The fridge

I am not in the habit of raiding refrigerators in other peoples homes,but I am not the kind to pass up an opportunity if it comes my way either.The fact is that it says a lot about the people it belongs too.Hadn't given it much thought until recently but the way its used is rather interesting.A lot of countries still use their cellars to store stuff but for lesser mortals like us the fridge is a necessity.Let see now,the things that will really perish are meat and fish and maybe veggies but if one is a vegetrain then what can a fridge be used for.
I have a huge fridge which was bought recently simply because i am in the habit of getting all the measurements so wrong that instead of making food for a one or two man army,I sometimes make food for the U S army so to speak,so the fridge is always full,and on the next day when i could eat leftovers,there will be the odd grumble from one member of the family who will want fresh food so there goes.It piles up in no time and before you know it there is so much food in the fridge that I can now write a book on recycling food and the many new recipes that leftovers have to offer.As for some of us who live in remote areas the fridge is one place to store for the month,but actually its the freezer.Sometimes when the ice cubes taste like fish sauce and the chocolates in the freezer take on Chinese flavours one knows that its time to get a new fridge with a large freezer.
For some its a style statement or just one of those gadgets that are a must have.I raided a fridge recently and was amazed at the variety of stuff available.Every kind of dhal in full form and in powders was there for the asking,curd in such large quantities that would make even the god Krishna would go off the stuff(legend has it that he was a great one for the butter from the curd).Then there were flowers.Yes flowers in little boxes all ready for a full week of puja and veggies like all of us.The freezer looked more like my store cupboard and there I was getting a new look at the most unconventional uses of the freezer.I remember the freezer in my moms home that was packed to the gills with everything that once walked the earth and we always found something to eat there.The extra large freezer in our home has a little more variety,chocolates,ice creams(we now buy them because of extra space and its translating into extra bit of fat around our respective stomachs).Its a fusion of my mothers habits,the mother in laws ideas and a little bit of our own.So here I am with a fridge full of greed,my moms fridge spoke of thrift,(she wouldn't dream of throwing anything away),my sisters house had a freezer and a fridge all a big store house because she was always worried about running out of food,another relative just stuffed anything that looked like it needed cold storage but when it comes to unconventional uses there are no marks for guessing....the mother in law takes the cake.I have decided to raid a few more and my next research project will be on personality and the fridge with a few variables like culture,religion,sex etc thrown in....seems like a plan

Best wishes and forwards

Its almost a month since i put finger to keyboard and so much has happened.A year ended,a new years day came and went,the house was full of visitors and is now silent,and the sms messages are over for a while,which really brings me to what this is all bout.
From the 24th of December to around after boxing day,the sms messages come fast and furious as they do from the 31st of December to the 1st of January.I am not into this sending of mindless messages but politeness and good manners ensures that I thank one and all for kind wishes and so one.I used to send Christmas and new year cards all bought from UNICEF until I caught the email bug.The mobile phone however has not taken over my psyche.Let see now,most of the people who wish me on these days are ones I have no contact with at any other time of the year,in other words they are neither old friends or family,secondly,most of the messages are mindless forwards which have no meaning.Nothing is personalised.I remember writing our my friends names and signing personally with a fountain pen and it meant so much,but forwards are just that,very much like a carbon copy or a chain mail,does it mean anything?.Frankly no.But just once in a little while there does come a message that means something.To be sure the message was personalised and could not have been forwarded as it wasn't meant for anyone else.From the many messages that I received,this one stood out,it made an impact and it touched a cord.Isn't that what wishing is all about,isn't it about telling someone how much they mean to your or that you share their joy or their sorrow.I wrote back to this friend and she was clear the message came from the heart.Yes I agreed,almost all the others came from the keyboard and meant nothing,this one from the heart I will cherish and the sender is not even someone I know all that well,it says a lot about people don't you think?