Shopping for Liquid Gold

No, not that gold. Let me state outright that I loathe gold and jewelry. Apparently that makes me a deviant weirdo, but so be it. I do not wear - and never did - a thaali, the gold chain and special pendant that every self-respecting married Tamil Hindu woman is supposed to proudly adorn herself with. Having anything hanging around my neck makes me ill-tempered, I told my husband in the heady early days of our courtship, the ideal time to sneak in such notions; besides, I saw no reason why I should wear a symbol of being married while my husband was not similarly obliged.