Mostly reminiscing....

Something while loading the washing machine took be back to my little place. Reminded me of those sweet, fleshy mangoes, picking which in our childhood was as regular as the summer itself. They were not as big as the hybrid ones but had a very different fragrance and fit mostly for eating(that's what I thought and tried hard to convince my mother). There were many trees along the road to school and the mangoes would smell deliciously inviting a covetous glance at them but we couldn't help those anyway. All we had to wait for was a summon from Ajji, living about half a km from our house who had a big tree in her yard. She generally had some big baskets full by the time we reached and we could take as many from them as we wanted. But we could never resist a visit to the tree itself to see what we could get ourselves. A good shake with a bamboo or a some stones would give us a mighty sense of achievement and some fresh mangoes too. And of course, there was a tamarind tree right next to it and I looked forward to those sweet, ripe tamarinds(never liked the raw ones!) as much as the mangoes. So we would come home dancing back with our teeth tickling with the tamarind, not minding the load of the baskets a bit and then....the feast would begin!

Another summer has begun in my little place and mangoes would be in plenty. But not those sweet, fleshy mangoes. Ajji is no more and so is her tree. I don't even smell them anymore on the way home. We have changed, you see! We prefer the hybrid type, nowadays!

Wandering thoughts...

Today my thoughts are wandering from one thing to another like a monkey. I start off with something and before I know, I end up in some other world. Actually I love to stop sometime and backtrack. Many a times it's quite difficult too. I wonder if Sherlock Holmes would've been able to track my thought process. I would've given him a tough time!

Thinking a lot about Aunt G. She's always been more like a sister to V, me and many of my cousins. A very hardworking lady, she's been slogging for more than twenty years now, raising the kids, managing her home well, being a nice hostess to the innumerable guests round the year...My own mother is no different but I've occasionally heard her complaining about her life. But never so with G. Her husband is a dear too but even at the age of fifty he's enthusiastic about studies, his work and he would never say no to any extra work that came his way. So I asked G once if she never complained to him that he's hardly at home. She said, "If he doesn't do his job and earn money, will a dumb fool like me able to do?" She was smiling when she said it but something saddened me then. I wonder...

Then...mother says it's rumoured that my old friend S has married Prashant, her neighbour. Their families have been quite close over the years and from what I know, he's a nice chap too. But it must've created some sensation in my little place, a Hindu marrying a Christian. Of course it would be a shock to her famous uncles and aunts if it's true. But I think she'll be happy. Imagine her wearing that white Christian bridal dress! I would've loved to see her that way, those dresses look so pretty!

God knows what Shab is up to! It's a long time since we lost touch and I often think of the times when we were roomies. Contrary to P's opinion, we did have quite a good time together. I bet she's not yet married and is enjoying life!

Before I close, I think that hell of a match between SA and AUS was idiotic! It left me feeling stupid about the game I love. I meann, what's happening to one day cricket? It's becoming really a one-sided affair - batsmen are ruling it! It is possible for one team to bowl badly and let the opposition make 400-odd runs but what do you say when it happens again? Stupid! Anyway, my sympathies are with the Aussies.

A happy day!

Under these city lights,
he's all alone and aloof
Looks for a means to go on,
he seeks a sheltering roof

Days are an empty pot
Nights, a hole, ever so deep!
His silent, dark eyes only fume,
they no more weep
No reason to live anymore,
he seeks one for the final sleep.

These roads,longer than life,
oh, they never seem to end!
They run, they turn but
they don't pause a second!
In this strange, unknown world
he seeks a known face,a friend.

How's it? I wonder if anyone can make out what this is!
I'm happy....

Weekend blues

Frustrating! No walk to the library today. Oh, it's all very well for P to say "what's the big deal?" and all that but you know, it's the thing I keep waiting for the whole week - a walk to the library, alone. May not sound much to anybody but it does to me, I tell you! It's a 35 mins walk to the library and as much back and I walk almost as if I'm running but I'm really happy for those 70 mins. I feel I'm free and feel like singing as I walk. Just thinking of it makes me so....Forget it, now I'm left with this comp to kill my free time and a boiling heart.

V went trekking this weekend. Lucky girl, she's enjoying life fully. I'm happy for her but I feel a pang when I think of the times I was that way - trekking, travelling and having fun my way. I'm like a caged bird now. May be it's un-motherly to say such things and it's no fault of R's but that's how I feel. Hope things will change. I hate to be this way - confused, frustrated, complaning, feeling sorry for myself, I hate it!

Annoyed....

Positively a bad day! Oh, I don't even know why! One thing is for sure - I can't control my mind even for half a day!

Some more cricket

Did I say yesterday that we were playing good cricket or sthg? I must've been daydreaming! We are as pathetic as ever. Most of our batsmen seem to be in a mood to please the English and not to let them miss the services of Vaughan, Jones etc. Now I've got to pray for a draw once more. What bore!

Does Pakistani cricket team have an interpreter? Hindi to English and back? I'm not sledging or anything but I do wonder sometimes how Woolmer and Inzy manage to get their ideas and strategies across. Though Woolmer was born in Kanpur, I don't think he would know Hindi. For that matter, how does Chappell communicate with some of our youngsters? I myself find Australian accent quite difficult to follow. I've always had to increase TV volume during post-match conferences and in spite of that I'm bound to make a couple of guesses before I comprehend what they are saying! I'm sure they do have some funny incidents in the dressing room - I mean the Pakistani and Indians...

Yesterday was really a warm and good day....

Cricket, Tennis etc...

I'm sure the second test between us and England is going to be a draw. What a pity that rain should come into play when we were playing some good cricket finally!Again it'll be up to the third test to decide the series and God alone knows! I think we are turning out to be a lousy test side though one dayers show much promise.

And it seems Bjorn Borg is going to auction his 5 Wimbeldon trophies to mend his financial matters. He must be in a pretty bad shape, really! These trophies must've been a source of immense pride to him and now...I wonder if they used to make him regret his decision of quitting so early whenever he looked at them! Anyways, I hope his French Open trophies have a better luck!

A warm day in Arlington

P tells me it's going to be a warm day - something like the warmest day since 1960! Can't believe it, actually. Is this all? Anyhow, that means Rishi and I are supposed to have a walk today. Ouch! My shoulders are already hurting! I guess all these days I was cursing the weather for our confinement but I was inwardly quite relieved. It's positively a pain in the neck to carry Rishi for beyond 15 mins and walk. I do feel awfully sorry for keeping him home all the time but...Why didn't we get a stroller? Too late to think about it now. Nevertheless I'll take him out today.
Only a month to go home! It's a delicious thought. My hands are itching to start packing already but I don't want to finish it off and then have nothing to do. I'll wait for some more days.
Watched "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" yesterday. Good one if you don't ask what, why etc. I kept waiting for an explanation for their choosing Roy to go with them. Lacombe seemed to have known more than he expressed. If it was in Hindi, they would've said he was one of them who happened to take birth here or something like that. This thing of many births does provide some reason to most of the things! :-)