Food for Thought

This caption on a bike left me dumbfounded. What was he trying to convey? Anyone has an answer?

A (Holi) Day to remember

After a long and relaxing vacation which constituted a strict regime of stupendous meals, inhuman sleeping hours and a constant urge of playing cricket; I am now back in Bang. Instead of a long boring post, I would rather write this in a bulleted format.

• On the beautiful morning of 20th December, I woke up before time justified by the sheer excitement of going home. In the wee hours of this day, I was off to the airport. Accompanied by an old friend, I insisted on taking the aisle seat when we boarded the flight hoping that there is some turbulence, the air-hostess loses her balance, falls in my lap and hence we end up living happily ever after. But then, there is something called destiny. I ended up in the middle seat, with my friend on my right and on my left, a 70 yearish old uncle with snow-white hair who kept on complaining to the hostess about the amount of refreshments they serve. Not to mention he ended up gobbling 4 juice packs, 3 meal cartons and countless water bottles.

• The moment flight gates were finally opened, there was Indore everywhere. Suddenly I heard a voice saying “Array bhiya, jara aggay le le yaar” (Oh Brother! Please move it a bit in the front). This was a man guiding the driver of the mobile staircase. I headed towards the conveyor to get my luggage. As I proceeded to get a strolley from the stand, a young man standing there said “Bhiya vo baylt ke side mein lagi he traali” (Brother, there is a trolley right next to the conveyor belt). I was just thankful that I didn’t hear the air hostess saying “Peeche wali savari peeche se or aggay wali aggay se niklo. Ye aakhiri ishtaap hega”. (People in the back get out of the back gate and people in the front get out from front gate. This is the last stop). I was totally Indored.

• We immediately left for Bhopal as we had to attend the marriage reception of an old colleague (That’s why my friend had accompanied me). When we reached the venue, my “antar aatma” posed me 2 questions which had no relation to each other. First, was this really her? With loads of makeup the bride looked so different from what I remembered but then I think that’s the whole point. The most special day of one’s life, one has to look special too and I have to admit, she did look beautiful. I wish her a great life ahead. Secondly, am I getting old? The origin of this question lies in the fact that till now, off all the marriages that I have attended, they’ve either been of a distant cousin or of some acquaintance or other such elderly figures. But this was the first time, when I attended the marriage of a friend as a friend. This really made me feel much older. However, I also believe that wine and wisdom get better with age. I’ve seen the wine, its wisdom’s turn now.

• I stayed in Dewas for a longer stretch this time and cherished the opportunity to visit my Alma Mater. I was amazed to see some major infrastructural changes in my school after 6 years but the sight that caught my attention was that of my teachers who really looked old now. Unfortunately, some of them could not recognize me. They tried to justify it by saying that I have inflated much more than Satyam’s balance sheets over the years. I account it to their old ages and loss of memory.

• My mom kept on requesting me to take a look at the “Developments” in Dewas. I successfully dodged the request when I was asked to bring ‘bhindis’ from the new and first ‘Reliance Mart’ in Dewas. But then I was physically tortured, when I refused to accompany her for a show of ‘Rab ne Bana di Jodi’ in the state of the art ‘Adlabs’. Just 1 experience in the premises will show you how sophisticated Dewas is. My mom brought the highest standards of safety and security measures being followed to my notice when she pointed towards a long queue of people being frisked by the security staff for any possible bombs, guns or other ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction’. When observed carefully, I noticed that people were being frisked not for bombs or guns; but for tobacco pouches, betel nuts etc. That’s Dewas for you.

• As always, I spent quality time with some of my college friends. Surprisingly, there were no booze guzzling sessions, irresponsible hap-hazard drunken driving or puke plethora this time. Instead, deep long conversations accompanied by other responsible behavioral traits have simply made these meetings memorable.

• I also saw myself settling (Important notice: This ‘settling’ should not be even remotely misunderstood to getting married) in Indore. Somewhere down the line, it is Indore where I would love to spend my life. Being closer to family is another plus. After all, I am the “budhaape ka sahara” (snobbish smile accompanied) for my parents. On a serious note, I have always loved this city, I still love this city and I see no reason why I’d stop loving it. Still have a lot to think about the “When’s, What’s and How’s”.

• Cherry on top was the 1 day I got to spend with my chuddy buddies in Mumbai. We met after a goliath gap of 11 months when once there were times, when we used to spend 11 hours a day with each other. All of us have been working professionals for 2 years now but once we meet, all are 17 year olds again. The sheer magnitude of fun we have is at times out of normal human comprehension levels. Looking forward to meet you guys again. Soon.

In a nutshell, I did everything one wants to do when at home on a vacation. Getting up late, reading news paper in the sun on a chilly morning, unending sessions of tea and conversation, playing long cricket matches, homemade food on demand and most importantly, the feeling of being with my family. For me, that’s what vacations are all about.