‘The electricity bill will shoot through the roof’ says the missus, in a tone that has a higher decibel than normal.
Cans of juice disappear like discarded cricketers fading from the front page of the normal newspaper. Sweaty shirts and double handkerchiefs are more common than normal.
Public tolerance levels are above normal and yet it is quite normal to see normal folks losing their cool.
Normal festivals have normal water in colourful glasses. The business of selling packaged water is doing business that is above normal ! Water packets with exotic sounding brands like ‘Cancai‘.
‘Its the last stretch‘, said the normally quiet neighbour to his normally loud wife the other day in a normally dull lift. Received with a grunt of approval that brought back memories of a certain Monica Seles in a normal French Open.
Normally, these conversations are beyond my ears. Today, the sun has beaten me down solid and beads of sweat in every inch of visible and invisible skin was sample evidence. Today, there is my imagination runs riot. Which ‘last stretch’ could he be talking about ?
The half of the hindi movie that remains to be watched together ?
Perhaps its about some interesting yoga postures they are learning together.
Perhaps some therapy sessions. Perhaps some bet that they lost because of which they had to wear funny clothes for seven days or something !
Imagination brings about a wry smile ! At that precise moment, he looks at me and our eyes lock. He seems to read my mind. He rushes to state :
‘Its the last stretch Of summer you see’. 45 degrees in Nagpur. Phew”
Pausing before asking in a profound tone. “The rains arrive in June, don’t they ?!?”
Now, he is the bloke who has been living here for far too longer than i. I want to engage him in a conversation about his three air-conditioners that could be reported for noise pollution and he perhaps could get to be their brand ambassador for he never switched them off !
Let alone ask if has gone any centimeter in the direction of Nagpur. Even on a map ! I wonder if he thinks i have some secret hotline to the met department. [ The met department of the ‘it may rain or may not rain’ fame ].
I am still in my trance. And as his wife turns to give me a stare, with a ‘how dare you keep mum after my man has asked you a normal question’ i mumble..
“..well, normally !”
“The met department of the ‘it may rain or may not rain’ fame “
LOL !
Also met dept wakes up after 2-3 days of heavy downpour to declare it *may* rain for a couple more days, just then it gets bright n sunny 🙂
From your very description post, I could feel the steam coming off of my monitor. Or maybe it’s that the door was left open? It’s hot and humid, like a sauna, in New Orleans. Ugh.
Interesting about the water packets. Never seen that before!
Kavi,
Cool down! Cool down! Normally it is cold here…but it has been touching 25 degrees average last week and people are moaning. I can understand your situation.
oops..take it normally dude 😉
I wonder what would have happened if you had kind of looked down on him from some height, raised your eyebrows, and said in your best Brit accent ,”Wonderful Day, innit !”
But yes, some folks behave exactly like the Met dept. Pointless talk, false levels of importance.
When some of us complained about the heat in Mumbai, a friend said think about the woman in Rajasthan who walks 4 miles to fetch water for her family. Since then I’ve kept quiet. At least I know the rains will arrive sooner or later. And we will have access to water…in plastic packs at least.
A single phrase got your mind thinking all sorts 🙂 Well, mind’s cool and active even in the sultry heat… last stretch is what it must be screaming though. 🙂
And the water packets..huh I get reminded of my summer visit to Chennai 4 years back. All I did was constantly buy them and pour the water over my head…of course to cool my brain 😀
The “above normal” that we thought yesterday is pretty much the “normal” that we know today. And with every passing year, it is only getting worse. Normally I would say “loved your post”, but since it may or may not continue to be a normal bright sunny day today, considering the humidity that threatens to break into rain, I’d say “simply loved it – start to end”.
From reading your post it appears that it is very hot out there.Try to keep cool.
The thing we can’t beat is heat! Its waves are cruel and hard to face. I experience it throughout last week. I hate heat and its all fate, that man and nature created.
Let’s just not talk about the heat. With power cuts here in my city, tempers are frayed.
eeps..I was grumbling when I visited in April! Over here, my parents keep asking me why I don’t ever feel cold!
The last stretch of summer is bad but the first showers of rain make matter worse in this city of Mumbai. It increases humidity to intolerable levels.
Arundhati : Oh ! Trust the met department to better themselves every year ! 🙂
Aleta : Well, the innovations around every season that you would see here are something to…well, see ! 🙂
Balaji : 25 degrees can be paradise here ! Actually can be ! 😉
Nu : Yes ! yes ! 🙂
Ugich Konitari : I can do all of that, but the britt accent will be a problem i gess ! 🙂
The whole point of this post was on pointless talk ! 🙂
Aparna : You bet ! At least we dont have to trudge to the next door to get water, let alone 4 miles ! The rains are already on their way here. Thank God for his big mercies !
Insignia : Yes ! the single statement added with some temperature and the phonyness of the complaint got my goat ! In retrospect ! 🙂
RGB : Normally i would say thank you ! This time i would like to do a jig, pump the fist and take a bow !
Starry : You bet..! It is cooling down here !
Jeevan ; Nobody can escape mother nature ! Nobody can have enough of her !
Radha : Tempers are keeping competition with the heat !
Roshini : Oh were you here in April ? Hmm ! Well, April is a hot month. Just that May is usually worse ! 🙂
VSP : Thats the phase we are in in now sir ! And its going to be some longing and praying for the rains to come soon indeed !
🙂