Of People..

Was at a shop the other day buying things..it was one of those extremely high profile shops with snooty names but amazingly affable salespeople,which ,let me tell you is way more dangerous.some sharp CEO types or maybe the clerk at the sales division figured out that you will be able to lure people to buy things more easily if you make them comfortable and happy..in sharp contradiction to making them uncomfortable and prickly. rude shop people make me unhappy and miserably conscious that my clothes are nearly always worn for comfort rather than style(not my shoes though..NEVER my shoes!!),that my hair always stubbornly blows any damn which way it pleases,different sections of it rebelliously blowing in different directions at the same time,that i tend to blink a lot at the things displayed and ,most importantly always ask the price of whatever it is that i want...and that i am thus not quite quite.i react to them differently at different times..sometimes i dismiss them with unconcern,sometimes i laugh them off...but they never fail to ruffle my composure slightly.thus when i am faced with the other kind,the insanely cheerful and friendly types,i feel lots better..i chat with them,ask their opinions,confide in them about my budget and very often end up buying things,if for no other reasons than sheer gratitude for their being nice to me...

Anyway,that was a major digression but whatever.the point was,that while i was there at the shop,an exquisitely dressed women was there as well.she was pretty,in the generic kind of way which says money,and polish.she was looking at some men's wallets.just then an elderly woman walked in.she was wearing a simple saree and looked as out of place in the Italian leather shop as petunia would amongst flamboyant orchids.she looked uncomfortable,but soon a salesgirl put her at her ease and they started to chat.she wanted to buy a wallet for her son,she said,because he had just qualified an engineering entrance.also apparently his friends were teasing him about his old wallet,which was his grandfather's and very old fashioned.she was a sweet lady,cheerful and nice.very nice.i was shamelessly eavesdropping by then,caught up in the lady's simple enthusiasm.she had finally selected her wallet,a handsome beige one.just then the women with the great dress noticed the wallet in her hand and said"Oh My God,that's the one i want!!do you mind?"and straightaway took it from her.she examined it minutely and said"yes,yes this is exactly what i want.get me another piece of this please"

as luck would have had it,there was only the one piece left.i think the nice aunty would have given it up,had she been even slightly polite about it.but she did not so much as bother to acknowledge her.she just shrugged elegantly and said"it doesn't matter.i will take this"the shop girl was seriously upset.she stammered and said that the other lady had selected it first.and got treated to a cold stare and a "so?".the other aunty by this time had gotten over her bewilderment and said shakily,but gamely that she had indeed chosen it first.the bitch from hell sneered at her openly,taking in her clothes,her worn out sandles,her general aura of middle class respectibility..and said something filthy to her in english...and at aunty's bewildered look laughed lightly and said"Oh dear,i suppose i should translate to hindi".i was already stepping forward,rage clouding my vision,knowing that whether i flayed her in english or hindi, i would do a thorough and comprehensive job of it. but the manager beat me to it.she arrived and asked what was wrong.on being told by the sales girl who was extensively interrupted by the humanoid,she got a grasp of what had happened.She turned to aunty who was almost in tears, mortified and embarrassed,and told her gently"the wallet is yours,maam".at this,horrible person let out a splutter of rage and spewed venom at her.the manager heard her out in cold silence responding only when asked"is that the kind of person you would prefer over ME?".she said quietly"we always prefer class.excuse me"and she walked away leaving me trying to suppress very hard an overwhelming desire to cheer.

it was an experience which shook me up slightly,leaving me feeling teary eyed and jubilant at the same time.i suppose i had not expected to see this particular kind of ending to this story.all too often these days,money and a certain hard polish which is not backed by anything real,like goodness or thoughtfulness is given more importance by people in general.it felt very very good to be able to personally witness an incident which reinforces belief in the basic sense and goodhearted ness of people.also,felt wonderful to see snooty woman's ass being kicked in a very dignified way!!har har

was in bangalore recently.the weather was wonderful,especially after marinating in delhi's heat until began to feel like some variety of burnt but still undercooked poultry!after that cool ,windswept banglore felt like heaven.i stayed at a friend's house which is situated at a still semi deserted area just outside the city,and i woke up every morning to the wind howling outside.it felt great to be snuggled inside light quilts,drinking coffee and eating all manner of indigestible things and chatting up a storm!it was a fun vacation though mildly bemusing.the really strange thing was though ,that i actually felt a rush of affection for humid,sweaty delhi.stuck up in the snarling traffic on the way back from the airport was oddly comforting.either i am one of those people who cant take too much of a good thing(heaven forbid!) or...it was just the fact,that in spite of the wanderlust which seizes me from time to time,and in spite of loving all the new and old places i go to,it is always best when i come back home.