Mask on

 Following is a real conversation I had with my clerk on Covid and masks!

Me: Now that I have given you the money you asked for can you please complete the work on time? The clients are super anxious.

Devraj: Sure ma’am. Have faith in me.

Me: Okay. Bye!

(Me moving to the parking lot)

Devraj: Ma’am will you please take my advice on an unrelated matter. In work you are my senior but in life I am much senior to you…

Me: Sure sir.

(making a mental checklist of all the things I messed up in the last month)

Devraj: Don’t wear a mask ma’am. It is bad for your health

*ok that is not there on any sane checklist*

Me: (laughed nervously) what?!

Devraj: See my lips they have become allergic where the masks have cut.

Me: You must have tied in too tightly. Get one your size. Do you want to die of corona?!

Devraj: Ma’am don’t take it the wrong way but I don’t believe in corona. Have you seen it with your eyes.

Me: Sir! It is not something you can choose to believe in like god. It is science actual facts. Do you think our government which you admit is useless will go to such lengths to protect us from a non existent virus.

Devraj: It is all a scam ma’am. Just another way to take money from the poor and stop us from working.

Me: (trying to find a way to make him understand) Sir, I know the last one year has been very difficult income wise. But isn’t it the same reason you should be more cautious. I know you have 4 children to take care of. Wearing a mask is just the cheapest way to keep you safe from the virus.

Devraj: There is no virus ma’am. It is just common cold. People with asthma always have breathing problem. This is all unnecessary hype.

Me: Sir, my own mother had corona a few months back. She didn’t even have the symptoms you were talking of. But there were some parameters in her blood test like IL6 which were triple what they should be. If we had left it unchecked she had a definite chance of stroke or heart attack.

Devraj: (mumbling to himself) I didn’t read about this side effect anywhere.

Me: …..and even assuming corona is some hyped up common cold, if you enter a hospital be assured that you will be charged a bomb and you would have wished you wore that 20 Rs mask.

Devraj: but public hospitals..

Me: No buts. I know you are going to say government hospitals are free. I also know how you and a lot of people including my own grandmother feel that you won’t come back alive if you go into one. That is by the way very untrue. The corporation took excellent care of us when my mom was unwell and we all had to home isolate.

Full on monologue mode now

I know you have every reason to mistrust the institutions in this country. The politicians, the hospitals, the country. But believe me when I say corona is real. And Also if you don’t wear a mask in front of me or remove it while talking I will not give you any more work. Your belief should not hurt me!

Devraj: Okay ma’am. Since you are saying so much I will wear a mask from now on.

Me: Also wear it to cover your nose not your chin. I am saying this because I care about your life. You are moving in the Courts every day and meeting 100s of people who think like this. Protect yourself!

Devraj: Okay ma’am. Mask on from now on. Thank you.

Me: No I should Thank you!

 

Amorous Ashes

 

This post is dedicated to Deepika who has been a constant pillar of support. Thanks for always helping me painstakingly - be it my blog or love life or buying the right gift. You're the best! 

A Repressed soul

Shouting from inside no more.

I exude confidence in the

Smoke I puff out

Little do you know

I did it by

 burning my soul

And those Amorous Ashes

Won’t stay inside no more.

 

I want to pour myself

Unto a vessel like you

And hope you make sense of me

And whisper me my truth.

I can’t keep looking

for someone

Who doesn’t exist inside

no more.

 

Far too long

I have been comfortably numb

Make me feel

With your pinprick gaze

Pull by hand

Muscles floating in outer space

Rub my eyes

So I can see through the haze

Define reality

By sealing my lips

Drive me home

From this dauntless daze!

A new hope

 

Collective bad dreams

Spit us out of our

Stupified sleeps.

 

Denuded desires,

Chasing the ghosts of

Gone glories.

 

Midnight oil burned,

Moody mindscapes

Caught frozen in

picturesque landscapes.

 

I didn’t know what to do,

But she stood with me

With a lamp in her hand

And somehow that was enough.

Written for the Sunday muse and PU's Sunday pantry. Based it out of the struggle my team is going through this season. 

Be the Bee

 

 

She was lil miss

Buzz the bumblebee

She wasn’t going to just

 let her honey

 be.

 

Fierce and protective

Her words truly stung

Only the sinister selective/

Callous collective.

 

Yet the rumors really hung

Floating around the honeycomb

“Queen Bee coming through”

 

However

 She was lil miss

Buzz the bumblebee

And she was going to

Let her haters Be.

 

Mellifluous mornings

Tend to drown out the

Superfluous mournings.

 

Keep being busy

As you can be

Always be you

For you are a bee

 

Forget the fools

You

Don’t need to fix them.

 

She is lil miss

Worker bee

The pollen is where

The honey will be

And the honey is where

Her heart will always be.

 

So take the hint,

My friend

Without the likes of her

The world will go extinct.

So take the hint

And let her buzz free

And her sting be.

 

 

 

 

If i were to die soon

 

Credits : Deviant Art

If I were to die soon

It would be probably be my greatest undoing

At the peak of my youth

I may have succumbed to a bit too many

Seductive sins.

Maybe it was just the lightning

Since I am a rod to one too many 

frightful happenings.

I would say sorry to all my darlings,

I have definitely lived well

A frog in a peaceful pond

I am not averse to the urban land.

The skies however make me giddy,

Motion sickness has made to not look up

So far.

I have definitely lived well

And I look forward to what comes up

Beyond life as well.

Will there still be a I?

Will this I look into the god’s eye

Or just be a digit in the proverbial pi?

I am ready to find out

Not just right now!

Loved this prompt from the Poets and story tellers united where they challenged us all to picture ourselves in our deathbed!

 

Wanderlust

Once upon a time

Being a wanderlust

Was seen as a mental disorder

By flat earthers

(irony duly noted)

 

Then we had the likes of Columbus

Find his ‘India’

And kill a lot many Indians

In the inane name of ‘colonialisation’

And killed many a civilisation

In the name of observation.

(irony again noted)

 

Then came the modern ages

Where every instagrammer

Pronounced themselves a wanderlust

And travelled the roads always taken

As long as they got a selfie

And a pic for their tinder bio.

 

Out of the corner of the eye

In a lorry packed with explosives

Came in crazy corona.

Travel was now confined to

The end of our streets

And inside our eye

Where the mind meets

And give us little treats

From the camera of the past

To vacations visited last

And memories gone by fast.

 

Home which was once a retreat

Has now become a place of deceit

Where we now work and relax not

Suddenly our third eye and an old map

Is all we got!  

 

Written for Sunday muse and Writer's Pantry

Ludo Queen

So in lieu of my recent continued obsession with the game ‘Ludo King’, I have come to the conclusion that life is very similar to a game of  Ludo. Most people think it is the oversimplistic Snakes and ladders and a few would like to think that it is a complicated game of chess. The fact is that while in Snakes and Ladders we have ZERO control of the game and we are essentially leaving it to chance , in chess we are the masters of our own destiny. Neither situation really reflects life as it is.

 

Life like I said is a game of Ludo. It is the culmination of a seemingly predictable algorithm coupled with pure roll of the dice and strategic movement of your tokens. There are 2 ways to play it – either aggressively look to take out your opponent’s tokens to move forward or play the safe game and focus on the moves which will lead you to not be killed. It is fight or flee all over again. But again it is a question of responding to what the situation demands of you. Sometimes if you chicken out of taking the token which is right in front of you , others might start attacking you thinking you are a weakling . Or sometimes, while all your tokens are in the safe zone guarded by luck you might get cocky and try to grab what is not yours and end up back in square one.

 

So don’t be a cock or a chicken. Be your own wonderful self! Trust your instinct always. The gut always seems to process past defeats in a better fashion than your logical brain .

Earn your coins , enjoy the journey however tumultuous it gets. If all your tokens are back in the hut , don’t give up automatically. Atleast in the algorithm based universe perseverance has a price. Remember, giving up never has no upside! Also remember that this is just some elaborate game and it makes no sense to take it so seriously. Death might just be the end of a simulation for all we know. Okay. I am going to stop typing now :P

 

(365 words)

Quarantine Nananana!

 

There used to be a time

When I walked on the pavement

Now without it being any crime

I walk on the middle of  once jam packed roads

(Like the above sentence)

With absolute amazement!

 

The angles are absolutely marvellous

For amateur photography

Corona has been overzealous

In bringing back the original topography

 

Once this all ends

Will be ready to make amends?

Or go back to the mad rush

And talk about these truths in a hush?

 

I would like think

(However naively )

Since everything including the kitchen sink

Has been quarantined

That maybe the lockdown has sanitized us?

 

Maybe the mask

Has given emphasis to our eyes

Which will open itself

To All Systemic Atrocities &

Natural Calamities.

And to the fact that –

Anti Maskers are the worst virus of humanity!

 

 Written for PU's Midweek motif  "Pavements" but since I am late I shall link up on Sunday!

Karpagam gardens

So , I went on a walk today.

Roads which  once bustled with robust activity

The Covid addled streets were empty.

I was in search of a pharmacy

Which sells Coca Cola.

Yes , I am well aware of the irony.

 

As I was walking in the main road

I saw an ambulance racing past me.

I always worry a bit about my oldest relatives

After I see that despicable life saving vehicle.

Gave a mental prayer.

Alas! A van with an empty ice box followed it.

 

Mood properly ruined,

I whispered curses to myself and

Switched to a tiny lane,

Hoping for calmness rather calamity

In smaller streets.

 

That’s when I heard a loud male voice

Shouting with all his lungs in hindi,

On how she had tortured him for the past 2 months

On very damn thing!

And it reverberated through the streets

Even when I was fast walking away..

 

Now thoroughly pissed with myself

For not just staying home and

Running out of stamina

I reached the end of the street.

There I saw a couple play badminton

Like we are in the middle of some summer holidays

And thought maybe corona IS

A vacation for the rich.

 

My cynical view was somewhat defeated

When I was nearing the pharmacy

And saw this cute cat

Stretching itself in the middle of the road.

Maybe all will be fine if I just chilled a bit

And stop constantly worrying so much?

 

Maybe peace is something to search inwards for

In the turbulent waves of my heart

Rather than in the rosy exteriors of my neigborhood?

Happy with my midstreet epiphany

I bought some aerated slow poison and

delicious diabetic inducing treats

and made my way back home.

 

 

 

 

40K Laptops

So I use my laptop all day long but don't know much about them technically. I don't know why i5 is better than i3 , I don't care much about SSD or HDD. However , I do know that my laptop died last week after 6 years of diligent and sturdy service. RIP Dell Vostro i3 version! You will be missed. So I am now in a hunt for the next best decent laptop which will be my companion for the next half decade :P


So I did tonnes of research ,i.e, ask people on social media about what model to buy. My budget is Rs.40,000/- or somewhere around that figure. I think I have a compilation of sorts and a lot of people wanted in on these suggestion. So here we go.

1. Asus VivoBook 14 Ryzen 5 Quad Core 2nd Gen - (8 GB/512 GB SSD/Windows 10 Home) X412DA-EK503T Thin and Light Laptop (14 inch, Peacock Blue, 1.5 kg)

                                                       Price : Rs. 40,990 on flipkart


                                                           For more details click here




2. Lenovo Ideapad S145 Ryzen 5 Quad Core - (8 GB/1 TB HDD/Windows 10 Home) S145-15API Thin and Light Laptop (15.6 inch, Granite Black, 1.85 kg)


                                           
 

Flipkart price - Rs.37,990/-

For more details click here

3. Asus Vivobook 15 Ryzen 5 Quad Core - (8 GB/512 GB SSD/Windows 10 Home) X512DA-EJ502T Thin and Light Laptop (15.6 inch, Slate Grey, 1.6 kg)

Flipkart price - Rs.46,990/-

For more details click here

4.HP 15s Ryzen 5 Quad Core - (8 GB/512 GB SSD/Windows 10 Home) 15s-EQ0024au Thin and Light Laptop (15.6 inch, Natural Silver, 1.7 kg, With MS Office)


                                                      

                                                   Flipkart price - Rs.41,990/-

                                                 For more details click here




5. Asus VivoBook 14 Core i3 10th Gen - (4 GB/256 GB SSD/Windows 10 Home) X412FA-EK361T Thin and Light Laptop (14 inch, Transparent Silver, 1.50 kg)

Flipkart price - Rs.35,990/-

For more details click here

6. Asus Core i3 10th Gen - (4 GB/512 GB SSD/Windows 10 Home) X512FA-EJ374T Thin and Light Laptop (15.6 inch, Coral Crush, 1.70 kg)

                                Flipkart price- Rs.39,990/-

                           For more details, click here





7. Dell Vostro 15 3590 laptop

8. Mi Notebook 14

Those with more suggestions are welcome to chip in!

What once was

  

We are plagued by memories

By what once was

Ours to cherish

But not cherished.

 

To collaborate with &

Not compete against.

To break a for given bond

Without any thought given

Absent mindedly

Like how dusts of disinterest and distance

Began to gather over us

Together.

 

But we are still friends,

Still as dead water.

Of silent tears

Which were (never) cried.

 

Liquid Heart

 

 ##skylover wordlist - Alchemy , implacable , knight , aqua , mask , aloof , almond , nocturnal , landscape , sting.

 

 

These nocturnal mornings..

A product of virus induced,

Unstable raging routines

Sting me just a bit more when

It dawns upon me that,

 

My knight in shining whatever

Will find it just a bit more impossible

To track me down.

My face covered with equal measures

Aloofness & N97 masks.

 

My implacable heart demands

An alchemy of sorts

Or atleast a reverse osmosis

Of this aquatic almond

In the centre of my chest,

 

To leak the leanings of my liquid heart

Unto the larger landscape

And hope love finds me

Before it is a bit too late.

 

I thank Kerry for her monthly word list. That really inspired me and I ended up incorporating all the words to make one poem. 

Your Love is definitely my drug

My blog has completed 10 years of existence! :) Thanks everyone for the support.  Also what have they done to the blogger dashboard? It absolutely sucks. Sharing a poem which struck me when I was having bath, like Archimedes. A Eureka moment if i may :P 

 

 

 

 

 

Distance has not dissolved my 

Ever Flowing Love for you.

Now that time has evaporated 

that seductive steam! 

(oh! so seductive)

They have now crystallized like meth,

my feelings that had ached my soft core

like a rapturous encore.

And now I snort it out like Coke

Albeit aware that I might run out of stock

And die of shock regarding the loss of spark.

 

I see red

There is no doubt, 

the world is filled with a myriad of nincompoops

Today's world especially. 

I heard a right winger legit swing these words on National Television

"The older generation must sacrifice their lives for the sake of the economy"

NINCOMPOOP! 

I see red everywhere, 

but this sunday morning I have decided to take the all appeasing blue

a bold one nonetheless 

and paint YOU COULD GET CORONA TOO.

Don't be that idiot who thinks 

the virus will swing by you 

and not harm you. 

Not too old

too smart

too insignificant 

for the cornea less corona. 

But you can definitely be too stupid. 

Can't believe this is the gift 

I am getting for my well deserved retirement.

Teaching common sense to the so called well educated generation.

You can balance work with a life only when you have a life.

You might think I am being Captain Obvious

but that has what it has come down to really. 

Simple, rudimentary, life saving instructions

which we somehow are incapable of  listening to it seems!

Maybe I should just use the red paint after all.

Core questions

 

What separates the good from the bad person?
His actions in the time of crisis, even if the crisis itself was probably caused by him. Will be  my short answer.

Those who turn a blind eye or like a popular tamil saying -  close their eyes and believe the world is dark are the worst kind of people. I was for better or worse involved in an accident today. I had people from the crowd come and tell the person (who was staying back to help the guy he injured) to run away or else he will get in trouble.

What more trouble can be cause if you run away is my next question?

Morally, your conscience will eat you up. Practically, we have CCTV cameras watching our every move. And humanly I do not know how you can leave a man for the dead and just drive on.

Maybe that is what ‘self preservation’ is all about. Isolated individuals escaping detention and infecting hundreds. Those who are worried about getting infected creating a new pandemic by taking all products away from the market shelf.

Maybe it all comes to our 2 basic instincts? The fight or flee one ofcourse. By fleeing we are by no means freeing ourselves. We submit ourselves to the hysteria of the moment. We are letting the moment defeat us. Shouldn’t we be slaying every moment by making the best choices on the ground?

I know it is easier said than done. But weirdly enough the call of the moment seems to be that all of us should be together, by isolating ourselves physically, but be an unified front mentally and emotionally combat this new unknown threat.

It is unique in the sense that we need to operate alone to work well as an unit. By guarding our self we are are protecting the whole. But many still choose to make the wrong choices and worsen the deal for everyone else! This post is for such people.

If you are a doctor, journalist covering corona on the ground or just a kindred spirit. Thank you so much for this support! Have a great day.

Sweet Surrender

Give up!

Trying to fight the great inevitability

of death, pain and loss.

Given in to the memories of yesterday

Crashing into your consciousness

Like waves on a no moon day

Luring you into the bottomless ocean

Why walk on water?

When you can sleep on the ocean floor

Squarepants and what not.

Silver Linings Playbook

By Samyuktha J

Once upon a time

she did give a damn.

She reacted to every crime

On every page of that depressing newspaper.

The creases on that paper

Started residing on her forehead &

 the corners of her mouth

Her smiles few and far between

Had the air of melancholy

Of a loss felt before it was born.

She grew apart from her people

Better than to fall apart she would say.

Then one day I saw her at Joe’s and shocked to hear her sing

Once upon a time

I did give a damn.

Now I would rather dine on my dime

And definitely some more wine.

Life is too short and my dog’s life shorter

Can’t waste any on things that I cannot change

And definitely not on things designed to make me cringe

Salut and Bon Apetit!

My inquisitive eyes were question enough

She smiled a benign smile

Her eyes crinkled with joy.

“One Sunday morning

I was reading the paper in no man’s land

I didn’t feel the heat nor the beauty of what was around me

Nor did I feel my loneliness or the danger surrounding me

I was feeling older than my age and carrying the burden of the world

When I suddenly looked out of the paper

And saw a wolf in front of me.

Peaceful and wise staring at me

I found beauty in the beast

And possibilities of violence

If I moved too much.

Then I Realized the whole point of my life

Was to look at him ,

look at what was around me

And not darned piece of paper!

I tore it to pieces and was searching for a dustbin in that wasteland

And when I turned back he wasn’t there anymore

But atleast I was."

I smiled. 

 I know she did give a damn

but this time

To what really mattered

To what was in front of her

Life~

Written for the sunday muse