Kahwah wal-Kitab

NOTE: This post was originally written about 10 months ago, during my third maternity leave. I didn't realise it was languishing as a draft.

I was at The Book Cafe in MPH One Utama and browsing through a magazine, waiting for my spaghetti carbonara to arrive when I came across an article about sacrificing your career for something else, be it family, charity or whatever your passion may be. There were interviews with women who gave up their jobs to become stay-at-home mothers. One had me laughing as she stated how she couldn't even go the the toilet without a three-footer banging on the door demanding for "Mummy to come out and play now." Reminds me of my own three-footer and his shorter-by-6 inches brother.

It also got me thinking as to whether I would actually be able to make the same decision to give up my career. The answer, I have to disappoint some of you, is NO. If the question is about doing something I really love, I have to admit I really am passionate about my job. It really is NOT about the money. If it was, I'd be writing this post from a swanky apartment or five-bedroom bungalow in Abu Dhabi and buying myself a new luxury handbag every other month. Sometimes I think I'd even do my job for free! (If by some remote chance you happen to read this, please note that this is purely rhetoric and slashing my salary is a direct violation of my rights as a human.)

What I would really love, though, is flexi-hours and working from home. To be able to avoid wasting 2 hours or more of my day just getting through the crawling traffic to and from the office. And when the kids' demands and tantrums are just too much for me to handle, I can always use the office as an excuse to escape. Okay, I am so not an ibu mithali.

Hubby used to suggest that I start a business of some sort. He's seen some of his colleagues' wives open up bakeries and boutiques, so he thinks it's simply a matter of letting your hobby make money for you. But I just don't have a head for business. It would be fine if I could let someone else do all the money-managing for me. Of course, I would never consider him for that position. As a cook, maybe.

However, if I were to really give up my job for a business, it'll have to be in something I am purely passionate about. Something that combines coffee and books. Yes, I know the cafe-in-the-bookstore concept has been milked dry by the likes of Borders and MPH and such, but mine would be different. It'll be more like a bookstore-in-the-cafe, with lots of comfy sofas and bean bags for one to lie back in while indulging in a cuppa java with one's nose stuck in a novel or collection of anecdotes. And the books are not necessarily brand new either. I'd line the walls with some of my own collection, and there's no requirement to purchase a book to read in my cafe. Just pay for the coffee and doughnut. I'll even put Hubby's pau and curry puff on the menu. And my very own version of spaghetti carbonara (the one at MPH was disappointing).

The cafe will be called 'The Magic Faraway Tree' or 'The Wishing Chair' in honour of the first two Enid Blyton books I ever owned, which eventually lead to the complete 'Rewards' set of 48 Enid Blyton titles. Those were the books that introduced me to Greek mythology, golliwogs and boarding school. These books will have pride of place on the top shelf.

Hmm, I may just have a business plan there. You read it here first.