The best part of the day

On a typical weekday I get up, get ready, get to work, then follows the regular routine of work, coffee break, work more, lunch break, try to work, coffee break, pretend to work, finally get home, cook, eat, chat with friends, watch some netflix and sleep. On to the next day... Almost feels like Groundhog day (the film). One fine Saturday evening I sat thinking what part of this day do I most look forward to. The best part of my 24 hour run of the mill day. Ever wondered about it? I am not a morning person by any stretch of imagination, which rules out all mornings. Getting ready and to work is usually a dash against time, nothing to look forward to there. Work is well.. work; I'd be surprised if sitting in your cube whole day can be enjoyable. Lunch breaks are good, especially if I have something interesting, but its not the best part. I don't dislike cooking per se, but I do dislike what precedes and follows it - chopping and cleaning.

I'm not trying to reach my answer here through process of elimination but there is precious little time left to look forward to anything after all these activities. But one thing I do look forward to is the drive from office to home, not just for obvious reasons. The drive itself is only 15 minutes long. There is nothing special about the road as such, it cuts right through a mostly industrial area, speed limit is 45 at max and there are potholes on the road which make my car shiver and me cry. But the road is an east-west road and my office is to the east. So every evening I'm treated to the panoramic view of the sun setting in a blaze of gold. Its so beautiful its indescribable.

But let me take a detour here. I love sunsets. I can watch it every day of my life and not tire of it. It is one of the reasons I have held on to my current apartment - it almost faces west, giving me a nice view of the sun setting behind the Minneapolis downtown. I was told by a friend that the sunrise is even better to watch but I doubt I can get up early enough to catch it. Not that I'm regretting it. Sunset at Worli sea-face, Gateway, Sasawne, on I-94W, at the innumerable lakes in and around Minneapolis.. all of them memorable in their own way. While science can come up with the exact concentration and distribution of dust particles required to create the bright color palette in the sky, it cannot take the magic away from sunsets. Like the grand finale of a performance. If the rising sun brings hope for the new day, the evening skies say that you did your best. No matter what my state of mind is, those 15-20 minutes lift my mood like nothing else can.

So back to the topic. Happiness in indeed in small things in life. That 15 minute drive is when I forget everything (other than driving) and just enjoy the scene. I try whenever possible to leave for home when the sun is just setting. Since there are no tall buildings in Minneapolis other than in the downtown area, the view is unobstructed. At that angle of the sun, the clouds look like they are on fire. On some days there is a bird or two flying across. The skies are a bright mix of yellow and orange. One of these days, I'll take my cam and click a few pics on the way home to post here. My rapidly degrading writing skills cannot do justice to the view.

To those who read this post, you can write about the best part of your day