The Second Spoon
I had dinner with my family at our favorite restaurant and our favorite waiter was there as usual.
My son always eats with a teaspoon, so we asked for a teaspoon. We got two teaspoons. This puzzled my son: he only wanted one. My wife took one of the spoons and she could use it.
This reminded me of a funny story her father told me. In India in the hotels, chai is usually served in a nice-sized pot with two cups. When I visited India in 1995, chai was almost always served that way. I guess that a good pot of chai deserves company, and the second cup is just in case someone comes by.
Well, my father-in-law said that he was in the dining area of the hotel enjoying a mid-afternoon cup of chai when he saw a waiter deliver a tray with a pot of tea and two cups to a gentleman. This fellow was flustered: “Why did you give me two cups.” The waiter merely said that it comes that way. The man became agitated: “You imbecile. If I pour two cups of chai, by the time I drink the first one, the second will be cold! Take the other cup away!” The waiter could not think of anything to counter such “logic” so he decided to do as the man said. My father-in-law couldn’t believe it.
Soon, my son dropped his spoon on the floor. My wife said, “That’s why we have two spoons: if you drop one you can use the other.” That made perfect sense to my son. He didn’t wonder how the waiter knew he was going to drop a spoon.
My son always eats with a teaspoon, so we asked for a teaspoon. We got two teaspoons. This puzzled my son: he only wanted one. My wife took one of the spoons and she could use it.
This reminded me of a funny story her father told me. In India in the hotels, chai is usually served in a nice-sized pot with two cups. When I visited India in 1995, chai was almost always served that way. I guess that a good pot of chai deserves company, and the second cup is just in case someone comes by.
Well, my father-in-law said that he was in the dining area of the hotel enjoying a mid-afternoon cup of chai when he saw a waiter deliver a tray with a pot of tea and two cups to a gentleman. This fellow was flustered: “Why did you give me two cups.” The waiter merely said that it comes that way. The man became agitated: “You imbecile. If I pour two cups of chai, by the time I drink the first one, the second will be cold! Take the other cup away!” The waiter could not think of anything to counter such “logic” so he decided to do as the man said. My father-in-law couldn’t believe it.
Soon, my son dropped his spoon on the floor. My wife said, “That’s why we have two spoons: if you drop one you can use the other.” That made perfect sense to my son. He didn’t wonder how the waiter knew he was going to drop a spoon.
posted by Michael Higgins at
20:29
| permalink
3 Comments:
Hi Vikram
Happy 4th.
I suspect the gentleman might have been just messing with the waiter for the fun of it.
By
Michael Higgins, at 10:31 PM
I wonder if you were referring to (in your father-in-law's anecdote) to the "tumbler" and "dabara."
By
Srikanth, at 9:37 AM
Hi Srikanth
No, these were ordinary porcelin tea cups like you would find in the west. I've been serve tea this way in India myself.
By
Michael Higgins, at 5:42 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home