551. DESI GIRL, DESI MOM AND THE HUNT FOR CAPRI PANTS

[Okay, so I have been WAAAAAY totally mega derelict in posting. The reasons are many, blah,blah, but in a nutshell, life happens. I am taking a summer writing class and it is kicking me back into shape, with writing and posting --- and literally back into shape! While round is a shape, it is NOT the one I want to be!]

Soooo, last we left off, it was March 2010, Town and Country had texted me, after yelling at me over text three months ago, over an Obama hat. I stomped home from work and then deleted his text … now we pick back up.

I slide on my shoes and a light jacket. While no one moves to New York for the weather, I am enjoying it today. The sun is out, shiny and bright. There is NO snow. This is huge for me since I used to live in a state (Minnesota) where March is THE SNOWIEST month.

My mom’s flight is landing in 90 minutes so I am dashing to the subway station so I can catch the M60 in Harlem. I love Mom; she is so cool and so fabu. So normal for someone who went from monsoon summers to saris in the snow. But my apartment is small, REALLY small, and I don’t know how two of us are going to manage in this 312 square foot apartment. And, I guess it is what it is.

Yes, the subway to bus mode of transport is kinda long, BUT it is cheap and this is how Mom and I will come back home. I get to the terminal with time to spare and wait. I debate getting a coffee, but decide against it the unnecessary $4+ latte. When Mom comes out, she looks tired and exhausted. This kinda of worries me since she just sat on a plane for 3 hours.

“Hey Mom,” I say. I’ll be honest, it is always weird to see my family in New York. It takes time to adjust to seeing them, being around them. I have been single so long and in New York, I have been single and alone in my small living space that I have to get used to being alone. Which sometimes worries me, I wonder if after too long of being alone, I won't be able to funtion in a unit. “How was the flight?”

“Good,” she says. I take her little suitcase and we go back to the bus stop. We chat a little but the bus gets loud so we sit quietly. At 125^th Street we go down two flights of steps and Mom does okay. But now I am worried because at 86^th Street she has to go up a lot of steps. And then at my building, she has 4 flights of steps to tackle.

I was correct to be worried. At 86^th Street, she looks at the stairs, nods and begins to climb. Once we are out from the subway station. She is really short of breath and I am kinda worried. But after a few minutes she is okay to walk to my apartment building. I leave her in the lobby and carry the suitcase up four flights of steps, toss it in the apartment and meet her.

“Are you hungry?” I ask. “Not, yet,” she replies. “Great, let’s shop. I need capri pants. Spring is coming.” I need $40 pants to take my mind off of the Mom's health.