Astrovelo

As it is, among all the kids' TV shows that I watch with A & A, Noddy is my least favorite. Yesterday, it was the last straw that turned my “it’s OK” attitude to “that’s stupid”. In one episode, they showed the Moon going down the horizon and the Sun coming up from the same spot. It is downright irresponsible to show something that is so totally wrong to little children. If you can’t teach them something right, at least don’t teach something that is wrong.

Talking about TV shows, we added HBO to our cable service, again after a gap of about 2 years. Got a chance to watch a couple of episodes of “Big Love”. It is a very well written and well made drama, just what you expect from any HBO original series. It is about a Mormon family that practiced polygamy. It is interesting to watch all the different issues faced by Bill and his three wives. Polygamy is illegal in USA and also not supported by church of the LDS. But, there are many remote areas in Utah where people can do whatever they want. Don’t know why anyone would want more than one wife. It is hard enough to keep one happy.

I really like how HBO shows are made with a lot of attention to detail. One of the scenes in the show took place in their basement. You can see big containers neatly lining the walls of the basement. I knew a Mormon family whom I helped move from one house to another. Just as it is seen on the TV show, they had a big stack of nicely sealed containers in their basement. Those containers held 800 pounds of wheat. There also was a large number of full 1 gallon water jugs. All Mormon households are prepared for Armageddon and ready for Christ’s second coming.

Talking about Mormons, here is a very interesting blog of an ex-Mormon… Dooce

Someone once said to me, “What kind of Madhuri Dixit fan are you if you haven’t seen ‘Dhak Dhak’ from Beta?”

So, I looked it up on Youtube.

Maybe, it was better that I hadn’t seen it. Now, I hate that cockroach named Anil Kapoor more than ever before.

Someone once said to me, “What kind of Madhuri Dixit fan are you if you haven’t seen ‘Dhak Dhak’ from Beta?”

So, I looked it up on Youtube.

Maybe, it was better that I hadn’t seen it. Now, I hate that cockroach named Anil Kapoor more than ever before.

First 10 seasons of The Simpsons on dvd are 55% off. Go, buy them quick!!!

When we were looking for houses during our recent move, we had our work cut out for us: Find a house that is similar to the one in MI. We were so happy and comfortable in our old home, that we couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. Fortunately, we were quite successful in our mission as you can see in the following photos.

MI home
It is on the market if anyone wants to buy.


CT home

The only difference is that the floor-plans are mirror images of each other. Even after living in the new house for a month, as I come down on the first floor, I get confused and hesitate a little. I am not really sure if the kitchen is to the right or left.

Last weekend, thanks to a helping friend, I was able to re-install the playset for kids. They were very thrilled to be back on it.

Playset in MI


Playset in CT

Note the wooded backyards in both the photos. It was one of the top criteria while selecting the new house. The inside of the house is still not presentable. We have a few boxes lying around and more work needs to be done. I’ll post more photos at a later date.

Our own pre-ordered copy of “Harry Potter and ……” (book 7) arrived in the mail two days ago. V was very excited to see it. Then, she remembered the need for reading Potter #6 before she started this one. That book arrived 2 years ago, in mail, and is still sitting untouched in the bookcase. So much for Potter mania in our household.

Everything is more expensive in Connecticut compared to Michigan. When I saw the sign for “$10 haircut”, I didn’t pay attention to other stuff written around it and went in for a haircut. Interesting comparison between my last two haircuts.

Two weeks ago, after spending more than five wonderful years that doubled the size of our family, we bid Michigan goodbye with a heavy heart. It was harder to leave than any of our earlier homes. We made it to Connecticut last week via New Jersey. One of the nice things about being in Connecticut is that we are about 2 hours from New York and Boston. It will be easier to meet with friends (LJ and non-LJ) and family on the east coast now.

It is going to take a long time to settle down in the new place. We have hardly made a dent in the mountain of boxes that holds our 15,000 pounds of household stuff. Kids started going to their daycare/school this week for half days. Looks like Ashwini will get into the new routine faster than Adit. They will start full-time next week. V starts work next week as well while I have another week to enjoy unpacking boxes before I start work.

Summer in Connecticut is turning out to be beautiful. It is very green and hilly everywhere. Also, being close to the ocean makes the temperatures quite moderate. Hope to find a lot of opportunities for photography and astronomy in the near future.

"It’s like America running out of steak. Sushi without tuna just would not be sushi."
TADASHI YAMAGATA, vice chairman of Japan’s national union of sushi chefs, on the tuna shortage.

Tuna shortage… Now, this is a disaster.

Ashwini in “Lata Mangeshkar” hairstyle.