Working To the Bone...then Dinner with Friends

Saturday, April 6, 2019
Bombay

Working To the Bone...then Dinner with Friends

     Namaste from Bombay!
     The thing about living without Llew is that Saturday is just another day on the calendar for me and one in which I spend doing exactly what I do every single day--working! Oh for the weekends when they actually meant Fun with a capital F!
     That said, I was also grateful to be at home on a Saturday when I could catch up with so much that is pending on my laptop--not the least of which is all the interviews I am still playing catch up to transcribe.
     So I awoke at 6.30 am, blogged, looked at Twitter, said a few words to Llew by phone and then got on with my day. Brekkie was a broon with spreads and coffee while watching Mary Berry's Quick Cooking show and then sitting chained to my computer.
     I had a huge To-Do List for this day and I went out to conquer it with a vengeance. I had a lot of correspondence to attend to in connection with my upcoming trip to Uzbekistan--I have to sort out visa issues and the purchase of my ticket. I then had to fill in my Annual Activity Form for NYU which took me more than an hour (as I have so many professional activities to report this year). This led me to update my CV and formatting it took a while. Next, I sat down to transcribe an interview and by the time I was done, it was lunch time.
     I had delicious green chicken curry, kadhi (curd curry) and beans with a chapatti with a bit of Alphonso mango (I am going slow on them as they are loaded with the most delicious calories!). I then showered and feeling really fresh, I sat down to transcribe another interview. I was done by 5.30 when I stopped for a potta (If a cup of tea can be a cuppa, a pot of tea can be a potta, no?) and some nuts and watched more Mary Berry. 
     Then, I got dressed and decided to spend the evening with Russel which was exactly what I did--Dad was glued to the TV as the IPL cricket matches were on and he was in seventh heaven.  Russel and I had a jolly chinwag and at 7.45, when it was time for his dinner and a break between matches,  I left and went home. I stopped to buy cakes for two folks I would be seeing later in the evening, stopped off at the dispensary to thank Dr. Abbas for making my stomach gripes a thing of the past and got home to leave my clean laundry behind (which I had picked up from Dad's).
     Then, I walked for ten minutes to my cousin Meera's house to see her husband Cyril who was doing very poorly until a couple of days ago with a vicious rash that had developed on his entire body and left him an itching, scratching wreck. Thankfully, he has fared much better in the last couple of days and is back to his regular self again. As he was taking a shower when I got there, I had a chance to visit with Meera and we spent a lovely half hour catching up. When Cyril did emerge from the bath, I was so happy to see him looking so good again--such a relief! I had been praying for him, offering Masses for him and also remembered him at my Novena as he has really been through the Wars. As usual, Mother of Perpetual Succor has delivered!
     I left their place and walked for another ten minutes and this time I was headed to the home of my friends Anil and Ninaz who had asked me to join them for dinner at their's. I always have the most wonderful evenings when I am in their company as they are the most generous hosts and the most fun, stimulating company a gal could ask for.  They asked after Llew and, of course, I told them how much I am missing him and we talked about the formalities associated with his coming to India. But I did tell them that I will be seeing him in Buenos Aires and could not wait. Anil knows my favored tipple is a G and T and he put one in my hands as Ninaz brought us a host of nibbles--danger is I always nibble a tad too much. Soon it was time to order and, looking at a menu from place called Luck9 (i,e, Lucknow--now is 9 in Hindi!), Anil ordered kachori kebabs, chicken malai kebabs, dal makhni, rumali roti and ulta tava roti!
     Whe the food arrived, we dived in and had a great meal together--but for the dal which was ho-hum, the kebabs were excellent and made a very unusual meal.There were Godiva chocolate truffles for dessert---yum,yum,yum!
     I felt bad as I lost track of time and it was just past midnight when I jumped up and told them I should leave. They dropped me off in a rickshaw and all I could do was get into the bathroom for a quick wash before I tumbled straight into bed after another exhausting but very productive day!
     Until tomorrow...