Yesterday I told how I was dancing like I was thirty again. What wasn’t like being thirty was waking up the next morning with one foot cramped up and walking being very difficult. Vidya took pity on me and massaged it and I was stretching it every which way I could think of.
It took walking around about 10 yard sales, a Farmer’s Market and going through Gabriel Brother’s discount clothing store to work it out to the point where I could walk without visibly limping.
At Gabe’s I ended up buying two T shirts. Normally the most I ever pay for a T shirt is 50 cents at a yard sale but I splurged big time on these buying them off the $2 rack. Vidya got one that said “Eat Sleep Farm” which was great. I got this one which I wore to the 24 Hour Kirtan:
I got another one but a poll of about 30 devotees at the kirtan ran over 90% who thought it would be inappropriate to wear to the temple:
I tend to agree.
FYI, for those who noted the FFA reference, that is Future Farmers of America, and was probably sold originally as a fundraiser for their organization. I am a former member.
One nice thing about the 24 Hour Kirtan is that anyone you talk to is an interesting person and that is mostly what I do, hang around outside and visit with devotees.
I will share what was probably the most interesting bit of conversation. I was talking to a bunch of gurukulis, including one who grew up in the Mayapur gurukula. I am bad at names and if I ever even heard his I have forgotten it but he is serving in Atlanta now.
The point that was interesting is that I mentioned to him that my gurukuli son had been a cop in Atlanta and was now a cop in John’s Creek, a suburb of Atlanta on the north side.
He got an almost stunned look on his face and repeated, “John’s Creek?” I said yes and he said that he had been given a traffic ticket by Madhu about a year, year and a half ago!
He remembered because when he looked at the 6 foot blond white guy who gave him the ticket and then saw the officer’s name on it was Madhu, he had thought to himself “That isn’t an Amercian name,” and had almost asked if he was a gurukuli but hadn’t.
He said that there were now 3 or 4 gurukulis who are police officers in Atlanta and asked for Madhu’s contact information. I didn’t know it off the top of my head so gave him my card and said he should contact me and I would give it to him. So Madhu, if someone contacts you there is an opportunity to met some of your peers in the Atlanta area, peers in the sense of being gurukulis who are cops.
As the evening came about, my foot was feeling fine so I headed to the temple room and danced for well over a half hour until I was exhausted. I sat and rested for a while and amazingly enough got some more energy and then danced some more. The second time I was missing some marks and not feeling sharp and smooth, but I still enjoyed it.
So guess what happened? This morning I woke up and again can hardly walk. I mentioned this to Vidya, hoping you would again be sympathetic and give it a massage but this time she more or less rolled her eyes and give me the look like (and this is purely my interpretation) if I was so dumb as to do the exact thing again and hadn’t learned my lesson from the day before, then I probably needed to suffer. :-)
BTW, any of her friends who read this there is no need to tell her I said this. :-)
Well, I better get rolling if I want to catch the end of the kirtan. Dancing might not be on the menu, but maybe…
June 21, 2011 at 1:22 am
The kirtan sounds like a blast…wish I could be there for one. It does me good to know that life still flourishes there…living here in the concrete jungle it is very easy to get wistful and homesick for NV and the hills.
It really seems odd…though I don’t know why it should…but so many gurukulis ended up as policemen. Glad that they serve humanity though…but I do hope they keep their beads shiny in their off hours.
I agree with the majority on the T-shirt, although I know there is no ill intent with the other…good for a bit of irony though. We are harmless old men now and serve a higher purpose anyway. Stay well. Gregg
June 21, 2011 at 9:24 am
I aspire to harmlessness :-)
June 25, 2011 at 9:54 am
Very interesting. I wonder what he did? By chance did he tell you what the tickect was for, (vehicle accident?). I don’t give out alot of tickets in the unit I am currently in. I would be interested in hearing from the other officers in the area.
June 28, 2011 at 9:37 am
He didn’t say what the infraction was.
I will get him your contact info when I hear from him.