What’s the most money you’ve ever spent on a meal? Was it worth it?
The most money I’ve ever spent on a meal was at a Restaurant serving food in the Cordon Bleu style.
We all know that the cuisine in such restaurants is very fine and of a very high quality .
The restaurant that my wife and I dined, was located in South Bombay (Mumbai now). It does not exist anymore unfortunately.
The names of the dishes were very exotic. And we waited for the service after placing our order. I was quite shocked when I saw the dish. The garnish was superb but the portion was too small. As a result we did not feel satisfied.
At the same time we paid a lot.
I’m not surprised, that this would have been the cause for the restaurant to close down if diners did not feel satisfied .
But I spent a lot of money on this meal and did not feel satisfied. Was it worth it ? No .
Scour the news for an entirely uninteresting story. Consider how it connects to your life. Write about that.
Tottenham chairman expresses his view that its supporters will soon give him credit .
Why ? Because of the massive improvement and capacity of the new stadium.
I’m really not interested in the Tottenham football club as the main reason is that I am a big fan of the Liverpool club.
Besides who is really interested in any improvements of a stadium when the club has been languishing at 17th place finish in the last season of the English Premier League.
I have been a distant admirer of the sacked manager Ange Postecoglou, who finally won silverware in the Europa League .
In comparison Liverpool have made a big impact by winning the Premier League with its new manager Slot.
Tottenham has a appointed a new manager in Thomas Frank who had fairly good results with his previous team Brentford. It remains to be seen what the results will be. Their tendency is to appoint a series of managers , and no patience to develop the team with one person.
Right now I would like a Dahi Wada . Currently the temperature is 20*C, which is winter in Dubai where I’m now in, but hot as I’ve just come from Glasgow where the temperature is -3*C.
Dahi Wada is an Indian snack.
This is a fried lentil dumpling fritter floating in sweet yogurt . It is very cooling and also makes a good option for a snack or at the end of an Indian meal.
Have you noticed people walking past you on the street, looking at their mobiles.
I’ve had the experience of nearly hitting against a pole on the pavement while following the google map.
Even when one is in conversation with friends, the moment there is a tinkle on the phone, the person will actually attend to it.
Young people experience cyber bullying.
This is a new type of addiction which is very difficult to control.
Less time is devoted to things that really matter. But we will not go into the benefits of the use of mobiles here. I only recommend keeping the mobile away for a day in the week.
You’ll be surprised as to the change happening. There is better communication between family members. Discussions happen without being interrupted by the ring of a mobile.
This is a promise, I had made to my wife rather a dream, before we were married. Till date it has not been fulfilled.
After we married we travelled to many other countries, but I still tease her about Perth.
A Silver wedding has gone by, where we chose to tour Spain and Portugal.
Now I hope before Silver turns to Gold we can visit Gold Coast.
Its Gold beaches stretch a long way. Besides the name being attractive it seems a famous tourist spot.
But what about Perth ?
To match that, in the ensuing years, we had the birth of 4 lovely children who have now grown and have families of their own .
We are now in Glasgow, and can visit London and Dubai, thanks to our children.
So whatabout Perth ?
I just checked to see its attractions. There are beautiful natural parks, wild Dolphins and reefs off the coast. Then wineries and restaurants with gourmet food, and cultural events.
Frankly, I did not know much about Perth until now, when I read a little about it.
I thought of Perth, when planning for our honeymoon only as a wild thought as I teased my beloved, knowing at that point of time it was beyond our means.
Eventually where was our honeymoon?
It was in Mussorie; which is a beautiful hill station in India.
Who is the most famous or infamous person you have ever met?
The most famous person I’ve ever met is my granduncle Dr M U Mascarenhas. He was more like my grandfather, as my father lost both his parents at the age of 8years old and was cared for by him.
Dr M U Mascarenhas on the left and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (1st Prime Minister of India)on the right
I say famous about my granduncle because he had become mayor of Bombay (now Mumbai).
He was part of the freedom movement when India got its independence from Great Britain. He took an active part in the political life of India . He was elected as an Independent and later as a Congress candidate.
My memories went back to my childhood when I was about 8-9 years of age. He stayed in ‘Marian Villa’ , while we had our home opposite him. We would visit him every evening . At that time he was quite old , in his 70’s .
I cherish those interactions with him. He knew my brothers and I liked lozenges. The moment we said “Good evening Granduncle’ , he would respond lovingly and point to a jar of lozenges he kept on top of a cupboard. He would then give us some .
He also kept Dell Comics featuring Superman, Batman Sadsack and even Archie, which we loved reading. Sadly you don’t get Dell comics anymore.
Once a year from end August to end September there would be a kite flying season . We thought we were quite smart. When we met him , we would hint “ Granduncle there are many kites in the skies nowadays “ wondering what his reaction would be . Surely he guessed about our hint . Then he would call the housekeeper “ Marie , please get them some kites .” We were overjoyed to receive our kites .
I remember accompanying him at this late age to cast his vote during the electoral process. It amazed me that people still remembered him , as they welcomed him ‘Please make way for our former mayor’
I was greatly saddened when his end was near . My brothers and I were at a scout and cub camp out of Bombay ( in Khandala)
We were called urgently home. We then visited the hospital to see him, by which time he was semiconscious. As I wished him, he turned to see us and that was the last .
Condolences followed , to acknowledge him even at public meetings and in the newspapers.
This one thing I learned ….one has to move on in in life , no matter how famous a person is, loving memories stay with us .Acceptance of our state of life at the changing seasons help one to go a long way .
My #1 priority is waking up early and spending a quiet time in prayer.
I then go for a fast walk or a slow jog to the nearby station and pick up 17 copies of the daily newspapers for elders of a retirement home as a gesture for those who are feeble.
Still my #1 priority is to pray in the morning and then after breakfast to attend the church service.
During the day I go to the gym to keep fit or go for long walks or reading books and writing reflections or blogging .
There are some days I play tennis which I really enjoy .
There are coffee mornings and quiz nights .
You will be surprised how the retired people keep doing things independently, Often they are visited by their families .
I stay at this home and enjoy my independence even though I have my daughter and her family staying nearby .
There are times when we do babysitting. It’s a joy to have the grandchildren visit us. The youngest one is very fond of my wife. He plays innovative games with her . He likes one of our sofas and enjoys jumping on it like a trampoline . If there is any newspaper or bag on it he throws it aside and claims it at that time as his own .
The week goes by with other activities like meeting others for a chat over coffee and shopping .
I thought retired life is like a long coffee break . But it has many activities interspersed and I wonder what they are at times when anyone asks me :
What is your plan today or tomorrow or during the week.
I have been greatly blessed to have music pour out into original songs I have composed. This has been specially in times of trial and sufferings.
During my days as a teenager, I remember composing a song . I thought that was the first and the last, in many years
I also experienced music dying within me when I had dark days. There was not a hint of even a musical note.
However music returned into my life . I enjoy it and thrive specially during times of worship .
I was diagnosed with cancer a couple of years ago . It was during this time that I was inspired to compose songs. They just flowed out .
These are all devotional songs and dedicated to God . Till date I have composed 15 songs .
A friend has very kindly agreed to write this into sheet music .
Besides devotional music I also like to listen to slow rock and pop music .
The older songs bring back memories. I have ventured to listen to the latest music. However these often have more sound effects rather than pure instrumental notes . The lyrics of rap music are very repetitive, I really don’t understand them .
I think there is a variety of music for every occasion ….. joyous ones at the celebrations, love songs , then the quiet times and music that serves as the background of a movie . There is music to march to and even songs to cheer sports teams . I like the song dedicated to the Liverpool football team ? It’s title is ‘You’ll never walk alone ‘
Have you heard the song of birds?
When you go into the countryside, and be still ; be sure that you will hear the various calls of birds in the air …….they could be musical or raucous.
Likewise music we compose or listen to , have a wide range. Classical music is certainly different, and I think I will need to refine my tuning to it .
What would life be without music ?
Have you listened to the silence ?
It’s only then that you will hear the Holy One , whisper into your heart .,,,and inspires you !
That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.” William Shakespeare
My name Vincent sounds good as it means Victorious . I am not writing under a ‘nom de plume’ .
The Roman name Vincentius is derived from the Latin word vincere which means ‘conquered’ .
This name was used in the Middle Ages and became popular later .
I like to think of two famous people bearing this name : St Vincent de Paul and Norman Vincent Peale
St Vincent always reached out to the poor and needy. His motto was
‘The poor, when viewed with eyes of faith, take the place of Christ and so give us the opportunity to love and serve Jesus. Charity is greater than any rule or pious exercise.’
Thus the Society of Vincent de Paul commenced . It reaches out to the poor in various ways .
Norman Vincent Peale was a Pastor who wrote several books , of which one was ‘The power of Positive Thinking’
He offers a step-by-step, scientifically sound system for turning self-doubt into self-esteem, obstacles into opportunities, and thought into action.
He quotes many verses from the Bible .
I have read a few books written by him and they have helped me a lot. These are self help books which are enlightening.
My name came from my grandfather’s name which was Joaquim Vincent Placidus Mascarenhas. . He was the Physician to the Maharaja of Porbandar . During the epidemic of Influenza at the time of World War II he visited Italy . Unfortunately he and the Maharajah both contracted the illness and passed away . He was buried in Florence .
Art, for the sake of art itself, is an idle sentence. Art, for the sake of truth, for the sake of what is beautiful and good, that is the creed I seek. — George Sand
Writing truthfully on my innermost feelings can often be hidden. It could be a release of my emotions but it’s not easy.
However I find that reflecting on words of scripture can reveal more about myself . The word itself can convict me . It’s only then that I begin to know the truth .
‘What is truth ? ‘ (John 18:38) Pilate questioned Jesus in jest as Jesus claimed to be ‘witness to the truth’ (John 18:37) .
Soon after this, Pilate had serious misgivings. After all here was someone who was beyond his understanding. Truly the ‘Son of God’ .
We may hide from the truth, but the innermost self then convicts us.
There are many instances of my life of which I struggle to reveal. Writing brings this out and becomes a release of emotions .
I’ve been told that the best way to deal with the challenges in life is to begin writing .
I may or may not publish all these writings, as I then become vulnerable. ‘Boldness’ is required .
I wonder ‘why’ I cannot be bold enough to reveal my feelings . Often I read other writers who have the boldness and truthfulness to publish their works , and it makes good readings.
‘Why?’ The best reason I think is that it is honest , original and an art in itself.
I hope that when I’m asked the question ‘What is truth ?’ I can be bold enough to write about myself , with the hope that I can help my readers to benefit from how I face the joys of my victories or the sadness of defeats.
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