Mama-Come-Lately

I missed writing yesterday, which I thought about sitting down to do but never actually did because apparently I go into a wormhole on Sundays. It’s a wormhole built of many tasks and activities: visiting with family, fetching the week’s groceries, doing the usual amount of laundry, plus a birthday (hence the recipe above) AND shopping for Divali.

Divali will be a needle-scratch for many of you. It’s a major Hindu holiday dealing with the triumph of light over darkness — and since my husband practices Hinduism, we celebrate it, and there are things that have to happen prior to it. Usually we source our sparklers from a kind co-worker who is better prepared and can spare a few. Picking up fruit and flowers for the puja (home offerings/blessings ceremony) is my task, and absolutely no big deal whatsoever. Apples, grapes, oranges, bananas, a bouquet of something or other, and a small container of milk. I could do it in my sleep. It’s the clothes shopping that always sneaks up on me.

Divali requires new clothes. A whole outfit’s worth. And they can’t be black, which poses a challenge for neutrals-loving me. Everyone in the house has to have new clothes, but my son tends to have a stockpile of things sent from India he hasn’t worn yet, and my husband typically holds things back for Divali.

Not me. I tromp off to the mall every year under the pressure of a looming deadline, seething with a deep hatred of both malls and trying on pants. See, typically I order 10 pairs of pants online whilst wearing pajamas like a sensible person. Then I try them on in the comfort of my own home, and return the 9 pairs that don’t work. Easy. Repeat as necessary. More coffee, please.

Not this time, though. This time I was doomed to do battle with the Sunday bargain-hunters while dodging the Christmas stuff that’s already clogging the aisles. I wasn’t that worried though, because I brought a secret weapon: my mom. She’s like a shopping good luck charm with the bonus feature of honest but kind feedback. She’s also willing to trek back to the rack WAY on the other side of the store to dig for a better color or a different size.

After a reasonable length of time I found my Divali outfit, and then I treated us to fancy coffees, because it is a Shopping Law regardless of the reason one is shopping or the degree of success: Shopping requires treats.