Juices

I’ve been bitten by the walking bug. I brisk-walk for more than half an hour every day. It has been two weeks now and I hope to continue with the routine. Surprisingly I seem to be enjoying the evening mosey. The weather was utterly pleasant all through May and I must have walked a few miles – in a long long while – and actually sweated. Day-1, I was content to perspire only a little. Finally I was breaking free of my mechanized life – car and workstation and press conferences and copy-editing and creating stuff – and into the openness of a verdant cricket field. And I loved the smell of sudor.

I soon conspired to bring Wasy and Aaby along. The trick worked. They too liked it. And soon we added aerobics to our walking/running regime. It is an open-air work-out and by the time we begin to stretch and spread ourselves it is almost early evening and inky. You can see endless stars – small to beautiful -- twinkle overhead and it feels like an act from some very romantic 70’s movie. The mise en scène is heavenly. Commercial airplanes fly by the minute and occasionally deflect your attention with their cockpit and tail lights. Reclining on the grass I often think of all the people in the planes and their mixed mid-air laughter. An air-steward ambling across the aisle with a tray laden with chilled juices. On ground – with a fellow on my feet -- I give-out juices of another kind.

Apart from the playground I’ve been spilling my creative juices all over – on glossy copies for ads to mundane finance stories for my org. You don’t get no time for other creative outlets – such is the cruel arrangement of the darned market forces. I’ve been also trying to crack some real good works but –frankly – I have struggled in my efforts. Time is a premium in our lives.

I drink lots of juices. I swilled a can of cranberry juice last night and it was amazing. I’ve reduced milk in my tea by 100% -- leading my band to accuse me of everything from elitism to stupidity – but I am unfazed and am actually liking the bitter taste of the tiny tea granules. With black tea, you can count the number of tea atoms in your cup. I tease my pals for missing out on the real taste of the brew. Expectedly they fume at me ;) and I love it.

Now the secret behind all this frenzy: I’m going to attend a string of VVIIP [very very incredibly-important people's] weddings. I got to shop for suits and shirts. Importantly I want to get into the smart-fit ones. I've always believed that style was more important than fashion, said Yves Saint Laurent, one of the greatest fashion icons of the 21st century. The legendary designer died this morning in Paris.

So the juices will continue to flow till the shopping day dawns.

Sameer