Pre Monsoon arrives.....

I was still in bed this morning and the ceiling fan was in full blast. I decided to warp myself better in the blanket to keep me cozy. I partially opened my eyes, but it was still dark outside. I could hear the shower from Mother Nature but could not hear the cuckoo birds this morning. They probably had taken the day off and were resting in a dry place. Chennai received its first pre-monsoon shower this morning. Laziness and reluctance made me stay in the bed for a longer time. Well wish I could take the day off like the cuckoo birds.

A rainy day in Chennai is absolutely delightful if you stay home and watch it from the deck. Well school kids draped in raincoats from head to toe were waiting patiently to be picked by their school vans and busses. The pedestrians were hopping like a frog to avoid the puddle splash from the fast moving autos’. Women cringing and hiding under the little shade in the bus stop to avoid the drizzle. People in colorful rainwear, from branded raincoats to ordinary plastic bags wrapped around their head, all of them racing to get under the roof before the next bout of shower. Most of the two wheeler drivers had rolled their trousers till their knee to avoid the splash from the frenzy bus drivers. Some roads were a nightmare to commute, telephone guys had dug up shoulders and there is no “Caution” marked anywhere. Auto drivers drive a little careful on rainy days to avoid water entering the engine; well Chennai roads are not visible during monsoon.


While sitting in the auto this morning, I constantly had to watch out for the puddle and plead with the auto driver to avoid going near the local buses. These buses are ruthless and if they managed to get my trousers I will have to go home and take a fresh shower and come back to work. Traffic had backed up for miles and tempers were running a little high. The best place on a rainy day is your deck and then the cozy drawing room. Sip a cup of hot chocolate and lay on the couch, catch a old movie or pull out the old albums and just reminiscent the halcyon days. Order mom to make some fried potato chips and veggie bajjis (slices of veggies covered with flour and fried)

Well this is just a pre-monsoon shower but let us wait for the real monsoon to come down. Hope the Mayor and other civic officials come down from the Ivory towers to see the city’s preparedness for the upcoming monsoon season.