It was a quiet day as the temperature was soaring and had touched 40 degree Celsius. Caught up on my reading and that worked out to be soothing. Meanwhile, I was also updating myself about the happenings in the family. Today, was the inauguration of the 'PN Panicker National Institute of Social Development' at a simple function at Thiruvananthapuram - a function that I was to be part of and had worked on its conception but couldn't attend due to the changed circumstances.
The electricity was playing truant right from the morning and it had gone kaput soon after lunch time. Going by the pattern of the past few days, I was expecting its restoration before the 6 o'clock news on the Malayalam channels. However, it was not to be and on closer scrutiny, it was found that power was available up to the external switchboard! That was the time the 'tube light' glowed in my mind!
On crosschecking I found that our neighbour had electricity and therefore, I'd rung up our section of the state electricity board regarding the impasse and the supervisor's answer told me that it would be a long wait as both his linemen, on duty, were out on fieldwork - a euphemism for their unaccounted absence! "So, sir could you get your electrician to do the needful?" I replied that I'd give it a try but had asked him to retain my complaint of defect till I told him otherwise. The elderly couple's house, across ours, also suffered the same fate but the problem there was more acute in that it was a single phase connection.
My man, Sajeev, came and got our system going by putting it on the only phase that was available. But he refused to go to the other house - he's had some bad experiences in the past with them! Finally, by around 8 o'clock, the two linemen - Varghese and Sunil fetched up and did a 'patchwork', promising to do the proper rectification by morning, before they handed over their duties. The former, was smelling as though he was a mobile distillery and I observed them to be 'profoundly happy' for no particular reason!
All's well that ends well and I was happy that I could have our neighbour's problem licked along with that of mine.
Tailpiece.
Two days back, when we'd gone for Lekha's dad's funeral, I'd forgotten to lock up the main door. I seem to be getting forgetful a bit too frequently these days!
The electricity was playing truant right from the morning and it had gone kaput soon after lunch time. Going by the pattern of the past few days, I was expecting its restoration before the 6 o'clock news on the Malayalam channels. However, it was not to be and on closer scrutiny, it was found that power was available up to the external switchboard! That was the time the 'tube light' glowed in my mind!
On crosschecking I found that our neighbour had electricity and therefore, I'd rung up our section of the state electricity board regarding the impasse and the supervisor's answer told me that it would be a long wait as both his linemen, on duty, were out on fieldwork - a euphemism for their unaccounted absence! "So, sir could you get your electrician to do the needful?" I replied that I'd give it a try but had asked him to retain my complaint of defect till I told him otherwise. The elderly couple's house, across ours, also suffered the same fate but the problem there was more acute in that it was a single phase connection.
My man, Sajeev, came and got our system going by putting it on the only phase that was available. But he refused to go to the other house - he's had some bad experiences in the past with them! Finally, by around 8 o'clock, the two linemen - Varghese and Sunil fetched up and did a 'patchwork', promising to do the proper rectification by morning, before they handed over their duties. The former, was smelling as though he was a mobile distillery and I observed them to be 'profoundly happy' for no particular reason!
All's well that ends well and I was happy that I could have our neighbour's problem licked along with that of mine.
Tailpiece.
Two days back, when we'd gone for Lekha's dad's funeral, I'd forgotten to lock up the main door. I seem to be getting forgetful a bit too frequently these days!
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