I'm sure you are going to smile and nod as you scroll down
this list... and the grin is just gonna get wider.... :) ;)
- Playing 'lingorcha' / 'pittu' (7 tiles) and gully cricket in the streets with the guys , and getting offended as you are termed the 'kachha-limbu' (novice player) of the team :@
- Terming one of the deserted bungalows in the locality as "bhoot bangla" (haunted house) and trespassing to explore it. The haunted stories related to the bhoot-bangla never subsided and we just added to the tales after every heroic expedition. :/
- .Breaking window-panes / stealing mangoes from that mean nosy neighbor who yelled at you and your friends for apparently no reason :v
- Happily agreeing to run errands for mom , as she allowed you to keep the change (only the coins) that went straight into a piggy-bank or got traded for the 25 paise orange candies or the packets of tamarind that were sold by the roadside vendor. ;)
- Jumping into the muddy puddles after every rain and racing paper boats with our friends :)
- Chaat and pani-puri stalls outside the school, which both teachers and parents discouraged us to patronise. And yet...
- Singing the 'Happy Birthday' song on top of our voice as the teacher made the birthday girl / boy stand before the entire class and then trying to strike a deal for an extra chocolate as he/she came around with a chocolate-box. ( Actually our class had a different version of the birthday song- "Happy Birthday to you... Tra..la..la...la..la" Anyone remember ?? ) :party
- Watch in awe as mom haggled with the vegetable vendors/ shopkeepers -("Bhaiya chalo thoda kam kardo... chalo aapka na mera...") and try to learn the tricks of the trade. :brow
- Praying for a power-cut so that you were not made to study. ;)
- .Being made the class monitor and have a look of disaster on your face as the timid you could not make an impact on the unruly crowd. :f
- Secretly carrying friendship bands to school as our school prohibited tying friendship bands as a rule, probably because it was so lame! ( But then we have just graduated to Facebook now! :P)
- Gathering your last bit of memories on the last day of school by filling up slam books with innocent remarks like AIM in life - "Marry a beautiful wife" / "Be in-separable friends till the sun never rises again!" ;)
- Check on your love-meter with your crush, by playing 'FLAMES' on the last page of the notebook :$
- Chat with your best pal during a class by passing paper notes across the classroom.
- Making important decisions by tossing a coin :b
- "Bhaite bhaite kya kare, karna hai kuch kaam, shuru karo antakshari lekar prabhu ka naam" , and run out on songs from 'म' , 'न' and 'य' as you have sung them all :tone
- Four homes and a single landline phone number - "Aunty aapka phone aaya hai!"
- Gather at your neighbor’s place to gaze at the latest addition to his family - a new TV set / fridge / mixer grinder and munch on the sweets for the joyous occasion. ( Yes back then every new gadget was like a family member which stayed on in the family for the next 20-30 yrs! )
- Summer vacations were always at Grandma's place getting pampered and getting FAT!
- School beginnings with new bags, new water-bottles and brown paper covered notebooks with fancy labels. :)
- Pestering Dad to buy the Camel Water Colors as everyone had one and the pride of owning the most exquisite looking butterfly-dish! ;)
- Renting video cassettes with a dubious print to watch movies on a VCR. :)
- Learning to make real chapattis using your playing kitchen-set! :/
- The horrendous punishment of being made to stand near the dustbin when you have been notorious in class. :(
- Using the blackboard white-chalk to whiten your PT shoes as they were going to be inspected by your teacher. ;)
- Reading comics and novels hidden between textbooks 8|
- Waiting eagerly for Christmas party at school as you did not have to wear school uniforms and you could flaunt the new dress that Mom got you for Diwali/ Christmas :e
- Competing with the neighbouring locality kids while making 'killa' (forts) during Diwali and blowing up their forts with crackers on Diwali night :vD
- Letting out the air from the cycle /scooter tyres of your pesky neighbour :v
- Playing 'Chor-Police' , Name-Place-Animal-Thing and book-page cricket during class hours :)
- 'Mario' and the 'brick-game' were the only video games you knew. :)
- "Bhudiya ke baal" was something you ate. :)
- Trying to recite the national Pledge in Hindi and Marathi during class assemblies. It was so tough! :f
- Everyone had a tiny phone diary scribbled with landline numbers, though we had memorised all of the numbers for the fear of losing the diary. xD
- Making a God promise with a neck-pinch and actually keeping it fearing you would invoke God's wrath. :O
- During a foggy winter , blow fog out your mouth and pretend you are smoking. :)
- Making faces when Mom asks you to drink milk before going out to play. :~
- Watching ScoobyDoo, Popeye,Captain Planet,Dexter etc on Cartoon Network with a poor cable TV connection. :)
- Learning to ride a cycle with the help of the older bhaiyas in the locality on a cycle you rented for an hour. ;)
- Drinking Rasna with friends after a hard day's play :f
- Neighbours and relatives coming to bless you for final exams as if you are about to fight a war. :P
- The watchman and postman uncles asking for 'bakshis' (reward money) for their affluent services during Diwali or when they find out that you have aced a test. :brow
- Hunting for a pen as soon as you enter the classroom to ink a dot on your palm so that you did not have to forfeit a chocolate as you were playing Jolly with a bunch of your friends. :)
- Kismi , Popins and Gems were the treats you loved and the ParleG biscuits were nothing compared to the junk we get now! ;)
- Walking in a single file with hands crossed behind our backs - we were so well disciplined back then! ;)
- Gobble-up half the lunch during the 10AM break so you get extra time to play during the lunch hour! ;)
- Scribble pages and pages of letters to your friends during summer vacations and wonder how you are going to post such a heap with a one-rupee stamp :f
- Skating on the school corridors :)
- Scribbling your English homework during the bumpy school-bus ride as you forgot English is the first period of the day! :f
- Trying to blow-up the biggest bubble while chewing a gum and get it all our your face! ;)
I know this list could be never ending... Feel free to add to this list :) :) :)
