Diwali in Amreeka

Or at least, things you hear when trying to celebrate Diwali at the workplace in Amreeka.

On the kurta with jeans look I sported at work on Chhoti Diwali:

Colleague: That's an interesting combination of Indian and Western. Is that, umm, approved of in India?
Me: This is how I dressed pretty much every day in college.
Colleague: Really? Good for you!

On the kaju barfi I took to work, because I'm nice like that:

Whoa! What is that pretty silver thing on top? Isn't that, like, dangerous?

On the damn "omg photo of India from space on Diwali!!!" post that makes the rounds on Facebook every. single. year.:

Colleague 1: I love that photo! Why is it fake?
Colleague 2: Are you sure it's not real? I mean, you do have 1 billion people. It's possible!
Me: I'm pretty sure India doesn't even have enough electricity for that photo to be real.
Colleague 1: But it's always the Indians who post that photo.
Me: Yes, well, some Indians are idiots.

On the gorgeous Fab India dupatta I wore, gifted to me by S:

I'm beginning to realise your claims about your extensive and wonderful dupatta collection are not false.

The fulfillment of a childhood dream...

When I was a kid, we had a wedding hall near our house. Every time a wedding was held there, or during Diwali and other festival, it would be lit up with those simple non-flashy rows of yellow lights, which look so very pretty. You know the type, don't you?

And I used to love looking at those lights, and always wanted us to put up similar lights, but does anyone ever listen to a six-year-old? Besides, Diwali's not really our festival, so we never bothered putting up lights anyway.

Anyway, when we finally moved into this house nearly five years ago, and it was decided that we should buy lights for Diwali, I figured we'd finally get those nice yellow lights I'd always wanted. But no, instead my mother and brother went and got these colourful lights which, granted, looked nice, but they weren't the yellow lights I'd always wanted.

So anyway, last year those lights finally gasped their last breath, and this year I got to choose the lights. Which means our house has been lit with rows of yellow lights, and is looking extremely cool. Thank you.