Posts
31 -- Notes from our Correspondents in India
NOTE: This blog is a continuing dialog between the two faces of rilla. The identity crisis is explained (if such a thing is possible) in the first edition. Click here to read: 1 -- Introduction
Rilla: Yuck! It’s sticky…
rilla: Mm…so pleasant…
Rilla: Ick…sweaty…
rilla: Such a lovely breeze and the ceiling fan’s on…
Rilla: Pouring rain…again!
rilla: Falling water…so soothing …I love the sound of rain…don’t you love the pitter-patter…
Rilla: Everything’s wet and musty and mouldy…
rilla: Everything’s green and clean and fresh…
Rilla: Nothing dries, my towel’s damp, my jeans are moist…the smell…
rilla: …of fresh rain on warm soil…lovely…
Rilla: NOTHING I HATE MORE THAN…
rilla: NOTHING I LOVE MORE THAN…
rilla, Rilla: THE MONSOON IN INDIA!
Rilla: So what are we doing here?
rilla: I don’t know…you organized this trip…what are we doing here?
Rilla: I don’t know about you, but I’m here to help Mom sell the house and move to California with us…
rilla: California! After fifty years in India! So that’s what all that paperwork was about…
Rilla: Some of it, yes…and she’s making the rounds of specialists…eye surgeon for cataract removal,
dentist for root canals and dentures
,
hearing-aids…
rilla: Wow! She’s agreed to a lot!
Rilla: We’re calling it the ‘extreme makeover!’
rilla: You’ve been busy!
Rilla: TELL ME ABOUT IT!
rilla: Lot’s of stress, huh?
Rilla: TELL ME ABOUT IT!
rilla: Got your back all bent out of shape with worry, huh?
Rilla: TELL ME ABOUT IT!
rilla: Brain twisted into a knot too from the looks of it…
Rilla: TELL…
rilla: Earth calling…earth to Rilla… zap out of zombie mode …NOW!
Rilla: Huh? What just happened?
rilla: Hey…looks like you’ve been busy…the camera’s full of pictures…
Rilla: Oh, that…that’s nothing…
rilla: SeethaPhul and cheekoos…my favorite fruit!
Rilla: Too sweet for me…
rilla: I’m so glad I’m here…who knows it may be the last time…kind of sad you know, this is my hometown…got to lap it all up…
Rilla: Don’t be ridiculous, this isn’t the town we left…it was so different then…this town doesn’t remotely resemble my hometown…
rilla: Good grief…lighten up, will you…it’s not just Mom having an extreme makeover…
Rilla: Well there’s a reason I left, you know…
rilla: What exactly is putting you in such a sour mood…
Rilla: Guests…they’re always dropping by…never call first…always the random visitor…
or two…
no thought that just maybe you’re so JETLAGGED you might want take a nap…
rilla: I love that! You’re never lonely…people free enough to drop by and pay a visit and they never come empty handed…always something yummy…
Rilla: …and the traffic…
rilla: The traffic is bad nowadays…
Rilla: Chaos….
rilla: It’s such dance……poetry in motion, a river flowing…every bit of the road utilized … every little space occupied… such diversity… rickshaws…
Rilla: …lorries spewing black fumes…
rilla: …scooters with entire families…
Rilla: …pedestrians taking their lives in their hands just crossing the street…
rilla: …interesting murals…
and you have to admit that traffic rules are obeyed much more now than ever in the past…
Rilla: …changes everywhere…
rilla: …love is in the air…
Rilla: You’re such a romantic… you make me puke…
rilla: You’re such a cynic…you make me laugh… if you didn’t love being here… why on earth would you be taking so many lovely pictures…?
rilla: Mm…so pleasant…
Rilla: Ick…sweaty…
rilla: Such a lovely breeze and the ceiling fan’s on…
Rilla: Pouring rain…again!
rilla: Falling water…so soothing …I love the sound of rain…don’t you love the pitter-patter…
Rilla: Everything’s wet and musty and mouldy…
rilla: Everything’s green and clean and fresh…
Rilla: Nothing dries, my towel’s damp, my jeans are moist…the smell…
rilla: …of fresh rain on warm soil…lovely…
Rilla: NOTHING I HATE MORE THAN…
rilla: NOTHING I LOVE MORE THAN…
rilla, Rilla: THE MONSOON IN INDIA!
Rilla: So what are we doing here?
rilla: I don’t know…you organized this trip…what are we doing here?
Rilla: I don’t know about you, but I’m here to help Mom sell the house and move to California with us…
rilla: California! After fifty years in India! So that’s what all that paperwork was about…
Rilla: Some of it, yes…and she’s making the rounds of specialists…eye surgeon for cataract removal,
dentist for root canals and dentures
, hearing-aids…
rilla: Wow! She’s agreed to a lot!
Rilla: We’re calling it the ‘extreme makeover!’
rilla: You’ve been busy!
Rilla: TELL ME ABOUT IT!
rilla: Lot’s of stress, huh?
Rilla: TELL ME ABOUT IT!
rilla: Got your back all bent out of shape with worry, huh?
Rilla: TELL ME ABOUT IT!
rilla: Brain twisted into a knot too from the looks of it…
Rilla: TELL…
rilla: Earth calling…earth to Rilla… zap out of zombie mode …NOW!
Rilla: Huh? What just happened?
rilla: Hey…looks like you’ve been busy…the camera’s full of pictures…
Rilla: Oh, that…that’s nothing…
rilla: SeethaPhul and cheekoos…my favorite fruit!
Rilla: Too sweet for me…
rilla: I’m so glad I’m here…who knows it may be the last time…kind of sad you know, this is my hometown…got to lap it all up…
Rilla: Don’t be ridiculous, this isn’t the town we left…it was so different then…this town doesn’t remotely resemble my hometown…
rilla: Good grief…lighten up, will you…it’s not just Mom having an extreme makeover…
Rilla: Well there’s a reason I left, you know…
rilla: What exactly is putting you in such a sour mood…
Rilla: Guests…they’re always dropping by…never call first…always the random visitor…
or two…
no thought that just maybe you’re so JETLAGGED you might want take a nap…
rilla: I love that! You’re never lonely…people free enough to drop by and pay a visit and they never come empty handed…always something yummy…
Rilla: …and the traffic…
rilla: The traffic is bad nowadays…
Rilla: Chaos….
rilla: It’s such dance……poetry in motion, a river flowing…every bit of the road utilized … every little space occupied… such diversity… rickshaws…
Rilla: …lorries spewing black fumes…
rilla: …scooters with entire families…
Rilla: …pedestrians taking their lives in their hands just crossing the street…
rilla: …interesting murals…
and you have to admit that traffic rules are obeyed much more now than ever in the past…
Rilla: …changes everywhere…
rilla: …love is in the air…
Rilla: You’re such a romantic… you make me puke…
rilla: You’re such a cynic…you make me laugh… if you didn’t love being here… why on earth would you be taking so many lovely pictures…?
You are the fabulously quirky and independent woman of character. You go your own way, follow your own drummer, take your own lead. You stand head and shoulders next to your partner, but you are perfectly willing and able to stand alone. Others might be more classically beautiful or conventionally woman-like, but you possess a more fundamental common sense and off-kilter charm, making interesting men fall at your feet. You can pick them up or leave them there as you see fit. You share the screen with the likes of Spencer Tracy and Cary Grant, thinking men who like strong women. 
14 comments:
OMG! Such beautiful pictures. What a beautiful home town. I don't care what anyone says. The is something to be said for romanticism.
I miss hearing your words, having you catch all of the little things that don't quite work in my stories. I hope you are able to get some time for yourself to rest and enjoy the world around you before you have to leave.
Your mother is very brave, having so much done in so little time. I look forward to your return. See you soon.
Hey J,
so great to hear from you. Enjoying myself despite the chaos of packing up and taking care of Mom. So hard to say goodbye to your hometown.
Rest is not much of an option though. As of now, Mom needs drops in her eyes every two hours of the day and so the schedule is built around those little drops ;0
I miss being in critique as well. Hope NP is coming along nicely. Can't wait to hear more.
Keep writing and see you soon.
Ha ! Indeed, why all the pics? But, Rilla, this is strange, these pics could have been taken where I live. How weird is that ??? ;) Come back quickly from Pune so we can go take some more together, will you?
Hey Katia,
isn't it amazing we currently share the same hometown! It is so amazing having you there in Hyderabad! Having a blast in Pune... ;) but I will be back just as soon as I put up a post on my visit to one of Shivaji's forts today.
Great pics Thrilla. Hope you're Mom is doing OK!
Wow, Rilla, you must have to keep yourself psyched up constantly to get yourself and your mom through everything. You must feel like you're in a marathon. Your mom is in good hands with you taking care of her. It will be so nice when you're back home and she gets settled into her new place.
The pics are really neat. Wish I could taste your favorite fruits.
They don't look like fruit, though. If they're sweet, I would like them, too.
Seems like you've been gone forever. I hope the trip home goes smoothly for you and Satish and your mom. I went to Hawaii with my mom last week, and I thought about your 40-hour ordeal getting to India. I'm praying for God to be with you guys on the trip home, to give you strength and help you sleep and rest and stay well. It will be hard on your mom. Good thing she has you there to take care of her. She looks like she's enjoying herself in the pics. Must be tickled to have her Rillie close by again. Oh, and I love the name Thrilla! What a kick. It fits you! Take care. Oh, and congrats on the good news about the ms request. Maria told me. You go, Thrilla!
Thanks for the photos ... wishing the best for you and your mom! And, wishing we had cheekoos here ... not sure how they taste, but they have a cool name.
Beautiful pictures, Rilla! When you said your hometown isn't the same as you remembered it, I can relate to that...after being away from the U.S. for three years, I had the same feeling this summer when we went back. I decided that my hometown had changed some, and I'd changed some. Hope your trip back goes smoothly for you and your mom!
Just wanted to say, I love the Uruli (sp?) picture. Beautiful.
Hope you are well!
Hey Michele,
Mom is great and I still can't believe it, but we are actually on our way back to California! Her things have been shipped, the house was emptied, six suitcases and 4 hand bags packed and now we wait for our flight out......wow...we DID IT! Well now I just have to survive the 30 hour journey home ;)
Hey Lynnie,
thanks for all the good wishes. They WORKED. We are on our way home now. Thanks for clearing up the air and putting out the fires....that was really scary to hear about all that and be so far away from home. Can't wait to see ya'll again. And yes, the fruit are sweet...very sweet. Seetha Phull are my faves...wish I could pack some with me in my bags! I ate them everyday I was here.
Hey Linda,
thanks for the good wishes. Cheekoos are yum. Wish I could share more than the pics! Sorry I missed you when you came down to Palm Springs. I love the Uruli too. And the lovely lady who set up that beautiful display presented me with one as a going away gift. will stick up a pic of once I get organized again. Sorry fo the long silence,but I was so busy and the internet connection so slow that I had to go incommunicado for this time. Should be back in action soon. Will be good to catch up with what you are doing as well....
Hey Natalie,
Thanks for the wishes. You're right, it's not just my hometown that's changed...I've changed a whole lot in the last twenty five years too ;0
Will be good to get back home and catch up with everyone and everything. Loads of pics to share as well.
Hooray, hooray, Rilla's on her way!
Post a Comment