June 23, 2009

A Summer delayed and Wasted....

What happened to the summer? Who waylaid it and delayed it? It's June end and we are still venturing out with trepidation, wondering if we need a jacket or not. My veggie garden never really took off this year and its still lying low. So any day with slightly warm temperatures is like heaven sent.

The kitchen is kind of operating on low battery and will do so for the coming days. Why? well, we put our house up for sale and as per the cultural demands of the real estate "sale" business, the house has to be spotless, uncluttered, fully organized, and immaculate.

That means the closet should not over stuffed with clothes, the clothes should hang neatly, all ironed to be worn at a moment's notice, beds made all the time with the bed spreads tucked in and topped with an ornamental pillow that you toss to the floor before you go to sleep and the side tables removed of all your books and newspapers.

No pencil drawings on the wall and no chocolate toddler hand prints on the the wall, however cute they look, no juice marks on the floor...no shoes, sandals and chappals near the door, no toys, no ride on trucks lying around and no board books piled up on the sofa. And last but not the least, in the kitchen... no summet mixie, no dish rack, no dishes piled up, clean or dirty and definitely no smell of Indian cooking. Oh no..what is that stink?....eeww..smells like a gas chamber..(meanwhile..another one is thinking"hmm..what's that? mutton curry? or sambar?) One man's stink is another man's yumilicious food. We ourselves have got put off by the smell of bacon, animal's smells and fish sauce in other houses when house hunting, so can't really blame anyone for that instinctive reaction.:)

So either I cook and spent all the time stripping the kitchen of the mess (I am a messy cook and have to cook 4 things at the same time to save on labor)thereafter or scour the net for grilling options and takeouts. Anyway, this has taken the joy out of cooking ...makes me feel like I am in an episode of Iron Chef..cooking with speed. So I can only post recipes I cooked and photo-ed earlier or post w/o photos now.

While discussing the house, My Dh and I agreed on one thing....showing the house is akin to "pennu kanal" or "ladki ko dekhne aa rahe hai" (the custom of the guy's family coming to see the girl in an arranged marriage.). Anybody from India will immediately identify with the whole scene. We being the ladkiwalle or the girl's side, are supposed to be humbler and get everything just right while the prospective buyers(the guy's side or the groom) just waltz thru the house nonchalantly criticizing everything.(or so I think)...she is too small, she is too dark, too short, too tall, too thin, too fat... the lines blur and for us, I forget that its just a house ..not really ur daughter! Wish there was a love story for houses...now I am just talking nonsense so I should stop.

Anyway, so I will keep you guys updated on whether or not we are able to make the sale. The last two weeks were the worst where we were getting everything organized and very anxious about each showing, but now when a day passes with no appointments for viewing the house, I feel anxious. A friend who recently sold her house had to go thru this for six months and now I really admire her for the patience. Even as I write this, I am keeping my fingers crossed that I won't be writing on this topic six months later. So instead of BBQs ,picnics and outings, this summer seems to be dedicated to a move if possible.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

I sincerely hope everything works out for your family before the summer ends. Miss your recipes and the lovely pictures that you post with them.-Ann

Parita said...

Here too we dont feel the summer at all, infact its rainy and cold these days, i need to wear a pullover :(
I can understand your situation of having spotless house, i too faced this few weeks back as many people were coming to have a look at the apartment, i was tired of cleaning the whole apartment again and again :( sometimes i like my place a little messy :)
hope things turn out good for you!

Sakshi said...

I loved the line wish there was love stories for houses....lolz wish you had written more interesting nonsense..no? hey you guys shifting off to some undisclosed location or what?? All the best with the sale...

Srivalli said...

OH..that must be tough...take care...sorry have been kind of held up..will mail you soon...

Varsha Vipins said...

Good luck Shaheen..Where u moving to?

Kalai said...

Oh my goodness! I can completely identify with your feelings about summer... As for the house sale, I'm on the other end of that picture now. We're looking to buy a house and I can imagine the painstaking process for you! I hope all goes well for you. Do let me know if you need anything. :)

Manju said...

good luck on the house sale!!

Anonymous said...

so catching up on the 'pennukannal' rigmarole that u missed ;)
ki

Bervin said...

Good Luck Shaheen..

mathew said...

hehe..pennu kaanal..nice comparison..;-D

farah said...

That must be tough....hope the sale ll go thru' quickly.All the very best !

Anita said...

Hey, but there are love stories for houses too! Just read tea's latest post! There is someone destined for your house too!

Shah cooks said...

Thanks for all your wishes, gals and guys. Hope all this preparation is not a wasted effort.
anyway, will get back to all of you soon.

Bong Mom said...

Are you moving from the garden state ?
I know a friend of ours was going through the same scene. Finally they moved to a rented home so that the home could be bare and spotless.
Hope you close a deal soon

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Sounds a bit tough. I guess seeling your house is a lot easier in India. :)
Hope things work out they way you want them at the earliest. Good luck.

lan said...

shaheen
that must be tough. living in the house yet not really. i had friends going through the same ordeal. here is wishing the sale will happen soon enough to keep you sane:-)

Rajesh &Shankari said...

Our friends bought an induction stove and cooked to their hearts content in their backyard.I saw a good quality one for $89...

Good luck with your move!

Miri said...

Good luck and hope the blushing bride's unique qualities come to the fore ;)

Miri

Revathi said...

shaheen,
we r on the other side now. seeing home after home and baffled !!! either we dont like something abt the home or its priced high !!

Being in the bay area we end up in homes sold by indians. We walk up to the homes decked with Ganesha idols and other indian handicrafts.

Honestly it makes me feel good if the house is owned by an indian.

Gud luck to you !

Vani said...

Good luck with the house selling, Shn! We're thinking of putting our house ont he market in the next few weeks and dreading the process already. Still some projects to be completed before we can list it. Keep us posted on the progress, please!

Jayashree said...

There you are waiting for the sun to shine....and here Iam just crossing my fingers and hoping for a respite from this heat.....the grass is always greener on the other side, isn't it???

Susan said...

It's only now in mid August that summer has finally arrived here.

Thanks for your nice comments on my blog. And I am very intrigued by the idea of a fenugreek dessert. Very. : }

Hope you have good luck with your housing. It's pretty tough to sell/buy these days. We're waiting for the dust to clear. Whenever.