You would be surprised if I told you what I missed most during the lockdown. I missed evenings at furniture or arts and crafts exhibitions! Yes, I am serious. When the wife would ask me to take her there, I was not one of those brave men who could turn her down. I was almost enthusiastic to a fault, though there is not an inch of place in my home to put new furniture in nor do I have an eye for art.
The good news is that such exhibitions have opened up now. We were the early birds. You have guessed it right, I had ulterior motives. On reaching the ground, I urge the wife to go and buy the entrance ticket so that I could get a little breather for myself. The first item on the agenda was to get those delicious cones filled with roasted peanuts, beckoned by the beautiful sound of bells announcing the location of the vendor. After shoving a couple of them in my pocket, I join her for the great expedition into the vast bays of furniture display.
There was a festive look and a dance program was on organised by young girls and some not that young
whose laboured movements made me quip that perhaps they were out of practice.
There were the usual sofas, dining tables of sorts, but it was easy to give the slip and move toward the real highlights of the exhibition. It generally starts with the guy with a chappathi maker. Showing interest in the contraption, you may gobble up a piece or two of the fresh from thava chappathi. If you are lucky you may have stuffed parathas that day.
Next in line is the griller with a skewer of paneer and capsicum. But they all know me and I don’t have to pretend to be a serious buyer. With a conspiratory grin, he signals me to help myself. But who takes the cake is the fellow with a giant frying pan making bajjis, vadas and such absolutely divine low cholesterol, low triglyceride(???) irresistibles.
After all, so many flies cannot be wrong. These are not for free and you have to buy them, not that I would have minded giving a share of my property for such forbidden goodies.
I was yet to explore the giant-size papad fellow and several other well-meaning diversions when the wife shakes me from morning nap. I promise myself I shall catch up tomorrow, but now for the unfinished vegetable cutting.