Being Unemployed...is a state of mind

Well now I wonder how I was managing home and work together. Now that I am officially on a sabbatical from work for a while, my home takes most of my time.

So the question really is if I am unemployed....and what is this state of unemployment to me? Well, all my explanations and answers to this would be random and I am going to jot them down as and when things strike me (not necessarily in any order).

So, am I unemployed - yes I am not officially an employee of any private/public firm unlike sometime back. Yes I am not trying to manage work and home. Yes, I do not have to take any leave from my boss. Yes, I do not have targets and deadlines. Yes, I am fairly clear in my head and 100 things do not trouble me at the same time. Yes, it is okay for me to not pick up my mobile every time I get a call because it would be parents or friends and I am hoping nothing is urgent there and its okay for me to call back. Yes, I am not obliged to check emails and revert the same day. Yes, I can wear causals all 7 days of the week and I do not have to carry my laptop all day long with me.
So once again - Am I unemployed? Yes, I am in all the above mentioned ways I am. But what does unemployment mean to me? It means more time with parents after staying away from home for the past five years. It means more time with friends - no more just smses or phone calls. It means cooking my elaborate meals with Pojj, it means packing your suitcase roaming with Pojj, it means visiting your grandparents, it means ironing Pojjs shirt just the way he wants, it means painting a few cards, it means more evening walks, it means reading books, it means catching up wid distant relatives, it means simply being around your folks and making them happy, it means watching some flicks on TV, it means hosting some friends over....it means so much...

So its all worth it ... :) after all I would be back to what I was doing...and I am not complaining about getting back sometime....but I am not complaining now either.

Mujhe "Gitak" chahiye...

Well I was very scared that I would miss the mango season by the time I get back to India. But nope, I didn't :). Can I be happier????

I simply love this fruit...and I have yet to see someone who doesn't like it- even Puff loved it, he ate it with his both paws holding it tightly. Of course, his pretty white face turned yellow at the end of it and any such mango eating event led to his bath the very next day.

Ahh...so this was the first time I ate em with my laws. Since Pojj was not around, I was being a lil conscious. But as soon as MIL kept mangoes in front of me after dinner and started peeling the skin off....I almost spontaneously said - "Mujhe GITAK chahiye", Well..do you mean ghutli? Yes, I do....they both shared their grin and I didn't know why. As a kid I have always learnt to call it "gitak" :(...ahh there came the cultural difference (Punjab Vs. UP). I got my share and I was happy. Apparently, Pojj is also the same, I was told by them..he always reserves his ghutli so no one could take his share. What a shame that me and Pojj never ate mangoes together in the past years that I have known him. :(. But....we think alike!! AHA...

Thereafter, anything to do with me, mangoes and MIL...has to have the word "gitak" in it :), they find it cute....and I don't have to get rid of my habit.