After a thoroughly enjoyable weekend
Which involved watching an animated science fiction thriller
Followed by a Football World Cup Final
Which turned out to be even more thrilling
I had to face the dreaded prospect
Of returning to work on a Monday
Yes, the notorious villain of the week
Which can ensure sleepless nights
Even for the strongest souls
Well, the day was actually not that bad
To begin with, at least
After a hot bath
Followed by an even hotter cup of filter coffee
Prepared by my dear mother, as ever
I had a simple breakfast
Consisting of a plate of chapatis
Mixed with some rather tangy marmalade
Thus, I was ready
To face the grind of work
Or at least, I thought I was
The reality turned out to be as different
As apples and oranges
It started with a few phone calls
However, the response was not flattering
Thus, I headed to lunch
In the hope of making some progress
In the second half of the day
However, I couldn't have been more wrong
The phone calls failed to achieve their purpose
As I was unable to obtain slots
For the interviews to be scheduled
Moreover, I was dealing with multiple stuff
At the same time
Which proved to be even more difficult
Than obtaining a seat in one of the IIMs
Time was playing a cat-and-mouse game with me
The closer I got to him
The more he would evade me
As the hours flew by
I kept meandering aimlessly
Without achieving anything tangible
By the time I finally got the hang of work
It was already well past 6 PM
And I felt as though I had wasted more time
Than a certain Sunil Gavaskar had done
In his infamous innings of 36 not out, off 175 *****
In the inaugural 1975 Cricket World Cup
Thus, I was thoroughly relieved
When the day finally ended
Returning to work on a Monday
Especially after a thoroughly enjoyable weekend
Is never good
Full stop

After a rather enjoyable Saturday
Which marked the return
Of my mother and grandfather
After a fortnight's stay in Chennai
I was really looking forward
To some R&R on "precious" Sunday
It started promisingly enough
Getting up as late as nine o'clock
Enjoying a hot cup of filter coffee
Prepared by my dear mother
Solving Wordle in three attempts
Watching photos and videos of trains
Playing my all-time favourite game 'Choices'
Enjoying a rather delicious brunch
Again prepared by Amma
Followed by my customary afternoon siesta
Which lasted more than two hours
Just as I was beginning to think
That I couldn't have asked for a better Sunday
I had to begin the rather tedious process
Of filing my income tax returns
Fortunately, Amma was there to support me
And take me through the entire process
Which involved numerous calculations
Some of which, were more confusing
Than even the questions asked in IIT-JEE!
After nearly two hours of breaking our heads
And cursing the Finance Minister profusely
Which, by the way, was entirely my doing
The returns were finally filed
And the tax duly paid
As I heaved a sigh of relief
Having gotten a huge monkey off my weary back
It dawned on me
That tomorrow is Monday
And I have to go to office as well
Which involves getting up as early as six o'clock
Followed by a commute in the dreaded Mumbai local
With its super dense crush load
And once I reach office
I have to share a tiny cabin
With my boss and his wife
And endure a lecture or two
About my recent lack of success at work
In this rather claustrophobic setting
Oh boy, I'll never get a break, will I?

You know the famous saying
All good things come to an end
This applies to weekends as well
Or in this case, Sundays
Because I was forced to work yesterday
Due to a massive project
Which will keep me occupied
For a good three weeks
Including two Saturdays
Hence, all the more reason
To positively dread the start of tomorrow
Ah yes, the infamous Monday
Something that terrifies me
More than climbing Mount Everest
Or entering a lion's den
Or earning the wrath of a cobra
I can go on and on
But I think I've made my point
Yes, Mondays are bad
Especially if you've enjoyed the weekend
As much as I did
Notwithstanding working on Saturday
So, do you want to know
What makes tomorrow twice as bad
As any other Monday?
Firstly, as mentioned earlier
I am working on a big project
Probably my biggest in the last three years
Secondly, while the going has been smooth so far
Things are going to get tricky
So far, all I have accomplished
Is pure research
But now, I'll have to start calling people
And these are not recruitment calls
Which are relatively straightforward
On the other hand
I am entering pure sales territory
Which may not be a big deal
For most "normal" people
But for someone who is autistic
It is a different ballgame altogether
In fact, it is like steering a ship
Through the Bermuda Triangle
And finally
The biggest roadblock
In my long and treacherous path
Is not the candidates
Not even the client
But my accursed laptop
Whose ability to perform under pressure
Is even less than that of South Africa
In a global cricket tournament

She’s so real it doesn’t matter.
So real I can imagine her.
When my heart fails and eyes are weak,
She’s Monday morning to my week.

Her beauty is springtime’s envy.
Her beauty is my energy.
Awake or in my dreams I seek,
I need her smile to start my week.

I close my eyes to watch it grow,
Her beauty’s everywhere I go.
Like sunlight o’er horizon’s peak,
She is the sunshine of my week.

I see her now and evermore,
On Mondays though I need her more.
When missing her makes things look bleak,
I think of her to start my week.