So I went to get my veg biryani yesterday as per usual at the market. Last Saturday it was again sold out before I got there, so the chap asked me if I wanted to try their Chicken wrap. Apparently it was very popular. I figured no harm trying, who knows I might discover something I like? The chap asked me to report back next time. I didn't expect him to remember. He must have a lot of customers I'm sure. But probably not that many Indians in this town? When I asked for the biryani, he asked me how I liked the wrap last time. I had mentally rehearsed that if he should ask this question I won't say I didn't like it—instead I said I preferred the biryani ;) I did not like the wrap at all actually. The chap said, it's more a 'gore-waala' taste. 'Gore' means 'white' in Hindi (or in Urdu). The wrap was more to white folks' taste was what he meant. I guess I was looking for what tasted like Indian food and the wrap tasted like... not Indian nor anything I could pretend to like... so I was back to the familiar, tried, and tested!

On the matter of me blurting things out honestly. I wish I could pause for a second between what pops in my head and what comes out of my mouth. It's usually too late by the time I have heard it myself. The other day I was standing in a queue at this Subway. There was this young Indian guy right ahead of me. Normally people don't make conversations at these queues (thank God!). I had my earphones on as well, as usual. The guy smiled politely at me and asked if I was a lecturer. I had to get one earphone out and say that yes, I was. He asked, ‘what did I teach’. I got the other earphone out this time, and told him. Then he said he was studying software engineering, and he didn't suppose there was something in common… or something to that effect. Meaning being if I might be teaching something in his course. I don't know why or how I just came out with: 'I don't think we have anything in common'! I wanted to say the disciplines were very different or didn’t have anything in common, but the actual words must have sounded rather personally offhandish and standoffish. The guy just looked straight ahead after that and didn't say a word. I felt mortified but then thought saying anything more could make a bad situation worse—not to mention the side-effect of inviting more conversation! It was only going to be more awkward because I had already spent 2-3 minutes thinking through all this instead of spontaneously correctly myself! I just quietly went along with the queue after that and got my order. Maybe it was the suddenness of being in a small talk situation when I least expected it that got all my brain wires tangled up and words muddled... oh well, that’s just me :(