Summer of ‘89

Summer vacation - Holidays at grandparents.  

Endless cups of lemonade and milkshake. 

Cotton frocks with white laces & embroidered faces. Two braids for the fashion parade.  

Cold showers and Nycil Powder. 

A trip to Nicco Park and dad tames his menacing shark. 

Frooti, Pepsicola and Goldspot. Chalky cigarettes were never regrets. 

Outdoor games with cousins on the terrace @ 5 pm. 

Mango, Rice & Milk “Doodh Bhaat Aam”. 

Power cut worries & ghost stories. 

Seesaws, swings, and slides at the local park. Standing up to the local kiddy bullies even after dark. 

Enid Blyton and the Famous Five. Afternoon naps and homework nags. 

HE Man and Vikram Baitaal.  Mahabharat and Chitrahaar.

Five rupees and the world at my feet…

Somehow I never complained of the heat back then…and somehow I can still beat the summer slump by reminiscing the nostalgia of ‘89.

Stuck together for life!

There was the one I took to bed, even though I would regret it the next morning. And there was another I didn't want my friends to know about. And of course the one that was good, but it just didn't strike the right chord. 

If only I was talking about lovers—and not cheesecake and compotes.  Lovers may cause heartbreak, but food and you, are stuck together for life, and never really disappointing. 

“There is no love sincerer than the love of food.” – George Bernard Shaw 

From the aroma of freshly brewed coffee early morning to warm golden toasts with cheese/olive oil…from the hot and puffed Luchies (poories) to large and scrumptious prawns in coconut gravy… from steak dinners to Hyderabadi Dum Biryani…from pots of thick, syrupy Mishti Doi to pints of mocha chip ice cream and New York Cheesecake…my bond with food keeps getting stronger!

And only “If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” J. R. R. Tolkien

So, what are you doing this weekend?

I find myself asking and answering this question almost every Friday. At times, I have plans and most times, I don’t…but, this question pressurizes me to come with something interesting to save my ass from being perceived as a bore.

To define non-boring (solely talking about people in their 20s): “Am meeting a few friends for happy hour on Friday night; meeting the girls for lunch and shopping on Saturday and may be brunch and a movie with my boyfriend on Sunday and family dinner at Aunt’s”.  

So, weekends for most of us are about socializing/partying and Oh! So very exhausting…

How about doing something different this weekend? Stepping aside from the herd and hanging out with you…

I’ll tell you what I did last weekend and had a ball of a time…

I bought some groceries Friday evening to treat myself to a sumptuous Bong meal…cooked and enjoyed soaking in the rain on my terrace. 

Woke up early on Saturday for a change, plugged my ipod and went for a brisk walk (something that felt like a mirage all these years); long leisurely bath, some brunch and a nice long nap. Ate some ‘macher jhol and bhaat’ late afternoon; picked up a book “The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown” (bought two years ago) and finished reading it in one sitting (Yay!).

Sunday morning: Homemade pancakes and an hour long massage at a local Spa. More napping and Casablanca, followed by a lazy and chatty evening with my sister...

I have not had a more effortless, unplanned, relaxed, and peaceful weekend in the longest of time.

So, what are you doing this weekend?