Birthdaysss.... I tell you!!!

So, like a special festival, like navartras and all, we have another festival that we celebrate in latter August. The specialty of such festivals is that they last for a minimum one week period. There's a lot of commotion in the house and everyone(almost) is busy and looking forward to the celebration part of it, usually in the evenings.

Okay, so this one festival I am talking about (in latter August!!) is my younger sister's birthday! It mostly lasts for 2 weeks: one week before her birthday, and another one after that.

No, it's not the same for all the members of the house, it's just so for this little kiddo that we have at our place, probably because she's the youngest, she's got a whole list of GIFTS that she prepares the whole year and very elegantly presents it in the start of the festival. Another reason being, her teenage. Not that I don't shop for myself or I don't like to flaunt new clothes and accessories to my friends, but her frequency of buying things drops frequency largely when her birthday is round the corner, only so that no one taunts, "Abhi to itni shopping kari thi" (you've just shopped so much recently!) So, call her sensible in some sense, but all the praises are fed to dogs when she produces her list. It's one attack, I tell you.
So, the first week is both, exciting and tiring, shopping for the girl. We're eating out, we're discussing the gifts, digging in to the good stores and coming home as dead tigresses.
The due day is the family day. Sitting, chatting and going out to lavish eating places to dine with family.
The following week is "her" week. The outings with the bestest friends (the first-order friends), showing off the bestest shopping done in the previous week, the treats in the school canteen to the rest of the acquaintances(the second-order friends) and the small little colony market treats to the colony/tuition friends. This is also her time of revenge, with those who've been fighting with her, her most liked group of friends. She doesn't invite them for her treat, but instead, their friends further.

It was exceptional this year, though. Not because the festival was shortened, or the celebrations were lighter, but because the list was THE SHORTEST this time. It was just a one-piece dress. Not an evening gown, something casual, something very smart. Very reasonable, I'd said. Little did I know that the length of the list doesn't matter, the availability and the perfect choices do.

That day (when she proposed this idea of "just a dress") and yesterday.. man!!! She and I had left no shopped turned upside down in our city. Each shop, each stock, the latest, the oldest, the smartest, the cheapest, the costliest, we went through it all. Well, to leak out the precious details, the (strict about clothing)father takes a good look every evening at the birthday shoping, out of general curiosity, so the neck lines had to be proper. And with due respect to our curves and flabs, it may be said that though we're not out-of-shape ladies, we do not possess the sleekest of the statures, and therefore, we couldn't afford a short dress for her(she's got enough to wear them on leggings already; she wanted to avoid the leggings this time). And with the blessed heights that we have, even medium length dresses look short on us!! Hence, we had to be selective in the hunt.

And of course, the hunt started on the first day of the festival and I am more than glad, that we finished it just in time- on her birthday! Late? well.. she was happy, so it's not very late i guess. Oh yes, it took us seven days to search for a decent, smart, fashionable one-piece dress of her size! South-extension, Lajpat Nagar, those malls in Noida, CnM and God knows where all we've been to look for the best for her. She finally liked one in G.K at 'Pepe Jeans' and we paid for it there and then. For God's sake, we were damned exhausted. But you look at her wearing it man, I now feel, it was worth it!

Well, somehow, the whole house as tired that day. When we returned, I was wondering if I actually had the energy to dine out. But it was her birthday, the main day!! I wished she said something about being tired, whether or not she was! Pa entered just 10-15 minutes after we did. He came equally tired from his office, exceptionally tired. But a kiddo that she is, the little darling that we have, no one could afford not dining out that day. So, she humbly suggested that we won't dine at a big place, but any restaurant near-by! Oh God, who'd explain her that 5 km or 55 km, it takes a lot of energy to freshen up and dress up again! Anyway, as I shrunk my eyes pleading Pa to take a break today, and promising her for some other day, I found him another one. He promised her that he'd take all of us to a 5-star hotel some other day and that day, he wanted to take us to Gulati, on Pandara Road. Anyway, great. I dozed off for an hour.

The best part about the dinner there was that even Badima agreed to come along. Usually, she doesn't. The food there is awesome. Not one smart guy in the restaurant - so there was no distraction and we laughed at every joke that anyone cracked, or attempted.

We came back home, merrily and slept, like dead tigers.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAREST SISTER.. though I personally find your head absolutely crack and you're too forceful when you've the slightest clue that the person in front is finding your point valid, I still love you.
There are small fights, big fights, heated arguments, physical fights, and I do say I HATE YOU at times, I still love you.
I know you'd go against me, let me down, leave no stoned unturned to prove me wrong, if you know Pa feels that I'm wrong, because we love him. Anyway, I love you!
-23rd August, 2008

And again she's out. This time, to watch that Ranbir starer flick with her school's bestest buddies. She's wearing the same dress she bought yesterday and man.. that high headed snob, she's on the ninth cloud today! She's happy. I'm happy for her. It's her birthday week, her birthday festival. The teenage birthday festival.

These birthdayssss.... I tell you!!