Coffee on the Highway

My work often takes me to Coimbatore, which is the largest railway station of my Division. Coimbatore is also one of the biggest cities of Tamil Nadu and an industrial hub. One feels good looking at industries dotting the landscape. The city itself is a beautiful urban scape - extremely clean, neatly laid out roads, disciplined traffic and no shabbiness at all that characterises our cities in the North. You will not find debris lying around, broken or unpainted building facades or garbage outside eateries. It is quite obvious that the Coimbatorian is proud of his city.

Coming back to my travels to Coimbatore, I love to travel by road in this part of the country. The National Highway 47 that I take is a delight to travel on. It must be a pleasure to self-drive too, but being a bada sahib, I am deprived of that privilege. Not only is the highway as good as it gets with no surprises by sudden appearances of two wheelers, cows and unruly truck drivers, the scenery that it offers is a sight to behold as well. I am certain that Tamil Nadu must be the most urbanised state of India, for I see no villages during my journey. Well, let me correct myself - there are villages indeed, but they all look like nice small towns. No sign of the typical North India's unkempt mud houses, stray cattle, smell of cow dung and open drains. The landscape is quite unlike one sees in the North, with coconut groves and banana plantations presenting a soothing and orderly view.

The best part of my road journey, however, is the coffee by the Highway. The famous “KDFC Only Coffee” serves coffee in a set of brass davara and tumbler. The acronym stands for Kumbhakonam Degree Filter Coffee. What they serve is "Only Coffee". I was intrigued by the word “degree”. Later enquiry revealed that the first decoction made in the filter pot is called degree coffee. A degree coffee would also retain its status only if it was made with pure undiluted milk, also known as degree milk. The first decoction from the filter was reserved for the head of the household, others would have to be content with the second degree or the second drain from the powder used for the first degree. I guess they serve third degree coffee in police stations. KDFC is a kind of a minor cult here, though the coffee itself is nothing special. But, one does feel good stopping by the KDFC outlet since they do serve it in style - shining brassware and extremely clean ambience. And, one feels like the head of the household for those few minutes. If not in one’s own household, then let it be at the dhaba. The meaning of "Only" does not seem to have any relevance however since what they serve is a blend of Coffee and Chicory. The tiny eateries that serves snacks and biscuits are sparkling clean and so are the surroundings. I am told that the KDFC thing is not even a franchise. One could just open a coffee outlet and start selling "KDFC Only Coffee". The same can't be said of "KFC Only Chicken" though.

Am I falling in love with Tamil Nadu? You bet I am. There is more to Tamil Nadu than Chennai and it is waiting to be explored.

My Rules of Facebook - On Friendship Day.

Dear Friends, Friends in Waiting and Wannabe Friends,

 
In the new year after the Friendship Day just gone by, let us resolve to be good friends on-line. Here are the rules I follow and expect you to follow if you want the privilege of my Facebook friendship.
(What! Did you just say you do not want to be my friend? That is perfectly fine with me too.)

 
1. You should have your own photo in the “profile photo” box. No, the picture of your saucepan doesn’t qualify, neither does the photo of your cute little cuddly pup. I also do not get any idea of who you are by looking at the shot of your newly born daughter. Yes, she is adorable, but it doesn’t help at all. Your name alone is not a great help to my memory either. There are half a million out there with the same name. Also, I cannot make out what you looked like in college, when we last met, from your childhood photo. So your own photo please, and a recent one!

2. Please do not send me invitations to play Candy Crush or Heady Heartthrob, or whatever you spend your time playing in your office. While the levels that you have achieved in such intellectual games does speak a lot about your cerebral achievements, I am still not up to them. Therefore, please spare me the pleasures that you enjoy so effortlessly. Maybe I am dull, dimwit and downright rustic. But, I am happy the way I am.

3. Please update your profile when you change your job, city, dog, car, phone number or spouse. Your profile reads, "Worked in Company XYZ" instead of "Works in company XYZ". Have you been sacked? Are you jobless these days surviving on state dole? Your profile also suddenly states that you married the person, who we always thought was your husband/wife for a quarter of a century. Was it all illegal so far, or as they say nowadays, a live-in arrangement till yesterday? I am concerned as a true friend. So, please update your profile too.

4. Please do visit your own “wall” occasionally and update your “status”. A friend who has nothing to say for months at a stretch is no fun! So, please do write something interesting once in a while, which proves that you are still alive and kicking, for I tend to unfriend dead friends.

5. Sending links to sensational news items, Jokes or YouTube videos without your own views on them doesn’t count as “status update”. I too buy newspapers and occasionally visit the YouTube as well. After all, I too have an office to attend.

6. Posting of photos of various Gods doesn’t count either. With thirty three crores of them, you could actually post a new photo every day till kingdom come. I am an atheist, so I am not impressed by your devoutness. In any case, whether or not I “like” the God that you proposed doesn’t affect His popularity at all.

Happy Friendship Day to All!

P.S. This issues with the approval of my good friend, Marky.