Bombay
Getting Ready to Move out of my Bandra Studio
Namaste from Bombay!
Today was all about packing...and packing...and still more packing! I felt drained by day's end. What's worse, I have made the sudden (and very depressing) discovery that I have a mild case of plantar fasciitis. For those unacquainted with this ailment, it is, medically speaking, inflammation of the plantar fascia which is the thick band of tissue that runs under the soles of our feet and which is connected with the muscle group that runs all the way up to our thigh. In layman's terms, it translates as terrible pain in the soles of your feet. The first (and surest) indication that you have it is that you feel pain and discomfort on the soles of your feet when you first wake in the morning and put your feet down on the ground. The bad news is that there is no medication in allopathy to deal with it. Only exercises to stretch the plantar can work. The good news is that there is medicine in homeopathy that can help the condition. But in both cases, there is no instant relief. It still takes weeks to months to years to disappear completely, depending on the severity of the inflammation. I had a really virulent case of it, ten years ago, that took a whole five years to heal. So I am fully familiar with the symptoms and the stages of it and I am certain that I have contracted a very mild case--in both feet.
Needless to say, I have already started the stretching exercises and I am doing them on the hour, every hour, as I still spend long hours at my laptop while stretched out on my bed. Hopefully, in a couple of weeks (and with homeopathic pills which I intend to get soon from my homeopathic practitioner based here in Bombay), it will get better--and not worse. What's really frustrating is that, unlike the last time in London when I had really abused my feet by walking for miles and miles each day while wearing the wrong footwear, this time I have done almost no walking at all. So I simply cannot fathom why it had shown up again to plague me. Like I said, let us hope it is only temporary...
That said, I awoke at 6.30 and began blogging and reading. I had my breakfast of two chappatis with peanut butter (which I finally finished) and Nutella (which I shall finish tomorrow) and coffee. Then began my packing. I went through all my kitchen cabinets and I placed the remaining bottles, jars and containers, etc. in large bags. They were meant to be delivered to Dad in the evening. Tomorrow I shall work on my fridge before I switch it off and clean it up. It is still amazing to me how much time was consumed doing this.
Next I had some important paper work to attend to--this needed to be printed out and then photocopied--so another trip to Jay, my photocopier, was in order. Then, Dad called to tell me that he happened to have gone to the bank and made the sad discovery that the clerk who has been so helpful to him and me through the year, Jayant, was being transferred and would not be able to assist us any more. Dad was heart broken as this man has been such a boon to have around. He told me that he would like me to stop by also to say goodbye to him as this is his last day. Dad also wondered if I could think of a Thank-You gift that I could give him on behalf of both of us. I had just the thing for him and I told Dad that!
So then, I got the documents I needed printed on a flash drive and I got ready to run my errands. But first, I had the last of Valerie's wonderful meals for lunch--chicken mince, paneer with peas and potatoes with spinach with one chappati. While eating I watched a series of four You Tube videos on the Galapagos Islands and I was able to relive the lovely holiday that we had taken exactly a year ago.
That done, I left my studio and carried a bag filled with some of my kitchen items--my electric kettle, some glass bowls, my grater and potato peeler--to leave at Dad's place as I will not be carrying those back to the States. I am still patting myself on the back at the foresight with which I packed the items I would need daily (such as my French cafetierre and my sterling silver tea pot) and the few gadgets I had bought in China (grater, potato peeler, scissors, etc.) I have used every single one of the items I carried. Nothing was superfluous. Ditto with my clothes. There is only one fancy suit and one fancy dress I did not use as I did not get invited to any weddings this year. Ebery single other item was used and used well.
I met Jayant and with a huge lump in my throat, I thanked him for is excellent service to Dad and myself and I wished him well on his new assignment--all the way in Yeotmal (Yavatmal) which is a remote, rural corner of Maharashtra. What a pity that he will be so far away from Bombay! He spent a few minutes talking to me and told me that he will never forget Dad whom, he said, he regarded as his own father and not like a customer at all! He told me that I am truly blessed to have him for my Dad--as if I did not know that already! Still, he accepted our gift gratefully (which I had wrapped in a gift bag) and I left (still feeling very tearful).
Everyone at Dad's place was resting and having a nap. I left the bag with the items I had carried over in the living room and crept out (I have a key that allows me to enter without disturbing anyone) and then I walked to Jay's where I got my photocopying work done.
Back home, I had a shower and shampoo and took a short nap. When I awoke, I continued packing again. All I now have to do is fit in my costume jewelry--and as I am always afraid to put it in my suitcases (I once had beautiful vintage costume jewelry stolen out of my suitcase on a flight from the US to London--obviously by security people), I never keep even costume jewelry anywhere other than in my carry on.
In the evening, at 4.00 pm, I hopped into a rick and made my way to the Bandra Post Office where I had made plans to meet my cousin, Ruby. She was taking me to her goldsmith as I had some costume jewelry that needed repairs. It was one of the things I wanted to accomplish and I was glad that she knew someone who could help me. Sunil, the jeweler, took a look at my items and told me to return tomorrow to pick them up as he will try and do his best to repair them. Ruby and I then walked to Elco as I thought we could get some refreshment--but I believe Elco is closed on Monday as it was fully shuttered.
By the time I got home it it was tea time but as I had packed up and left my electric kettle at Dad's already, I could no longer make myself tea! I sat down to download some viewing material when I discovered that I have 3 days left to watch my monthly quota of 6 items on Hoopla. I finished the downloading and thought of going to Mass when I found that the rain was drumming down steadily and that it would be tough to take my things to Dad at this time. So, I simply made an appointment with Fr. Colman for tomorrow (he needs to sign and notarize a document for me) and I did some reading to prepare for a meeting tomorrow. I called Dad and told him that I would not be coming to Mass.
I spent the evening closing up my suitcases and weighing them on my weighing scale--I am well within my limits (Thank God!) and then cleaning up my little studio. I cleaned the inside of all the kitchen cabinets as well as my night stands. I just kept clothes aside for the next couple of days. Everything else is now packed away.
Then because I was well and truly knackered, I sat down to watch Collision on Hoopla--a British TV show starring a young and dishy Douglas Henshall (who has a pronounced Scots accent) and has the bonus of being written by Anthony Horowitz whose work I simply love (Midsomer Murders and novels like The Magpie Murder, The Word was Murder, etc. which I had spent the early part of my year in Bombay reading). Needless to say, it was compelling and I binge-watched three episodes before I chatted with Llew briefly and hit the sack.
Until tomorrow...which will be my second last morning in my Bandra studio!
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