Twenty- five Seven

Breakfast with a Crow Pheasant

January 30, 2018

Have you ever had breakfast with a crow pheasant ? Frankly nor had I till this very morning. And here’s how it happened.

Hubby Dear had to go to Kolhapur on some work so I accompanied him till Pune where we had spent the night at my parents’ . While he woke up before the crack of dawn (3 am to be precise) and left , I went back to my snug bed and woke up at 6.

I spent a few minutes in the balcony upstairs chatting with my parents as they had their morning tea. After waving out to the morning walkers, exchanging pleasantries with the neighbor next door , we moved down to the rear verandah where my dad likes to grab the early morning sun while reading the papers .

While my dad had his cornflakes , I munched on some yummy chicken sandwiches left over from my mom’s Bridge session yesterday afternoon so I nibbled in those instead of my usual buttery toast .

Incidentally these are much better than the iconic Marz-O-Rin on Main Street which for years was my all time favourite. From now on I’ll be grabbing chicken sandwiches from Diamond Bakery at Fatima Nagar. If you’re in Pune , it’s worth a bite.

So while I was munching away amidst the birdsong, I suddenly spied a Crow Pheasant or Bharadwaj slowly approaching the bird bath. Now spotting a crow pheasant signifies good luck and I held my breath as he came closer .

He walked up to the bird bath had a sip or two then walked off to the lawn where he had the bread crumbs my father had thrown out for the birds. He nibbled some, sipped his fill and then flew to the top of the wall. He stared at me then vanished .

Isn’t that a lovely way to have breakfast with the twittering of birds and cawing of crows ?

February’s #FlavoursomeTuesday is scheduled for next week , the 6th but I’m posting this today.
As I sit in my garden #MondayMusings

January 29, 2018

As I sit in my garden this morning I realise that January is just getting over! It’s already the 29th and before I know it the year will be over. And in a weird way, I’m happy the days whizz past because it just means that I am really busy.

It’s also time for me to take some time off and appreciate all the things that happened to me this month. I normally don’t like to appreciate things openly but I was inspired by Shilpa’s post . Perhaps as she says, an attitude of gratitude helps one get through the rough patches in one’s life.

First of all, I am grateful that this month was healthy. Of course there was Little Po’s perennial drippy nose but that’s to be expected in a month of severe pollution. Lots of little children have this problem and I’m sure he will outgrow it one day. In the meanwhile I am grateful that we can go through a box of tissues a day . This is nothing compared to the horrible things little children have to go through.

Socially this has been a busy month but not as busy as the month before that. Once again I am grateful that I could meet my friends and family , have leisurely lunches and share memories and thoughts. In today’s world where most interactions are virtual, it is wonderful to actually meet in the flesh.

Apart from the eating and meeting, I managed a few movies too especially on Netflix. I am grateful that my wi-fi didn’t play up and I could see The Crown uninterrupted. For those of you who haven’t seen it, do grab a few moments and watch it. On seeing it, I actually felt grateful for being born a mere mortal and not the Queen of Anyplace.

I am grateful to Hubby Dear’s school friend who invited us to his daughter’s wedding. It turned out to be a destination wedding for us and one which was delightful in more ways than one. Firstly, it was in a gorgeous location and secondly, I got to meet some wonderful people who were classmates of Hubby Dear. Indeed, seeing your spouse through the eyes of his peers brings a new perspective to light. For one thing it explained his absolute dislike for brinjals . I am grateful that I didn’t have to eat brinjals most meals for close to ten years, which was what the poor boys had to do in boarding school ! I would have hated them too if I were in the same position.

There are many things that one puts off doing for one thing or the other. But this month I managed to get many things on track. I am grateful that I could manage to tick off some things from my TO DO list before it gets even longer. However, there are still many things that need to be done and many more people to be visited/contacted more diligently. I hope I can rectify this soon.

This year most of my friends turn 60 and I am grateful that we are all still around, in good health and spirits. Good friends contribute to good health as do happy relationships.

Which brings me to the three little people I’m most grateful for: Little Po , Wow Dinga and Ms. Papaya who enrich my life with their presence. Thanks guys for adding to the chaos in my home, keeping me in shape by making me bend down to pick up all the pillows flung every time you visit. I am also grateful to them for being around to eat up all the cake I shouldn’t be eating. And thank you Ms. Papaya for waking me up every morning with your kind question inquiring if I slept well.

Indeed as January rolls over to February I am grateful that this was a satisfying month.

Linking this up with Corinne’s #MondayMusings and Vidya’s #Gratitude Circle.
Laundry tales or why you shouldn’t get scared to launder your sari at home

January 28, 2018
The sari is my all time favourite garment for a special do. There’s nothing like its flowing drape which complements all kinds of shapes and sizes, hiding what needs to be hidden and showing off the sexy bits that need to be highlighted. But what is truly the best is that it is timeless and formless and can drape you for twenty years or more without having to worry about trends, style or fit!!!

So I was upset when a few drops of fruit juice fell on my sari at one of the fancy weddings I recently attended. I have always used my clothes carefully. I’ve never dropped food on my clothes, accidentaly torn them or even dirtied them ; moreover I was seated while eating and least expected any spillage. But accidents do happen and I watched with horror as a few drops of fruit juice splattered on my sari. Roo and Dee who were with me at the wedding, told me to go home immediately and wash off the stains in plain water before getting it laundered.

Unfortunately that turned out to be the wrong advice as per the laundry man. Here’s what actually happened when I took it to the laundry :

He : Madam, there is no guarantee for the stain.
I : But there is guarantee for the price isn’t it?
He: What do you mean?
I : You will definitely charge me for washing it won’t you?
He : Not washing madam. We don’t wash. We use chemical for dry cleaning.
I : Whatever it is, you will still charge me for cleaning it without assuring me of proper results, won’t you?
He: Madam , even a doctor doesn’t give you guarantee when he treats the patient. But you still pay when the patient dies.
I : How can you compare a sari with a patient? In any case how do I know you have actually tried cleaning it at all? You may very well just fold the sari, put a laundry label and charge me for a job you didn’t do!
He: No madam, of course we will try but there is no guarantee.
I : Ok. So if you are going to charge me for accidentally ruining my sari, I may as well do it myself.
He: Suit yourself Madam.

This was my conversation with my regular laundry Alfred at the corner of Forjett Street who was going to charge me around Rs. 150-Rs 200 for the job.

I decided to go up the hill to the new and more expensive German Laundry where the conversation went :

She : Madam, the stains will go but the water mark won’t go.
I: Oh! So you mean to say I shouldn’t have washed off the juice?
She: No madam, silk should never be washed.
I: So now I will have a sari with no stains but with water marks?
She : Yes
I: Ok , in that case I may as well try washing it myself and ruin it for free.

And I went down the road to Pressto who was going to charge even more than German Laundry.

So I came back home and quickly hand washed the sari with Genteel but since handwashing is not my forte, I dumped it in my Siemens washing machine for a Single Rinse cycle to ensure that all the soap was out.

I took it out of the machine and was amazed to find that not a bit of the shocking pink ( Rani Pink) had run! However, the stains had not gone completely, so I put it for another 30 minutes of Delicate wash with a dash of Vanish and lo and behold my sari was clean enough to wear for yet another do.

[bctt tweet=”Moral of the story : Don’t get intimidated by those stains and the stories spun by launderers.” username=”via unishta”]

Be bold and brave to launder that sari at home!

p.s. Ironing out the sari while it is still damp may be tedious but it ensures a completely wrinkle free, freshly laundered look!
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