Day 5 - Operation Scare-the-Little Freak

The kalyana chatram was now empty and operation clean-up was going on and all of us were required to help. Since I'd slept all morning I got the night shift along with three of my cousins (1 sister and 2 brothers fyi).
We did not get around to doing much cleaning since by 11 'o' clock we had managed to only throw things at each other and become tired. Settling down in the chatram itself for the night, my brothers and I hatched an evil plan.

We were talking about how, when my little sister was born, we were required to baby-sit her and she was never co-operative (she always used to pee on us). As she got older, we took revenge on her by locking her up in a room all alone, running away while we played hide-n-seek and she always ended up finding us immersed in some other game in a remote place, threatening her to dance or we would lock her up with the ghost in the bathroom (which was usually one of my brothers draped in white sheets). Sigh! those days.
[Do you think this is why she created an aversion to the very sight of us?]

Well, last night, she was fast asleep. She looked so peaceful, we could not tolerate it.
[ Let me call my brothers Kanaku Pulla and Vaathi (One is a B.Com student and the other is a Lecturer in a college, I know we never grow up).]
Kanaku had a brainwave and we decided to relive the old days. :D Even though Vaathi was acting all against, we managed to pull him on to our side.

Operation Scare-the- Little Freak was set rolling.

Scene : A room in the chatram, dimly lighted by a 0 watt bulb.

Vaathi: Ammu, wake up, Pri is missing.
[ammu wakes up all groggy]
Ammu: Is that why the room is silent? She must be in the loo or something.
[my dear sis takes a stab at me even when half asleep]
Vaathi: Illa di. Something is wrong, we came up together but she is missing. Come help me look for her.
[my sis agrees reluctantly]
[Both carry a torch and start looking around. My sis is such a wit, not once she thought of switching on the lights (exactly like we were hoping - or the whole plan booos)]
[Vaathi and sis marching in the dark looking for me]
Ammu: Are you sure she would've come here? I dont like this place. Its so eerie at night.
[turns back to realise that its not vaathi but kanaku standing there]
Ammu: AYE! When did you come?
Kanaku: Yenna di? Gone mad? I only woke you up and brought you here.
Ammu: Aye you people are playing with me again. I'm going back.
Kanaku: Fine go alone. If they find you dead tomorrow morning, I wont be responsible for it. Pri is missing already.
[Ammu is visibly confused, teary and angry at the same time]
Ammu: But I'm sure it was Vaathi who came with me.
Kanaku: SSHHH!!!!! do you hear that?
[Ammu breaks into a sweat]
Ammu: What?
Kanaku: ssshh!!!!!!!!!! LISTEN...

[JHAL JHAL JHAL... sound of chalangai.]

[Ammu is paralysed]
Ammu: Its behind me no???? YENAKU PINNADI THAANE IRUKU????
[I'm standing behind Ammu with face painted in sunnambu holding a flashlight below my chin (its off - climax cue is yet to come]
Kanaku: Illa di loose. If you want turn around and see.
[Ammu rotates slowly rooted to the spot and that my cue]
[Tak! The torch is on]
[Ammu sees me emits a high pitched scream and starts running around the hall. Vaaathi switches on the light! and Ammu sees us three rolling on the floor laughing so hard!]

Well the aftermath: She complained (tattle-tale) to anybody who would listen. We were heartily congratulated by our other cousins, who deeply enjoyed the blow-by-blow of the incident. The parents punished us in a really silly way by giving us chores to do (We caught them laughing about it in private). It felt refreshingly good.

PS: Avaloda saabamo yenaamo I don't know I'm down with fever today.
PPS: Thanks to my new chalangai type golusu (anklet) which has earned me a new nick-name Mohini Pisasu.
PPPS: I'd like to clear a mis-conception by mentioning that Mohini was not a pisasu but the female form taken by Vishnu (not the blogger guy) during the Kurma (pronuounce "KOORMA" not as in chapathi side-dish) avtar, to distribute amritham to the devas (who are always helpless despite their powers)
PPPPS: I'm nowhere near dismantling adulthood, judging by the way I've been behaving since this blog was created. I'm now considering re-naming the blog "Climbing Up and Down the Ladder of Time". Tell me your views on that and also why my sister hates me - I'd like to know :) :)

Day 7 & 6 - Iyer Ootu Kannalam

Tension and temper both running high today. One of my cousin sisters got married today.


Everybody except the groom seemed to be angry, sad or simply bored.
I was given driver duty - i.e. ferrying people and things back and forth the chathram and home (It is really not worth being the only youth around without a job and with a license sometimes!!!)

Well marriage is usually a thiruvizha affair in my family, considering there are hardly any girl children in my family (3 is the exact figure, now down to 2).

Marriages in my family, are usually a match-making get-togethers (Its like, another one down, lets hook up the next), this one being no exception.

All the aunty folk spent their time eyeing each other's bling-bling and attires. Exchanging top-secret-military-info about how the bride/groom were hooked up, and checking if there were any eligible bachelor(ette)s left on the other side so they could try bringing them together. There is always the talk of how much the bride is bringing along with her. (I could go on here and there would never be a stop).
The uncle folk, joked about their married lives (sigh! brave entities these men), eyed their respective aunty folk secretly to make sure they were out of ear-shot before they could talk about their yester-year girlfriends, some talked about their career, investment, money. Some were worried about missing the ODI today. But, mostly they were wondering every few seconds, when the food will be served. (And obviously the list stops here)
I stood in one corner, and watched as the groom tied the mangalyam. I watched as my sister was beaming one instant then in tears the other (only a woman can manage to do that). I also overheard too many people already getting excited about getting me married (I'm next in line. Thank you). I also made a mental note to ask someone to get an escape vehicle ready outside the chathram's ventilator :D

PS: Sorry about the title - but I overheard one of the passers-by commenting that it was an - "Iyer ootu kannalam" (Singaara Chennai-in iniya Tamizh vaazhga)