New Blog

Started a new blog - email me at sonisherni at hotmail.com for the link. I'll leave this post up for about a week.

See you on the flip side =)

#1 Baby!

Who's #1? I'M #1!!!

I am officially #1 on Google for the search term "Indian Wedding." You do not even realize how amazing this is!

I've always placed well for more specific searches (indian wedding mandap nj, indian wedding dress, etc.). But placing well for Indian Wedding was the ultimate goal. I have seriously kicked off so many competitors and officially landed the #1 spot. I've been #5 or #6 on page 1 for the past couple weeks but didn't want to jinx it by getting excited. But now I've moved to #1 as of yesterday and I can't help but be excited! (Some people see it as #2 ... google is strange).

Now, for all I know, by the time anyone checks I'll be at #10 haha. But I saved the page so it will also serve as a memory of what I have achieved =) This is so exciting.

My guess is that Google adjusted their algorithm to focus more on how regularly sites are updated because many of my competitors were old, outdated sites and they are no longer appearing in the top results. Works for me!

yo

I reached my goal weight! I lost a total of 10 pounds. I fit into many of my old pants - thought I still don't have that flat stomach. But now the strange part is that I want to gain weight! Lol. I need muscle. It's so funny how in the beginning all I wanted to do was lose pounds. And now I've learned SO much about healthy eating and exercise that I could give a damn about my weight - I just want to feel good and be healthy.

I found a yoga class very close to our house that was M and W sessions that hubby can make after work. So I'm thinking 2 days of yoga and 3 days of working out a week. Hubby loves yoga so I'll put up with it to give him company. Maybe I'll learn to like it too =)

On a side note, why are grocery stores so damn cold? I feel like I can't go shopping without a friggin sweater and coat on. How do parents take their kids inside wearing shorts and dresses! Craziness.

Confusion

I'm trying to balance quite a few things lately. IWS used to take up a lot of time but the past few months it's been much slower since I basically just have to maintain and update it - no new issues or developments happening. My dad's business is doing well and the work comes in waves. Some days it's all I do but then I'll go a couple weeks without spending more than a few hours on it. I thought getting a part time job would be the way to go because then I could balance everything effectively but still make some steady money.

But now I'm sending out resumes for a full time job. Everything part time is useless - nothing that will teach me anything new or that really appeals to me. And on top of that, I have to remind myself that I live in the real world and I need to make real money. My new business idea could potentially make a pretty penny .. but there are equal chances that it won't. Unfortunately, I'm really lacking when it comes to sales. I wish I was better at it but I'm just not. And when you're running your own business, sales skills are SO essential.

I started sending out resumes yesterday and just got a call for a phone interview. That means I'll be spending the weekend studying my resume and trying to remember what I did at my last job. Oh joy.

Every day I start out working on one project but then jump to another and then to another. All the jumping makes me feel like I haven't accomplished anything by the end of the day. I made a list - a big 'ol spreadsheet - hoping it would help but I don't think it is. There's too much to do and not enough focus. Maybe it's because I'm sitting at home.

So now here I go on my search for a full time job in the city - which means a 1.5 hour commute every morning and every evening (along with my hubby). Then I'll fit in updates on IndianWeddingSite.com, work on my new project, work on Dad's business, and also find time to build muscle at the gym.

Maybe it's because since I quit my job I've had my own schedule and now I'm just freaked out about how I'm going to fit everything into one day and still keep focused. When I started working on IWS while at my last job, it was exciting. I enjoyed coming home in the evening and putting in a few hours on my side project. Don't know if I'll have that same joy after I get a job now.

Anyways, sorry for the rant - I guess I had to get it all out of my system. Last night I burst into tears in bed thinking I was a failure. And I'm not even PMS'ing! Hopefully I'll loosen up because tonight is date night with the hubby =)

survey

Ok, I was tagged by OIJ to do this one -

BEST:
1. Male friend: my hubby
2. Female friend: Shikha
3. Vacation: French Polynesia

WORST:
1. Time of day: The minute I have to wake up!
2. Day of the week: Monday because the weekend is over
3. Color crayon: haven't colored in a while!

LAST:
1. Person you talked to that goes to your school: this just shows you this survey is meant for teenagers =)
2. Talked to on the phone: My hubby to make sure he got to work ok
3. Text: got some stupid text message in the middle of the night that said OTA OK
4. Person who Instant Messaged: probably my sister last night .. its 9:30am and no one seems to be awake!

TODAY:
1. What are you doing now: Watching Regis & Kelly and taking a break from work
2. Wearing: My official work uniform - pajamas

TOMORROW:
1. Is: SATURDAY!! Whoohoo!
2. Got any plans: There's a free event in Central Park that I'd like to go to if it doesn't rain.
3. Goal: To buy new towels
4. Dislikes about tomorrow: Dude, it's saturday - what's there to dislike? Oh, the pile of mail I need to sort through ..

FAVORITE
1. Number: 26
2. Song: Right now, I love Agony by Sumeet and Promiscuous by Nelly Furtado
3. Color: Green!!

CURRENTLY:
1. Missing Someone: My familia, who I will be seeing soon.
2. Mood: Tired .. should have taken a nap after dropping hubby off
3. Wanting: Breakfast!

TRUE/FALSE:
I am a cuddler: Hell yes.
I am a morning person: I don't like mornings but its the only time when I'm really productive.
I am a perfectionist: To some extent, yes. I'm also a control freak at times.
I am an only child: Nope.
I am currently in my pajamas: Yup =)
I am currently pregnant: Oh I sure hope not.
I am currently suffering from a broken heart: I'm married .. no more broken hearts =)
I am left handed: Nope.
I am addicted to Blogging: Addicted - no.
I am online 24/7: Yup, it's pretty sad. The internet is my life.
I am very shy around the opposite gender: I used to be!
I can be paranoid at times: Not really .. I'm more likely to be yelling at people for being paranoid.
I currently have a crush on someone: Yes - a girl crush on Aishwarya Rai.
I currently regret something that I have done: Yes - I'm not one of those "I have no regrets" people.
I enjoy country music: No - except for this one amazing song I heard in high school which I now can't remember.
I enjoy smoothies: Love them! Perfect pick me up around 3pm.
I enjoy talking on the phone: I actually hate it. I would much rather IM someone.
I have a hard time paying attention at school/work: Short attention span.
I have a hidden talent: Not really..
I have a lot to learn: Definitely.
I have a secret that I am ashamed to reveal: Nope.

ANGER
1. Are you currently mad at someone? Yes, a few people, but nothing that consumes me.
2. Which of your friends has the worst temper? I can't announce that publicly =)
3. Have you ever thrown something at anyone? Yes, I've pulled a Naomi Campbell.
4. Ever had something thrown at you? Yes, by my babies.
5. When you are mad do you prefer to stare angrily or yell and scream? I'm one of those silent treatment people.

EXCITEMENT
1. Has anyone ever thrown you a surprise party for you? My parents used to do it every year for my bday - not much of a surprise after the 3rd one =)
2. Are you easily excited? I try not to be .. I used to be that way and my mom would get mad and say that I'll jinx whatever it is .. and that's happened far too many times now so I try to control myself.
3. What you are most excited about? At this point - I'm more confused than excited!
4. If you won a million dollars what would be your first thought? Put down a few down payments for houses for me and family members
5. If you could have anything right now what would it be? I would have a vacation with my hubby!

SELF-DISCOVERY
1. Name: Sonia
2. Where were you born? Cali
3. What is your main goal in life? To feel fulfilled and have a happy family
4. How do you want to die? I don't want to die! Or get old! Ahhh!

OPINIONS
1. Sex before marriage? If you're really in love.
2. Gay Marriage? Go for it.
3. Lower the Drinking age? Raise it!
4. Recycling? Probably should be more serious about this.

DREAMS
1. What was your latest dream? Can't remember ..
2. Have any of your dreams come true? I can't remember them so I don't know =)
3. What was the weirdest dream you've ever had? I used to have recurring dreams of being chased by someone with a knife trying to kill me. I hate those.
1. Straight, Gay, Bi? Straight.
2. Do you have a bf/gf? Married .. but I'd like Aishwarya to be my girlfriend!
3. Do you have a crush? We've already been over this.

Q: How many beds did you lay in yesterday?
A: 1
Q: What color shirt are you wearing?
A: Blue t-shirt
Q: Name one thing that you do everyday?
A: Um - wake up?
Q: What color are your walls?
A: Boring white. I wish they had more color - oh well, for now my orange curtains will have to do.
Q: How much cash do you have on you right now?
A: $50 - I hate cash.
Q: I can't wait till?
A: My next vacation!
Q: When was the last time you saw your dad?
A: In May .. but I will be seeing him later this month!
Q: What did you have for dinner last night?
A: Jerk chicken, salad and baked beans
Q: What's the last piece of clothing you borrowed from someone?
A: I don't really know anyone my size
Q: What website(s) do you visit the most during the day?
A: IndianWeddingSite.com
Q: Does anything hurt on your body right now?
A: My back - I need yoga.

HAVE YOU EVER.
1. Have you ever failed a class? Nope
2. Have you ever sung in front of a crowd? Yes, I used to do Kirtan at the Gurdwara.
3. Have you ever not taken a shower for 3 days? Yup, when I had chicken pox.
4. Have you ever slept with a night light? Yes, I was always scared of the dark. But hubby made me get rid of that habit!
5. Have you ever danced in the rain? Yup!
6. Have you ever lied? Yes .. I'm human.
7. Have you ever had contacts? Yup - I'm blind.
8. Have you ever tripped over something stupid? Uh, all the time! It's amazing my body isn't covered with bruises.

Damn, that took forever! I tag you if you have free time =)

IWS July Updates

The latest articles up on IndianWeddingSite.com -

*Modern Catering Trends from the caterer of theMittal Wedding

*Honeymoon in the romantic city of Jaipur

*Read Anna's Hindu and Jewish Bridal Diary

*Chat with other brides planning Indian weddings

Rain and Food

So finally got to have a Restaurant Week dinner - we chose Victor's Cafe and went with a group. You can read my review here on Yelp if you're interested. I wasn't super-happy, but the chocolate lava cake at the end made me happy - which is why it's a requirement for me at any expensive dinner.

The rain last night was insane!! We left the restaurant in search of a cab and got completely drenched. And I'm not talking oh-my-shirt-is-wet drenched - I'm talking my-pants-are-completely-see-through drenched. Oh, it was my most horrible rain experience. I swear this is the second time I wore my cute jeweled white flip flops to the city and both times it rained. I am never wearing those out of CT again.

Got to the train station and seriously stood underneath the hand dryer, drying my pants. I must have looked like such an idiot - especially while trying to dry my butt. One person sympathized with me, I think the others just looked at me weird. Haha. I swear I felt like I was in some stupid comedy movie.

The drive home with the psychotic lightning and thunder didn't help. Lightning is absolutely gorgeous but should be enjoyed from the comfort of your home. The fear of being struck by it did not make for a fun drive - the fallen tree branches didn't help either.

Back to work I go!

Holy SH*T!!

Ok, before you read this post, you have to read my previous post.

Ok, now that you've read it let me just tell you -

SONIAJOTI.COM IS AVAILABLE!!!

I swear, this blog must be magical or something!! The other day I checked it and it went to one of those ugly search pages that appear when someone is sitting on a domain. So after I posted my previous entry I thought, hmm, I wonder if anyone will actually type it in and see what's there. So I did that myself and got an error page instead of the page I got last time. Looked it up and it was available! No clue how this happened - maybe the guy took pity on me after reading my email and released it.

Anyways, I just bought that sucker for 5 years. Now I just have to wait until we start a family to do something with it hehe.

P.S. TO THE MAGICAL BLOG FAIRY - I WANT A MILLION DOLLARS, I WANT A MILLION DOLLARS, I WANT A MILLION DOLLARS!

SoniaJoti.com

I'm bummed. Before we got married, I bought the domain SoniaJoti.com and built a wedding website. I kid you not, this website was great - well, for someone who was doing it for kicks and had no professional experience. It had our proposal story, a video montage of our engagement party, out of town guest info, etc etc. I was a trendsetter - no one in my circle or hubby's circle of friends had done something like that. Anyways, it was the only thing I heard for like 2 years - my best friend even worked it into the skit she organized at our reception. My dad to this day will sometimes randomly call and say, "So what's going on, SoniaJoti.com."So, you get the point, this website was like our middle name.

Last year I let it expire - warning emails went to my old account. I could have bought it back but I was lazy. Or maybe I just wanted to move on from that phase of life. Maybe I was struggling to build IndianWeddingSite.com and didn't want to deal with another website. I just wasn't excited about renewing it. So then recently we start talking about a family website because, knowing my geekiness, I will need an outlet to bombard people with updates on my kids and their many pictures and videos. We decided to get SoniaJoti.com back since we have no idea what our kids names will be and our names aren't changing =)

So I go to get it and find that someone else has bought it! Some stupid company that just buys up mass expired domains and sits on them. I e-mailed them but still haven't received a response. If I have to pay big money to get MY domain name back, I will be so pissed. I'm kicking myself in the ass for letting it expire.

All I want is my website back!!