pujo season

It was Mahalaya again, yesterday. I was born on this day, and I have often scribbled in my diary on this day too. There are even two relevant posts on this blog itself - this and this.

By a strange coincidence, without thinking about it, I gave myself two small treats yesterday: a new phone (because the old one was getting really old) and lobsters for lunch, because my daughter is here. Really, there is nothing so pleasing as delayed gratification - I wish the current generations knew and understood why the Bard had written 'All things that are, are with more spirit chased than enjoyed'.

Despite a recent accident in the family in which my mother had a close shave with death, and despite the still muggy weather, and despite the fact that Bengal's Annual madness is just around the corner, I am far happier right now than I usually manage to be, because my daughter is staying with me for some time after ages, along with her dog which has become a dear pet, and because the workload is lighter than usual, and also because Pupu has put me to work doing what I can do best: preparing all kinds of study materials and ideas for her to use in her developing career as a teacher.

And I am looking forward to the feast that I am planning with some favourite old boys who will be visiting. So that is a fun list, don't you think?

P.S.: Writing this post somehow made me feel as if I was in primary school again (I started writing a diary when I was seven years old).

Elizabeth Regina, adieu and RIP

I see today that Google Chrome has marked in solid black the portion of its page where they usually put up some doodle or the other, and if you roll your cursor over it, you read 'Queen Elizabeth II, 1926-2022'.

I think Google has done well (remember, they are originally Americans, descendants of folks who fought hard to free themselves from British rule). I also know that a lot of people are surprised to know that I call the queen's death a tragic loss and the end of a remarkable era, despite being an Indian proud to be rid of colonial rule, and despite knowing that she lived a very long and very full life, and that there are so many ways in which monarchy has always been bad, and has been an anachronism for a long time, and despite holding strong democratic and socialistic ideas lifelong.

I can only explain myself at some length: every dish cannot be cooked like Maggi noodles. I won't take the trouble unless a lot of people express serious interest. Otherwise, as our wise men said a very long time ago, silence is golden, idle talk is not.

Let me see.