Saturday Night Blues

I am quite ashamed to say that my mother got into my head over the weekend. I had the lovely pleasure of going to a family friend's grown daughter's 17th birthday party on Saturday  Why this particular 17 year old needed to have a birthday party with her family and her family friends beats me. What happened to celebrating with your friends? According to my sister it was just an excuse to get presents. I might have to agree with her on that.

I was feeling a little down on Friday so I decided Saturday would serve as my "cheer up" day where I would dress up in a sari (since this was a desi event) and be happy no matter what the evening brought on. Now, in reality the only reason I decided to wear a sari is because my shalwar kameezs' have become too snug due the constant eating of my worries away of finding an appropriate suitor and a black sari just seemed like the appropriate color 
choice. 

These are the things that I witnessed throughout my two and a half hours of torture while sitting at a table watching people around me in action:

At any single desi event from a wedding to a simple housewarming event, all desi women will use this as an excuse to dress up. Like REALLY dress up; with their MAC makeup done, glamorous saris with big jewelry to compliment their style. I'm not making fun of this, I am merely stating the obvious because yours truly has been guilty of this way of dressing at desi functions since the day I discovered foundation and big jewelry.

Back to the 'Sweet 17 Party"......

My sister and I quietly sit down at one of the tables. Upon our arrival an obnoxious lady I will call Auntie Mother of Four  decided to announce to the whole room that my sister and I look bored out of our minds (really? It's a 25 and 23 year old in a room full of under 17 or over 40 crowd, what else would we look like?).

The scariest part of all is that Auntie Mother of Four drags me to the front of the room to take a picture with her and the birthday girl. According to her I was wearing such a fabulous sari that it just had to be photographed. My sari was not that glamorous  I was wearing a black sari in mourning of a proposal that was rejected by the guy's side just a day earlier and to cover up my now expanded tummy. 

By this time I am double mortified because not only does everyone in the room know exactly how bored I am, but also because Auntie Mother of Four is notorious for putting up all of her pictures on facebook. So now I have to worry about being in an unwanted picture that will be displayed on facebook for all strangers to see. Great. Just what I needed.

I'm sure your asking why couldn't I have just asked Auntie Mother of Four to keep me out of her facebook pics, or why couldn't I simply ask my mother to get involved so I wouldn't need to take the picture to begin with? Nope, this is not to be done in desi culture, because simply don't understand what "No, thanks" means. They would have taken it as an insult because to them I would be refusing to take a picture with them and that's just a big fat insult. 

So if anyone comes across any party pics from the night of November 3rd on facebook where a brown girl in a black sari looks mortified to be there, please tell me and also be very glad you didn't have to go through this yourself.

I haven't even gotten to the best part of the night. So there I am eating my boredom away at dinner and I happen to sit across the table from an older looking aunty and a younger looking aunty. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but they are being so loud and sitting right across from me so I didn't really count it as eavesdropping. 

Old aunty wants a bride for her 30 year old son. Young aunty is trying to persuade her to consider a girl she knows in her family. I myself am wondering old aunty doesn't realize that there is a single 25 year old in a black sari sitting across from her with lots of potential.

.....AND THEN IT HITS ME. My mother has gotten into my head. If she was sitting at this table she would have thought about me and here I am trying to sell myself to this old lady in my own head. That was the second time I was mortified Saturday night and deeply ashamed in myself. The first moment came when I was getting my food and stuffing myself because I was so bored and I needed to feel happy, and food did that for me. 

So there you have it folks, when you go through enough "proposals" for marriages, you start thinking about yourself anytime anyone brings up marriage and potential desi single guys.