Jingle Rock

So I was taking a bath this morning, and when I was squeezing out some green liquid soap, a jingle I'd heard about gazillion times on TV when I was a kid came unbidden to my mind. It goes something like this:

"How about a Minty, when you are having fun?
How about a Minty, when you are in the sun?
How about a Minty, just to pass the day?
Just have a Minty, and let it make your day.
Minty! Minty! Minty! Minty! NP Minty!"

Or at least that's how I remember it.

Then later on when I was giving Raina a bath, I came up with another one:

"Bubbles! Bubbles! Bubbles!
Add something special to an ordinary day!"

I used to make my mom get that kiddie soap for me, just because of that commercial.

The memories got me racking my brains for all the jingles I remembered hearing in the bygone years. And boy, there were lots. Lots and lots. I can't seem to get them out of my mind now. So I'm planning to pass on the jingle-bug by mentioning a few.

My all-time favorite jingle:

"We're all in it together for the fun of it
For the taste of it.
Campa Orange flavor
Adds the flavor of fun!"

I remember watching that commercial wistfully. The kids in it seemed to be having such a blast. And hey, that clown, doesn't he remind you now of Ronald McDonald?

Favorite jingle with celebrity:

"Kapil Dev. The tough cricketer with the tough beard. He uses Palmolive Shaving Cream with SGL4.
Kapil Dev: 'Palmolive da jawab nahin!'"
Indeed!

Jingle when heard stays in your head for the rest of the day:

"Marlex pressure cooker. Khana jaldi pakaye, kaisi seeti bajaye.
Marlex! Marlex pressure cooker!"

Most annoying jingle:

It's the Hawkins pressure cooker one. Hands down. Can't recall the exact words, but I still remember Neena Gupta mouthing, "Hawkeenz! Hawkeenz! Hawkeenz!" at the end. Horrible.

Jingle that got the most adolescentish guffaws:

"Jo OK sabun se nhaiye, kamal sa khil jaaye..." with the clincher : "Kaafi bada hai."
That one still makes me scream with laughter.

What jingles from those 'golden years' can you recall?

C'est Moi

As if everyone didn't know enough about me, Eve's Lungs has tagged me to tell you more! And since I was one of those teenagers who wrote pages and pages about myself in friends' opinion books, I'm dishing it out here. Enjoy... or beware!

I am: a good listener.
I think: way too much and act way too little.
I know: that I am changing every day in every way -- and some changes I don't love.
I want: a life well lived.
I have: nothing. Trying to be less possessive about people and things.
I wish: my kids will be all they can be.
I hate: to schmooze. So I don't do it.
I miss: Bombay. My parents. My brother. My friends.
I fear: for my kids. The world can be an evil place.
I feel: Raina's ribs. That girl is too thin.
I hear: Rohan crying... even when he's not. :(
I smell: the cool evening air, presently.
I crave: chocolate.
I search: for the next step I want my life to take.
I wonder: how Pikey The Cat can sleep all day and night.
I regret: not going into the science field.
I love: people-watching in cafes with P.
I ache: when I see a news article on a missing child.
I care: about planet earth.
I am not: a domestic diva.
I believe: in the healing power of cuddles.
I dance: with Raina and Rohan.
I sing: in my car all the time. Loudly.
I cry: when I'm sick and hurting.
I don’t always: go out of my way for people.
I fight: when I am angry.
I write: because I love words.
I win: fair and square. I hate cheating.
I lose: with a smile and a shrug.
I never: lose hope.
I always: live and let live.
I confuse: my relatives. They just can't peg me.
I listen: to Raina's talks, Rohan's babbles and P's day at work.
I can usually be found: in the library. OK, that was before I had kids.
I am scared: that the worst is yet to come.
I need: my books.
I am happy about: my decision to have two kids.

I pass this on to Anamika, Rads, Cee Kay and Sraikh (asaaan.blogspot.com).

A Tag for Bookworms

I am such a geek. For days now, I've composed blog posts in my head while nursing Rohan to sleep. Prose that was, of course, brimming with wit and insight. But nothing short of a kick in the derriere would cure me of this inertia to sit before a computer and actually type. Or so I thought, until Anamika tagged me (http://thinkingcramps.blogspot.com).

Anamika, you got me pegged. A tag on books and I'm typing furiously before you can say, "What a lazy lying bum!" This one's so much fun!

OK, the rules:

Pick up the nearest book.
Open to page 123.
Find the fifth sentence.
Post the next three sentences.
Tag five people, and acknowledge the person who tagged you .

So I grabbed "The Good Women of China: Hidden Voices" by Xinran, which I am presently re-reading. When I read it for the first time, I was depressed for days. Never thought I would read it again. But I'm fresh out of reading material, so yesterday I reluctantly picked it up. Glad I did, for now I'm looking beyond the shock and horror of the true-life accounts in this book and really thinking about this China we don't know.

OK, Page 123, Fifth sentence. Here goes:

"My grandfather was already over seventy when he was imprisoned. He survived his ordeal with an astoundingly strong will. The Red Guards spat or blew their noses into the coarse food and weak tea they brought to their prisoners. An old man who shared a cell with my grandfather died of grief, anger and shame at this treatment, but my grandfather kept a smile on his face. He removed the mucus and spit and ate everything that could be eaten."

I didn't stop at three sentences because it wouldn't make sense. And it's interesting that although the entire book is about the voices and lives of Chinese women, the above lines deal with a man. So although they aren't representative of the content, you may get some idea about the style of the writer (a Chinese journalist, who's a woman).

Thanks for tagging me, Anamika! And I pass this on to Terri's mom (http://terristurf.blogspot.com), Amodini (http://reviewroom.blogspot.com), Cee Kay (http://my2centstoo.blogspot.com), Mystic (http://mysticmargarita.blogspot.com) and Rads (http://kowthas.wordpress.com)!