November is a busy month, at least in the USA. Some people send out for, pay someone to, decide to stop bothering with . . . the same things other people lovingly prepare, take pride in, look forward to. What bits of adult life would you ditch / have you ditched? What "chores" feel like treats?
November is a bittersweet month for me. It signals the end of the year, reminding me of the many promises I made to myself in January, which I didn't quite get to - but then, after November comes December, which is a time to slow down and take a few deep breaths, and unwind after the year's frenzied activity.
November is also the month when our climate festival takes form - at Azim Premji University, where I founded and lead the School of Climate Change and Sustainability, we spend the entire year working on a massive climate festival, and then run it for two weeks at our campus in Bangalore, where we get over 10,000 visitors, mostly young people in high school - after which the festival travels to multiple locations across the country, attracting several thousand additional visitors.
This year's theme is Mountains of Life - we're back to looooong days at work, but the energy of the students visiting keeps us afloat for many days after the festival! Here are some photographs from the last couple of days
Of course this means that chores don't get done this month. What parts of adult life have I ditched? Cooking. We have a lovely cook, Lakshmi, who takes care of breakfast and lunch - and has done so for years. My husband, who is an incredible cook, spoils us at dinner time and loves trying out new recipes - which we will of course gladly consume. I used to enjoy cooking, especially traditional south Indian recipes passed down from my mother or mother-in-law, but these days I just don't have the time.
What else would I ditch? Anything to do with laundry and grocery shopping - I do very little of it these days. But cooking is definitely something I miss, and would love to get back to, when I have the time once again.
What chores feel like treats? Shopping for house furnishings - new cushions, bedsheets, plants for the garden.... that's something I can always make time for!
Readers, what about you? What chores do you love to hate?
6 comments:
I'll let you do my shopping for house stuff too, Harini - in a heartbeat. maybe not plants and seeds, but definitely cushions! Good luck with the festival, CX
Best of luck with the festival, Harini. It sounds interesting — so does the traditional south Indian cuisine.
The festival sounds exciting. Getting young people involved is the best hope for the planet's recuperation. Meanwhile, having someone teach me some of the basics of Indian cooking would be a treat. I love Indian food and have cookbooks, but the Indian spice pantry requires a lot of stuff I don't keep around or fresh enough.
ha ha! I just bought new cushions for the house, and am now a bit sad that there will be no new cushion purchases in the near future, so I'd be happy to buy yours.
Thanks Dietrich - the festival is such fun, mainly because of the visitors. As you can imagine, 1000 middle and high schoolers come with infectious enthusiasm!
Susan - we should do a Minds meeting in Bangalore next year for the festival, with cooking classes thrown in! For Indian spices, you could buy seeds instead of powder, and then stick them in sealed bags in your freezer, they can last for years that way...
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