Friday, February 17, 2006

I’ve lost a few people that I’ve loved in my life but my granddad, Babajoon is definitely the one that I think of the most. The interesting thing about it is that while thinking of people that have died should make us feel sad, thinking of Babajoon always makes me laugh.
Lately doing yoga with a DVD I’ve taken out of the library, I keep remembering one of Babajoon's famous stories and laughing to myself hysterically while trying to bend myself into various poses that the yoga instructor is trying to get me to do.
This story had many versions depending on what mood Babajoon was in and so keeping the tradition alive, I have now done my own version of it here which has a hint of yoga.

This is how it usually went:
He would say, ‘Did I ever tell you about that time when I was listening to the radio and two stations, one broadcasting an exercise programme and one a cooking programme had got mixed up?’ Then he would stand up and repeat what he claimed to have heard on the radio while miming what he actually had to do if he were to listen to the instructions he had been given.
‘Before we start our exercise you will need to get a few things from around the house: a hand towel, khhhh a sharp knife, a chopping board, two onions, some ground pepper and turmeric khhhhh Stand with your legs shoulder length apart and then bend down putting one hand khhhhh on the chopping board. Remove the skin and then cover with salt and leave on the side khhhhh now bring your forehead down khhhhh and place it in a large bowl khhhh spread out your legs khhhh chop up your onions into small pieces and then add them to the bowl khhhhh if this position is too hard on your legs, try bending your knees a little khhhhh and using your sharp knife, remove all the skin and bones and place the meat khhhhh on your head. We will stay in this position khhhhh until the meat is khhhhh ready for meditation khhhhh This might take a couple of hours which you can use to khhhhhh place your hands on your hips and ask someone to khhhhhh set the table khhhhh Don’t forget to breath. Inhale, reach high, exhale, khhhhh add two teaspoons of turmeric and one teaspoon of pepper to your bowl and mix well using your khhhh foot. Try lifting your leg higher khhhh and place it in a pan full of boiling water khhhh this position is wonderful for toning thigh muscles however if you suffer from high blood presser it might be better for you to khhhhhh turn down the heat and let it simmer gently for half an hour. Khhhh Stand firmly on the ground and make sure your thighs are khhhh tender by sticking a fork in them khhhh this exercise is also great for relieving any tension khhhhh at the dinner table. Khhhh Well that’s all for today. Khhhhh don’t worry if you can smell a little smoke; it’s just the fat burning off khhhhh Join us next week for another workout and meanwhile remember: your body is a temple khhhh decorate it with chopped parsley and serve on a bed of saffron rice with some pickled aubergine.’

15 comments:

. said...

Hey, did you get the right DVD? That's why they say check twice.

It was a real laugh. Thank you Shirin. The best part is the thigh part of course.

Anonymous said...

lovely memory of u're beloved babajoon..

jarvenpa said...

Thank you for sharing your dear grandpa with us, and making us smile.

Anonymous said...

Oh my god, I laughed so hard I was about to suffocate. Seriously, I couldn't catch my breath. I felt the moisture in my eyes and the heat in my cheeks. I though I would get to meet and know your Babajoon in a matter of seconds. You should put a warning label on this post.

Shirin said...

Thanks Behrooz and Foulla :-)

Jarvenpa, I think you would have got on very well with my grandpa; he too was really into gardening.

That’s funny Negar, I used to get like that myself when he told this story and acted it out. It’s good to know that reading it can have the same effect.

Anonymous said...

Hello. Will be back next friday. I feel really left out. What are lolo and coucou??
Mis you much. See you soon.x

Em said...

That was such charmin story Shireen

Anonymous said...

Hee heee. Ma nearly wet herself laughing at this!! Thanks for that! xxx

Shirin said...

Ahhhh I feel so sorry for you Shadgoli; it must have been very hard for you to have to go on holiday and miss out on all the fun here. I’ll see you very soon back in Blighty and catch you up on all the important stuff you have missed out on such as Coucou and Lolo.

Thanks Em :-)

That’s great Sell ;-) hee hee

Anonymous said...

Shirin, Thanks for the post...I laughed a lot in the computer lab and people couldn't even imagine what the post was about. I imagined every second of it...should go home and try to do it as I read the instructions!!!! God bless your Baba joon.

GazanKhan said...

That was very funny my dear, thank you. You are the best Shirin, really.

Anonymous said...

mmm, lecker, nice dinner from your babajoon, ab-yogafeet instead of abgusht! what happened to your very interesting, very informative, absolutely intensive adds on top of your blog? and the dream of becoming a millionaere with checks from google?;)

Anonymous said...

Amazing! It's getting better and better...

Bobby said...

EXTREME! Yep - extreme yoga.

You're grandpa was cool!

Shirin said...

Hi Sheida, I really hope you did not go and try all that out at home. If you did, I’m sure you had a hard time afterwards trying to explain your injuries at the emergency room ;-) Welcome by the way.

Thanks Gazankhan :-)

Yeah that’s a good name for it Marieh ;-)
I just took those ads off at the end because as it turned out they were more annoying than anything else and at the rate I was going it would have taken me ten years to reach a hundred pounds and get sent my check. Thanks for your help though.

Thanks aa :-)

Funny you should say that Bobby because the first time I asked someone what the definition of cool was, they pointed at my granddad! I never forget that.