Yeah, that was what yesterday morning brought for me.
I was at the gym, sweating it out, when a phone call interrupted my session. A relative, I had not met in a long time was waiting at my door. Finding no response after ringing the door bell several times( ringing the bell a couple of times should have told her I'm not at home...as if I would be at home and not answer the door...!) she called on my mobile. Asking her to wait, I cut short my workout and headed back home, wondering who visits people so early in the morning (well, it was not that early, but 10 am is still early , no?!)
A warm hug greeted me before I could even open the door, making me feel all sticky and arrggg...dripping as I was, in my own sweat.
"Jogging?" she asked.
"I was at the gym," I told her.
"What's wrong with you, fancy going to the gym at your age!" she exclaimed, eyes wide with surprise.
Wow! I felt like a 100 year old already! At my age? What's exercising got to do with my age? And by the way, I'm not a day older than 18! (that's what I like to think anyways....) It was the first time when someone had actually made a mention of my age and I was definitely not liking it!
"Sorry?" I asked, as if I had not actually understood what she said.
"You are a mother of two, married for 11 years now, right? Whom are you trying to impress now?" she mocked. "Don't tell me you are aspiring to be a model." She let out a small laugh. Enough to make my blood boil.
What sort of crap was this? I thought. "I'm only trying to stay fit, aunty." I said, trying to remain calm.
She was still laughing. I wondered what she was finding so funny about me going to the gym.Before she could say something else, I excused myself to freshen up.
A cold bath had calmed me up and I sat across her inquiring about other things besides the purpose of her visit. I saw her repeatedly shooting glances at my arm and then came the next all important question.
"What's that on your arm?" she said, turning it towards her to have a closer look.
"A tattoo" I replied with a straight face, now knowing what would come next.
"A tattoo?" her eyes so wide with disbelief, that for a moment I thought, that they would just roll out of their socket. "Which sensible woman with two kids and married for 11 years gets a tattoo on her arm?"
"Me." I replied smiling.
She shook her head in disapproval. "You must learn to act your age... (Oh no not again!) A proper 'gruhini' (read housewife) doesn't do all this.(Really?) You must also wear a saree, you are not a college going student any more." she said, looking at my lovely flower printed long skirt (wait a minute, was she secretly admiring it?)
Ah! some people, I tell you!
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Linking back to Suzy's prompt on write tribe.. here are the details...Free Tribe.
I was at the gym, sweating it out, when a phone call interrupted my session. A relative, I had not met in a long time was waiting at my door. Finding no response after ringing the door bell several times( ringing the bell a couple of times should have told her I'm not at home...as if I would be at home and not answer the door...!) she called on my mobile. Asking her to wait, I cut short my workout and headed back home, wondering who visits people so early in the morning (well, it was not that early, but 10 am is still early , no?!)
A warm hug greeted me before I could even open the door, making me feel all sticky and arrggg...dripping as I was, in my own sweat.
"Jogging?" she asked.
"I was at the gym," I told her.
"What's wrong with you, fancy going to the gym at your age!" she exclaimed, eyes wide with surprise.
Wow! I felt like a 100 year old already! At my age? What's exercising got to do with my age? And by the way, I'm not a day older than 18! (that's what I like to think anyways....) It was the first time when someone had actually made a mention of my age and I was definitely not liking it!
"Sorry?" I asked, as if I had not actually understood what she said.
"You are a mother of two, married for 11 years now, right? Whom are you trying to impress now?" she mocked. "Don't tell me you are aspiring to be a model." She let out a small laugh. Enough to make my blood boil.
What sort of crap was this? I thought. "I'm only trying to stay fit, aunty." I said, trying to remain calm.
She was still laughing. I wondered what she was finding so funny about me going to the gym.Before she could say something else, I excused myself to freshen up.
A cold bath had calmed me up and I sat across her inquiring about other things besides the purpose of her visit. I saw her repeatedly shooting glances at my arm and then came the next all important question.
"What's that on your arm?" she said, turning it towards her to have a closer look.
"A tattoo" I replied with a straight face, now knowing what would come next.
"A tattoo?" her eyes so wide with disbelief, that for a moment I thought, that they would just roll out of their socket. "Which sensible woman with two kids and married for 11 years gets a tattoo on her arm?"
"Me." I replied smiling.
She shook her head in disapproval. "You must learn to act your age... (Oh no not again!) A proper 'gruhini' (read housewife) doesn't do all this.(Really?) You must also wear a saree, you are not a college going student any more." she said, looking at my lovely flower printed long skirt (wait a minute, was she secretly admiring it?)
Ah! some people, I tell you!
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Linking back to Suzy's prompt on write tribe.. here are the details...Free Tribe.
Advice is the cheapest thing available. People give it gratuitously too.
ReplyDeleteoh yes!! how well people know what is good for u!
DeleteYou are right...she was admiring you, but strangely...
ReplyDeleteWe all are 18 years old with (_)years of experience...:)
loved your post a lot
when people say act ur age, it is totally lost on me!
DeleteSo rude of her to talk all that rubbish.
ReplyDeleteLiked your replies to her :) Those who lack courage to follow their hearts, criticize a lot :)
ReplyDeletewell said, i thought so too...
DeleteLOL. Some people can never understand, it's best to just let them be and ignore them. :)
ReplyDeleteabsolutely!! pointless making them see ur point of view..
DeleteLoL. She must be from old school or just envious of you.Ignore Ignore
ReplyDeleteCtrl+Alt+Del :)
DeleteThat's the mentality in India .. about age and exercise .. hope people will learn it someday that age is not constraint for it ! once again learnt a lesson never comment to a women about her age :D
ReplyDeleteur as young as u feel, isn't it?
DeleteNow what has age got to do with anything. My God, some people can get so annoying.
ReplyDeletei guess, she expected me to be wearing a drab old saree, with a paunch staring her in the face, proportional to the number of times I've had kids, telling her how i'm suffering from some diabetes or BP problem....
DeleteThis post reminds me why I have little to nothing to do with my relatives. What a load of crap!! You do what makes you happy. It is not really her business. Rude of her to just show up and not call first so you could plan to be home. My blood would have boiled too. I would have had to go back to the gym and take my anger out on the machines! LOL Bless your heart! I hate that being related gives people the license to be rude!
ReplyDeleteexactly....what is her idea of a proper housewife is definitely not mine, and if i respect what she does, she better respect mine!
DeleteBest to ignore such unwanted advice. There are some people who will not grow and not let others grow. One can only laugh at such stupidity.
ReplyDeleteCheerz
vishalbheeroo.wordpress.com
there are tons of such people, mainly it is the relatives...and ignore is the best thing we can do!
DeleteUgh. That sounds totally annoying!
ReplyDeletetotally!
DeleteThis type of mentality will take a lot to change! We have no shortage of consultants who find fault with everyone else and think they are perfect! Well if we were to heed the advice of these people then we cannot live our lives!
ReplyDeletemakes me wonder how much free time they have in their lives! after perfecting their own lives, they are now out to perfect ours!
DeleteThere are plenty of people who do this and ruin others' days! Sad but true :(
ReplyDeleteLoved your free write. Some people mean well but just don't realise that they are pushing the irritating button over and over again. Best to ignore such people and live life your way.
ReplyDeletethank u Suzy....and yes ur right!
DeleteI believe, " Looking good is feeling good." The feeling that i get is this relative of your is quite jealous of you. Keep her at arm's length. Your call anyway. BTW, wonderful write-up.
ReplyDeleteThanks!! she's at an arm and feet's length anyway!
DeleteTch! Tch! Going to gyms, tattooing arms, wearing skirts - too bad, Titli! Act your age, wear saris, start knitting sweaters - and talk disparagingly about your neighbor who goes to the gym and tattoos her arm - like a proper Bharatiya Gruhani :)
ReplyDeleteim on to that now, im googling the best way to be "gruhini".....very soon u'll see me giving discourses on satvik jeevan on my blog!! :)
Deletebut on a serious note, i actually do love wearing sarees(when the occasion demands) and i think i look pretty good in them... i do pujas as if i was a priest in my last life, i can recite the 'vishnu sahastranama' in one single breath....and I have knitted sweaters, made croatia, rangolis, mehendi, gardening....u name it...seriously, i have!! but i also do all of the above, gymming, tattoing, et al....and i am not even an exception!
Can totally relate to this one!! I have met my fair share of people similar to what you have described.. and now what I do is "keep them at an arms length!!" and some still manage to encroach on to your personal space.. and I just ignore their comments..
ReplyDeleteBut now I understand that people who actually say such things and secretly jealous of you. Just live life on your own terms.
and the truth is u can't judge people just by some standard u have in mind....what u see maybe only one facet of their personality...
DeleteAnd yes forgot to mention.. I love reading your blog! :)
ReplyDeleteCan totally relate to most of the stuff that you write..
Thank u Sumi!
Deletehehe :) enjoyed this one, for all the spice :) Sure, there are many such people and at times, you wish life had a mute button ;) But this did give you an interesting topic for Free Write and a forum to vent out :) Cheers !
ReplyDeletehehehe...thanks! and yea it did!!
Deleteyeah ... rite.. some people and their narrow mindedness crap just annoys us..:-p
ReplyDeletetotally!!
DeleteThe next time make sure you don't cut short your gym time or anything else you're doing for someone like her! I'm not sure why people think they have a right to be so very nosy!
ReplyDeletenow that know, i'll keep her away...fancy digging into my life like that!!
ReplyDeleteUrghhh!! Such specimens are sadly still around in our life!! :|
ReplyDelete