Cheers !

Cheers !

Late in the evening , I noticed my father in law seated in his armchair at the end of the veranda quietly sipping his sun downer. A routine he never missed . It helped him relax after a long tiring day , he said ,and get a good sound sleep in the night!

Last month there was a stag party on our terrace . Crates of liquor were carried up . The married men who attended the party teased the young fellow and shared their own marital experiences with him . The cheers , songs and guffaws could be heard till it was well past midnight. The prospective groom had celebrated well , the last days of his bachelorhood!

Solemn Simon uncle , our old neighbour in Mumbai , never lied when he had had a drink. In the morning in his sober mood he had said that his son had got 80% for his board exams. In the evening when he returned home after having his evening quota , he met another neighbour of ours and confessed to him that his son had got only 59 % and so he was worried whether his son would get admission in any college. And to erase these worries he had had a 'large' . The next morning the marks went up to a precise 80.2% !

When men talk about getting together they usually mean having a drink together .Years back an uncle of mine had invited some of his glass mates for a ' get together ' . One mate had been too shy to talk to the women folk in the house. He looked at the women and flashed a smile at them only after he had his first peg. After the second one , he had started talking . He had not finished his third round when he switched over from the vernacular to English. He became more loquacious with each drink and laughed loud at his own jokes. What happened after that ,I had not waited to watch.

But I remember ,when I met him the next morning he was sober and shy as before !

"If I remember right there are five excuses for drinking: the visit of a guest, present thirst,
future thirst, the goodness of the WINE, and any other excuse you choose!"