Category: About Me

Best of 2020

2020 has been a strange year, but here are some of the things that happened.

1. Starting the year with family:

I love spending time with my grandparents. I’m glad I got to do it in the beginning of this year, even if I couldn’t make my annual summer trip to India 😭. I also got to spend some time with my uncle and aunt, before they moved countries.

2. Ending my elementary years and staring my middle school ones:


I finished 5th grade (virtually) and started middle school and the school of my choice (also virtually)! Virtual school is less than ideal, but I’ve learned to adjust. You can read about my experiences here.

3. ARCADIS Science Fair:


I participated in the ARCADIS science fair and did a project on supercooling and snapfreezing water. I learnt a lot and was really surprised when I won!

4. Mini Getaways:


Since we couldn’t travel a lot, I relied on a few small breaks to get away . My favorite one was definitely my birthday weekend getaway with a few of my friends and family. I also liked the Corpus Christi, Driftwood, and Pensacola Beach breaks.

5. Dance:


I spent a lot of time focusing on dance during these COVID times. I’ve taken place in a Bharatanatyam dance exam (for both theory and practical) and started learning a new Indian classical dance form, Mohiniattam. I performed a few solo items and recorded them. I’ve also began to learn Carnatic music to support my skills.

In Western dance, I was able to get one last performance on February in my elementary school dance company and I’m in my new school’s Drill Team. It’s less than ideal, but I’m hoping to be able to go back to performing soon.

6. Life Skills:


2020 has been a year where I learnt and tried so many new things.

  • I learned to crochet, and did a few art projects including tie-dye projects and wreaths for our door.
  • I cooked and baked (I even made my first layered cake!) and got comfortable in the kitchen. Some of the treats I made include mint chutney bread, cranberry cookies, brownies, and more. I also learned to make rice and keera kootu.
  • I’ve learned a lot of handy household chores like doing the laundry and handwashing clothes as well as ironing and sweeping.
7. Improved Technology Skills:

I started to use Instagram and I wrote on my blog more. I got better at using Google Drive, Docs, and Slides. I’ve learnt about different features on computers and got better at navigating through the digital world.

8. Writing:

I wrote 2 stories (which I’m going to edit this year) and a few short stories for my blog.

9. Reading:

I’ve read a ton this year and made friends with a few bookstagrammers. On my instagram, I took part in two challenges, the #mgbookmarch challenge in March and the #mgbooktober challenge in October. I’ve also started new series, and began to read a higher level of mglit!

(If you’re not following me yet, you totally should)

You can check out my insta here.

Being The New Kid

Being the new kid is never easy, especially when it seems like everyone knows everyone. I wrote the fictional personal narrative based off of my experience as a new kid in dance class. This was a submission for my assignment in my Language Art class

I open the door to the dance room uncertainly and peep in. Kids are milling around, talking to each other happily. I gulp and step in, nervous. All the chatter comes to a stop and it feels like every eye is on me. The teacher catches my eye and nods, and I take a seat near the back of the room. I listen to the excited conversation, only catching a few words or sentences, and start wishing that I had bought a book. The teacher, Ms. Nair, clears her throat and we all stand up and start warming up. After we’ve warmed up, Ms. Nair says, “Let’s see Jimikki Kammal from Nimmy, Rithika, and Megha.”  Their dance is fun and energetic. Ms. Nair smiles, then scans over the group of kids watching. “Let’s have Niharika, Lipi, and Tara join them. I know you girls don’t really know the dance, but try to follow along. ” she says. I get up nervously and join the other 5 girls standing. As I start dancing, I remind myself to loosen up and have fun. The music starts and I nervously begin dancing, watching the other girls like a hawk, trying to pick up the dance moves. As the music goes on, I start relaxing and actually start getting immersed in the dance. At the end, Ms.Nair smiles, looks us over once again and nods. She hands us a costume to practice in and my mind spins. I’m in a dance group already! A girl who danced with me, Lipi, says, “Hey, you dance really well. Do you want to be friends?” I smile and accept her invitation. I’ve already made a friend! I’m really sad when practice is over and we have to leave for our next class. I’m very excited for the next class and what we will do there.

Author Biography

In my WITS writing camp, we had to write a 5-10 line author biography about ourselves. Here is mine!

The Mint Girl is an acclaimed author and TV host. She is most famous for her books Say it Like it is and its sister, Say it Like You Mean it. She hosts the game show What Do you Mean?. She has 3 cats and a hedgehog. She lives in Honolulu, Hawaii and has dreamt about going to live in Japan. Her next book, The Best Place to Live?, is coming out in September and is highly anticipated. 

When she’s not writing, you can find the Mint Girl reading, dancing, and ziplining. You can connect with her on Instagram.

What will your dream author bio look like?

My Hobby: Dancing

I plaster a smile on my face and step onto the stage. My hobby is dancing. I learn bharatanatyam and western dance.


I grimace at how messy the step turned out to be. Your steps have to be precise while dancing.  I scooped down and my leg followed. I groaned and start the frustrating process again. I scooped down and thrust my leg forward.”Phew! I finally got the step right!” I cheered and felt victory because I had to do two things at the same time. I was so happy when I achieved the step. On the next step I faced a similar problem.I started my jeté and sailed magnificently through the air. On my landing though, I crumpled to the floor. “ You can do this,” I whispered to myself. After a lot of practice, I finally got the step.

I practice the jump over and over again until it gets engraved into my brain. Dancing is a lot about repeated and dedicated practice. You need to remember all the steps. I started dancing a beat too early. Then I started a beat too late.Frustrated,  I threw my hands in the air. I was so annoyed at how my timing was off. I finally realized what time to do it and I was so relieved. Once I had the last step down. I knew I was ready for the competition. Before the competition, I practiced the dance multiple times so I wouldn’t forget it. “ I can’t forget the steps,” I told myself. On stage, I never forgot a step.

I run off the stage happy that the dance is over. Dancing is a type of hard work, because you need to have precise steps and you need to remember the steps.Even though it’s frustrating, I still enjoy dancing. I’ve always been lucky to have great teachers who guide me throughout the world of dance. Sunanda Aunty and Ms. Rojas have been the best teachers anyone could ask for.I hope my passion for dance keeps growing over the years. Let’s dance!