gutfeel.com

So the website on parenthood has finally happened! I was thinking about writing something about my experiences on parenting so there could not be a better idea than to start a forum for urban parents. It is know as urbanparents.in but will be happening place for even unmarried people to hang out in the General Chit Chat forum. I am sure that once the traffic picks up and people start registering, it will be one of the first ever comprehensive forum for Indians and overseas parents.

I just wish that the regulars on gutfeel also come over and register on urban parents forum in order to make the forum a success.

Before i begin to write on this, i have to admit to my readers that a post on parenting is long due and i promise i will come up with it very soon for the benefit of new parents or soon to be parents! But today’s topic is related to food, which is increasing gaining importance in my life, that too good food. Me and hubby to be very frank were not very regular to the restaurants, but after the birth of our daughter the frequency has increased. It should have been the other way round though, but things sometimes don’t happen according to the normal beliefs!

A new signboard has come up recently in front of my house. It is an ad of Nokia N Series phones with quotes like “maphotonline” and “Join your favourite places with your photos with your friends”. It is just an example of how the companies are using content as a value addition to their already existing services.

Right now in the telecom industry, almost all companies are frantically looking for tie-ups with content providers to add value to their 3G services. Telcos have covered the markets for 3G phones and have come up with various models with various features. But the crux lies in the fact that 15% of India’s close to 300m users already have 3G enabled phones and if no more value is added, the phone sales will also go down.

The content providers provide services like entertainment, TV schedules, sports, movies, serials, travel, downloads, astrology and cricket amongst others.

The Bombay High Court has ruled that Niketa Mehta cannot abort her 25 weeks foetus. Had it been 20 week old, it would have been legal to abort it. The unborn child was diagnosed with a congenital heart disease and it is not clear whether s/he will be able to lead a normal life. This is very frustrating for the couple as they might have to bear the financial and emotional trauma associated with it. Mumbai life is so fast and the couple are worried how their child would cope. Here i would like to add that their is a crucial functional ultrasound that happens just at 20 weeks which tells the docs whether all the organs are functioning properly. So the legal angle should be relooked at. I know this info because i recent delivered a baby. I can only wish Nikita all the very best.

This is the heading of today’s Hindustan Times with a photo of cheerful Ishmeet Singh on the right. But what annoyed me was the text in between. They say and i quote “How many 19 year olds get a state funeral or have the PM mourn his death?” A person has died, the reason of death still unknown and the newspaper is writing such things. Did Ishmeet ask for a state funeral in his suicide note or his parents were after the PM to mourn his death. I understand that it is the poor choice of words. The whole thing could have been stated as a fact and no one would have felt offended. He was special no doubt about it, we have lost a jewel, of course. But i feel that newspapers should be a little more sensitive before writing headlines at least!

These days social networking sites like myspace, facebook and orkut are extremely popular not only amongst youngsters but also amongst the elderly for the reasons sighted as dating, networking or building activity partners but the reasons are far beyond these. Once you set up your identity on the Internet, one constantly struggles to improve it by hook or by crook! So an ugly man will put up an image of an actor or write things about himself which might not be true. People might create fake identities for dating purposes. On the other side sometimes, you get to meet old long lost friends on such sites which have settled in different sub continent. For me it is an excellent way to keep in touch with my friends and relatives.

Since i got pregnant, i noticed that there is a huge audience worldwide who are always on the lookout for which actress is pregnant, how many children they are having, and even how they are planning their nurseries!! Adoption from underdeveloped countries is considered stylish which reminds me of Angelina Jolie carrying Maddox on her hip. They are so popular that people or press are willing to pay millions to get the first pic of celebrity babies. Tom Cruise and Katie charged a bomb when their daughter was posted on the newspaper or magazine for the first time. Madonna also recently declared after her India visit that she wants to adopt from India. Let’s see if she remembers her promise or it was just some publicity stunt for her new album. During the Cannes festival too, Angelina Jolie and Aslee Simpsom were proudly showing off their bumps and they were cynosure of all eyes. I dont think in times to come this trend is going to die down. Even advertising companies will take advantage of it.

Recently i gave birth to a baby girl and everything associated with her is significant for us. She is growing by leaps and bounds and would be five months soon. When she smiles, it melts or hearts, when she cries we become confused and concerned, and when she giggles it is pleasure to our ears. When i go out sometimes for household chores and she is at home with her dad and nanny, i used to miss her tremendously. Then a bright idea crossed my mind. I recorded her giggle on my sony camera and then downloaded it as mp3 ringtone on my phone. So now whenever i go out, and i get phone calls, i get to listen the giggles of my darling daughter. So i no longer miss her that much when i go out for a few hours. She is light of our life and will remain so forever. In fact, at times my daughter also listens to different mobile ringtones on my phone and seem to like them!!! I also download ringtones especially the mp3 ringtones so that I have most trendiest and latest one on my mobile.

Blogging is the in thing these days not only for the mortals like me but celebrities are also finding out time to make their mark in the cyberspace. I was reading a newspaper article which was commenting on the increased figures (read statistics) of the number of people who have started blogging in recent times. Everyone is on the Internet to pour their hearts out, from teenagers to elderly home makers, everyone seems to have turned net savvy. And suddenly blogging is considered to be ultra cool even your fashion statement! But how many people are reading these newly sprouted blogs? that was he question the article was pondering at…IMHO i will myself not read the ones which lack originality…Some of the ones i come across are just copy paste from some online news, however i am sure that there are people out there in the cyber world who appreciate original easy to read personal experiences or opinions.

Since last week, the news channels in India are flooded by the news of the murder of a fourteen year old Aarushi Talwar. She was the daughter of the a dentist couple who lived in sector 25 of Noida. I was drawn to this news because i was at one time resident of this sector myself and was amazed to see this level of heinous crime being committed in Noida which is developing by leaps and bounds. Maybe it is the result of the development itself!