44. First a Veggie's Retort, Then the Aftermath!

This incident happened when I was in Philadelphia. I was out for lunch with my Indian manager. During our conversations while standing in the queue to order food, he figured out that I was a vegetarian. You might by now would have realized how much I hate answering those FAQs on my vegetarianism. No wonder!

My manager got perplexed about my conditioning.
"But you are a Prabhu, a GSB Konkani...."

I won't blame him. If you didn't know, it's a well known fact that Konkanis can't live without fish. After all, Konkan region is located along India's western coastline, starting from Gujarat (part), through Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka, and upto Kerala, where seafood dishes are specialties.

Out came the question, which I was very well expecting:
"... how come you are a vegetarian?"

Without bating an eyelid, I let my hunger speak for itself with a straight face:
"Right now I am not representing my community!"

Yes! Those were the exact words! I remember them distinctly!

How much more blunt can you be! That too to an Indian manager, as managers from India are known to behave like managers even beyond office hours! Now when I look back, I find my tongue in cheek comment too harsh for the occasion. But what to do? Words once spoken are oft remembered and make way into party fodder and blog postings!

Luckily, this manager was of understanding type and accepted that this was my individuality, to go away from the norm. Thank God!

Now for the post lunch special: