Tuesday, July 04, 2006

home sick

It’s raining non-stop.

I woke up this morning, my cell phone alarm ringing loudly next to my right ear. I put it on snooze. Fifteen minutes later it rings again. Snooze.

Fifteen minutes.

Ring.

Snooze.

This happened 6 times till about ten in the morning when I dragged my self out of bed.

Nat calls, asks if we should even venture out to work. She has been watching the news for half an hour and she things it’s ‘not wise’ to go anywhere in this rain. I agree whole-heartedly.

I call my over enthu art partner, with whom I don’t quite get along much. I ask him if he is going to work and he says yes.
Crap, if he goes I gotta go cause I need to mail him the line.
I try to convince him to stay at home, else he gets stranded. No luck. Stupid enthu.

I call the Grinch (my boss) and tell him that my road is flooded with knee-deep water and it seems pointless. He tells me to chill. Stay at home. Don’t worry. It’s all good.

He has had a morning drink. I’m sure.

After about an hour of calling the office, calling bosses, calling art partners and calling secretaries, it was decided by someone that the office shall remain closed today. Yay! I get back into bed and start reading my book.

It’s almost lunchtime now. And I have a mouth-watering craving.

My dad’s chicken biryani.

I rarely stay at home from work, so when I do my dad cooks what I love. And the one thing he knows I love is his chicken biryani. On rainy days when there is just no way I can leave home and reach office in one piece, I sit in my room and read. And at about lunchtime there is this wonderful aroma wafting in from the kitchen. It’s chicken biryani in the making.

He makes it in a pressure cooker and when the lid is removed, you just see steam for ten seconds. There is a layer of rice, slightly coloured with red food colour. Then a big steel spoon digs into it and reveals more steam and a layer of succulent meat and perfectly cooked rice. Not to mushy, not too grainy, just melt-in-your-mouth good. And because the meat is pressure cooked, it is so soft, so delicious.

My dad serves it with a salad (chopped cucumber, tomato, onion and chilly in a light vinegar dressing) homemade pickle and roasted papad.

*Drool*

I want that biryani. I need it. I miss my dad.

I’m going for lunch now. I’m sure it’s not anything like what I am dreaming of. But it will have to do.
‘Cause I’m frikkin’ hungry right now.

Dammit.

9 comments:

Queenmatrai said...

Yipee I'm first to comment...

I want your dad's chicken biryani too - sounds yum...

But just one thing, can we have a bottle of red wine with it?

~Noojes

Nikhil said...

Are your parents in the US then?

Scritch said...

thank goodness for bosses with drinking problems, mistresses and midlife crisises.......crisises?
I have one of those. He did all three at the same time, you can imagine how much I get to slack off.

Spazsim Chasm said...

Nooje - Sure!!!!! Lets

Egg - Yes

Scritch - Actually my boss is a bit of a robot. he has no feelings and he is quite cold. Drink warms him up a little and usually hits him quite a bit cause he is not much used to it... He's a non drinker.. And when he does drink he gets VERY happy.. :))))

Nikhil said...

Shouldn't you allow anonymous comments? Isn't a bit arrogant to not let people post their opinion here, just because they don't own a blotspot account? What if your boss read this piece and wanted to provide his poignant thoughts on the matter? How frustrating it would be for him.

Jerrster said...

never heard of such serious rain....we don't get enough.

Anonymous said...

Oh my... look at that.. She has made a change to please that weird Egg head guy... She has allowed anonymous comments!!

Hope he is happy..

Spazsim Chasm said...

You're right Egg, Anon is Fun..

Jerry - Have you not heard of the infamous 26th July 2005 rains in Bombay? People died and lost their cars and houses. Some colleagues and myself had to stay in the office for almost 27 hours, with no food, cause there was no where to go... It was very very bad..

Here check out the pictures for yourself..

http://www.anish.info/mumbairain.html

Anonymous said...

Avast! Dontcha call him weird lass, Ill have me cutlass up ye scabbard if ye dont speak sooth now.