À la carte (also à la carte) is a
French expression meaning "from the menu", and it is used in
restaurant terminologyLast friday night the menu read...Prehistoric sandwiches from CCD...Or 'Cockroach Fantasy' from Barista...I was depressed...I decided to refrain from excercising my palette on these remotely delectable items..
[A] Dude...I want home food..Now..Now..
[Me] Buzz off..Go catch a flight..Go home..Hog and come back tomorrow..
[A] No dude..I'll find a way out..Lemme rack the seething moonlit corridors of my mind..I'll surely come up with something...
[Me] Ya..Ok..As you wish..
[A] I already know what to do...
[Me] Wonderful..
[A] Lets hit Aks' home for food..
[Me] Buhahahaha.Ha Ha Ha..Why dude...Why the trauma n all.??..
[A] I'm gonna cook..So nothing can happen..
[Me] Ya right..I'll drop you there..Cook, eat and then call me..I'll pick you up..
[A] Utter waste you are dude..
[Me] I know..But I'm not taking any risks..
[A] Ok..
5 mins later...
[A] Dude you gotta be kidding me when you say you dont want to eat home food...and that too when I cook it!!!
[Me] Hehe..Dude...I know you're missing sam n all and want to cook badly..But remember the final chef's touch n all is only cos sam is present...
[A] DUDE..I cooked for 3 months when I was in Denver...
[Me] Did you eat it too??? :-O
[A] Ya dude..If you cant believe get lost... I'm going ok...
[Me] Hehe chill dude.. Lets go.. Even I don't mind eating some home food. But I so wanna finish this interface dude.. I've got some really bad deadlines, and the tunnel is not synchronizing properly..
[A] :-O .. Whats all that dude.. Teach me also..This weekend???...Anyways lets hit her house today by 9..What say?? V for Vendekka???
[Me] Done macha!..
8:00 pm... A becomes machan n all now... So beware!!...
Machan is busy with a call and wont budge...Me finished with all the stuff and rearing to hog on some good food.. Even though I put up a facade of disapproval and sarcasm its very often just a show.. ;-) ..Nothing more.. I evince this glee that I see when sarcasm hits intended target with supersonic velocity n all... So I know A cooks well.. But there's someone else too... Aprehensions creeping up now!!...
8:45 pm....
[Machan]: Don't worry V.. I'll handle all the pressures.. I'm the offshore lead na.. My resources will put in extra efforts through long hours and weekends at office.. 3 objects na.. Deadline when??? 15th ah! .. No way...I'll have to push my team little too far..I'm not upto that.. 14th is perfect... V is more than glad.. A's team glares at him in fury...
[Machan]: Don't worry team.. We can make it if we work as a united force.. This is a test of how dynamic we are as a team and how strong our basics are.. If we prove that we are a team that puts in the best and smartest efforts, we'll go real far and gain that irrestible thing called 'Consulting Acuman" ...
[Team member]: Sir "Acumen".. [Actually Insulting Acumen.. thooo..]...
[Machan]: Nice... You are right!.. You are so close to that my man!!...
[Team member]: But we'll need your experience and support with client interactions...
[Machan]: Totally boss.. The reason is because I need to foil plans of the client team to take all tasks off our plate (I'm so hungry!!...Bloody its 9...)and do it themselves... They tried it once too many times.. Now its time for V for Vendetta n all.. (actually V for Vendekka.. but you guys work... Mein to Chala.. )
[Me] Dude.. We got to push off.. Its pretty late...
[A] I was adressing team dude.. They need a role model n all...
[Me] I know!!... So you are not coming right? I can have home cooked food for myself.. Yippeee...
[A] What??.. You said you were not coming...
[Me] Dude you know me... I insult but I never mean it... I though you would take it personally and not come n all.. Then I could have had some peaceful time by myself...
[A] Ha ha ha ... I'm so not going to allow that!!!...
[Me] Hehe.. Ok ok.. So come along.. I'm packed... Lets get your fav vendekkas.. (and see what the hell comes out of them...)
[A] You rock dude!!... Lets go.. (in an alto!!)
[Me] (FISH !@#@#@#%.... Cant you keep your RBSPJs to yourself...)
[A] What did you say???
[Me] Nothing nothing.. I'm hungry... Lets go... Lets call her n ask what stuff we might need dude..
[A] Ya ya..
[Ak] Oi... Enna da.. Its 9 already...
[Me] Hey... Got a little late da... What are we cooking dude??...
[Ak] Something and all dude.. You are gonna work right??.Why should I tell you n all.. Give the phone to A...
Me] Okies...
[A] Ehhh.... Vendekka!!!... Pulllaaarrikithu paaa.... I wanna soo eat vendekka dude...
[Ak] Ya da... We'll make it.. Just watch... It will come out so well that bloodyyy fellow would have his mouth watering...Paaru..Paaru..
[A] Heaheahehaehae...I'm so game...
Zoom past some open municipality trucks carrying garbage and crows... Some trucks carrying buffalos... Some on the road itself...Race past paddy fields...Past a waterfall...Past a earthen road...Through gorges...and streams on the road...Quadrupeds howling in unison in groups...Some cave men strewn on the road.. Some wierd creatures... Some old brick houses...Then caves...Then some dodos...Then nests...That too many...Ohhh...
Got carried away... I was basically in Kondapur... Nearing Aks' place..
Sorry... Can see lotsa buildings around.. Got confused which is which... Finally got the correct one.. There's some inscription on the building in some native language.. Swahili I think...Never know..
[Me] Oi..Machan lemme just call and find which building dude...
Dialing...
[A] Its ringing?... HA HA HA ...
[Me] Ya ya ...
[Ak] Hoiii... Enna daaaaa...Bluddddeeee u r so late... :-X ...
[Me] Dude... Which one is your building da... All look the same.. I totally dont remember...
[Ak] Enna da loose... You cant even remember which one it was??? Its the one called shilpa dsfkjasdfkjasf dude...
[Me] :-O Once again please... What is dsfkjasdfkjasf???...
[Ak] Aaaarggg... Dude... A ta koodu.. Nee waste da...Who wants to talk to you da!!...Buzz off... Give it to A..Now...
[A] Enna maa!!.. Ennna panre... Sambhar lam ippove vasanai varthey!!!...
[Me] ....
[Ak] Aman da.. Onnakaka panni vechachu.. Inge vandu saapta porum.. Loose.. Avanku onnum saapda kudukkakoodathu..He wants to work from here a!!Bluddddddeeeee..!!!... Done?.. Game??
[A] Totally.maa.. Here we come.. Floor 20 na..!! 2nd flat to the right of the lift... Done.. Vandachu.. Appram pakkalaaam!!...
[Me] :-O
[Ak] Boiiii....
[A] Ok...
[Me] ...
[Ak] Hoiiiii....
Me n A step into this heaven like room... Man... Stuff in its place n all... We
were like amazed... This was what a house could look like???... Phew...
Cooking and eating disasters to come!!!.....First digest this much... :-P ...
[Me and A] Hii...
[Ak] Vaango..
[A] Pasikardhu...
[Ak] Ulla vaada.. Vella ninunde enna panre..
[Me] Heyy...Bean bags...Wow..Thats a big teddy dude...Reminds me of my dog... :(
[Ak] Ok you have fun with it.. I really dont like it... I shouldnt be saying it actually.. :-) Was like a gift daa..
[A] Hey kitchen enge da.. Ennaku romba pasikardhu... Rice dal lam panni mudichache???
[Ak] Aman da.. Elaam mudichachu... Ini sapta porum.. :-P
[Me] Hey ennakku comp connect pannanam.. Mgr ippo IM check panni if he doesnt find me I'm screwed..
[Ak] Lemme remove my comp.. Damn... New Dell a?? Evalavu memory da?? 2 GB ya!!.. Man.. Mine too.. :-P ...
[Me] Hmmm...
[A] Seri seri avan work pannatum.. Just stand back and watch the master chuff in action... ;-)
[Ak] Ya man.. Lets make some awesome sambhar.. He'll like totally forget the Sambhars that he has had...
[Me] Buhahahaha... I'll forget how Sambhar all together tastes like dudes... Spare me... :-P
[Ak] Hmpffff....
Both of em stomp into the kitchen.. I can hear some voices.. Something about onions already been cut and just waiting... I decide to just step in..
[A] Dei.. Enna panre.. Anda patram la eppidi sambhar pannuve da???
[Ak] Last 6 months aa ithula thaan sambhar panninen da..
[Me] Ha ha... Thats what you've been thinking you made last 6 months... :-P Aarku theriyum sambhar a vere ennamo pannineyaa...
[Ak] Ivan romba pesraan... Poi vela paaru da.. Loose..
[A] Ehh... Puli fulla podreyaa!!!... Athu tumbler la pottu smash pannavendama???
[Ak] Illa da... Naan ipidi thaan sambhar panuven... It comes out well only.. Dont worry...
[Me] heaheahae...that piece better not land on my plate... (Eventually it did.. :-( ) Its freaking hot here dude... How do you manage to cook here???
[Ak] Aman da.. onnakaga inge cooler fit panni tharen.. Po po.. Vela paaru..
[A] Hey close that door da.. Its open..
[Ak] Ennamo da.. Its not closing.. Keeps on opening.. :-(
[Me] Hehe.. Scary kitchen... All the plates are like trying to run out...
[Ak] Ennaa??
[Me] Onnu illai.. Me getting back to work...
I get back to my work...Can hear some calm, angry, scary, boiling noises... Wonder what food they are making that gets so noisy!...
[Ak] Ho maaan... Its so hot in there... Almost ayachu.. Vendekka la en da sambhar podi lam potte??? Nee fulla saptudu..
[A] He He... 3 months da.. In Denver (Me>>Here he goes again...)... Everthing I made, I put sambhar podi.. It so rocks... Yaarkite vennalum kelu... I cooked really well..
[Me] (Sniggering..I remember we used to make maggi, panneer, tomato, potato, any curry on earth with sambhar podi as the staple ingredient... One more hopelessly trapped unsuspecting victim...)
[Ak] :-( My pulpy orange is over.. :-(...I can soo see a full one...
[Me] Take it dude...:-)
[Ak] Waste da nee... Anyways I'm taking it...
[A] Oi.. Ennalamo kitchen la kodichindirruke..
[Ak] Ayachu da... Sambhar readddy...
[A] Paruppu paaru.. Nanna araichirukkanam.. Its there all throughout the Sambhar...
[Ak] Avlo porum da...Vendekka is freakin spicy hot dude... :-(
[A] Hehe.. It is... Magic of sambhar podi...
[Me] Aman aman.. 3 months of blah blah blah...
[A] Ask madhu da.. He knows how well I made stuff...
[Me] Ya ya .. Totally...
[Ak] Hmmm, plate a kaningo...
[A] :-O enna periya respect lam da!!!...
[Ak] Oh sorry da... My mistake da.. I shouldn't show respect n all to him...
[Me] Ya ya .. You guys cook n then experiment on me.. You ought to show some respect... :-P
[Ak] Avlo than da... Major rubbin on wrong side of me...
All of us eating quitely... And I never eat quitely unless the food is real good.. and it was damn good... Reminded me of mom n all.. No.. Not that major a scene... :-) ...But I can swear I'll eat again given a chance...
Rest of it later...
Note: Its a kind plea from me to the protagonists of these tales to keep being themselves..The way they are!!! This is just plain world as I see it everyday :-) ...