BOARDING BLUES

Let me tell you first, it's not just about being an ordinary kid studying at a high school but about me who has passed half

of his life studying in a boarding school. Having stayed far from home ... I guess one would know how it feels...Being

far as in far from home cooked delicious food. Saying this itself reminds me of the aroma which used to fly out of the

kitchen where my mom used to cook our daily meals.

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One day among the several early morings I got up at my boarding room, hoping to feed my stomach on some food

that it would accept happily. This reminds me that in my hostel, we weren't allowed to get any type of tuck (it's slang

for secretly brought food from home which was not supposed to be talked about in front of techers or even the measly

prefects). During normal days my friends and me walked towards the dining hall to make way for dinner. After settling

ourselves on the dining tables, we were ready to pounce on some "edible" food. However, after the food arrived, everyone

suddenly became silent and wore the expression that said, "Not that again," when the fifty-four year old waiter served

us the monotonous Monday routine.

If there is one disadvantage that boarding school students face, it is that the food is awful. We starved students

realized that we could not keep living our lives like this, so we began to think out of the box. Unfortunately, this is not

the end of my sad story because we had decided to experiment with our only hope. We decided to open our secret

foodstuffs kept in our hiding places and we thought about cooking it in whichever possible manner. Together we

stockpiled the entire foodstuff we had, the majority of the people voted for Maggi noodles and I was amongst them.

In total there were only four friends who had decided to stay back and cook Maggi noodles without having any means

of cooking it. The others had backed out, afraid of the possible consequences of being caught by their teachers. Out

of the brave ones, including me, we were going through several ideas as to how to cook the Maggi noodles and come

up with something to eat.

At this point we all were heartily convinced that our boarding school really did not give enough variety, especially

when it concerned food. At last, all of us decided to cook Maggi noodles individually in small glasses. We put these

glasses, which contained our long awaited meal, in a bucket containing hot water. We were conscious that this water

was the bathing water we accesed everyday. In order to speed up the process, we thought of applying some science to it.

As we know the science behind a cooker, it's when covered things cook at a faster pace because the heat is trapped inside.

It may seem ridiculus, but for four twelve year olds being able to apply these basic heating principles to actual life was

something to be proud of. So we kept our textbooks on top of the glasss containing the Maggi noodles, to form a sort of

homemade pressure cooker. Although thecooker was by no means advanced in any shape or form it seemed to be

making.

SOURCE:http://karthik3685.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/maggi-1.jpg

Eagerly we stood around the glasses, waiting for the Maggi noodles to come to a boil and finsh cooking. We all

were surrounding the bucket as if it held great importance and value. We would check every 10 seconds, hoping to

devour our feast. Impatient as we were, we could not wait to see the final result. Going empty stomach was not a major

concern for us, but what really mattered was that everyone wanted to try out something different than what we had been

stuffing into our mouths since a time period long enough to be forgotten.

SOURCE: http://www.hot-screensaver.com/wp-myimages/maggi-mee.jpg

Everyone's mouths were watering in anticipation for consuming the Maggi noodles. I guess it would have been

with you too if you were in a similar situation like us, I am ninety-nine point ninety-nice percent sure about it. I have no

doubt that you would have felt the same way.

At last, our long awaited meal was finished cooking and it sat there in fron of us waving and wafting its delicious

aroma towards us. The sensation teased and taunted us and our growling stomachs growled in anticipation for the

homemade food, even it was made in an unorthodox manner.

SOURCE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edjdWC3p8Ho

All four of us looked at each other nervously and eagerly, not sure who should take the first bite. Then after having

held back the entire tim, I took a bite. Well, maybe I shouldn'd act so modest, I was ahead of everyone to pounce upon

the noodles. It was as if I was deprived of food the most, out of the entire group. Then the first bite of the delicious food

went into my mouth. It really did not bother me, how we had made it because the end result tasted good. It was followed

by the distribution of the cooked meal, to each and everyone who got an equal share for all the hard work and labor involved.

On the whole, the risk involved in the plan was totally worth it. To add detail to our master plan, I would rightfully like

to include that all four of us were hungry enough to finish six packets of Maggi noodles. After we were done, we were

satisfied enough to prove that we had cooked exceptionally well, more than what we had expected. The ending was even

better when all of us had to wash our glasses which had already been licked clean. In addition, to that, our plan had been

even more successful as the teachers radar had not detected us.

I guess this was one of the most memorable dasy in my life. It had brought smiles to our faces and had given us an

adventure to laugh at. More than anything the prospect of relishing something as meager as this adds to the taste and

aroma of life!