An hour at the hospital

The past few days have been quite dull and uneventful. Being the novelty seeking person always on the go, montony in any form galls me to the core. Life is all about change and I strongly believe no matter how positive or negative the change seems to be, the final outcome is liberating. 

I landed in Bangalore after some three odd years. Started life afresh with a new job and a new set of people around. Life seemed on track and it actually is. Touchwood! I like my work and am doing well. Touchwood again! My kitchen and my drawing board have become my best pals. Yes, cooking and cartooning have become the love of my life off late. But like an unfaithful lover, I have started hunting for new grounds to keep my soul young and alive!

Yesterday, a friend of mine had high temperature and I had to take her to Apollo. Waiting for the much awaited Dr. Doctor in the lobby, I looked around. The only lively beings in that pool of stricken faces were small kids loitering around, completely unaware of where they were and what  for! Jumping and all excited they went in the doctor's cabin and howling and crying they came out…(Can somebody find a substitute for injections please!!!) I looked at a friendly and cheerful little face across the hall and said to my friend in a light hearted tone, "Yaar ek bachcha laa do, mann laga rehta hai". She looked at me and smiled. I knew what she wanted to say, "Tum Pagal ho, kuch nahi ho sakta tumhara":D

Had I asked for anything else that moment, that would have been granted. Hardly two minutes had passed when I saw the same cute little face smiling at me just beside me! No sooner had I smiled back than this cutie, who was happily seated on his dad's shoulders almost jumped on me. I had to literally catch him! He was all smiles. The moment I held him in my arms , he gurgled with delight,  hugged me tightly and in no time the two of us became the bestest buddies in the world:)

He refused to go back to his dad and even his grand dad who looked at me with utter disbelief, unwilling to accept what their eyes had seen! For the next one hour, till the time I was in the hospital, this little angel kept me engaged, sometimes playing peek-a-boo, sometimes strolling in the hospital with his little hands clutching my fingers tightly and his little feet trying to run. I don't have words to express the joy I felt from within, playing with this tiny 11 month old - Nobby! Never in my life had I prayed for someone to be in the hospital forever. But this time I did. I didn't want my friend to come out of the doctor's cabin so that I could spend more time with my new friend. I just wished I could take him home and keep him forever. But some things aren't possible:) Out came my friend and I had to bid good bye to this wonderful being. 


Did this end there?Nopes, that night, after ages I had levitation dreams, where I was with a tiny tot inside a big bubble, floating on calm waters, levitating, playing and the entire feel of the dream was that of joy, innocence, purity, upliftment and freedom! 

That one hour in the hospital made my day. And...night too:)

Then tragic, now comical moments:)

Few days back every TDH in school was preparing for the placement season. I had shock tremors run down my spine when I saw children taking notes and literally rattofying expected interview questions and then cracking the process! I tried to follow them and started flipping frantically through MBA books only to realize that just wasn't my cuppa tea! Worried, I went to an enlightened soul to show me the light(every achiever big or small turns into a counselor). I just could not assimilate the fact that four semesters, forty-five subjects could be learnt in 7 days. So what had they done?Simple, mastered any one of their favourite subjects:). Cool!!!Happy with the solution, I went through Corporate Finance and was on cloud nine the day I completed it! And what confidence! Nobody can stop me now. But how could I forget, I am HIS favourite kid, the chosen one(TCO). HE only knows in what ink and in what mood HE wrote my destiny! Following are the interview questions that were deal breakers:

Interviewer: What is your favourite subject?

TCO: Corporate Finance(I was waiting for this one!)

Interviewer: Ok, so let's talk about Banking.

TCO: @#$%&*!

So the next time I prepared four subjects(to be on the safer side). But then HE had a different plan for me...

Interviewer: Do you read?

TCO: (Can I say a NO to that?)Yeah...

Interviewer: You like history?

TCO: (Tempted to say NO, but that would be blunt and rude! Ask me about MBA you UKeP) I haven't read much but I enjoyed whatever little I read in school.

Interviewer: What did you enjoy? Ancient/Medieval/Modern?

TCO: (WTF! Kyu gadey murde ukhaad raha hai?) Modern.

Interviewer: Which dynasty Chanakya belonged to?

TCO: (Which part of Modern history will tell me that you ass*&^%) I don't know which dynasty he belonged to but he mentored Chandragupta of the Mauryan dynasty.

Interviewer: I never asked you that.

TCO: (Go to hell!) That is what came to my mind Sir, I am sorry...

Interviewer: When was the Battle of Plassey fought?

TCO: (I know this...)1751...No, 1757...No, 1751(F***)

Interviewer: You only said you enjoyed history.

TCO: My fault.

Interviewer: It's a shit job. You will go a long way if you do something of your own.

TCO: (That's why you are doing it. Suits you!)

Interviewer: You wanna say something or ask something?

TCO: (Yes, one question. When was the last time you smiled you narak ke gutter mein ladne wale pig ki intestine ke keedey!!!) The pre-placement talk was very informative Sir. You have already answered all my queries:) ( I don't want this job now even if you pay me double! Just pray we never meet across the table with positions interchanged, I will make your life hell!!!)

But today, looking back, I think I quite enjoyed the grill and the thrill:)

Can't think of a title

Have been up whole night, possessed by a thought that I had been struggling to keep away from. Downloaded some soulful music to lull me to sleep, but the idea backfired! Bloody human mind is so damn sharp, you just can't dupe it and so damn adamant, you just can't ignore it! If you tell it not to think about something, it will think about it more intensely! In an attempt to keep the rascal distracted for a while, I decided to scribble here. And now, I am tempted to write about the thought that has kept me awake but I won't. I won't let the imp have its way this time. I WILL NOT go overboard with my feelings today. End of this crap! Good morning, go back to sleep, it's Sunday anyways. 

Summers, Sohail and Shama and the Mango Showers !

She looks at the carton that reads, "Aamche baagetoon, tumche tablavar" (from our orchard to your table). The same story, every summer! Come May, come mangoes and all those sweet memories that once lived a golden period. Shama is instantly deported to the past...

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"You still haven't left? It's 7 o'clock already! Why do you have to always keep me waiting?" yells Sohail on the phone.

"I am on the way Sohail, just gimme 15 more minutes", replies Shama frantically. She's such a liar. She'll take another fifteen minutes to iron the sea green tunic that she carelessly left in the balcony to dry just an hour ago. Yes, she has to dry it, put it on, wear the minimal but quintessential make-up that Sohail adores and be at the apartment twelve kilometers away, all in fifteen minutes! She's always been like this. Doing nothing the whole day and fumbling the last minute ! But Sohail loves it. Everytime he would see her prim up in five minutes flat, he would say in a sing song tone,"Jaadu hai, koi toh jaadu hai !" and would plant a gentle kiss on her forehead.

But today she's late. Her mind wanders to think of some excuse that would pacify Sohail's anger and 'blink' God sends the Alphonsos ! She spots the 'aamwale bhaiya' by the roadside. Hastily, she stuffs her backpack with five of those irresistible intoxicating yellow fruit.

"Bhaiya, jaldi mein hoon, khule nahi hain, paise kal le lena!" and before the poor fellow can understand what's happening, she's off!

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"Thad thad thad", she bangs at the door. Sohail silently unlocks it. 'Thaddddddd...' and the door swings wide open. She's just not tripped. But now she's got the chance and chance par toh dance karna banta hai, that's her birth right:)

"I could have fallen Sohail, I could have broken my arm! And how many times have I told you to get the stupid door bell repaired? Don't you realize how bloody irritating it is to call you to open the door? And why don't you pick up the damn phone? " she says in her characteristic high pitched voice pretending to be angry. Sohail doesn't reply, just gives her his typical not-again look. 

Ooopsss, this didn't work! After all, Sohail knows every trick of hers.  She opens her bag with a fake pata-nahi-sab-mujhe-hi-kyu-karna-padta-hai expression. She takes out those juicy fruits one by one. With two mangoes in each hand, she walks towards Sohail. Now it's Sohail's turn. "Fridge wahan hai, yahan nahi", he too tries to pretend to be angry.

"Did I say you are a fridge? Main toh sirf tumhe bhog laga rahi thi. Just smell these Alphonsos once." She winks.

"I am hungry, haven't had anything after breakfast, can we have dinner?", asks Sohail in an irritated tone.

"You lay the dishes, I'll cut these mangoes. Man, I just want to eat all of them all at once! Can't wait any longer", she says her mouth watering.

Like an obedient one-woman man, Sohail spreads out the newspapers on the window sill. They always dine over there, fighting over small things and then looking out of the French window to convey their disagreements. They always eat from one plate, no matter how blood-thirsty they are for each other! 

After having just five morsels from the plate, Shama gets up, "I am done, now I'll have mangoes."

On a normal day Sohail would have said,"That's very bad Shama. Everytime you do this and then you trouble me the whole night saying, 'I am hungry.' " But today he's angry, he's really angry. He just doesn't respond.

She brings the chilled freshly cut Alphonsos from the freezer and shamelessly starts nibbling at them. 

"Ummmm.Heaven!"she says making all those faces while Sohail watches her with a mixed expression of anger and love. 

Two, three, four...she gorges herself with the mango slices. And then suddenly, "You wanna have some?" she asks. Sohail wants to say 'Yes'. 

"No," says Sohail.

"Aaaahhh ! I forgot. Mangoes aren't meant for you, you develop boils. Badddd, how can I forget that ugly scar on your knee!!! Sorry baby, you have one more chapati." she teases him.

"But one slice doesn't make a difference." dryly he mutters but ensuring he's loud enough to be heard.

"We'll have milk as soon as we finish this. That would balance it.What say?" she says acting more innocent than him. That said, Sohail pounces on the plate as she watches him guzzle the mango slices. She's happy with the guthlis(mango seeds). She just loves them. She had to eat those slices just to get him to eat!

Anger blows out like ash.They would have a great night. Fighting, crying, laughing, dancing and eating mangoes! Sohail and Shama...!