Monday, 7th February - 06:00 pm
I am sitting in a bus to Guruvayur in the last seat. I am keeping count of the number of times I jumped so high that I actually touched the roof of the bus. 3 so far. My brother and my parents are busy doing a post mortem of the marriage that just got over. And there's a bearded guy who's giving me a silly smile once in a while when we lock eyes. I have a feeling he's drunk (it's something about those smiles!), I get a little more close to him. He is - the very end of my nostrills affirm. After sometime, as it's eventually supposed to happen, we start talking. As with drunk guys most often, he talks and I listen. He tells me about his life's journey from kerala, to madras, to bangalore, to muscat to kerala again. He seemed quite in control of himself. He was not slurring or falling on me and was blaming his colleagues for making him drink in broad daylight. We talk of bangalore and he tells me his sister and B.i.law stay in bangalore - so far so good. He doesn't remember where they stay, what they do but does remember that the guy was in the UK for sometime. Doesn't matter, does it. He then takes his mobile, shows me his brother's number and asks me to hold the phone. It was at that moment I got into a moral crisis - what was I supposed to do with the number. I couldn't possibly find where he's in bangalore using it (he would slap me if I explained him that!), I couldn't possibly take it down, call his BIL and tell him that I met his relative who didn't remember his name. He probably wanted me to look at his number and see if I know it and hence know the guy. Sounds far fetched to me - I looked at him, smiled and gave him the phone back. But he for some reason, insisted on me seeing the number. You must have seen my expression - I peered into it from left, then right, said it aloud and made a vague guess like "Hutch,eh!" and then told him, "I am sorry. But I don't have my mobile with me right now" (I don't know how he was going to relate this piece of info). He then said, "Oh!" and took the phone back. My brother couldn't stop laughing at me trying to figure out whatever just happened.
- posted by Super Ted @ 9:26 AM