I have a very bad flu that started some time in the middle of the night and I was unable to sleep because of it. Therefore came to the office late and even now I wish for a bed and a big bowl of soup.

Yesterday was a lazy lazy day, with nothing much to do except for spending more time with Faiz. Usman and Saba called yesterday and when I called Saba Mrs. Usman, the girl was silent for a minute and then she couldn’t stop laughing. I think its gonna take her a little while before she really starts seeing herself as Mrs. Usman. Usman on the other hand has taken to being a hubby rather well. Talking about Usman, I have another friend Usman who happens to be really ‘mera bachpan ka dost’. His family was our neighbor in Pindi when our dads were in the Army and our mothers are very good friends still. Usman was a little older than me but we were in the same class. He got engaged recently and I just found out that his nuptials are in December inshaAllah. Now there’s yet another wedding that I must attend.

Sam called last night and I told her how excited I am about coming to Karachi for her 30th birthday. I asked her if we could go to Gaddani for a day and she readily agreed. It got me thinking about turning thirty. Only a few days back I was telling saddy that I cant wait to be thirty and get out of this whole ‘get married’ issue. But are thirties really what they are cracked up to be?

I remember being thirteen and for some reason, though I wasn’t a typical teenager. I was the ugly duckling that was happy just being smart or at least smarter than 80% of the kids in the class. My teens didn’t take force till I hit fifteen, that’s when I developed a huge crush on the undertaker. And since I was more of a tomboy, I preferred wrestling over watching Dawson’s creek. I recently purchased the first season of Dawson’s creek cuz the whole 1st season was available for 125 Rs and I need something mindless to watch before I go to sleep at night. I really can hate these Dawson brats. They are all so perfect, including Katie Holmes and those flawless complexions…really! I’d die if I were within a hundred feet of them. But the sound track (well I cant really close my ears) is all the late 90’s songs I grew up listening to. Anyhoo, being thirteen or a teenager wasn’t really what it should have been and though I have no regrets, there isn’t much to look back at either.

As for being thirty, I don’t really know what to expect. I do know this that for the first time, I am alright with not getting married ever. And yes, though for me the major reason for getting married was companionship and kids, I know now that companionship is highly overrated. As for having kids, I am not really carrying any precious genes that need to be preserved. If I were beautiful or a genius or if I had a title and money that I feared passing out of my family, maybe I would have made an effort. But thankfully I don’t. That probably is nature’s way of protecting all the good genes and wiping out all the unsuitable ones. Life, after all is about survival of the fittest. So if I live to see another decade inshaAllah and unless something extraordinary happens, I see my thirties to be an extension of my current life and well that will give me greater freedom to work and travel and that is something I can look forward to.