Vasu retired in January 2001. His days were previously filled with the hustle and bustle of early morning awakenings, breakfast, and rushing off to work. With retirement comes a new type of life.... boredom.

To fill the void in his life, he decided to "take a vacation" to Jackson, Mississippi - but with one caveat: his sister, Padma, must also take time off from work.

As this trip was being planned, his other sister was undergoing a gallbladder surgery, and hence the fraternal urge to visit her older sister started to set in. So, Vasu, along with Padma and Gopi, drove from Jackson to Macon, to vist their 2 sisters, Sushila and Indira.

The visit to Macon was filled with joy and fun. Many Hindi movies were watched. Many jokes were told. Many different types of food was consumed.

The weekend was also noted for a major change in Sushila's life - she CUT her hair. It is not known when she last united a pair of scissors and her locks, but the history books date this event back to when the Red Sea parted for Moses. To minimize "hair tangling", she decided to create 2 braids, which made her look quite young. This was in sharp contrast to the long single braid worn by Indira, and lack of a braid on Padma's head.

This weekend was also noted for Tejas rolling over onto his stomach for the first time! This may not seem like a big feat, but for someone who has always seen the world lying on his back, this new perspective of the world was something to behold.

As always, these family gatherings are very memorable.