Of home, the peeling volcano and awesome fabrics*.

[*and really long titles.]

So many things have happened lately. Dad had a heart attack, so we rushed home as soon as we could. Things were pretty glum for the one day that we had to wait here, since there was no flight before that. We didn't even get to talk to him, although my aunt kept us informed. So it felt really good to finally meet him and see for ourselves that he was fine. Alhamdulillah!

I love how he was happy and upbeat the whole time and still is. We never felt the constant stress people usually do, what with trying to keep it quiet, getting the patient to eat their relatively bland meals, making sure they don't sneak a bite when no one's looking, etc. There's no  'Sshhh, keep it down, there's a sick person in the room' or 'let's talk in the other room and let him rest'. He loves it when there's lots of people around him, even when he's trying to get some sleep. Which means that we had lots of late nights and long chats. I also love the fact that he never complains about the change in his diet, and doesn't pull faces when we eat some fried chicken while he's having plain veggies. He's just cool like that. ;)

I could never stand Raspberry Ripple, the only thing nice about it was the pink (ofcourse!).
But now, I WANT it all the time.

I almost feel guilty for saying that I had such an awesome time at home, but I did. Lots of good food, family time, no screaming kids, a bit of baking (more on that in the next post). Also caught up with old friends, one of which has gotten married since the last time we met. And I've never seen her so happy. MashaAllah :). So now we have a plan. All 7 of us are going to marry some awesome guys, then get a home near hers and have looong lazy afternoons filled with cupcakes, laughter and basketball. One day, one day.

I also happen to be my younger brother's personal artist. So this time he had me do some diagrams, sketches and a model too. His excuse? The notes should look good. Ofcourse he knows how to draw them, but he wants me to brush up on my drawing skills too. What a sweet kid. So now I have 'brushed up' on the digestive system of humans, basics of landscape drawing, a bit of plant anatomy, parts of a volcano, and I even discovered something called air-drying clay. Yes, I had never heard of it before. No, I didn't jump around with joy when I realised what it was. Ofcourse not. That's just silly. Although I'm not quite sure how many times I have gone all "God bless the genius who invented this!". But that's normal, right? Right.

For some reason, the teacher didn't want a working model.
But I always felt that the eruption was always the best part of making a volcano. :(
Oh well.

She wanted a volcano that has already erupted. She wanted destruction, and she got it.

 Although I did make one major mistake. The cardboard piece that I used as the base was too thin, and as the clay started drying and becoming heavier, it started pushing the centre of the base downwards. And by the time it dried completely, the middle had sagged much more and the sides had come off the base. I should have gone for a harder base, like a piece of wood or plastic board. Lesson learnt!

Oh! And mum also showed me some really cute fabric that she found.

I got so excited when I saw it. And I've asked her to save it for me. It would look so cute on an apron, like a panel or something. Or even as a framed print for the kitchen. Or as a decoupaged tray. That's all I can think of. Does anyone else have any ideas for this fabric?

And now I can't wait to get back home. I didn't want to come back to Mumbai at all in fact. So much so that I even delayed my flight by a week, but then had no option 'coz I was missing lots of classes and my finals are coming up too. So here I am, in Mumbai, attending classes, doing homework, working on my portfolio and missing home like never before. December seems so far away right now. Excuse me while I go and eat some happiness (chocolate, duh!). :) See, I'm smiling already. Lupin knew what he was talking about!