Breakfast at Chetpet
2Monday, September 10, 2012 by RuthSeq
I live as a
paying guest in an apartment that has 19 birds, 2 Pomeranians and a 62 year old
PG Aunty who has a special baby voice for each of her 21 animals. The apartment
is in a quiet street lined with old deciduous trees, small kirana shops and a
little temple at the end of the lane. I chose the place because the trees
outside my window reminded me of my home in Goa and the distant sound of trains
reminded me of Bombay. When I came inspecting the house, I saw myself enjoying
a lazy Sunday morning breakfast at the balcony overlooking the trees. So,
today, being my first Sunday here, I took my breakfast and the old jute chair
to the balcony, just like I imagined it. I bit into my cheese sandwich and sipped
my tea, thinking ‘ah! bliss”. But every now and then, life throws us a few
surprises, in this case, it was 19 birds chirping and twittering ad infinitum.
Photo by Ruth Sequeira
I take a deep
breath and try to block out the noise. I concentrate on a little squirrel
darting about the Gulmohar tree. I envy him. He spends all his time scurrying
from branch to branch, tree to tree. He has no plan and no appointments, does
whatever comes to his cute little head. Such an explorer! He roams around
tasting berries and flinging them away if he doesn’t enjoy them. He catches me
staring at him every now and then and gives me a sheepish look. The little
squirrel never sticks to one place for too long, unless there’s a strong gust
of breeze, then he sits still but his eyes continue to dart about, surveying
where he’ll head next. I tell myself, that I’m in this phase of sitting still
& figuring out my next move. I start thinking of my next move but not for
long, Coffee – the young female Pomeranian decides my mind should touch upon
the topic – ‘Who is the stupidest dog on the planet?’ In a few seconds, I have
my answer.
With the breeze,
the thin Neem tree enters the balcony, swaying in and out. Whenever it enters Coffee
jumps and tries to bite the invading branch. She begins to bark every time she
fails and the Neem tree continues to tease her, coming ever so low but moving
away a second before Coffee can clench her jaws. I keep count - Neem Tree -7,
Coffee – 0.
The birds are at
it again, chirping, fluttering and in general, doing everything they can to
ruin my idyllic breakfast. The best way to settle a tantrum is to ignore it. So
I play with Cocoa – the old Pomeranian, who can hardly see and suffers from
Arthritis. Cocoa is the kind of dog who has given up on life, I don’t blame
him. The chap has had to deal with a blonde daughter who chases Neem tree
branches and starts barking every time the bathroom tap is turned on. Cocoa is
also a little deaf, which I suspect is more of a conscious decision. I would do
the same if I had to spend all my life in a house with 19 chirping birds and a
woman who speaks constantly in a baby voice. Cocoa sits next to my chair and
starts dozing off, as I pat his back with my foot.
The birds have
gone silent; Cocoa and I have ignored them long enough. I gulp down my tea
before it turns cold and try to spot my little tree explorer once more. Again I
am disturbed by Coffee, who has finally caught hold of the Neem branch and
refuses to let go. I try to pull her away, but the ruckus has disturbed the
birds, who have started their chatter again. This madness wakes up poor old
Cocoa, who glances at his daughter, then lets out what I can swear, was a sigh.
Category birds, breakfast, chennai, Pomeranians, squirrel, tea
2 comments »
It's SO funny!
Hope you become like the explorer squirrel you were so awed by, someday :)
<3
Ruth Sequeira, I am proud to admit that you have started to develop quite a distinct style of writing, much like the authors that I have loved since childhood.
May the wind, that makes you sit a while before you decide your next move, always be with you.
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