Mental Excursions

Community living needs training Most of us nowadays opt to live in an apartment instead of an independent house to avoid the hassles of maintenance and security in addition to more opportunities for finding company and engaging in activities of choice. The increasing number of high-rise residential buildings mushrooming in urban areas, offer a plethora of choices in this regard. Don’t get me wrong. Living in an independent house even if you are a tenant, has its own advantages. But if one is looking for facilities like gymnasium/badminton/tennis/squash courts, swimming pool, club house, safe parking, family/relatives/friends, the location (quiet area/heart of the city/near workplace), all on offer at one place, then living in a residential complex or housing society as they are also called, is the possible answer. Some people look for gated communities even if the incoming visitors feel hassled when they have to answer a long list of questions in spite of the tearing hurry they might...

Covidiquette Travel back in time for a minute to 2018. There is an invitation to a get-together of friends. You refuse straightaway because you do not want to mingle with people. Yet in case you feel comfortable to go, you do not shake hands, hug, bump chests or kiss on the cheeks. You sit six feet away, keep dabbing your hands with a germ-killer that you carried with you, keep your mouth covered, do not accept food or drink and the conversation mostly revolves around sickness and vaccination. No need to tell you that it is rude, very rude indeed, socially unacceptable and insulting to others around you. That is labeled bad etiquette.  Now back to 2020 and 2021 and all the above are considered polite behavior according to ‘covidiquette’. Times have changed and thanks to a ‘sub-microscopic infectious agent’, this is what we are supposed to do and almost everyone appreciates this as being considerate too.  Nearly 18 months of fear, a few lockdowns of varying degrees followed by ...

  Third wave or a ripple? Tomorrow is our Independence Day. Proudly colouring everything right from dupattas to pulao and sandwiches in the colours of our tiranga (tricolor), our chests puffed up with a surge of patriotism and love for all things Indian, we have already forgotten about our sportspersons and their performance in the recent Olympics except the drizzle of some interesting nuggets of information. As long as our army guards the borders, whichever the government might be, I feel safe in expending my resources fighting my own war of thoughts. My constant fear and cause for worry is the impending third wave of Covid-19. The first wave shook us with uncertainty and consternation, the second rattled us with its ferociousness and now every news channel, medical expert and person next to me is warning me of the arrival of the third wave and reasons for or against if it would be deadlier. Looks like Delhi has already been the winner in this race although you would find it ...

  Steel up, girls! Not to be engaged in a regular job is not good for the mental health of some people like me. This week has been worrisome and I have been tense thinking about the women in sports in our country.    Come to think of it, while the whole country (rather the large milieu of sports-enthusiasts) is following the Tokyo Olympics, 2020 taking place now in 2021, I am thinking of the present and future of sportswomen in India and I am pleased that it has shifted the focus away from cricket and lives of cricketers even if temporarily. Olympics to me is not about participation or also-rans, but about winning the silver and the gold medal. Those who get gold are understandably happy but happier are those who win a bronze because even this non-precious alloy gets them a spot on the podium and a mention on the medal tally. By that calculation silver winners are the discontented lot because they know they missed out on the gold. Let me know what the reaction is when...