My Good Ole' Scooter days.....

After ages I've seen a scooter in Dubai,
this brought back super nostalgia of my 'Kineee" days in Mumbai.
Remember being gifted one by the parents for scoring 84% in the tenth grade,
for me that was and is the best present till date.
It was jet black, my new Kinetic Honda, Zx with strips of red, grey and white,
MH-02 G - 4806, bought in the monsoon in 1994, July.

Ahhhhh.... those were the days when I would zip, zap, cut corners and zoom,
where I could feel the wind in my hair,
ride without a helmet, though later the mop on top, felt like a coir broom.
Enjoyed the rain drops on my weather beaten face and getting drenched to the skin in the pouring rain
but wearing those semi soft contacts lenses,
Oh God....for me, that was indeed the biggest pain!

Riding to college and Shah Classes was also memorable
I was referred to as " Kineticwalli"
as Mr. Shah found "Charmaine" extremely unpronounceable.
I remember taking college mates and school friends for joyrides on my scooter,
father, mother, brother, aunties, uncles and even going to the bazaar with my 79 year old neighbour.
but the fun part was giving a lift everyday to a classmate, an Aamir Khan look alike from NIIT to St. Andrew's
I resembled a giraffe sitting infront of this cute goatie bearded Tom Cruise.

Those were the days when I'd actually plough the bike to the gas station,
as I'd ride till I'd empty the tank without an iota of realisation.
And you'd think I'd learn from my silly mistake,
but I didn't, after all I was just 16 for God's sake.
Tyre punctures, empty tanks, I've been through it all,
and at times, I've skidded, bruised my knee and had many a fall.

Sadly those bike riding days came to an end,
because when you start working,
you can't look like a Golliwog and tell your employer,
your hairstyle is in fashion and you're starting a new trend.

If wishes were horses, I wish I could ride,
a scooter again where I presently reside,
but if I try to now, my "fair and lovely" skin would surely go,
and I won't look like a Mocktail Bawi like I did before.