Starting from Scratch

Dated – August, 2014

Writing from Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles. As cool as it might sound, the room feels cold and unfriendly and I am fighting jetlag. Does not add up well. Miss the warmth of home.

The flight was surprisingly bearable. Amidst all the sleeping, eating and the Good Wife, there was barely any time to fret over the length of the journey. These zillion time zones are confusing the life out of me. You know, in the middle of the Pacific, there is something called as the International Date Line. My ride to the hotel had a super helpful chauffeur who fed me a ton of information about everything under the sun. How to rent a place, where to go for the weekend and why 99 cents is my best bet to save money. 🙂

Went to this supermarket called Ralphs. Roamed around in the meat section for quite a while. You know how Bongs get soothed by the sight of all things non vegetarian. 😛 You would love the fruits and vegetable section. Bought a bag full of fruits. You’d be proud. 😉 Not many people seem to walk here. Pavements are quite empty. Looks odd. Crowded streets and all the honking has a sense of familiarity, while silence might take a while to get used to.

The hotel room has me befuddled. I couldn’t turn on the tap or the light! Driving housekeeping folks (esp. Francis who is the reception guy) insane over the simplest of things.Quit a blot on intelligent Asians.  😀 Within a day, I realized that mothers have the best foresight! After fighting tooth and nail about how I don’t want to carry a plate or a spoon, I figured it would have been darned handy to have them around. Thank god she packed in scissors any which way. I would have taken a very long time to open that pack of turkey cold cuts otherwise.

Moving cities and continents, like you said, is herculean. But, right now it seems alright. That is, if I don’t think about the house hunting and the driving license and all the other knick knack work that comes with a new place. So right now, while I munch on a cold turkey sandwich (with the divine kasundi dad bought) and watch Captain Phillips, it seems manageable.

Must try sleeping now. Failing the how to beat jet lag lesson.

Oh I have found a Starbucks two blocks away (yes I have started using blocks and miles :)). They make good white chocolate mocha.