watching, while my siblings did the dishes and everyone sitting to watch the favorite genre of this house...gruesome horror films (I'm not so much a fan...but i tolerate it from time to time) I realized that ya we can do this...yes there is much needed practice (especially for me as i couldn't cook for crap) but this is something that i hope we do often. As close as we are as cousins and siblings i know there will be a time (and there WILL be a time) when we will all move out of our homes and start our own chapters in careers and lives and the scary thing i realized was that we really haven't been separated that much. i mean For a while we were living on different sides of California (we: Norcal; Elizabeth and Nathaniel: Socal) and then we moved here and they moved to Arizona but we were always in contact with each other, whether it was family trips up to Arizona or down here to Grand terrace, Xmas, summer you name it it was done. Then they moved back down here and ever since then we have seen them practically every week (if not everyday). Now as older kids i think i have really got to bond with them and come to appreciate them not only as people but as cousins...in fact i see them as my second "siblings" since I have shared a lot with them as I do my first siblings, and lets not get started on my own siblings...we are a crazy bunch of kids who seem to not really have anything in common but i think they understand me and i them (though i still will be confused of what really goes on in their head) and I'm so proud of how they have grown up even if it is never really shown...i don't have to show it...they are my flesh and blood i will always be proud of them...okay now starting to turn into a tearjerker and getting way off topic...basically what I'm saying is that eventually we will move out of this safe haven we call home and start our lives and we most likely will not be neighbors (at least for a while) and so these moments are very precious and hard to come by. These small get-togethers helps develops us adults, working out what works and what doesn't; taking the time to appreciate each others' company. It gives as the opportunity to eat and be merry together. I believe in the moment we don't comprehend what is occuring in terms of how its defining us but its there, these defining moments as adults...as the continuing line of Masilamani/Morlock family...and boy what a family it is =) As the moment passes, and everything unpauses one has to smile cause the event is so small on the timeline that is our lives and yet it is so very significant that one can only hope and look forward to the many possibilities that come with it.

More exclusives...

More exclusive looks at the house currently in the works, hope you enjoy them!

Rekha and Nuka have been the laziest of the 5 in the house...

This is just a small sample of what has been done, more will be posted as projects are finished.

Exclusive never-before seen photos inside the New and improve Masilamani home...

Here is an exclusive sneak peak into what has been going on around the house the last couple of weeks, there are many projects in the works however as i'm sure everyone is curious to know is what exactly is being done and by whom...so enjoy!!!

Chinna Thumbi = vaccum boy!

Mom and dad's bathroom...
...Kids bathroom...oh look mom, clean walls!!!

Naturally after all the cleaning there is sure to be some snooze time...

More exclusive photos to come...

"Its ALIVE!!!"

The past several years I have been arguing with my mom over the amount of food that is lying wasted on our counters and especially in our fridge..in fact at one point we had two full fridges of food (why may you ask? hmmm I will never know) Having food is definitely taken for granted in these parts of the world and so the idea of throwing away food doesn't come naturally to my mom (or grandma for that matter). Me on the other hand can't stand food that has been sitting for what could have been years even if it is in preservatives and is in a fridge (or freezer, as my mom has kept Indian sweets from my grad party which was in JUNE!!!) My philosophy: Left overs and anything homemade should not be kept longer than 2-3 days (1 day if its restaurant). Food has expiration dates for a reason....its not good after a certain time in which one must chuck it. I don't care if there isn't any mold or if it still smells fresh, once the date has arrive and gone its tossed (i think i get that from my days working in the food business). So with this in mind I went about one of the grossest, and smelliest jobs i have ever worked on...the FRIDGE!!! (well and the cabinets too). Now mom if you are reading this, don't freak out, i didn't touch any of the Indian food stuff and the Indian cupboards...just everything else. I have to say i thought the earliest stuff found would be around '07 or even '06 however i found food dating back to '05 and '04. I found medicine from '96 all the way in the back of the medicine cabinet and two gummy bear vitamin bottles which were the loveliest color of...black! 6 hours of breathing "moldy fumes" and 5 bags of trash later I had made some progress...counter and cabinets cleaned and arranged and the fridge section cleaned...it actually looks like there isn't any food in the house (oh but there is food). I still haven't taken care of the freezer yet but i have my reservations as grandma has her special herbs which look questionable to me so hopefully there never is a warrant to search our house..(don't worry its NOT what you think!). This experience of cleaning the kitchen was interesting as now with all the food gone, there is more incentive to eat what is in the cupboards before venturing out to get more food or ordering out (which we haven't done much in the last couple of weeks). Well now that the kitchen is all cleared out there is only one thing to do....grocery shopping!!!

First week alone

So here it is, the vacation of a lifetime...25 years in the making and what do my parents decide to do? Go to where it all began. Passport, CHECK! Chaperones (Grandma and Ammachi)...CHECK! 6 boxes full of American ("made in Mexico,China and possibly India") products for Relatives and Friends...Double CHECK! After a whirl wind couple of weeks getting everything in order, and some nail biting events they were set for India (i pause here to let you know that I'm very VERY jealous that they got to go on this trip as I was supposed to go later in October but that is not happening so I took a luggage tag thinking that i could check myself in...didn't work). Of course the huge concerns were "what were the kids going to do?" "What will they eat" "who will take care of the boy" (the boy being my 18 year old brother). My concerns were mostly how was I going to reorganize the rooms and would i be able to restrain myself from going totally crazy and throwing away all the junk and crap that I have been threatening to do for the last 5 + years (which later on i find out is alot!). The first night started well, I burnt the fish sticks and tator tots (it was as if mom had not left at all). My poor brother is used to such conditions so it was alright by him as dinner. Sunday we were cordially invited to Neela David's 4th birthday in Redondo Beach. Now this was the first outing without the parents as buffers...it was an interesting outing. Question of the day? "What are you go to eat?", "You guys have groceries?" I understand the concern there, and yet I wonder if we give this notion that we are incapable of fending for ourselves...that we rely on our parents for survival. Now though this is not a false statement. To say the least, we would not survive without our parents yet the thought that we wouldn't be able to perform basic functions like feeding ourselves, and making sure that the house stayed in one peace was untasteful...no hard feelings just curiosity as to what family out there thinks about us and our capabilities as independent, mature people, Technically we are all adults (18, 21, 23 nearly 24 ekkk!) and so this new form of independence should not be a strain but a canvas to hone our skills before we have to face the real world on our own two feet. Yet I get this feeling that everyone is going to watch carefully at what transpires in La maison Masilamani. Thus the blog, a way for not just my parents but anyone who wanted to be entertained in-between the norms of the REAL WORLD. Now here is a brief notation of what when on this first week as nothing much really occured...I started my massive clean-up operation beginning with the living room and then headed towards the kitchen.(which was bad that it deserves its own blog entry) There is still MUCH that needs to be done in the kitchen and living room area yet for the most part it is clean and de-cluttered! YEA!!! The one thing I learned this week for sure is the how much time and energy moms and dads put into working and caring for family. My sister and I have been trading on and off in making sure that my brother has food and makes all his appoinments etc. Making sure the trash is taken out, cats are fed, doors and windows locked at night, mail and laundry and gardening...i can go on but you get the idea...there is no time for one-self...in fact between working 9-5 and caring for family, all the other activities push away any opportunity for alone time and time to hang with friends watchin Hindi movies or just reading. Friday is one week since they left, 3 weeks before they come back and I find myself condradictig myself...i miss my parents and grandma's and yet I want them to stay away no just because they deserve the time away for-them-selves but also this is the opportunity to shine and show the world and our parents what we have learned the 10-15 years on our way to adulthood. Yes those questions of who will cook and who will help care for brother will constantly be present but we are changing with the color of the leaves (which is not happening right now but its the metaphor that couts) We are stepping up to the challenge and batting in into the crowd, home run the way...