Mr. Bijoy Writes

Much of my childhood was riddled with trips from St. Louis to suburban Chicago. Every once in a while, my cousins would take me into the city to see sights and hang out, maybe even go to a Cubs game or a White Sox game. I've done the sights, I've done the shopping. However, almost tragically, I haven't eaten everywhere I want to eat in Chicago. I haven't and I will no longer stand for it! So here's my proposition to anyone willing to join. I want you to join me in some eating. All over the Chicagoland area. I want to try Chicago-style pizza that I actually like. I want to eat at Blackbird, Silver Palm, Chicago Chop House, The Signature Room at the 95th, to name a few. You wanna come? I want you to come. I might even pay.

I love Thanksgiving. No, really. It's my favorite holiday. Growing up Hindu (not staunchly practicing), we didn't really do Christmas. This erks me only because I hear stories of my older cousins going to my parents house in Elmhurst, IL, to have Christmas together, open presents, eat, and so forth. All of this, before my birth. Continuing on, not being Christian, we never did Easter. To add, living in St. Louis in the late 80's didn't have many perks as an Indian. There were a handful of Indian families from all over India, each with their own traditions, making it terribly difficult to really forge a true celebration for Indian or Hindu holidays. All I had was Thanksgiving. Everyone we knew would get together on Thanksgiving and eat. This only got better after my cousins, on my father's side, decided that we should do a Thanksgiving of our own. November, though often cold, became one of my favorite months of the year. I'd be in LA or Chicago enjoying a beautif...

It's not too often that people from my generation really take a moment to give thanks, or to truly understand that It could really be a lot worse. The latter, for those that may not be of religious mind. The course of the past few weeks has been a rather daunting one for me. I cannot, with fortitude, say that I have been in any place of real and true state of elation. However, a song I recently heard brought much of this in perspective. Here's part of one of the verses: Its so funny how we think we got it rough when there are babies who got mommas hooked on drugs and this depression got folks losing they homes they spent they whole life saving for I guess I'm just saying that I felt the need to tell the world thanks for having my back through everything. I've got some of the finest friends a gentleman could ask to call his friends. Thanks folks. *Oh yeah, the song is "It Coulda Been Worse" by Lyfe Jennings