On being a busy woman
Everyone is busy... That's a known truth, which is why I can never get used to the word in my vocabulary. I have taken a break from work now and I am sharing some responsibilities at home this week. I just decided this morning, that I will take care of everything at home today. Everything just meant cooking and clearing up to me. And what with all the time I have with me, I was sure I could finish everything forenoon and spend time doing nothing at all :)
Meetings and deadlines and time lines and discussions and communications and management were all really associated to office in my mind.. Yes, we all know implicitly that a home has all of these going on all the time, but there is no rule or a board room that decides and dictates these things and the most interesting part is emails don't rule your life each morning like they do at work.. So, these terms don't get explicitly acknowledged or understood by people like me who have spent seven working years in front of a computer. Little did I know that my day was going to be super busy ( Oh yes, I am bent upon using the word now, this minute).
Make coffee and clear up.
Make breakfast and clear up.
Make lunch and clear up.
Answer the door at least thrice during the course of the above schedule.
Answer the phone at least once during cooking.
Wonder and cant stop wondering why people cant call on your mobile phone!!!!
Sprint back to the kitchen after taking the call from the land line phone to check if the favorite curry on the stove has charred to soot.
Breathe a sigh of relief ( trust me, its a lot of blood pressure spike to actually see the most awaited and favorite, carefully attempted dish to become tar black on the cooking vessel) as everything is fine. Either my call was short or I am a smart cook!!!! :)
Attend to the maid who comes in to help me with the clearing up.[ Its a blessing to have someone help you with this work, but most of us don't realize until they decide to take off for a day. I agree that people living outside India do all the work themselves as there is no concept of domestic help but those who can afford to hire a maid for helping with the cleaning, surely appoint one, in India.]
When this much was done it was 10:30 A.M. Per my plans, this was too late for a bath and sitting back to do nothing.. So, I hurried out of the kitchen. Then, I just gave one last glance at the kitchen table and saw a used sauce pan, I had missed to clean up. Quickly washed it off and with the victorious feeling that you get when you are keeping to your plans well, I closed the water tap. The spindle inside decided to break off and the water gushed out. The tap was open maximum and I could imagine a flooded kitchen. So much for my victory. It was a victorious defeat!!! No one, just no one can escape Murphy's law.
The next two hours went in trying to fix the kitchen tap with help from a plumber. All the while, the water was gushing out and I could not help thinking of a long forgotten prose lesson in school which said, " Every drop of water is precious"... :) I did my best to store the water, still couldn't help some loss.
In all when I finally sat back it was 3:00 P.M :) and I didn't expect to sleep off...the next thing I know is a loud phone ring at 5:00 P.M. Woke up with a smile.. since when, a phone ring seemed loud to me?? I don't recall, but I can tell you, its been a wonderful day that finally helped me understand that staying home can keep you busy too. Everyday you may not have a faulty pipe to take care of, but then, it still is quite challenging to meet the needs of your home :)
Yes, I didn't say a house :) I mean a HOME. While fixing a pipe is a 'house' thing, seeing the whole scene through without any tension and not forgetting other priorities/demands of the hour is a 'home' thing. :-) Its a wonderful lesson I learnt today.
Meetings and deadlines and time lines and discussions and communications and management were all really associated to office in my mind.. Yes, we all know implicitly that a home has all of these going on all the time, but there is no rule or a board room that decides and dictates these things and the most interesting part is emails don't rule your life each morning like they do at work.. So, these terms don't get explicitly acknowledged or understood by people like me who have spent seven working years in front of a computer. Little did I know that my day was going to be super busy ( Oh yes, I am bent upon using the word now, this minute).
Make coffee and clear up.
Make breakfast and clear up.
Make lunch and clear up.
Answer the door at least thrice during the course of the above schedule.
Answer the phone at least once during cooking.
Wonder and cant stop wondering why people cant call on your mobile phone!!!!
Sprint back to the kitchen after taking the call from the land line phone to check if the favorite curry on the stove has charred to soot.
Breathe a sigh of relief ( trust me, its a lot of blood pressure spike to actually see the most awaited and favorite, carefully attempted dish to become tar black on the cooking vessel) as everything is fine. Either my call was short or I am a smart cook!!!! :)
Attend to the maid who comes in to help me with the clearing up.[ Its a blessing to have someone help you with this work, but most of us don't realize until they decide to take off for a day. I agree that people living outside India do all the work themselves as there is no concept of domestic help but those who can afford to hire a maid for helping with the cleaning, surely appoint one, in India.]
When this much was done it was 10:30 A.M. Per my plans, this was too late for a bath and sitting back to do nothing.. So, I hurried out of the kitchen. Then, I just gave one last glance at the kitchen table and saw a used sauce pan, I had missed to clean up. Quickly washed it off and with the victorious feeling that you get when you are keeping to your plans well, I closed the water tap. The spindle inside decided to break off and the water gushed out. The tap was open maximum and I could imagine a flooded kitchen. So much for my victory. It was a victorious defeat!!! No one, just no one can escape Murphy's law.
The next two hours went in trying to fix the kitchen tap with help from a plumber. All the while, the water was gushing out and I could not help thinking of a long forgotten prose lesson in school which said, " Every drop of water is precious"... :) I did my best to store the water, still couldn't help some loss.
In all when I finally sat back it was 3:00 P.M :) and I didn't expect to sleep off...the next thing I know is a loud phone ring at 5:00 P.M. Woke up with a smile.. since when, a phone ring seemed loud to me?? I don't recall, but I can tell you, its been a wonderful day that finally helped me understand that staying home can keep you busy too. Everyday you may not have a faulty pipe to take care of, but then, it still is quite challenging to meet the needs of your home :)
Yes, I didn't say a house :) I mean a HOME. While fixing a pipe is a 'house' thing, seeing the whole scene through without any tension and not forgetting other priorities/demands of the hour is a 'home' thing. :-) Its a wonderful lesson I learnt today.
Comments
Good luck dearie...
Sowmya