The last month or so since I disappeared from the blog, life has been quite the Tora Tora (Tora Tora’s that ride at the amusement park that looks like a twirling girls skirt and goes around and up and down at the same time.) – all topsy turvy and just plain crazy but yeah it’s been fun too. 😀

So here’s my long explanation for the disappearance. 😛

We’d moved house in December 2013 and I was hoping to stay put for a bit but five months later just as we were settling down into a rhythm in May, circumstances changed and forced us to move. Actually it wasn’t forced but it worked out for the best.

The owners of the previous house had issues crop up in their life in Goa and they were forced to move back. They were nice people so they didn’t ask us to leave but rather worked out a way so we could all live together. We on the ground floor and them on the first, but 8 dogs in the house had Che and me scratching our heads and wondering how we would survive.

We also knew that they had brought us some time, but a move in December 2014 was guaranteed, so we started putting the word out to friends that we were looking for a house that would accommodate 5 dogs with lots of space for them, far from people so, complains about their noise would be minimal and life in general would be fun.

As things turned out, a friend got in touch almost immediately saying he had heard of a house that might suit us in Hennur. It was the absolute other end of the city, from extreme South to extreme North. We decided to check it out and met Chaitanya and Anitra, (friends of our friend) who also had two dogs. The house they led us to in their layout had us bowled over at first glance. It had a lot of garden space in front of the house, only one immediate neighbour, three bedrooms and loos, two floors,… We loved it.

Going back after the first visit we talked and then talked some more after reaching home. The gist of all that talking was that moving was going to be painful whenever we did it. And if that was going to be so, why wait until December, we might as well move now when we found a house that seemed like it would work well for us.

Well, next thing you know, we had packed the basics, organised the logistics of moving five dogs, booked packers and movers and moved. I can never be thankful enough for my friends and family coz they are just amazing. They jumped in with all enthusiasm and helped us shift, five dogs and all.

The dogs love the place and space. Cuckoo, my jumping queen seems to have so much space now, that the 5 foot boundary wall doesn’t seem enticing enough to jump over. Even her jumping to greet people has reduced with the distractions that the space provides. And the garden provides all of them ample space to dig and get messy while we chase about telling them off and trying to refill the holes. It seems like a losing battle. 😀

We now also have a guest bedroom on the first floor for family and friends [just in case you decide to visit :D] where they can take a few calming breaths away from the dogs and don’t have to worry about waking up to Senti’s licking or Max’s farts. 😛

It’s been almost two months and a lot has happened. One post isn’t enough to write it all so I’ll split it but for now I can tell you we are all having a ball – learning new things, settling into a new rhythm, sleeping out in the sun, scampering when it rains and other such fun stuff.

Settling in is a pain and will take a while but I am hopeful that this time we won’t move again, at least not soon. 😉

Is that the New Year?

The last couple of months I haven’t been able to blog much. I thought of writing often, there was after all so much to say but with all that was happening it was almost impossible to sit down to write. Let me give you a gist of all that happened in November and December.

But before that, Happy New Year to everyone who reads this. May 2014 bring you joy, peace and contentment. May all you dreams and wishes come true; may all that’s best for you unfold in 2014. 🙂

Che and I had been searching for over a year to find a house that suited us and allowed us to bring our pack of five together under one roof before we saw a place, just after I got back in November. We liked the house at first sight; it had only one bedroom, one bathroom, no doors or cupboards and a high rent but there was a lot of space for the dogs. It worked well for them and we jumped at it.

Big House but only G. Floor is ours

With that started the crazies. Living in a house we owned for over five years meant we had collected loads of stuff that we didn’t use regularly and a lot of what we didn’t need. Packing the house overwhelmed and drove me nuts. Thankfully help arrive in the form of my Mom and sis-in-law before I lost my marbles. Somehow over the month the house got packed and boxed before the movers arrived.

I still can’t believe we emptied the house. It was a big lesson in letting go as I gave away a lot of stuff. Big lesson on not hoarding. I’m a hoarder but I hadn’t realised how big a hoarder until the move. One of my life resolutions now is not to hoard, anything that isn’t going to be used in the near future must be given away. Even if it is something small that hardly takes space, it’s got to go coz I collect a lot of small things that then take up a lot of space.

Anyway we moved on 1st December and there started an all new battle – unboxing. This one am still fighting as we live out of boxes. More important than the unboxing though was getting the house ready for the dogs. Doggie doors had to be built, everything put away, beds and sleeping areas created, the list seemed endless and we went at it one item at a time until we kinda thought the house was ready.

My favourite morning chai spot

Then came the logistics of shifting five dogs from one end of the city to the other. Three cars were needed along with three people to escort the dogs and in-between all of this we had to take them to the clinic too for medicated baths and vaccinations before they got here. While working out the logistics I thought the cars were the hardest part. Turned out the baths were the toughest. The big boys gave us no trouble at all but Cuckoo had everyone’s ears ringing by the time we left with her Himesh Reshamyi rendition from the moment we reached to when we left.

I was so rattled and shook up after being around Cuckoo for three hours that I have to give it to all the stuff at the Cessna Lifeline Clinic for their patience. Special thanks to Pallavi and Lakshman for the awesome grooming job they did.

The dogs all cleaned up we left the clinic with all our fingers and toes crossed to see what would unfold when we put them all in one space at home. Miracles happen, I know coz I saw one that day the 19th of December. We let the dogs loose together and they didn’t kill each other. They didn’t become the best of friends in five minutes but they seemed to find the space to live and let live in that time and I couldn’t ask for more. We all collectively heaved a sigh of relief and joy. It was a milestone in our lives, we had managed to bring our pack together under the same roof. Our family was finally complete and it was worth all the struggle, every bit of it.

Here's what happens after I enter the kitchen in the morning 😀

The rest of the month has just flown by in settling the dogs in, settling in ourselves, setting up a routine and what not. We’ve got a long way to go still but life’s slowly getting into a rhythm.

Each day here is still an adventure with something crazy happening everyday. Sometimes its good crazy and sometimes bad but always crazy 😀 In all this chaos I hope to find more time to read and write in 2014. I have a lot of catching up to do and a lot of books due for review. Authors – Sorry if your book is pending review on my blog. I’m trying my best to catch up and should if all goes well 😛

There’s so much more to tell and share but I’ve gotta go now, the dogs are calling. I’ll be back with more about the dogs, my life and everything else soon 🙂

What’s your new year looking like? What plans for 2014?