Pick a shell, any shell

This one completed in one day was very tough!

 By the time I was finished, my back hurt, my eyes were kinda crossed and I still had to post and blog. On top of that, I was also trying to listen to our church service online. Neither the blog, nor church happened. I did manage to hear a good bit of the worship portion of our church service though. Blogging however did not occur because the fire would not cooperate. It did not have enough charge to photograph, and I didn't have the energy to wait! So here I sit, blogging on my Monday, but your Sunday in the USA. Don't know what date will show up!

We spent the majority of the day inside the house here in New Delhi. The air quality is poor and the temperature colder than normal for this time of year. We set up breakfast for the morning, and our it into the refrigerator till cooking time. 

After Neel's nap, we ventured out to get a pair of glasses reworked for Christina's Father in law from the mall. We also picked up a good bit of groceries from a market in the mall. This concept is kinda new to me, groceries alongside Forever 21 , H&M, Cinnabon, and many other large retailers familiar to us as Americans.

 One thing not familiar is the security outside the mall. When you arrive, your car is checked inside and out, hood, and trunk. You then go through another security point at the entrance. Bags are scanned, you walk through a detector, bodies are wanded in a curtained off area for women. With a nod of her head, the guard waves you into the mall. 

I am sure something like this may eventually come to the USA, in an effort to stop mass shootings and possible bombs.

We rushed to do our errands and got back to the car. 

Loading up, we headed into Sunday afternoon traffic. 

Dusk was falling, and this adds a while new element to riding in India. I have to ride in the front seat, because there is not enough room in the back for carseat and two people. I have become somewhat used to the melee, not slamming my foot to the floor in an effort to brake. I have also become more silent as to not distract the driver. You also ride as a passenger in the opposite side here , adding to your level of anxiety. 

Now it is dark, and our ride continued into the night. 

The bicycles with no lights take on new hazards as they ride.

Motorcyclists are required to wear helmets, but instead carry them on their arm, hand hooked through the chin guard.

People step off the curb, dressed in dark clothing and from between parked cars, taking their life in their hands with every step they take.

The auto rickshaws are everywhere, beeping and whipping in and front of cars and buses. Some of the autos don't have headlights, making them difficult to see. The motorcycles weave in and out of traffic taking every imaginable tiny space they can occupy. Street wise dogs, patiently wait for traffic to slow for just a brief second so they can cross somewhat safely. Buses lumber along their way, traffic flowing around them much like water around a rock in a river. Then there are the cars, most of them bearing scars of battles lost in the fight for space in the road.

in the midst of this, someone stops looking for directions on their phone. Horns honking, headlights coming head on to our car in somewhat of a game of chicken, suddenly whipping to the side avoiding collisions.

All this with a somewhat cranky baby in the backseat.

Even been in Mr. Toads wild ride in Disneyland?

This is traveling in India!

Pick a shell, any shell , Acrylic on canvas, 8 x 24 inches

Day 52 of the 100 days~100 paintings Spring 2019