Enjoy The Festival Of Lights- Happy Diwali!

DIWALI, all my Indian friends must have a smile on their faces at this name but for my foreign (firangi) friends this might be gibberish!

India is all lit up and decorated as a bride these days. Glowing diyas and candles, fireworks, loads of yummy sweets (ummmm.....MOM!!!) and nice gifts. That's all that comes to mind during Diwali.

I have got a week off for Diwali, but as usual, I haven't touched a book! I (actually the whole family) am really busy in decorating the house, helping mum, loads of crazy shopping sprees, saying sorry to dad for the big hole in his pocket and wishing friends and family!

Okay, for all those who do not know about the festival, I quote from Wikipedia coz I am not really very good about the technical and "actual" definition!

Deepavali, or Diwali is a major Indian festival, and a significant festival in Hinduism, Sikhism and Jainism. Many legends are associated with Diwali. Today it is celebrated by Hindus, Jains and Sikhs across the globe as the "Festival of Lights," where the lights or lamps signify victory of good over the evil within every human being.

To know more, please click here- it will take you to Wikipedia!

And now, to all my friends- A VERY HAPPY DIWALI!

I'm gonna have loads of fun!! But am not burning crackers this year. And it is not because of dad or mum or teachers. It's because of the devastating news I have been reading in newspapers these days. And mum and dad are certainly happy with me. I'm having loads of sweets....my favorite- kaaju ki barfi!

I am now going off to help bro put the lights. There's too much ruckus in the house to write more right now! But before going, I made a sketch for diwali, I've included it below and

HAPPY HAPPY DIWALI!

May the diyas and lights, enlighten your lives too :)

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Something Different!

Hi friends! This post of mine is not the usual story or poem but something I had been longing to write. I have written three entirely things in this post and hope you all have something in it for all of you! ENJOY :D

My Hidden Hobby

I am sure that I have not told you anything about my interest in drawings & paintings. Recently, one of the readers appreciated me about my art thinking that it was done by a professional, I was very much delighted. No....nothing big, I am just an amateur artist, along with being a budding blogger!

So when my dad presented me with a digital camera on my last birthday, I could not resist the temptation of digitizing some of my drawings (and I have also include them in some of my posts).So today, I thought I would put them before you for you all to judge. Actually, I hope you all can bear with it...LOL! I have put some of my paintings throughout this post!

A Great Start Of The Year

I recently received an award from a fellow Indian blogger and a very good friend, Anoop. He has made the beginning of the year prosperous for me by giving me the 'Bloggers Of The World Award'. Anoop, a lovely motivator and the owner of a fabulous blog has given me a really pleasant surprise (as he says it was for him too! ) Thank you for the honor, dear Anoop!

Online Chess

I had earlier mentioned that I have avid interest in chess. For those who do not know, I would like to mention that I am a National Chess Player (recently played the under-12 age group and earlier under-7 age group etc.) and had faired well in all these tournaments. My role models were the International Women Grandmasters like Koneru Humpy and Susan Polgar. I too wanted to become like one of them.

But of late due to my writing commitments, lethargy, laziness, distraction, studies, blogging or whatever reason you may suggest, I have reduced practicing chess these days. But last month, when my good friend, excellent blogger and a real chess enthusiast, Nikita encouraged me to play chess. She asked me to register with the online chess platform Chess.com and I could neither resist the temptation nor refuse her request. So I have registered with chess.com and here is my profile in that. Nikita, in her beautiful blog Chessalee shows many interesting games from Chess.com, which is delightful to follow!

Though I have finished about 15-20 games only (with around 10 in progress), I am glad that I could win more than 80% of the games I played (of which most of them are experienced grown-up players :D). Chess.com is a wonderful platform to lay your hands on, of course, if any of you are interested in chess. Any other chess enthusiast reading my blog is free to invite me for a game!