Mental Excursions

Where Personality Loses Its Training A bullish shove shook my whole being. I rocked on my feet, trying to retain my balance. When I turned around, I discovered the source of this minor seismic event; a young man, ironically, the word ‘patience’ tattooed vertically along the right side of his neck. His pink and grey Little Rabbit neck pillow & backpack had also enthusiastically participated in the shove. He wanted to get ahead of me. Why, I will never know. Seats in an aircraft, after all, are assigned, even purchased, not seized like disputed territory. Somewhere between the aerobridge and the aircraft door, it occurred to me that airports are no longer places you pass through, but settings where our personality briefly loses its training. This is only an introduction to that belief, shaped by recent flights to Jaipur and Indore, and back. Strangely enough, I enjoy being at airports: I breathe in the aroma of food and coffee. I have confessed that shopping is one of my wea...

Winter treats: Who is afraid of calories? 1- Sauteed green peas 2-Roasted peanuts 3-Nuts & dry fruits 4-Spicy paneer 5-Veg pakodas 6-Boiled, spiced peanuts 7-Matar tikki 8-Masala chai Foggy mornings, dull hazy days, dark evenings, and long shivery nights. North India is not Greenland or Siberia, but we live through our own extremes - 45 degrees summers and 95% humidity monsoon. So, whether the day temperature is 1 degree or 14 degrees C, December to mid-February is winter for us. In the days of cold hands, chapped lips and dry skin, when bathing turns into an everyday adventure, clothes do not dry for two days, thick woollens are loaded on bodies, what makes winter bearable for most of us is the thought of razai (cotton-filled quilt) pulled up to chin, with plates piled high with our favourite foods. Rich, healthy and wholesome food, the eyes refuse to look at, the mind does not think about, and the stomach rejects during summer, is respectfully ushered into the must-haves lis...