November Rain

It’s November…and we’re being treated to an unseasonal rainy spell. The weather’s chilly, deliciously dark and the air has a spankin’ new feel to it. I like to live out clichés whenever I can…so I snuggled up in bed, scrunched up my toes and continued with the mighty ‘LOTR’. A box of chocs were placed, strategically within reach. A pear (to ease my guilt) sat primly next to the devil’s tool. I read, nibbled and read some more.

Not satisfied with that, I made a hefty pair of grilled sandwiches…and wiggled my nose in anticipation as the cheese melted and rose up in delightful fumes.

A reluctant winter with a dash of rain…*utter bliss*

Winter Woes!!!

I am dreaming of a white Christmas…..well, in my case…more like a chilly Christmas, with a definite nip in the air!! But as usual, the winter is playing hookey and the only cold wave I get is the icy-glare from my mum when I start cribbing about dinner!

I remember my college years…..getting up at an unearthly hour to reach the first lecture on time. Glazed eyes, chapped lips and still stuck between the land of the living and the undead, we would traipse from one house to another and finally reach our dear college.

Luckily, our makeshift canteen was situated right next to the entrance. And because the Gods watching over nerve-wracked teens were kind and loving, we used to get first dibs on the piping hot samosas and the steaming cups of coffee!

You would think that after the first shot of caffeine in our blood, we would be raring to go….in pursuit of knowledge and all things academic.

Yep, raring to go ofcourse….but in the opposite direction!! Chilly mornings were perfect for incessant chattering and non-stop guff sessions.

In an attempt to recapture the past glory (never a good idea!!!!)…..I got up with the birds, tugged on a buttery soft sweater and decided to go for a good long walk. I was all for communing with nature…taking in the morning sights and enjoying the welcome laziness of a winter morning.

But as all my half-baked plans go…..this one too ended up nowhere. Forget a nip, there wasn’t even a snap or crackle in the wind!! Five minutes into my walk and I was already sweating bullets. The sweater (which was a bad idea to begin with) felt like a dead weight. Pretty soon, I would be lying face down in a pool of my own sweat mixed with a generous helping of humiliation!!

So I lugged myself back to the relative coolness of home and hearth. As for my winter cravings…I indulged in a bunch of holiday movies on HBO….snuggled up under a quilt with the a/c on full blast!!

Singin' In The Rain

What can I write on a topic that’s been done to death, resurrected and yammered about non-stop?? For me, Gene Kelley’s “Singin’ in the Rain” sums it up perfectly. Nature’s way of creating the perfect ambience for a love-drenched soul.

I used to be the grubby kid that plunged happily into muddy puddles, grinned stupidly for no rhyme or reason in my ickle-gumboots and sat on mossy walls; mesmerized by the snails clutching effortlessly to the mucky undergrowth.

I still recall that angry red vein throbbing furiously in my mum's forehead when I trampled into her pristine white kitchen, leaving muddy paw-prints all over the floor!!

Living next to the sea made the rains truly magnificent. Trying to step out of the house in the gusty winds seemed like a Herculean task!!.....now, although I have stepped into my debatable “adulthood”, my dewy-eyed pleasure in the rains hasn’t dimmed. I can still go ga-ga over leaden skies, lashing rains and big, blooming bolts of lightening!!

And then ofcourse, is the glorious food list……….steaming hot french fries, grilled sandwiches encasing melted cheese and heavenly smoked-ham, caramel infused popcorn, the comforting mug of hot chocolate….you name it and the pleasure is doubled in the drizzly weather!!!