Meal for one

“As if we have a choice!”

One of the many exclamations from my chatty co-passenger on the Cathay flight back to Singapore. Most of the local population barely talks, even less so while traveling and the old American man who responded verbally to every delay announcement from the pilot really stood out. Given I was the only person who responded to him, at least with a cursory nod (respect your elders!), I was awarded with the strawberry ice cream from his in-flight meal that wasnt included in my vegetarian one. Of course, “never accept food from strangers” and all that but this was a sealed, brand new, strawberry and cream Haagen-Dazs ice cream and I had earned it through good karma points, so fair game okay?

This May was one of the most happening “Mays” of my life ever, with only a couple of close contenders. My sister and her sassy self was around for most of it, now her absence is being immediately felt. Even though she was here for just 20 days, my folks now refer to my apartment, that I found and pay rent for, as “Easha’s flat”. While a small routine-loving part of me is glad that June marks a return to normalcy, a much bigger part will miss yanking half the blanket from her, as it has for almost a decade now.  Also, like all the corporate memes we see, I suddenly became a tiny bit relevant at work which meant I barely had any time to give to her. It also meant that my gym hasn’t seen me all month but the lady at the crepe store near work saw me way too often. Always grateful for the opportunity yes, but I really do not like the sugar-craving person I become after 16-hour workdays.

On the bright side, I did eat even more pineapple buns during my second time in Hong Kong. Met seniors who provided much needed sympathies for the rite of passage that is being a junior on a trading floor while living abroad. Took the tram every single time I could, and got a physical Octopus card to enable that. Made new friends, caught up with old ones, silently mused how fast time flies. Learnt the hard way that umbrellas are just as non-negotiable as they are in Singapore.  Found vegan Japanese in a famously meat-loving city. Got lectured by my father on consuming too much sugar. Quite a lot done for five days.

June always marked a clean fresh start, Kerala monsoons made sure of that. My school and college years always began in June. We would huddle into our school vans, with new backpacks and lunch bags and textbooks (that wouldn’t ever be opened after the day it was binded). Some of us would have grown taller, or our voices would have changed, or we would have new glasses or braces. Somehow, this June feels similar. A big family vacation has just ended and it’s back to packing lunchboxes again. Not that I can whip up delicious idiyappams and peas curry at 7AM like my mother did though.