Yesterday, as I was sitting glumly staring at my computer, my father decided to have harmal done. This is a hallucinogenic plant that is burned as a folk remedy for allergies. A small brazier was taken from room to room, and the ground seeds cast upon it to fill the house with a pall of […]
Clean out
As part of my ongoing cleanout of the Lahore house, I hired a Filipina woman yesterday, for two days of intensive cleaning. I generally feel rather conflicted about Pakistanis who employ Filipina maids as I find it exploitative of the maids and unfair to the many, many poor Pakistanis who are not employed, paid those […]
Global sniffles
Fires, wars, fascists, now plague. Probably more that has slipped my mind. The decade continues its winning streak. A hypochondriac aunt is convinced she’s down with coronavirus in the States; every sniffle and sneeze here in Lahore is regarded with suspicion. Unfortunate, as in this smog season everyone, including myself, has a cold and a […]
The dangers of the internet
I went to visit someone quite elderly and we had a cup of tea. When the lid of the sugarbowl was lifted underneath, instead of sugar, were packets of Splenda. This was not particularly surprising. What was surprising was that also in the bowl was a sprinking of long freshly plucked leaves. I enquired, learned […]
Grumping and growling
I was grumping and growling all day yesterday and much of this morning, largely thanks to my father who is getting difficult as he ages, and never more so than when he is unwell. I am worried he has some sort of lung infection, as this is the fourth or fifth time in the past […]
Flashback
My father was ill – only a cold and fever, but it took me back to some years ago when my visits circled around my ill mother. Then I would sleep in her room at night, but last night I slept in the lounge and pretended it was so I could work late at night. […]
Salt
I have just taken a sip of tea and realised that what I’d thought was sugar was actually salt. Happily I don’t take much sugar and enjoy salt Kashmiri tea, so will continue drinking it. But a shock, nonetheless. This morning I went to collect my renewed identity card which is now valid for 10 […]
Two meals
On Sunday afternoon my father and I went for lunch to the home of his closest friend, a former military man from the mountainous north, with a very impressive moustache. It was a bit of a duty but not very as I’m fond of both him and his wife, who was very kind during my […]
Passable
Last night we went to someone’s house to watch a film, Little Women, over bowls of khao suey. The film suffered from the environment: the volume was very low, as there were infants somewhat asleep in adjacent rooms; our hosts were the types who talk and bustle about through films so it was distracting, and […]
Dutiful niece
I went to visit a great-aunt, my grandmother’s elder sister, feeling that I should as she loved my mother very much and I always feel guilty about not being as loving and fun as my mother was. I went with my grandmother, and it was amusing to see the two of them enter their old […]