Unplugged

Yesterday, at around 11 AM, my Internet service slowed down and in a while, it shut down completely. I tried rebooting the modem, restarting my laptop, everything to get back as soon as possible to ' my world' : of likes and tags and general site hopping.
Nada. The connection showed no sign of returning. With a huge sigh, I set down to preparing my lunch. Normally I just toss vegetables and rice together in a pressure pot. But now, it felt like I had all the time. I chopped carrots and cucumber and made a salad. I cooked rice and dal with garlic and coriander. Ummm.. the aroma was appetizing. I added chopped onions and tomatoes. I even fried a few home made crisps. I arranged it nicely on my plate. As I sat down, I remembered a certain episode from a Haruki Murakami story, where the wife cuts Tofu, makes salad and cooks buckwheat noodles. I picked up Dance, dance, dance by Murakami. With every mouthful of the wholesome fare, I tasted the beauty and sparsity of Murakami's words in equal measure. It was blissful, indeed.
I checked my laptop again and voilà, my Internet was up again! The entire episode reminded me of those days back in childhood when a power cut meant long conversations under the moon light, enjoying the evening breeze. Once the power came back, we'd all huddle back inside, to watch TV.
                                             
Was I addicted to the TV back then?
And am I a slave to the Internet today?
Something to ponder over.