At a corner roadside stand a few blocks from where we’ll live, an old plastic pitcher of . . . maybe water? maybe juice? . . . sits on the makeshift counter, open to anyone who needs a drink during the trek home from work. I watched from my seat in the open-air rickshaw various walkers stop, pour liquid into their open mouths, replace the pitcher and continue walking. Nobody […]
Voodo leck a caddy bag? That’s what it sounds like. But say it so quickly. Would you like a carry bag? No, I would not like a carry bag, thank you. I brought my own. Then I proudly display my cloth bag, because I, ladies and gentlemen, have lived in Mumbai, India for three weeks and three days now, and I’ve learned some things. One of which is to always […]
We saw some winners and losers, folks. First of all, we met with an apartment locator with a name that sounded like Huevo but wasn’t Huevo (which was learned once he spelled it for us and I realized I was way off and was glad I hadn’t informed him that his name meant egg in Spanish), plus two other men, one in slacks and one carrying a motorcycle helmet. The […]
Continuing life in the land of opposites. Bamboo scaffolding climbing up the walls of rickety buildings; a persistent goat nudging his mom’s udders at the bus stop; a woman covered head to toe in black, guiding a blind elderly man clad in a white tunic across the dirt paths of their slum; three boys running over an expanse of rubble with a kite. Friday night we celebrated two weeks of […]
The city is growing on us. Barefoot rickshaw drivers; green parrots; the grandmother-made, sesame-seed-laden sweets Benson’s co-workers deliver to his desk wrapped in tissue. Despite these charms, this place won’t be easy. We’re learning that it will take work to actually live here. Work to purify the air indoors so we don’t breathe in too much of the pollution, work to dehumidify the apartment in monsoon season to keep our […]
India: 459, Ledbetters: 3 But oh how sweet those three points are! Last week felt like drowning. Before I put last week into words though, I need some distance between me and those soul-punching days which kept me trying to come up for air in a crowded, dirty, noisy country. For now, I want to focus on what happened over the weekend, because even though we didn’t deserve it, the […]
“Very nice sights,” Driver said again. Then he said about twenty-five other words with such a thick accent we couldn’t understand. He pointed to various spots on a map he’d unfolded. “I drive round, show.” Benson looked over at me. “You wanna drive around for a little bit?” I was still so shaken from crossing the street I just said, “Okay.” Benson nodded to Driver. “Okay, we’ll drive around for […]
I guess this is what we get for that one time we kidnapped those children in Florida. We had one goal: Buy groceries. In Mumbai, India. I had already located a food store online. Eventually, I’d love to feel all hip purchasing my mangoes in an open air market where I have to haggle down the rupees prices, but it was only day 2. We needed easy. We hired a […]
I got some big ol’ news, folks. The Ledbetters are packing up and shipping out to… Are you ready? India. We’re moving to India for a year. Now please excuse me while I go laugh/cry/whoop/pray/call my cousin and hyperventilate/do a happy dance. Because that’s what I’ve been doing for the past month as this news has sunk in. This whole thing started when Benson came home one day and told […]
Benson has the flu. The real flu. Not the fake crap some people get and claim it’s the flu. He’s currently laid up in bed with a crazy fever and our brown tabby, Funzer, curled up next to him. Speaking of things that are painful… When I was ten years old, my fifth-grade teacher, Mrs. Black, announced to the class that we would be celebrating Grandparents’ Day. Family would be […]
Stuff I Talk About 