Everyone asks if I get lonely.
The honest answer is: genuinely, no. My interests keep me company. My creative work keeps me company. The dogs keep me company — not because I’ve given up on people, but because I love them and they’re excellent. My friends, scattered and few and more precious for it. My family. The work. There’s quite a lot going on, actually.
But I’ll tell you what I’ve always kept for myself: Friday evenings.
For years now, I don’t go out on Fridays. Friday evenings are mine. Non-negotiable, fully booked with absolutely nothing.
Here’s the schedule: I make dinner — something Vietnamese or Singaporean, like a bowl of mee pok with all that kecap manis, black vinegar and chilli paste sitting at the bottom of the bowl waiting for the ribbons of noodles on top, crisp shallots and freshly chopped spring onions to just get all tossed up in it and slurped later. I set up in the TV den, the dogs join me with deep ‘phoon’ (their favourite way to sigh with satisfaction – even if they’re not getting any mee pok). I pour a double shot of Southern Comfort, neat. I put on an action movie. I make popcorn. I watch people go pew-pew, car chases and cop-busting action.
Then dinner. A bar of Minus Thirty.
Then nothing in particular. And I love it that way.
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Chom Chom Pantry · Kotagiri, Nilgiris
