One of those days when the aloo subzi was in such demand we didn’t have the usual leftover. And of course I had to improv – I had pressure cooked some sweet potatoes yesterday and chopped those up to blend with the aloo. Sury enjoyed it. Now there was no way I could have made our little prince enjoy that! He just hates the sweet-spicy combo you know.
Oh by the way, the other day I teased him about not knowing me well enough so we decided to play 20 things. And I was surprised at the unusual things he came up with. Hilarious game though. And so much laughter. Funny how we come up with these things. And of course we get a bit annoyed over the things we just don’t want to believe about ourselves.
In other news, I really have to clear out many things. And oh, we peeked into our garage last week. Well, dusty and somewhat messy but not as bad as we imagined. One thing is clear, though. I am now cool about simply discarding stuff. I am not even pressurized by wanting to call the paper wala because I stopped taking money from him long, long ago. Still, I call him because he can earn something from what we dispose of. Sometimes he takes so many days to respond that I lose patience and just go ahead and get rid of it. In our country, someone will definitely benefit, no?
I still remember that day when I told Muni to keep the cash. He was shocked. Well most people argue and bargain with these people – so ridiculous. I thought the least I could do for him was let him just take the stuff. I think he appreciates it. Times are tough for everyone and I am grateful we can comfortably do these things.
I remember those days when you would get furious when someone bargained with the flower ladies. You’d rationalize that they worked so hard to buy the flowers at 4 am in the morning and then strung them together, sat in the hot sun; imagine people arguing with them to give them something that cost Rs.10 for Rs.9. People can be such sh*ts, no? I admired your logic and your kindness. Can never forget how you would collect plastic covers and drop them off at the flower lady’s spot.
Did I tell you that Madhavamma moved to a spot near Vidya Mandir school? She has a fancy cart now with a big beach umbrella. No change in that big smile though.
Suddenly I remembered that mami who made aplams, pickles, and podis. You cleaned out glass jars for her to reuse. I recall you even gave her son a cycle and a study table. Did I tell you he joined the military? Such a good kid. I have not seen her for some years now. As long as Vidur went to school I would bump into her somewhere or other. I wonder if they even live in the same house. Time flies, things change.
It has been ages since we went the whole length of 8th main, you know. Thanks to the pandemic, we hardly go anywhere. It is amazing how we have been able to adjust and manage. Now there are two veg and fruit vendors opposite, near the bakery – so that’s basics taken care of. Kirana we order online mostly, unless we step out and are able to go to the nearby store. Still, it feels really strange. I do miss loitering around the market. It is always so joyful to see the colors, the roadside sellers and the loud voices.
Hopefully things will return to the way they were sometime in the future. For now, we are all masked, for real.
