London to Brighton- A journey in 'Pounds' On Me

I know it's been a long while since I have written.

And it's been a short gap between two outdoor trips for work that also gave me pleasure.

And in between all of that, has been a long break of listlessness, of lack of inspiration & of total blah dom.

But this time, London took me to Brighton. Beyond my fascination of everyday Brit life in London, and to a dear friend who has rediscovered herself in an education abroad. She looked fresh as a daisy and happy as an IPL fan! I have come back convinced that whatever be the cost of education, it's Always worth it.

London is also an experience when you look at yourself, huddled up in old coats and old shoes due to a total lack of winter in Mumbai. While I carry sufficient bills in my wallet to enter any grand pub for a pint of beer or cider, I look very close to the  bumkin tourist, who won't have enough to eat in the Queen's city. Plus the extra pounds and a total lack of make up on my face, and the regular Londoner clearly rejects me at first sight as someone Not to be helped with Directions!

Anyways,a trip from London to Brighton down a train ride introduced me to a clean, manicured landscape that is picteresque & is also, living proof that good climatic conditions can turn around any place. Buildings that are centuries old, stay young here.

But coming back home, on my desk, I flip through a copy of Vogue only to find myself Officially the fashion disaster of  the season..I mean from my shabby coat, to my little done eyebrows, to my shabby shoes (which I soon replaced with fancy boots from the Camden Lock Market) to my clean, no make up face, Everything according to the fashion bible, spells doom!

Compare that to the superhot bikini clad beauties on the latest Vogue cover, and you know how low down the food chain I belong! Another reminder, of course, were the tip to toe done Punjabi girls who brighten up Heathrow security check and janitor lines with perfect make up and a beatific smile. They sure make India proud!

But when I stop flipping the fashion flip book, I take a minute out to think..The pounds in my pocket put together with solitary walks...and a few friends still made me pretty happy. The make up I wore and the smart jacket suit for my interviews made me so much more uncomfortable!

So perhaps, I mean, I  brace for cover, mayyybeee......fat isn't always bad! I am happy, more or less... And I don't care about the way i look all the time. takes off the pressure from living... Which we All know, is tough today..

So maybe, again, Ayesha Siddiqui should have known better... A marriage that looks like a con job, and a cover up that looks shriller than a political campaign, can only mean, that the 'weight' issues weighed heavy on her mind..

Why else would an Indian woman of the present times do this to herself? And taking a page out of those hard working, happy, beautiful, comfortable Heathrow working girls would help the Ayesha Siddiquis of the world.

PS: A few photos of my trip too have been posted on my blog.