It was one of those usual Friday evenings.
We were at a Mughlai restaurant in Dubai, enjoying the last course of our meal.
I was chivalrous enough to part with a decent tip.
The waitress requested that I drop my business visiting card for a weekly lucky draw.
She said, "You could win a free dinner".
Anything free is always welcome.
I have been chasing luck all my life.
Thy art of filling lucky draw coupons at malls had born sweet nothings.
With sarcasm I would tell my friends, "why keep a foe - so who wants to be a millionaire"? Philosophy helps.
The lady luck smiled on Lucky Singh.
I had won the voucher for free dinner.
I caressed my opulent belly; it was an absolute free dinner for two.
I was on the victory path.
It did not take me long to plant myself on the table.
With hungry eyes and a pauper starved belly, I grazed on the menu card.
I was taking a good measure of the gourmet and the aspiring culinary art, to follow.
Seeds of revenge had begun to germinate.
My barren luck had eluded me, far too long.
Today was my day.
With a buffet appetite, my tongue sizzled like a sizzler.
Soups kept the appetite sweet and sour.
Some beginnings do not have an end, so why call them starters.
With kebabs my splurge was understandable.
With sumptuous curries and a selection of succulent grilled meats, the table was well set.
The culinary wizards had let my fingers go riot.
It was like never before.
The Chef said, "You must also try our Shahi tukda" and the connoisseur could not help, but oblige.
I must have licked my fingers down my throat, after all - it was all free.
How much I paid the doctor next day, is a close guarded secret.
What followed the week later was an avalanche of phone calls.
Perhaps "get well soon" calls.
I had let the lid, off the Pandora's Box.
The free dinner had let the telemarketing services, hounding on me.
My business card had left the shores of lucky draw and landed in a marketing data bank.
I had suddenly grown in stature.
The lady on the phone coaxed me to go in for a platinum credit card.
It is difficult to say "NO" to a lady.
The supplementary card for my wife was free.
While my wife is beaming with confidence, I am now a slave to this non - degradable plastic.
A mere swipe from her card, sweeps my monthly budget.
Summer sales will bring in, summer surprises too.
The ladies on the phone had not stopped calling me, only the names had changed.
I was beginning to admire my women fan club.
She was now talking about, time sharing holidays.
She rattled a non-stop five minutes monologue.
All I could gather was that we were invited for a holiday presentation, at a three star hotel.
This was to follow by a free dinner.
It did not take us long and we were amongst the august gathering of holiday chasers.
We trotted the world on my table globe.
I am now a proud owner of a holiday club membership.
They gifted me Swiss Alps during extreme winter.
The bliss of time sharing holidays could leave you numb and cold.
My phone was at it again.
My friends are now raving about my corporate dining privilege card.
They have reasons to feel so, they eat free.
It could be embarrassing to go corporate dining.
You are never sure, what is to pay and what is free.
Your bill would decide if those were happy or sad hours.
I would be labeled gender biased, if I had not entertained the well dressed man at my office reception.
He had a no-nonsense business outlook.
Like a seasoned doctor, he felt my purse and not my pulse.
Those jumping graphs of life line mesmerized me.
His laptop cardiogram presentation was no less than an intensive care unit (ICU).
Life after 55 would need some spare parts.
My major organs were well covered in the premium package.
Death looked good with a neat US 150,000 $ insurance policy.
A free leather pouch wrapped it fine.
My phone is ringing again; it is the girl from the bank next door.
Now I am not sure, if it is a good neighbor to have.
She is offering interest free loans.
No salary letter, no guarantor, and free loan processing in 24 hours.
Housing loans, car loan, furnishing loan, you name it.
She says, "Buy now, pay later.
Beat the recession".
This bank has a Chinese neighbor.
They offer free Hakka noodles topped with chilly chicken.
Love thy neighbor seems to be the spice of life.
The new mantra is, do not drop a visiting card for free.
I can smell the garnished cuisine at the restaurant.
Once bitten, twice shy.
Nothing is free in this world.
"All is free" - is nothing short of a myth.