Cocoa Masala Chai

The day started off like no other. I woke up to my alarm, sat up in bed and turned on the nightstand lamp. I hadn't put my glasses on yet and out of the corner of my eye, I saw something emerging from under the nightstand. At first, I thought it may have been a little bug, but it kept going and going, like a train emerging from a tunnel, slinking along all hugged up against the floorboard as if it were trying to stay as far away from me as I was from it.  I shrieked and took a moment to collect myself in the middle of the bed.   Once I felt a little braver, I turned to get off the other side of the bed so I wouldn't encounter the multilegged insect and could escape from the bedroom.  Well, the millipede must have been thinking the same thing, because, sure enough, it had moved to the opposite side of the bed too and was there desperately trying to make its way across the floorboard to get away from the giant two-legged mammal that makes high-pitched shrieking noises from way up

My four year old niece jauntily walked in to the library. During the whole summer I was trying to figure out what to do with my little people so they won't get bored and that wouldn't eat into my budget. It hadn't dawned on me that the local library is a great place to hang out until the last 2 weeks of summer.  At our local branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia were free STEM activities, free vouchers for the Art Museum, free movies, free A/C, free books that were being given away, and free lunch for the kiddos. And free is my favorite price.  As we walked toward the area with STEM toys , a huge chunk of metal caught her eye. She had seen it before, but my older niece was using it and the four-year-old got distracted by something else, as four-year-olds tend to do. But this time, it was all hers. She walked over to it and took it in. It looked like a keyboard, which she's very familiar with, but a very weird one. Instead of rectangular keys that are flush with th

  What made me become interested in learning Hindi?   Among my many reasons, I find the language to be pretty and the culture of Hindi/Urdu-speakers interesting.   But one of my vainer reasons is that I like the clothes! If you’ve seen a Bollywood movie, you know what I’m talking about.   Brightly colored fabric, layered with intricate designs and sparkling sparklies covering every inch, draping over its wearer to highlight her femininity. Over time, I’ve come to learn that the showy fashion of Bollywood dance numbers, while fascinating, is not everyday wear.   Just like you wouldn’t wear a prom dress to do an Aldi’s run, so too the fancy outfits from the movies aren’t daily attire.   But still, the everyday sarees, salwar kameezes, and even the poshaks are very pretty to me because of their textile designs.   The women who sweep the streets even where dresses with detailed floral designs show their pride in how they adorn themselves, even when doing a common task. Woman

What a week it's been! It took me longer to get my post out, but here it is. Enjoy! *** Way back in when I first started working, Monday mornings always brought a certain ritual at the food trucks outside of my building.  As a people watcher, I couldn’t help but notice the familiar routine.  Patrons would come up to the truck and order something fairly cheap, maybe a muffin for $1, or if they were splurging, get it toasted with butter and jelly. Then they’d whip out the fresh $20 they got from the ATM after payday last Friday. The food truck vendor always was able to give the right blend of tens, fives, and ones as change. There was no hassle; they knew what their customers wanted and were prepared. Fast forward to the months right before the COVID-19 shutdown.  The ‘breaking a $20’ ritual was being replaced with QR codes or other stickers showing that the vendors took Venmo, CashApp or some other electronic payment. What does any of this have to do with me being in India? Like