Heavier Things

I demand too much from the people I love. I demand that they listen to me talk, assure me that there's no rat under my bed when I'm alone at home, make the small decisions..the "what do you want to eat today" and "which film should we watch" kind and never ever hang up on me when I call them.

Conversely, I demand too little from the people I don't know. There is the neighbour who's rude to me and gets away with it, the colleague who dumps all the work on me or the shopkeeper who sells me a bad product. Oh! How can I forget the maid who thinks she can bully me into buying her a pressure cooker! (maid management classes anybody?)

I may be unjust to my people and not mean enough to the strangers. So I understand why most of mine need so much space... But at the end of the day, if you claim that the walls close up on you each time I call, then you can't be anyone I love. And neither listening to David Gray nor willing for things to be different is going to change that.

Right. Now that this is out of my system, time to go shopping!!

The best house warming present ever.

Recently I visited Bunny's new place and was looking around by myself when she yelled that I should check out the soap dispenser in the bathroom. 

What I discovered was an automatic no-touch hand wash dispenser!! It looked like a cool space age gadget, all silver and black. It also had a sensor that would detect the hand (LOL) and push out some soap. Someone had actually presented this to the family as a house warming present! 

So cool. So hygienic. The best house warming present ever. Okay maybe not ever, but it will stay on top of the list until I find something so simple yet so awesome :D 

Anddd it's done!

After the many many years of angst, screwed up plans, slave labour, studying and studying some more, the woman has done it :D

Renu Mehta, Chartered Accountant.

Yaaayyyyy!!!!

Reprise

Girl in the gym, on the treadmill watching Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason

Man on the next treadmill: What are you watching? Girls shouldn't watch such films! 

Girl on the treadmill: Why? It's such a cute movie! 

Man on the treadmill: But look at Bridget's weight! Girls ko yeh sab nahi seekhna chaahiye! 

Girl on the treadmill: Hmm. <should-I-kick-him-or-kiss-him-look>

So many levels of irony! 

************************************* 

There are some rare people in this world who can take your nice relaxed day and turn it into a nightmare full of violence and rage, with one small action or a 5 minute conversation. Such people need to reconsider why they're alive. 

Auto drivers in Mumbai often fall into this category. Someone else I know also falls into this category. But at least auto drivers are of some use. 

************************************

Thankfully, along with the bad surprises, there were some good surprises this weekend. The kind that I'm not going to forget for a while. After years of running away from all the mushy things, this year was a pleasant change :-) 

“Serious, wicked business!” – 17

I’m sitting in the dimly lit, cozy lounge of Kiboko Hotel in Area – 3 in Lilongwe listening to bartender singing along to cheesy songs by Malawian singers (example in the title!). Lilongwe is a sleepy little town that is slowly waking up due to the government moving there with bag, baggage and Parliament. Not particularly organized or well planned, the city is still divided into “Areas” that seem to follow a (somewhat) chronological order through out the city.

Area 3 is the Colaba of Lilongwe. It is right next to the Old Town market and houses the city’s 3 grocery stores, 5 restaurants and 3 banks. As locations go, I’ve just moved to the hippest and most expensive part of town. It is so hip that I walked into a grocery store and could buy my favorite comfort food – peanut butter! – for a very very expensive 700 MK.

Malawi is also clearly plagued with the problem of inflation. I may understand imported peanut butter costing 250 rupees but paying 2000 rupees for an adopter plug and 350 rupees for a meal of curry and rice in Africa seems cripplingly expensive. With the tobacco companies leaving, the tea industry dying out and the lack of any natural resources to exploit, Malawi’s situation is indeed dire.

********

This week has been full of personal dramas that were blissfully absent for the past so many months. While some of my people managed to destroy relationships due to sheer immaturity and very very bad judgment; I managed to humiliate myself by assuming that friendships wouldn’t change in the course of a few months if I put enough effort into them. For all the advice about letting go at the right time, I’m always depressed by my inability to cut and run when I see that the other person doesn’t care and I’m going to get hurt if I stay. It’s a skill I need to develop – immediately.

For all the sad drama, I know that even if I die alone, I will have lived in the hippest address in Malawi. Now I bet not many people can make that claim :)

Ayzush

Ayzush in amharic means "be strong". Ethiopian culture features this word prominently with people saying ayzush in all kinds of different situations: when one gets hurt, when one is working late, when one isstressed or too quiet.

Genuine and sincere effort is always rewarded, no matter how frustrating it may seem in the middle of the night. Giving up isn't a bad thing, but this is not the time. This is the time to be strong and keep moving.

Ayzush

Traveling Pants

This was the first time I visited Bangalore in the last 7 years without going to college. Sure I met people from college, discussed college gossip and politics..but I did not cross the Majestic bridge and I think that signaled quite a big step in the "growing up" process. As I discussed this with a friend, she pointed out that there were many other big steps we were taking towards that - such as marrying other people, thus leading to the advent of  bachelorette parties. Like having epic noisy get-togethers along with husbands and significant others.

Obviously, this angle of the weekend made me feel old so I decided to revisit my bucket list. I've been keeping a  list on my phone for the past few months now (after a friend put up a similar list) and adding stuff to it whenever the thought strikes me. It made me take notice of a lot of things that I've wanted for a while but have not consciously made any effort to get. Two things struck me when I looked at the list today. One, that it was still rather short. And two, that I may not ever do some of these things because of various reasons, but at least I've got my eye on what I want at the end of the day! So here goes, my current list in no particular order...

1. Get a dog
2. Act in a film: as an extra even
3. Get a tattoo
4. Visit every continent
5. Learn to play an instrument enough for it to keep me company on rainy-alone-at-home days
6. Drive a truck
7. Do the Ireland trip with the girls
8. Complete a proper canvas painting
9.Start my own business. Preferably a shop of some sort and preferably with the girls
10. Visit all the States in India