Age old old age problem ..

The elderly already anxious lady on my dental chair was startled by a loud booming voice from the reception area.Doc,someone sure needs immediate attention ,she said.I continued my work knowing fully well who it was outside.It had been quite a while but the tone,the voice,everything was too familiar to miss.The older staff also exchanged knowing looks,smiled and went about their work.Newer staff was curious ,some marched towards reception to investigate.The voice in no time would get louder, I knew from experience ,forcing either my husband or me out from our  respective operatories.
 This very old parsi gentleman has been coming to us for his dental treatment since the inception of our clinic . back then , we would get intimidated and call him in immediately .He never believed in taking prior appointment nor ever will .Over the years we grew quite fond of him but no amount of requesting,pleading,reasoning with him to take appointment, has worked.We have at times sent him away,wished he would change dentists but of course he never did.
       I was particularly busy that day so I sent him in the opg room for x rays and asked an associate doctor to examine him.Mr.'know all' rubbished the idea when he was told that he needs a root canal in the painful tooth,demanded as always that he be allowed to meet us ,just to make sure..
      I sighed and moved out to have a word with him . "Stop making a fuss kaka ,I saw your x ray ,you do need a root canal ," I said.
"But I want you to pull that tooth out , I do not want anything that troubles me in my life now.",he said aloud.
"I will not remove that tooth when it can be saved kaka ,'I said patiently.You can go somewhere else and get it removed.I knew the answer, we had rehearsed it umpteen times over the years before each root canal of his.
"You knhow dhikra I weel not go ainywhere "he stressed on each word. Ok kaka, let us go to the hospital and remove and throw your heart out first as it has been troubling you since years.You will cease to be a heart patient then,all your troubles gone!
 He pretended he was  busy reading something,fiddled with his bag ,mumbling  and I left him there with himself to talk to.
 Five minutes later he was inside the cabin waving his frail fingers in the air."But no cap for me after root canal ,then only you proceed."he said .Sure thing,only next time when you fracture your fragile bones,we will only allow the orthopedic to align it and no plaster cast will be put.deal?I said, not once looking up from my desk.
  You always do this ,you know very well,main idhar hi ayega. you win , do what you want.
   Next few days we all were entertained by his life's interesting anecdotes ,political and social debates with anyone available in the waiting room.He would demand tea and sip it slowly,enjoying every sip noisily.
Funny man, intelligent,interesting,extremely well read, but sadly, very lonely in old age with no one to talk to .Such visits give him a break from his loneliness.He cribs about extended appointments and multiple visits ,blames all of us for troubling him in his old age but we know that  he looks forward to these visits.We indulge,knowing that  very few people  around will understand and most of them will not,...this age old problem of old age...

more weight loss woes-why I don't/can't go gymming.

Some genuine reasons I can't/don't/won't go gymming :

1.I am spoilt silly for the choice of gyms in my area ; Small-spacious,personal-pro,page3-nondescript,friendly-snooty,nextdoor-not-so-close,with pool-without pool etc.confusion prevails...whichever you choose,the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
2.Hey , the monsoons is not the season for gymming in Mumbai!
3.I just recovered from my umpteenth attack of ' catch in the back' (slipped intervertebral disk)
4.The last gym I  joined had obese auny types always discussing food.if they couldn't loose weight,how could I ??
Nah! not MOTI-vating enough..
5.Previous to this, the page3 gym had ,no prizes for guessing-page 3 super thin crowd.No one looked like they required the  gym for gymming ,(socialising oh yes!)
Nope,not dependable/believable..
6.Bingo! personal trainer it is- I decided.He came ,he saw,he ordered.Buy treadmill,buy stepper,buy gym ball,resistance band,weights ( they don't sell will power yet do they?)Few days all goes well and then it starts..he chooses to come when you are going out,have guests,fever,homework(kids' or yours ,same thing) or are out of station, inviting sad comments that you are not serious(I know that dear ,that's why I am paying you)
or
the trainer starts getting delayed regurarly,at some other client's place,has some mr something contest,marathon training,if nothing else,even Mumbai traffic delays him.
Not done..waste of time and money..
6.Hmm the next  gym that caught my fancy came with a price tag as it had mixed bag routine with a Hitler for a trainer.Goood!Very first day and i saw stars! c'mon ,move it she yelled! where??I wondered. The room was spinning (or was it me?).Next thing I saw was hubby at the gate with the worst 'I -told-you-so' looks laced with sympathy..
Determined I made it next day  and was welcomed with an applause.It was better this time but by the end of the routine,I felt illiterate.The instructions she was giving and others were following were definitely not in english for if it was so ,I would follow some thing..if not everything.Shuffle-shuffle- I was thinking cards they were thinking feet.. and moving them also.It was so alien, I must have looked like an idiot flaying my arms and legs in the air, actually nowhere!
I managed to learn the language, lost some weight, felt fit and then the calamity struck as always,you guessed it right ,'catch in the back'.
Embarassing!!!
Untill my next with some yoga woes!...

weight loss woes and laws!

1.Weighing scale moves only in one direction,to your right!(wrong for the person standing on it)
2.All surprise party invitations land up the day you decide to go on a diet.
3.You get PMS/periods the day you decide to go on a diet so you can blame your excess weight on water retention!
4.Your best friend,your husbands best friend,closest relatives ,conspire to get married during your diet period.
5.Someone decides to be nice to you and comments that you look slimmer, shattering your resolve to go on a diet.
6.Your son, fresh from the baking class surprises you by baking the yummiest cake the day you decide to go on a diet.(of course, you can't break his heart.)
7.You find an old dress that fits you perfectly making you believe that you actually have lost weight(you forget the fact that it was one of those maternity tents from your last pregnancy)
8.You exhaust all stock of fresh fruit,veggies,dalia,oats, in short everything healthy,the day you get up early with the resolve to go on a diet.
You are rendered 'helpless'by all house helps the day you decide to go on a diet so you have to cook'fast food',(pun intended)lack of time you see!

smiling at akka early in the morning-simple pleasure!

Commuting through Mumbai streets with your windows rolled up kind of disconnects you from the parallel world on the streets.You swear at the arrogant drivers of the black bugs on the road(autos in mumbaiiya for the uninitiated).The day your driver ditches you esp.when you are a non-driver like me you start blessing the same bugs.Double standards?..you bet!
Sitting in the auto you feel particularly vulnerable specially when it is stationary like in traffic or on the signals which we all know are abundant in Mumbai.
One such traffic signal at Juhu circle takes eternity to change and you are left with no choice but to be aware of the sights and smells around.A group of Hijras,akkaa for me since the incident i am going to narrate now,are regulars there.The long signal gives them enough time to peep in every auto and knock on every car window.Normally,inside the car you choose to ignore them though it is hard to do so but this particular day I felt 'exposed'and as though sensing my discomfort one of them came pushed his entire upper body inside the auto , his face right
against mine and then the unexpected happened;she smiled:)it was the most genuine smile and it came right from her heart.After the initial shock as a reflex action i beamed a smile at her and we laughed out loud.To my "kaise ho" she said "good" and to my "kahan rehte ho" she said "Yahan-Wahan"
Respecting her privacy i left it there and we chatted some more till the signal changed only this time it seemed to be the fastest change ever.A mango bite and an invitation for chai later i sped off only to be in great spirits the whole day.
I make it a point to smile at akka whenever i see her and have started believing that she brings if not good luck,a good day to me.Her smile is infectious and I spread it to my workplace and home.
Exchange of smile with a complete stranger-simple pleasure!

Simple pleasures-kids

I love kids in general.A completely unknown kid's smile can brighten up your day and lift your spirits.No child is born difficult,adults modify their behavior by confusing them with their own behaviour.
My dental office sees many such beautiful harmless looking kids turn into little monsters the moment they are approached by us professionals.One of them once called me 'quite disgusting'I said I agreed with her completely but I could'nt do anything about it since I was born that way just as she was and that we had that trait in common.I gained her sympathies and her cooperation thereon as she promised to treat me while i treated her .She invited me to her wedding last week.Seeing her step into a responsible role with a warm glow on her beautiful face brought tears of joy into my eyes.
Another one of the simple pleasures ..:)

simple pleasures-doing nothing

Ever asked yourself this question earnestly:
What is a simple pleasure for me?The answer changes many times over the years in our lives.For some it could be a holiday and for others a cold day, a cup of hot coffee and reading a book wrapped in a rajaii (yumm..)could be the simplest of pleasures.
Last vacation planned at the spur of the moment saw me with children in tow to my favourite destination london.Children were not so keen with their dad being away on a trip but tagged along nevertheless.What started as one of the many vacations turned out to be the most memorable one.We had all the time on our hands and thekids had me their ever so busy mother to themselves,no dad,no work abso. nothing to do.Complete lukhhas that we were we decided to you guessed it right -do nothing.We would laze around in bed (a luxury),talk,have chai, laze some more, talk some more, giggle,and do more of nothing.If this wasn't bliss nothing else could be..Evenings we went grocery shopping,grabbed a street bite or simply got bread butter and achar to munch in the room .more bliss tucked in the bed.Sometimes we would just walk on the pavement barefoot on the freshly shed leaves.We even sat down to gossip and pose for each other.
End of the vacation we all came back a few kilos heavier but it was all worth it when I hear my kids say that that was the best one they ever had..
More such simple pleasures later..

keep connecting

Got a call last evening from a long lost friend.Nothing could have elevated my mood more than this after post Diwali blues.We just cought on ,without any moment of awkwardness as if we never lost touch.That is why they say that friendships made when you are very young are deep .We talked,we called each others names,giggled like teenagers and laughed about almost anything and everything .It was something I had not done in a long time and believe me it was rejuvinating to say the least.
A few calls later to other common friends and we are on the road to discovering what each one has been doing.Exited!

mymind

wanted to blog for a long time. Did not know how.Finally found my space.This new year I promise myself to come back to it everyday .Lot of e-hurdles later I have reached here .Hope I can keep up the pace alongside daily mundane things.