Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Leaving on a jet plane

Having technology restored to my life ( barring the land line- apparently the line is alright, it's the concealed wiring in the building which wants its share of the Puja bonus) I am about to fly half way across the world, for a vacation in the US. Packing for just going away is not too bad, but rearranging the house before you go is quite a task! My uncle and aunt will stay with my parents while we are away, and the Sometimes Resident Engineer feels that they will be more comfortable in our room, rather than in the guest room, which is a smaller room, and the bathroom is not attached. Our bathroom also has the SRE's favourite piece of plumbing, the hygiene faucet. What I, in my crude, unsophisticated fashion, call the bum-washer. The guys in the swanky establishment I bought it from called it a commode shower. I think my nomenclature is the clearest. I am trying to imagine that noble soul (the SRE) not grumbling about my not having installed a hygiene faucet in the guest bathroom. I am sure that he will most definitely grumble. Getting one installed in our bathroom was a sufficient pain in the relevant region.
(Another post, someday). Spacebar, you'll be glad to see that I'm leaving on this somewhat loo-ish note!
I had started this post to tell you all that I'd be away for a while, and would try and post as and when I could from the various places I'd be visiting. Which are Houston, Austin, Atlanta, Raleigh,
WashingtonDC and New York. Returning by way of London, where I hope to meet Neha and Choxbox, as well as my dear sister-in-law. And anyone else who can manage to mail me......
But now the hygiene faucet issue has clouded my thoughts. Will my better half spend the entire trip grumbling about not having this important piece of equipment in firang land?
I am seriously planning to carry a plastic mug for my own personal use, since paper is not my preferred mode of fundamental hygiene. On the eve of my first trip abroad after twenty three years, can I find nothing better to agonise over? What kind of person am I anyway?
Maybe we'll know when I get back at the end of the month!
The SRE has kindly emptied out his wardrobe for our guests. I have been shoving stuff in random places trying to tidy up. I need to get enough space for us to sleep on the guest room bed- our guests arrive early in the morning tomorrow. I need to bid you farewell and get back to the jobs which will probably finish only when I leave for the airport. Parkinson ji- your law still rules! ( For readers who have never heard of the great man, the rule: -Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.)

(Mail me at dipali.taneja@gmail.com)