Today was crap. It still is crap. And it's likely that tomorrow is not going to be any better. And it's never going to get better. It's a shitty day. And it's a shitty world. And it's full of shitty people. Everything is horrible. And everyone is horrible.
Even so, there were some things I learned today:
1. I quite enjoyed painting canvas. Well, I am not good at it at all. But I liked the two that I did.
The second one is the one I painted first. It is Varanasi...the ghats that I painted from memory. Maybe that's why the temple-tops are looking a little like Hiranandani Powai. But I like the sweet, sepia-tint of the early evenings in Varansi, just before MP and I would take our boat rides. Tried to replicate that.
The second one is...well...lips of a woman who belongs to pleasure and pleasure belongs to her. Like Venus, maybe. After I painted her, I tried to paint a bit of the background. But it came out looking like a flag. That is interesting...The Republic of Sensuousness. It would be an interesting country to live in. Passports would be luxe velvet, scented with sandalwood and mogra.
2. A little boy and his father (I assume it was the father) approached me for alms. Rather they asked me if I could buy them flour and oil. Brother and V had told me to not buy them stuff because they sell it back to the grocery store. These people didn't seem to be cunning like that and that little boy was cute. So I told him that I would get them toasted sandwiches. While the sandwich guy made them, this little fellow was poking the hot stove, cheekily looking at the sandwich-waala and me. He knew he was being naughty. Later when he got the sandwich, he asked me if he could have more chutney. I asked him if he would prefer ketchup. He said he wanted chutney. So the sandwich guy gave him some more and told him that it was spicy. This boy grinned and ate a tiny bit. He beamed and told me that there was a huge cat in a neighbouring lane. I wonder if he was volunteering information in exchange for the sandwich...but that was sweet. He was a charming little fella.
3. Today I was thinking about my biggest gain when I left Bandra. It was the fact that I made real friends. Today I got the sense that here, address is very important. Proximity and convenience are important. Friends will be there if you stay close by. Otherwise not. Otherwise it's out of sight and out of mind. Actually this was the case in Bangalore and Noida as well...but Noida not as much. But this zonal premise for bonding...I think when I moved out of Bandra, that's the first thing that I saw through. And well...got a refresher today. Not pleasant. But required.
3. I watched 'The Judge'. Quite liked it. Once you get over Robert Downey Junior's umpteenth reprisal of a cocky, unpleasant genius and Duval's stoic portrayal of a hard but principled man, it's Billy Bob Thornton all the way. I think he speaks maybe 10 sentences in the movie and features for maybe 7 minutes tops. But man! So, so good!
4. This year I thought I will read a proper Gita today...by proper, I mean a reasonably exhaustive one. Not an abridged version. I started with a few pages today. I have the set by Paramhansa Yogananda (the author of Autobiography of a Yogi). If there is one thing that I do in 2021, reading the Gita will be it.
5. I think I will talk to some of my clients and return the projects. I am getting some clarity on what I need emotionally. Some project purge needs to happen.
So ya...shitty day. But some shit is good. Shows that the system is working.
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