Money with a perfumed fragrance minted under the pleasant air conditioned offices is easily and lavishly spent but money which stinks sweat and blood hard earned under the sun finds difficulty meeting with extravagance.

'The Hyderabad roads are flooded as usual but with water instead of the mop of vehicles for a change' spoke the FM radio RJ as we paddled our way ahead in the water logged roads in the comforts of our car, altering comforts as the AC was switched on and off, high and low heeding to the contending demands of comfort from its riders. The AC was altered for a change in comfort, the RJ was not allowed to convey her message and songs as she was switched to other radio station RJ's messages and songs for a change, on a Sunday morning when families prefer to be feasting at home rain or no rain we were all out in the car going to watch a movie for a change. Everything happening and about to happen is happening for a change. The wipers for a change were put to work wiping the thick drops of water off the windscreen from the interminable rains which began raining since my last post (answering my prayers!??) and not showing any signs to stop... It wasnt my prayers alone, there was something more that made the rains pour and pour... we will soon find out...

They (who??) say that when something really unexpected happens (for a change??) it rains..
It should be raining then for we as a family were going to watch a movie for the first time in the 21st century. The last one perhaps belonged to the period when Amitabh Bachchan was an angry but young man... We had numerous chances to bring forth rains earlier when my father agreed to step out of his routine of busy work schedules and couple of drinks with his friends, but he always gave us a slip at the last moment leaving the fourth seat empty or occupied by some stranger in the theater. This time the Rain Gods have decided to put an end to his 'bahanas' (its sounds better than the English substitute) and played havoc in his diurnal routine, thus putting him in the rear seat staring out through the rain splashing window unaware of its intentions. My father a busy man always was sitting idle (for a change!!) and giving me directions to the destination.. My mom (father - respect; mom - love) who has this wonderful and uncanny habit of cursing and loving the same thing at the same time, was cursing the rain and loving it too, for she knew we all knew it was the rain that completed the fourth seat.. My sister who I always thought was supposed to be born with a silver spoon and supposed to be brought up in a 'Rahees Kaandaan' (some words have no apt substitutes!!) was sitting next to me switching the radio channels and wondering why isnt she riding a chauffeur driven BMW (There can be a sky wide difference between BMW and our car but chauffeurs and brothers are more or less the same just that chauffeurs are paid for their services and brothers aren't!!)

The movie was not boring and ended on a happy note (unlike most mallu movies). The rains werent done yet and guided my Father and the rest of us to a restaurant in Banjara Hills. My sister and I convinced him to a posh place with lush ambiance smart waiters English speaking kids and their parents and an expensive 250 bucks Buffet lunch. He reluctantly agreed with once again a little support from the rain. It was when we started off with the course that the bomb was dropped. The 250 bucks Buffet was only on weekdays and on Sundays the price shot up to 450. My father who always had a calm demeanour and reacted apathetically to life's surpirses expressed his shock with wide eyes creasing his forehead and I reacted with a casual shrug. The shock and the shrug might be the value attached to money which is related to the way we earn it. May be...

The rains have subsided. Rains are like humans sometimes. They dont spend their resources wisely which lead to disasters. Rains and the effortlessly earning humans should learn their lessons. Humans can for they are the only living beings who can change...