Thursday 19 April 2018

Q is for Quotes on my fridge door in Qatar #AtoZChallenge

The quest for Q has brought me to the fridge today. No, don't worry, I'm being careful with what I eat so the fridge is stocked well with cucumbers, oranges, apples and coconut water. I have said this often and I will stress upon it again, the A to Z Challenge adds to my girth as much as it adds to my mirth. So I have to be careful.

Back to the fridge door then: It's shut. It's grey. It has a total of 6 fridge magnets on it, two of which have been brought by friends from Sri Lanka and  Falkland Islands. My friends know my aversion to made-in-China-and-available- in-every-tourist-spot-in-the-world stuff, fridge magnets included, so after the first two, there were no more! Phew!

Three of the fridge magnets were bought by yours truly, two from a lady who called herself 'the Jersey girl'. We visited her stall at a farmer's market near Chicago, almost five years ago.  She was selling wind chimes she'd made with shells and drift wood collected from the Jersey shore where she lives. Her son (who wasn't at the stall at the time) created these beautiful magnets with bottle caps and famous art/photographs. One of these holds a quote I put up a long time ago.
I can't even remember when I scribbled those words or where I got them from. But, it's a wonderful quote to read every time I'm facing a door. 

I noticed the 'post your safety data' today as I took this photo.

How apt. I thought. This is the kind of quote that fits perfectly under 'safety'  data.

Rumi lives with me in my kitchen: my karmabhoomi (the land where one works). But as he's bound within the pages of a book I cherish, I decided to scribble a quote of his and put it up on the fridge to avoid the temptation of reaching out to the book with fingers that have chopped onions or garlic recently or licked the last bit of marmalade from a jar. 
The dragonfly magnet holding Rumi up for me was bought from a shop in Doha called, The One. 

I like the fridge door to be bare so I can clean it often without much ceremony with stuff stuck on it. But every now and then, a recipe or a list of books recommended by an author catches my eye. So, before the magazine is sent to the re-cycling bin (a recent and welcome change here), I rip the page out and it hangs there till one of the following two things happen:
1) I give up on ever trying out the dish or another list of books that looks more exciting surfaces. 
Or
2) The dish is declared a success and the page is filed away in my cooking file/the book has been read.
FYI: "Colour your Diet" came through the door as promotional material.
*****
Do you like to put quotes where you can see them?

What's your favourite quote at the moment? 

Or do you have an all-time favourite one?
I do:)
It is by Maya Angelou:
"There's no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."
This quote sits on my desk 
and hangs out inside books I'm reading:
scribbled on a piece of card that works as a book mark.

28 comments:

  1. Fridge quotes (and magnets), what a lovely idea for the letter Q!
    I keep some "be organized" quotes at the office: keep only what you need, give everything a home, create schedules and deadlines, etc.
    For life "take it or leave it" is my all-time favorite quote. Simple. The more elaborate one would be "life doesn't come with a remote, you have to get up and change it yourself."

    https://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/2018/04/q-is-for-quebec-city.html

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    1. I like your remote quote Tamara. Thank you:)

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  2. Those are very good quotes to live by. As someone who worries a lot, I especially appreciate the first one :)

    The Multicolored Diary: Weird Things in Hungarian Folktales

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    1. Me too! I copied it to share with other worrying family members.

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    2. Cheers Czegne and Krsitin. Glad you likes it:)

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  3. No, I don't put quotes anywhere, except in my notebook. It would be not useful to stick them on the fridge. I think I almost never look at the door when I open it... (But, wait... we have two pictures there. I guess we don't know exactly where to put them better).

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  4. I like these quotes especially the first about 'worry'. I have tons of favorite quotes but I can't remember them all that easily. here's a quote that I just saw:

    "For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream." - Vincent van Gogh

    have a lovely day.

    my latest a-z is: query

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  5. Hari OM
    I have a lot of fridge magnets - I like them and are easy souvenirs - better to collect than keyrings! That said, I also try to obtain those which are local to the area and not the mass-produced variety. It is also the case that, where possible, I collect magnets with quotes already upon them! The one at the top left of my fridge, gifted me many years ago by a client) is one I try to live by constantly; "I expect excellence and give only excellence." Sometimes there is a shortfall, so the reminder is essential! YAM xx

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    1. Those pesky keyrings;)
      Excellence is a good benchmark. Thank you Yamini.

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  6. Great idea, to put these wonderful inspirations on the fridge where you see them all the time.

    Beth
    https://bethlapinsatozblog.wordpress.com/

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  7. I absolutely love the Maya Angelou quote Arti! I keep quotes - I have quite a few note books of favourite ones. Once I made little gifts, using small black notebooks, and a white pen and inscribing in a few of the pages some special quotes. A few little simple drawings using gold and silver and white pens on a few of the pages .. One of my favourite ones is 'What are the obstacles that prevent me from living my larger life'? Anne Baring.

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    1. Such an empowering quote Susan. Thank you.

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  8. I sometimes have my to-buy list or instructions for the husband when I am traveling, on the fridge door, duly supported by fridge magnets, never quotes. I love your idea of having thoughtful/thought-provoking quotes on the fridge to remind you, to imbibe in, to implement... Thanks for a fab idea, Arti. ♥ I will be working on it , first thing in the morning!

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  9. "God will not have his work made manifest by cowards" - Ralph Waldo Emerson (my hero)

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  10. I like the quotes you have on your fridge, Arti. The worry one I may not have heard before but it is one I will try to remember. Worry is something I used to allow to consume me. After many conversations with myself, it is infrequent now that it takes over my thoughts.

    My fridge is currently bare but I normally have magnet photo frames on it with family photos. I will dig them out sometime and put them back where they belong. Thanks for the reminder!

    Emily In Ecuador

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    1. Happy faces of family are a blessing to behold. xx

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  11. I love the peek at your fridge and the quotes - the Rumi one is fabulous, and I can definitely relate to your not-happening recipes and more-thrilling booklists. :-)

    I keep a set of magnetic poetry tiles on my door, and dash off a line whenever I'm inspired. Sometimes the cost of dinner at my house is you have to add a line yourself, and I love what wonderful and surreal creations get formed.

    I'm definitely a collector of quotes, though I mostly jot them in journals. I love so many, but if you forced me to choose, I think my favorite might be what Ram Dass said: "We're all just walking each other home."

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    1. Ah! Ram Dass's words. In fact, this year's A to Z has reminded me of this quote of his often.
      Thank you Deborah.

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  12. Love your quotes and I admire and respect Maya Angelou. Such a wise woman. "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." Eleanor Roosevelt. For some reason this quote sticks with me wherever I go. And I have it printed out on my bathroom wall and as the foundation for a book I wrote for girls.
    JQ Rose

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    1. Thank you for visiting and for sharing this wonderful quote JQ. I love the hope and the belief that this quote emanates.

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  13. I love collecting quotes, reading them, writing them in books but have never put it on the fridge door. years ago on my old fridge I had a poster on "SMILE a Lot, It costs Nothing" Every day while I worked in the kitchen this would bring smile on my face... now my daughter picked up a few magnets from Goa and put it up with few pictures of my son and daughter.

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  14. The article looks magnificent, but it would be beneficial if you can share more about the suchlike subjects in the future. Keep posting. under bench fridge

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