The oldest!

Both my father and father-in-law, may their souls rest in peace, loved good Scotch whiskey. Yesterday, when I poured a stiff Chivas Regal at my brother’s place, I wished that my dad was with us. It would have been even nicer if my witty father-in-law also could join. Then it occurred to me that I would have been the oldest in this group of scotch lovers! Would they have treated me with the deference I deserve being the oldest? Certainly not. Actually if would have been upsetting if they did not act like they the parents they were!

Protocol of people interactions

I owe a lot of my renewed interest in painting to Sandy, a hairdresser at the barbershop I go for my haircut. It was Sandy, a talented water colorist herself, who introduced me to ‘free’ water color classes provided at a local community center. Although my interest in water color painting waned over time (too delicate for my taste), that exposure gave me the incentive to switch to oil painting, my favorite media. Sandy used to bring her recent paintings to the shop, and I very much enjoyed talking to her every time I met her. About eighteen months ago Sandy, who is in her mid fifties, was diagnosed with breast cancer, and had to undergo surgery and follow up chemo treatments. Although she looked weak and wore a scarf on her head to cover her loss of hair, I continued chatting with her as if there was nothing wrong with her. I was quite certain that she did not want to discuss her medical condition with me. Happily, in a few months Sandy recovered, got her hair back, resumed her painting, and everything got back to normal. But yesterday when I went for my haircut, I found Sandy wearing the scarf over her head again. ‘Are you back in treatment?’ I casually asked masking my shock at finding that her cancer has returned. She answered in the affirmative, and we chatted about her having no time to do painting anymore. She did not talk much, and started doing a crossword puzzle averting my eyes, as my barber cut my hair. I left the shop after my haircut, with a cheery ‘Take care, Sandy!’ giving no hint how upset I was. I guess I behaved exactly as a man is supposed to behave at a situation like this. Anything different would have upset the protocol of human interactions in this country!

Hang in there, Sandy. You are in my prayers.

Pickles in my life!

Years ago, my daughter, who was only four then, noticed a few gray strands sprouting here and there in my hair. ‘You have white hair!’ she remarked. I replied, ‘Yes, I am getting old’ fishing for some sympathy from my little girl. Her response surprised me. She said, ‘I am four years old; next year I will be five, and I can eat pickle!’ The term ‘old’ had an entirely different connotation to her, and she was looking forward to getting older so that she can taste the spicy Indian pickles, deemed not suitable for very young children.

Now in my sixties, here are the ‘pickles’ in my life:

1. Love of my children: There is no question that both my children love me immensely. My autistic son wants me near him all the time when he visits us. My daughter is my biggest supporter who will not accept any criticism of me by others (including from her own mother!). We think alike, and it is a joy to be around her.

2. Faithful and patient wife: I am blessed with a wife who is the most faithful wife one can ever have. We have been married close to forty years now, and there never was an instance when I had to worry about her interest and love for me. I know that there are not many who can claim this about their wives. I am so thankful.

3. Good health: Although things can change in a split second, I have been in excellent health so far. I do not suffer from any perennial disease like diabetes and high blood pressure. I look good for a person in my age group (a recent 50 year class reunion confirmed this!)

4. Active and productive: I lead a busy life as the owner of a software business based in India, and as a part-time instructor at a local university. In short, I have an impact on the daily lives and aspirations of a few people. This makes me feel useful and relevant.

5. Financial stability: Like most, I worry about my income and expenses, and the cash flow of my business. I am in no way rich; but thanks to sizable land holdings I have in India, which keep appreciating in value, there is no reason for me to worry about being poor at my old age.

6. Enjoyment of artistic skill: I am blessed with a talent for drawing and painting. This is an immense source of joy for me as I am the biggest admirer of my own work!

The New Year resolution status – 5/1/10

Here is the current status of my New Year resolutions:

1. Do something fun every day. Enjoy life. Have lost the focus on this completely. Some unexpected personal events have made me distracted and rather morose. Have to get out of this black hole ASAP.

2. Focus on my artistic abilities. Complete a minimum of 50 oil paintings in the year, and get selected for at least one art exhibition. Recent travels have impacted the achievement of this goal. Hope to refocus.

3. Reduce weight by 10 pounds -- at least by 7 lbs before my 50th class reunion in mid April. Surprising success. I indeed lost 7 lbs before the reunion, and now have lost another two pounds. Now I am getting worried that there is something medically wrong with me for this to happen!

4. Talk more about myself in the blog – Yes. Trying to do my best here.

The person I cannot resist

I am a fussy buyer who takes time and changes mind a few times before buying anything unusual. Yesterday, a girlish looking young man knocked on my door with a book of tickets for a movie theater nearby. For politeness sake, I patiently listened to his pitch of getting tickets at a fraction of their actual price. I had no intention of buying them as I knew that I would never get to see thirty movies in a year even if it is free. Therefore, I used my usual ploy of provoking the salesman with some annoying questions challenging the veracity of his claims. But this did not appear to upset the salesman, and he answered them all very patiently. So I decided to get out of the corner I am getting into, with an abrupt ‘I am not interested’. I expected the salesman to leave in a huff, angry about having wasted his time. To my utter surprise this salesman responded with a pleasant , ‘OK. I will be around in the neighborhood until 8 PM if you change your mind’. I stared at him for a few seconds and asked, ‘how much should I pay?’ Anyone who is that patient , and good in accepting rejection and disappointments, is a person I cannot resist!