Snowy evening, pakoras and profound thoughts
As we drove home from work through less than three inches of snow, I could not help being struck by the beauty of simple everyday things. The bare trees with a silver snowy coating silhouetted against a gray sky. The headlights from the cars glinting off the pure white surfaces.
As we pulled into our house, I realized this was the perfect weather for a steaming cup of chai and pakoras. Thirty minutes later saw us sitting in our living room sipping on tea and devouring hot pakoras. Somehow the living room always puts me in the mood for conversation and we were discussing a lot of things from vacation plans for the year to when was the last time we sat like this just talking about nothing. The evening melted away even before I could realize it but my mind was stuck on associations.
Why do we associate things? Like chai pakora to rain/wintry evenings or Nairs’ with tea shops. There are silly associations and then there are the dangerous ones. Years and years of TV and movie watching have given place to associations in my mind that sometimes bother me. In my mind when I think of criminals for whatever reason they are always dark, have a huge mustache and wear sleeveless banians. Or when I think of pickpockets they are invariably young teenage boys with a furtive look on their faces. I wonder why I don’t think of girls or fair skinned people.
The prejudice bothers me and as much as I debate it in my mind I am clueless on how to un-learn years of conditioning.
You had me cracking up at villains with sleeveless banians
I never knew the Nairs with teashops before…mallus yes! Interesting …and beautiful photograph, who has the xmas tree up still?
@UL: Glad to be able to provide a laugh
Our neighbors still have not taken their tree down. It looked beautiful yest. Don’t think the picture does justice though!
haha, pakoras are just heavenly
I settled for samosas. The tiny ones from the frozen section?
@rads: Love those too. Specially the paneer/spinach ones
Hello
Dropping in from Rads blog.
Thought sure is profound! :–)
You must have heard of the book Blink – do check it out, it might have some answers, about first impressions and how we judge people within the first second we meet/see them.
@SK: Thanks for stopping by! Will check out the book. Have not heard of it. Will be glad to look at something that might have answers. Hope you enjoyed your visit here.
[...] Beyond being a book written by a person that could well go on to be the next President, I enjoyed the book for what it was. A young man’s search for himself in a world that is neither black nor white. A world of which I have little idea about. Some of the passages in the book brought tears to my eyes. I saw myself in the woman at the bus shelter clutching my purse a little tightly when a black person passed by. I felt so ashamed for my stereotypical views. [...]