Walking down the aisle of fresh vegetables I could smell the recipes I have been wanting to try. It was fun watching my mind play games with me at the grocery store this morning.

Like an artist who picks his colors and brushes and imagines what he wishes to portray on the blank canvas in front of him, I was also making meals and turning pages of cookbooks in my mind as I picked a few scallions and some carrots. The cauliflower was begging to be picked. I told myself,no. No more gobhi matar. Let us try something new. Something different. And doi fulkopi’s smell filled my nostrils. I could smell the dal chini and the bay leaf temper in the oil as I picked the perfect flower of cauliflower and put it in my cart. There we go..we have a tarkari ready.

Now it was time for the main course. Some poppy seeds and yellow mustard seeds were in the cart already. I think the Salmon has been waiting for its turn,said my mind. Almost toying me with the idea of making a simple Bengali fish with some fresh mustard flavors. Ah just like the one I tried in Oh Calcutta when we visited India in November 2010.

I’m not Bengali. Just in case you were wondering. And be rest assured that when I set my mind to making Malvani cuisine on Tuesday, I will turn Konkan and do my due diligence and pick a suitable pair of dishes to indulge in.

This is me. When I am not working for two weeks. Enjoying things I love and making best use of a few days of vacation offered to me by my dear employer. Jealous?! Don’t be. We have a crazy year ahead of us and this is a perfect bonus I could ask for. Money can buy vacations but not time. And hence what I am enjoying is bonus time off. Nothing compares to this in my book of rewards. I learnt that over time.

So what else is on my mind. Reading – lots of it. I’ve picked a new author. Banana Yoshimoto. I’m also back to blogging. As you might have noticed. Two posts in two days. And some travel towards the end of the year. 

That sums me up pretty well – food, books, writing and travel. That’s me in a nut shell.

Simplifying your choices is tough. But once you get to the end of the natural selection process – you are rewarded with a peaceful mind. Complicating choices is in my opinion the tougher thing in the long run..