The parent diaries - II

And the madness continues...

• Since my parents have seen pretty much all the touristy places in Singapore, I am running out of new places to take them to. The good thing is, in showing them these places, sometimes Viv and I end up seeing things we had never seen before. Viv had never been inside the Singapore Flyer, and neither of us had been to Marina Barrage before. The kites at Marina Barrage were amazing, and there was even one shaped exactly like this!

• More childhood stories! Apparently, at the age of about four or five, my friends and I had been bragging to one another about our families and possessions. In a bid to outdo my friends, I told them that my nanny had 40 teeth! Strangely, she didn't take it as a compliment when I related it to her later.
  
  
• I made chinna vengayam sambar (sambar with small onions) for my parents today, using my mom-in-law's recipe. "What's this?" Dad asked. "This is chinna vengayam sambar. Do you know what is chinna vengayam sambar?" I asked in a challenging tone since he is so proud of whatever Tamil he has picked up. There was complete silence for a few seconds. Then he spoke. "I know Chinnaswamy Stadium." he said coolly as he helped himself to the sambar.
  

• Mom has now gotten over her fear of exploding computers and is getting quite adventurous. With a little help, she is able to watch all the missed episodes of her favourite TV shows on Youtube. I was really pleasantly surprised the other day when she asked me to show her how to view the Youtube videos on full screen mode.

• So after much prodding and many demos, Dad finally got down to creating his own blog. We had some hilarious conversations relating to that. Sample this:
  Dad - So I can post anything and anytime I want?
  Me - Yep.
  Dad - And everyone can read it?
  Me - Yep.
  Dad - And they can comment on it?
  Me - Yep.
  Dad - And how will I know if they commented?
  Me - I have set your blogger account to send all comments to your mailbox.
  Dad - WHAT?! NO! I want them at the end of the posts like they are on your blog!!!
  Me - Relax, Dad. They will be there too.
  Dad - They will be on the blog and also in my email?
  Me - Yes.
  Dad - How many comments will I get?
  Me - It depends.
  Dad - On what?
  Me - Well, on what you write and how often you write. I used to be very regular and used to get lots of comments. Now I am less regular and number of comments are fewer too.
  Dad - So how regular were you?
  Me (proudly) - Well, in the first year I posted 234 posts!
  Dad - That's all?
  Me - THAT'S ALL?? Let's see YOU do THAT! Hmmph!
  Dad (confidently) - I will post 365 posts in a year.
  Me - HA HA HA! 365 posts in a year? HA HA HA! Dad... shall we make this interesting?
  Dad - You wait and watch.
  Me - Oh, I will. :D
  

• Much later...
  Dad - Wait wait, how will my readers know about my blog?
  Me - Depends on who you want your readers to be. You can pass your blog URL to family and friends if you want them to read it. And it will spread from there. It will take time though.
  Dad - How much time?
  Me - I don't know. Mine took a few years to really kick off and now it's kind of tapering. Basically anything can happen.
  Dad - Few years? Hmm... and how will your readers know about my blog?
  By now, I was really having fun so I went into major bhaav-khao mode.
  Me (indignantly) - My readers?? Why will my readers know about your blog? You go get your own readers!
  Dad - ????
  Me (coyly looking at nails) - Well, I could share your URL on my blog, but I will charge.
  Dad - ????!!!!
  Me - Okay, I won't charge, but I can't just advertise your blog URL so blatantly. I have principles, you know. I have never sold a single ad or recommendation to my readers.
  Dad - So I have to get my own readers?? :O
  Me (evil grin) - Yep, but you should have no problem with that, considering that you're going to write 365 posts a year. Muahaha!
  

• Mom and I talk serious Indian politics too. This conversation is from this morning.
  Me - Mom, Rahul Gandhi is 40?!
  Mom - Yeah...
  Me - Why isn't he married yet? I thought he's supposed to be the most eligible bachelor of the country?
  Mom - Don't know... maybe he didn't get any good proposals?
  Me - Or maybe he got so many he didn't know what to do?
  Mom - Maybe! Sonia is also so busy... who will sort through the proposals?
  Me - Priyanka should do it, na?
  
  
• Dad was on the computer when he logged a servicedesk call.
  Me - What happened now?
  Dad - I can't log into my bsnl email.
  Me - Okay, let's try again.
  Dad (after trying again) - See?
  Me - Are you sure you keyed in the right password?
  Dad - Yes, yes, I am totally sure.
  Me - Then I don't know what to do...
  Dad - It must be your computer then... it works fine at home.
  Me - There's nothing wrong with my computer. I still think you have forgotten your password.
  Dad - My password is 100% correct.
  Me - Well, I don't know what to do then...
  Dad (peers into computer) - Wait wait... I don't think this is my username.
  Me - :|
  

• I woke up with a very bad cough this morning. I had already applied for leave so I didn't have to go to work. Mom grounded me though! "No roaming, sight-seeing, shopping today. You will stay home ALL DAY!" I had never been grounded as a teenager so it was doubly funny.

• Dad asked me where he can get a sticker with the word 'Singapore'.
  Me - Sticker with the word 'Singapore'? Why?
  Dad - I want it. Where can we get one?
  Me - I am not sure. Can I get you a fridge magnet with the word 'Singapore' instead?
  Dad - No, I want a sticker.
  Me - But whyyy??
  Dad - Oh, I have three big clocks next to one another at home. One shows the India time, one shows the US time and one shows Singapore time. So when you or your sister calls, we know what time it is for you. I already have stickers for the others, I want one to stick on the Singapore clock.
  Me - Yaaaa allllaaaaaaaah...
  

• I was really surprised to see Dad watching a CWG badminton match on TV. I was even more surprised when he told me that he used to be very good at badminton (Yeay! This explains my own love for badminton!) and chess (bleah!) when he was in school. He told me that the principal of his school wanted him to lead the school's football team but he had no interest in the sport, so they created the special post of 'Non-playing captain' just for him! LOL!
  

• This happened yesterday when we were walking from the bus stop.
  Me - So Dad, have you ever had alcohol?
  Dad - You mean like in cough syrups?
  Me - No, like in drinks.
  Dad (proudly) - No, never. There was actually a bet in an office party between two groups about whether I can be made to take alcohol. I didn't.
  Me - Hmmm... remember we went to Cafe Iguana when you were here the last time?
  Dad - Yes...
  Me - Remember that mango drink we ordered a whole jug of?
  Dad - Yes...
  Me - Well, that was mango margarita. It had tequila.
  Dad (long pause) - Okay, I did NOT know that.