A Raja's Life and Stories: SUMMER SOJOURN IN NEW YORK

Summer Sojourn in New York

The last few years we have been able to spend the summer in New York with the American part of our family. When you reach ripe old age you tend to reminiscence and my thought always goes back to the wonder about the Empire State building inaugurated when I was a small boy in the backwoods of British Malabar. Change took place at a snail’s pace those days and one had no idea that the world would change out of recognition and that we would be spending so much time in this city. Every time we come you can see changes. It is still a city of skyscrapers, aging though new ones are coming up. All over the world skyscrapers are common, and some much taller and more striking. New York is no longer a brash young man but a middle-aged man at the height of his creative life open to new ideas. The city keeps its youth and creativity by new young immigrants. Culture flourishes. Roads are full of potholes, trains show their age, traffic jams are common but the Central Park, East village are beautiful and lively, old rundown parts of the city like Harlem are having a rebirth and by world standards the city is safe.

The astounding happening is the change in taste and fashion almost overnight. The New Yorkers are willing to change at the drop on a hat and try out anything. They are trend setters.

A few years ago the medical world decided that too much salt in the diet was bad for you. Presto, overnight you had salt free food. MSG was discovered as super taste enhancer and the food was full of it. Then it was found to have harmful side effects and it was banned. Excessive fat in the food was found to lead to heart problems. Fat reduced dairy products became poplar. Recently medical research found that this was not quiet the case and another revolution.

The stage was set in Chennai a few weeks before our trip to NY, when that avid lover of coconut oil .Ambika-my daughter in law sent me article of the new found virtues of this magic oil. This was followed by tirades by Vasanta-my wife and Kamini-my daughter on how I have ruined my health and that it was not too late to make amends.

In New York at last, jet lag busted by excellent Californian wine-courtesy Vijay, my son in law, enjoying a freshly brewed ILA coffee on he sit out and savouring the glorious sight of the Manhattan skyline, I suddenly felt as Adam must have felt in the Garden Eden when snake was slithering in. Something not right but what?

One afternoon Kamini made a special lunch for her mother-Avial and Elisherry- very nicely flavoured with the just the right amount of coconut oil. Where did she get the oil? It was considered bad oil. Then it struck me- Ambika’s article. Has US taken up the fad? I checked the Amazon on line shopping and would you believe it – There were over 100 brands available. The next step was to check if Kamini has fallen for it. A few days later there was this jar from which she was taking a table spoon of this a white fluffy stuff.

Well there you have it. Kamini has succumbed to temptation. That there were a lot of things in favour of coconut oil if you could stand its strong flavour. First in the climate of New York it was solid and easy to handle. The medical opinion of the coconut oil in diet varied from time to time. So I suppose taken in moderation it is o.k. For lovers of coconut oil that is easily said than done.

Kamini was moderate in her use except for avial and elichery. Both mother and daughter lapped it up. Serendipity plays a part in life. One day seeing Roger lap up some spilt coconut oil and look expectantly st her Kamini decided to start the day for Roger with half a cup of coconut oil. Roger was in the seventh heaven. Roger sleeps in Vijay and Kamini bedroom. He is very well toilet trained and most of the time sleeps till Vijay gets up to take to do his job. He has to run a mile or two before he can relive himself. In NY you have to clean up the dog turd and it can be a messy job if the constancy is not solid. Sometimes nature misbehaves and Roger wakes up Vijay in the middle of the night to do the job. The next day you can see Vijay not his usual chirpy self but bleary eyed and tired. A few days after Kamini started giving Roger his morning dose of the magic oil he started sleeping thru and his excretion was consistently sold.

Roger moults a lot of hair in season and it is tough job to clean up. Kamin had the brainwave to give

Roger a coconut oil massage every day. Roger was very happy and licked himself gleefully after the massage. The results are being evaluated. Roger is so happy that Kamini has decided to continue whatever the results.

Coconut oil has many uses but the American food industry concentrated on the largest outlet very successfully. New innovative uses of the wonder oil appeared. One was invented by a Californian as an early morning drink to improve your cognitive abilities and keep Alzheimer’s under control. It was aptly named ‘Bulletproof’. It was made of strong coffee decoction, with sweet butter and dollops of solid coconut oil on top. Even the Keralite residents of New York could not stand it. Then there was the famous NIRVANA invented by the Keralites in New York. Fresh Arrack (replaced by aged rum in U.S), add coconut milk and dollops of solid coconut oil on top.

The consumption of coconut has shop up by leaps and bounds. Coconut plantations would have come up in California but for the acute water shortage.

I wonder what fad the Americans would come up next. But for now there are a lot of ladies in our family who are in the seventh heaven that the Americans have become wise at last.

Raja Ramakrishnan

29-07-15