This is a diary and account of the extremely ordinary happenings that occur in my life in Kolkata. We (Me, my husband and 7 year old daughter) live in a quiet, leafy neighbourhood in Kolkata. We moved back to India after spending ten years in the US. Be prepared for some moaning and groaning because as you will see – life in Kolkata has its fair share of ups and downs.
Find the previous entry here
Saturday, 23rd November 2019
Spend most of the day tidying our flat in preparation for Sunday’s large party. About 90 of our closest family and friends (mostly from Raja’s side because our family/work colleague numbers seem to be dwindling?) will visit us for the first time in our new home. We are planning food and seating arrangements downstairs in the garage and surrounding ground floor area – because obviously home too small! Today the decorators arrived with long bamboo poles, lengths of fabric and other paraphernalia to create a covered tent to house the caterers and the food. Fingers crossed that everything goes according to plan. Not having too many squabbles with Raja about issues related to party as most have things have been taken care of. Feeling less stressed about life than the time of the house move. Nevertheless…
Sunday, 24th November 2019
The day starts bright and early with a ring on the door from our building’s caretaker – Mr Maiti-pronounced as in “My- T” only with a soft ‘T’. Raja secretly calls him Almighty, perhaps due to his air of grand deportment. On this particular morning Almighty announces with an apologetic smile that the building’s water pump has run amok. Visualize 100 people descending upon us without a drop of water for the caterers, not to mention the impossibility of performing ablutions and using the facilities. In a fit of frenzy I start obsessively filling every bucket, container, vessel at hand and phone my mum in a panic. Dad arrives on a rickshaw within ten minutes bearing large 100 gallon plastic water drum with tap, which we place downstairs near the food stations. Decorators have arrived and are arranging the chairs and tables. Request extra water drum from them which they supply and proceed to fill it but am told off by Raja because am not acting normally it seems.
At 10.30 am first of family arrives and am still in nightie. Sister-in-law helps me to wear green-gold saree, worn for only the second time in last fifteen years. Everyone arrives and we have a wonderful time. House much admired particularly the library. Food is delicious. After the flurry of guests subsides at 4pm, find out pump had been mended at midday!
Monday, 25th November 2019
Husband and I both wake up with sore throats and the beginnings of colds. I spend the day pootering about at home, setting the rooms to rights and putting away the many gifts we have received (six sets of bedsheets!). Heat up catering leftovers – lots of yellow pilau rice, cauliflower curry and daal but not so much mutton curry, fish fry et al. Raja and I both seem to taste the food for the first time and nod appreciatively at our excellent catering choice.
Buy Meli a children’s magazine on the way home from school today. Remember the joys of childhood magazine reading as something to look forward to every month. Meli enjoying the jokes in said magazine exceedingly and starts relating them to me umpteen times throughout the day. Have to appreciate the joke with fresh enjoyment every time.
Tuesday, 26th November 2019
Have resolved to spend some time this week at the local bank in attempts to boost dwindling financial resources (depleted especially after house-buying). Many lucrative options present themselves but as usual opt for the safe and reliable low interest method of fixed term deposits like my ancestors of yore. Look forward to meager but assured promise of some book spending money this time next month. Book buying being a major motivation in life.
Lots of leftovers from Sunday.
Wednesday, 27th November 2019
Meli has the day off from school and we have planned a nice day of watching Frozen 2 at the cinema, followed by subway sandwiches for lunch and a visit to the bookshop. Luckily all are to be found in local Mall for which I am very grateful.
We both enjoy Frozen 2 very much. I especially enjoy the beautiful autumnal and wintry scenes. There is an Olaf joke involving ‘Samantha’ that Meli finds hilarious and repeats frequently. Meli demands to watch the next show of Frozen which I firmly decline as I don’t love it that much and frankly cinema tickets extortionary.
Meli assuages grief in chicken sub sandwiches with extra olives and honey mustard and we spend the evening listening to the Frozen 2 soundtrack on repeat.
Still eating leftovers.
Thursday, 28th November 2019
Spend the morning editing a few articles. The early mornings are dank and foggy and for a small window of time, one doubts whether the sun will come up at all, from behind the puffy clouds of pollution. Delhi is said to be very bad with regards to pollution but I imagine we don’t lag very far behind. The ironing man with his makeshift ironing booth on the corner of our cul-de-sac is I expect, a serious offender in that department. From around 6.30 am he lights his coal scuttle (used to warm his heavy metal iron) and sends plumes of grey smoke into the ether. Meli and I hold our breath whilst going past him on our early morning walk to the bus stop and then gasp for air, with flushed faces when we have turned the corner. Meli asks when it will be cold enough to blow clouds of smoke into the air. I tell her that it will come soon enough.
Nearing the end of last Sunday’s leftovers. Ate the baked tomato fish with a garden salad and soya bread. That was our Thanksgiving Dinner this year. Very thankful for nice, new place to stay this year.
Friday, 29th November 2019
Meli has the day off school again. Write and package off the last of the Xmas parcels. I expect there will be more to post next week though as I always seem to miss people or people unexpectedly send me things and I feel the need to reciprocate. Go to local Post Office – the one with the perennial dearth of postage stamps. Informed not enough postage stamps for the Rs 216 parcel. Ask in great indignation how this can be possible. Am informed that might be issued the requisite amount in smaller denominations of 5 rupees. Agree to this dolefully and proceed to stick 43 stamps on the envelope whilst the 7 year old reads a book in a murky corner of the Post Office. Advise her to swing her legs continuously on wooden bench as feel sure Post Office is riddled with mosquitoes.
After pasting the myriad stamps, hand over the envelope fervently hoping dear Nora, in far-off snowy Canada, will enjoy the package and contents with multiple images of esteemed Indian freedom fighter- Mr Abul Kalam Azad.
Saturday, 30th November 2019
At the midnight hour, it suddenly strikes me that today is the last day of November and that from tomorrow, December, Advent and the gloriousness of the festive season will be upon us. Traditionally we like to put up our artificial tree and decorations on the weekend following Thanksgiving, so that we have the whole of December to enjoy them (and towards the end of the month grow heartily tired of them).
Usually we have lots of plans for December and not all of them come to fruition. I host a festive readalong on Instagram (this year Miss Read’s wonderful ‘Village Christmas’), have a pile of festive books, watch Vlogmas videos on YouTube, take out the Christmas movies. This year we even have a Christmas puzzle on the way.
Mum visits us in the evening and we dress the tree and marvel at all the treasured ornaments that we have forgotten about in the span of a year. I always try to add one new decoration to the collection every year and hence, the family grows. Put up a string of Christmas cards received over the years. Most of them are from Bookstagram friends who have grown very dear to me. I love this season of putting into play, the lost art of sending snail mail.
Bag Full Of Books 