@ New Delhi (4).

Got up at 5, sent all the messages, tea and rusks came a trifle late at about a half past 7. Went about my chores, washed my undergarments and finished bath by about a half past 8. 

Walked within the premises and recited my prayers.

Went and had our toasts and omelette from the vendor who has become friendly now.

Got our tasks done and ticked each serial away with glee.

Lunch at a wayside eatery in Sector 5, RK Puram. Achari took us there!

Returned and worked on the speeches of Maman and Suresh Gopi. Fought with Maman over the script.

Went for an evening cuppa. Returned and completed the remaining work. Sent Shabd back home.

A comparatively early dinner; didn’t have any appetite so just had curd.

An early hitting of the sack!

@ New Delhi! (3).

Got up late at a half past 7, went through the chores and was ready by 9. Walked within the premises and had recited my prayers.

Had breakfast of toasts and omelette at the wayside dhabha and washed it down with a piping-hot cup of tea. Returned to catch up on our work on the laptop with Shabd.

Went to Logani Printers at Khan market to get the invitation cards printed. Had lunch of “sambar rice” at the Mysore Cafe which was nice. Returned to base and continued with our work. Emergencies and queries came and went with each and everyone sorted out with appropriate decisions.

Ran an errand to Loganis’ to collect our cards. Rajasree had come by to help us like she did yesterday. Off to the media offices to invite them over for the Book Release function.

Had gone across to Mathrubhoomi, Malayala Manorama, Asianet and the Vishwa Yuva Kendra. Invited them for the function. Returned by a half past 7.

Dinner was at Vandana ji’s house at a half past 9. A quiet evening thereafter.

@ New Delhi (2).

Got up around a quarter past 3, sleep refused to come by subsequently and I recited the first half of my prayers. Maman, citing lack of sleep, came and switched on the light in our room and disturbed our sleep. Recited the second half of my prayers then.

Got up at 7, had tea, went through my chores - washed my undergarments - and was ready by a half past 9. Went for breakfast of masala dosa followed by a piping hot cup of tea! Returned to our pad and went about doing the day’s work.

Went to the Vice Presidential enclave to express our misgivings on their approved Minute-to-minute programme and dais plan. We were sad that Shaddy and Geeta Malhotra haven’t been approved to sit on the dais! 

Lunch of Curd Rice at the Mysore Cafe, returned to our pad to continue with our work of compiling the details of the attendees with the accompaniment of Rajasree, Anil and Sasi. Yakkittiyak all the way.

Went out at about a half past 8 for dinner. Had a rumaali roti and chicken curry!

Returned to our pad and hit the sack at my usual time.

@ New Delhi!

Got up at 12, went through the chores and we (Maman, Aniyan and self) set off for the airport. Our flight took off at a 10’ past 3. Were served a meal around 3 AM. Reached New Delhi by a half past 6, half an hour before ETA!

Kishori drove us to Jor Bath, where we had a wash and change and had breakfast of toasts and omelette, washed it down with a cuppa tea.

Maman and I sent quite a few messages regarding the Book Release function on What’sApp. Lunch of idlis, chutney and sambar fetched by Kishori.

Off to the Vice President’s office to discuss the nuts and bolts of the forthcoming Book Release program.

Returned to have a meeting with our co-ordinaries at the guest house. An outline plan has been drawn out.

At Thiruvananthapuram.

Our day began at 4 AM, we went about our chores and were ready well in time. Monish, our chauffeur, came at a quarter to 5 and I sent him to sleep in the car.  We were ready by a half past 6 and we kicked off at. quarter to 7.

Breakfast was at Korattur by about a half past 8.

Reached Lekha’s sister’s place, by 2, for lunch. Met Iñdu’s parents and dropped her mom at the private bus stand.

Resumed our journey and reached Maman’s place by a half past 5. Ran an errand of going to the Foundation as Maman had to collect a few papers. Aniyan and Chambu accompanied us.

We’ve to leave for the airport at 0100 hrs tomorrow!

Lekha and I complete 35 years together!

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Handed over the gift to Lekha while she, too, handed over another.

Washing machinex of the soiled clothes.

We were ready by 9 when Nimyl reached us. After an early breakfast, we were off to the Saroja Multi Speciality Hospital to collect Lekha's tongue's biopsy report. O boy, it was a solid block enroute!

Lekha's report shows that there's nothing to worry but it recommends another 'wedge surgery' to rule out the foggiest of doubts.

Reached Dr Kripal, the gastro enterologist, who'd carried out my review. The next is after three months!

Collected medicines.

Returned home. Shebir brought us the anniversary cake and a few sweets on Lekha's directives.

Lunch (ordered from Pazhayidathu and it was nice!) watched television followed by siesta.

Shut down 'The Quarterdeck' in stages.

A great day when we received messages and calls, wishing us a great day! Damn sweet of them!! 

A breakthrough for Alzheimer's treatment in India.

Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly has launched donanemab in the Indian market under the brand name Lormalzi. The once-a-month 350 mg infusion has been shown to slow the progression of the disease  by dissolving the amyloid beta protein plaques in the brain, proven to be a classical sign of the neurodegenerative disease.

The innovative drug - third to be approved for the disease by the US  Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) and the first one to be launched in India - will be prohibitively expensive. A single dose of the drug might cost Rs.91,688. However, Eli Lilly will soon begin an access programme to ensure that patients can get the drug at lower prices.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Blood drawal for finding out my Blood Sugars - Fasting and Post Prandial, Hb and LFT. Got the results at 12. My readings are under control, phew!

Walked on the courtyard; recited my prayers and carried out my exercise regimen. The AM dropped by to see our new car.

Lekha's aarathi by the silver coin, today being the 1st of the Malayalam month of Edavam.

Worked on my laptop.

Lunch, Lekha had made a lovely fish curry. Saw the last and final episode of "Snehakkoottu" but didn't see the end as I'd gone out to meet Shebir, the bakery owner followed by siesta.

Aniyan also is coming to New Delhi for the book release.

Went to town to buy a gift for us for our 35th wedding anniversary.

A quiet evening thereafter.

Back at The Quarterdeck.

Dateline 14 May

Our day had started at 4 today. Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Sent all the messages, opened up the house in a limited fashion, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Monish had fetched up late, went to the Thrikkonnamarkotu temple to do puja on the new car. After that the usual halt at the Randalummoodu Nagaraja kshetram, exchanged pleasantries with the priest.

At Pidavoor to pick up Rema and Padmakumar. Hello to Aji.

Breakfast at the Padma Cafe, Adoor.

Lunch at Thrippoonithura and had our dinner packed.

Reached Guruvayur by a trifle past 5. To the car spa for the vehicle's wash before offering her for puja. It was pouring. The priest, Gireesh did the puja well; befriended him!

Reached The Quarterdeck by a quarter past 8. Sent Monish back immediately.

The house was opened up partially.

A power interruption at 2200 hrs. So, we slept at a half past 10 as we were dog tired!

Tackling the Strait of Hormuz crisis.

Prime Minister Modi's advisory on the present Hormuz crisis has taken centre stage with the opposition - RaGa calls it inefficiency - crying "no way".

Currently, this is happening all over the world.

  * Several states in the US have encouraged citizens to work from home.

  * South Korea asked citizens to use washing machines and vacuum cleaners on weekends to reduce 

     demand.

  * Pakistan Super League matches were played without crowds to reduce energy consumption.

  * Sri Lanka declared Wednesdays as a national holiday to conserve fuel.

  * Bangladesh ordered shopping malls to close by 7 PM and banned decorative lighting to save

     electricity.

  * China encouraged citizens to switch to electric vehicles (EVs).

  * Thailand advised citizens to set air conditioners at 27 degrees and avoid wearing coats and ties to

     reduce cooling demand.

  * The UK reduced highway speed limits to 80 kmph to improve fuel efficiency.

  * Germany introduced car-free Sundays to conserve fuel.

  * Spain mandated early closing hours for offices to reduce electricity consumption.

  * France banned short domestic flights where the same journey by train takes less than three hours.

  * Brazil encouraged citizens to use public transport more frequently.

  * Italy mandated a minimum AC temperature setting of 27 degrees in public buildings.

  * The Philippines implemented work-from-home measures and reduced operations in shopping

     malls to save energy.

This is happening all over the world. All countries have increased prices of petrol and issued mandatory harsh measures. India is the only country in the world where no harsh steps have been taken.

My take

Understand the global crisis!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked within the house; recited my prayers.

Bath followed by breakfast of idlis, chutney and sambar.

Worked on my laptop.

Lunch, watched "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

Wash and off to the Sarathy Autocars. Got our Maruti Victoris after completing all the formalities.

Off to Maha Ganapati kshetram for carrying out a puja on our car. Monish was with us. Then went across to Christhuraj Hospital to look up Letha who's admitted.

Got back at a 10' to 9.

How neat is NEET?

Yet another question paper leak insofar as NEET is concerned. 135 questions, released by the miscreants have found their way into the question paper that were attempted by about 26 lakh students - all over India - on 03 May. The union government has cancelled the examination and handed over the probe to the CBI.

The student unions of all the political parties have gone on a rampage on the streets of Delhi and elsewhere.

The kingpin has been picked up by the police from somewhere in Nasik. It was the alacrity with which the Rajasthan police went about the probe that established the mischief. Till now, around 14 people have been nabbed by the police!

I have a few questions connected with NEET, which are :-

   * why do question paper leaks take place almost with a regular frequency?

   * why haven't the system steadied up after so many years of its inception?

   * have the previous probes been taken to their logical conclusion?

   * have the culprits been punished?

A lot many questions remain unanswered! NEET definitely isn't neat!!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked within the house: recited my prayers.

A colonial breakfast of toasts, eggs and jam.

Worked on my laptop.

Lekha had taken her elder sister, Letha to the doctor as her right foot wasn't looking good and she needs hospitalisation for three days to administer antibiotics.

Lunch, saw "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

Massive thundershowers in the evening followed by power interruptions!

A quiet evening.

 

PM's advisory...

 ...on prolonged shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz.

  1. Citizens can reduce petrol and diesel usage by using metros, public transport.

  2. Railway transport preferred for goods movement.

  3. Covid-era efficiency measures can be revived like :-

    

      * Work-from-home

      * Online conferences

      * Virtual meetings

  4. Choose domestic tourism and celebrations within India.

  5. Prioritise Made-in-India, locally manufactured products, including daily-use items such as shoes,

      bags and accessories.

  6. Opt for car-pooling when private vehicles are necessary.

  7. Increased use of electric vehicles wherever possible.

  8. Delay non-essential gold purchases for the next one year to reduce pressure on forex outflows.

  9. Citizens must avoid unnecessary foreign travel, overseas vacations and foreign weddings.

10. Families should reduce edible oil consumption.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Walked within the house; recited my prayers.

Bath followed by breakfast of puttum pazhavum.

Worked on my laptop.

Lunch, watched "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

The evening chores.

My new car's registration number is taking time to come from the Guruvayur SRTO; have put Sajish, Thomas on the job.

Another meandering Sunday....

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked within the house; recited my prayers.

Bath followed by breakfast of dosas and an omelette.

Worked on my laptop. Cine star, Vijay takes oath as the chief minister of Tamilnadu. 

Letha comes in Sindhu's autorickshaw with lunch for us. Damn sweet of her and it keeps her boredom away of being by herself!

Lunch, saw them off and had our siesta.

Evening tea and snacks.

Maman had called up earlier and said that I'd to be at Delhi from the 18th - along with him - for the release of our book on Muthachchan by the Vice President on the 22nd! My only wish is that it could be delayed by a week so that I could seek the advice of Dr Sreekumar Pillai regarding treatment of Lekha's tongue!

Another of those quiet evenings!

 

Mini, off to Bangalore!

Got up at 5, sent all the messages, opened up the house in a restricted fashion, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Our idea was to avoid wasting Mini's time as they were on their long, return drive to Bangalore. We were all going to Padmakumar's house to have Rema's breakfast. We left soon after 7, met Syamala after her last night's surprise tryst with the hospital! Had breakfast of idiyappams, appams and curry.

Mini and Mithun resumed their journey at 0800 hrs.

Left Padmakumar's place by 1100 hrs. Rema gave us packed lunch.

Washed the set of soiled clothes, recited my prayers.

Lunch, watched television for a while followed by siesta.

Pulled out the dry clothes from the clothing line before the rain.

Power interruption for 2 hours which was restored by 9 PM.

Mini had reached her home by a quarter past 9.  

A comparatively quiet day!

Dateline 08  May

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the television.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked within the house and recited my prayers.

Letha had come in an autorickshaw and both the sisters went to Kottarakkara for the following :-

    * the 'darshan' of Maha Ganapati

    * buy certain add ons for her ear studs.

    * buy grocery

    * buy our lunch

She had returned by a quarter past 1!

Lunch, watched "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

Pulled in all the clothes that were put up for drying. Between us we'd washed down quite a bit of clothes including a pair of bedsheets!

Thundershowers and power had got interupted at 5 and was restored only at a 5' past 11! A miserable evening spent in darkness. 

    

At Raj Nivas.

The day started at 4 for us this morning. Monish came in about five minutes later and went off to sleep in our Chevy. We were ready by a half past 6, Lekha gave Monish his cup of tea and we kicked off by a quarter to 7. It was drizzling all the way.

We'd breakfast in Swami's Anubhavam at Chalakkudy - idiappams and kadala kari - by a quarter past 8.

Took the Angamali route and were in time for lunch, Letha's place, by a quarter to 2. Dropped Monish at Kottarakkara and drove our Chevy to Raj Nivas, reaching there by a half past 3.

Unnigopan, from Sarathy Autocars came to collect our Chevy and we signed the agreement paper by 5. "Crazy" has been with us since Oct 2010 and I'd run a total of about 1,29,000 km todate! My mom and dad have ridden in it and Lekha and I had developed a fondness for her. She had never let us down throughout the last sixteen years. Once she'd developed a problem, when Lekha was travelling from Guruvayur to Ayur and she came to a grinding halt in front of my sister, Mini's house.

I suppose she'd developed a fondness for us too. Driving through the roads in her was quite relaxing and I never felt the tiredness, even after a long drive, ever. Will miss you Crazy and we shall always remember as to how you'd brightened our lives!

Another worry in the background is the results of the biopsy done on Lekha's tongue. O God, hope that the test results are not sinister! Mini's fatty liver is another constant worry!

We should get our Maruti Victoris latest by next Wednesday.

 

The Great Nicobar Project.

It's a game changer for India's maritime future.

India is on the verge of a maritime transformation!

For far too long, our cargo has relied on foreign stops but the Great Nicobar Trans-shipment Hub is set to change the game.

 * Planned capacity .              16 million TEUs.

 * Strategic location.              just 40 nautical miles from the Malacca Strait.

 * Economic boost.                Retaining $200 - 220 million in port handling charges annually.

This project is more than just about infrastructure. It's about reclaiming our maritime sovereignty and

building a truly self-sufficient India.

My take

Building up of strategic infrastructure is an ongoing activity for the progress of a country which is aspiring to be a superpower in the not too distant future.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked on the courtyard, recited my prayers and carried out my exercise regimen.

Breakfast of dosas, chutney.

Lekha goes to town for the following :-

    * to check with the gas agency about the position of supply

    * to get the monthly dues from the ration stand

    * to get her ornaments put back at the jewellery

    * to Harisree supermarket for groceries

Bath.

Lekha's beautician comes in for her help.

Lunch, watched "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

Shut down The Quarterdeck systematically.

Dropped in on the Air Marshal on his discharge from Rajah's Hospital.  

The day after the results.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked on the courtyard, recited my prayers and carried out my exercise regimen.

Breakfast of idlis and sambar.

Worked on my laptop.

The aftermath of the election results :-

* Kerala. Endless rounds of discussions have begun to zero in on the chief minister from among the

   three viz. VD Satheesan, Ramesh Chennithala and KC Venugopal. Meanwhile, Pinarayi Vijayan has 

   submitted his resignation but will not meet the Governor!

* Tamilnadu. Vijay is preparing to take over as the chief minister and the Congress has decided to

   support him annoying the DMK because both of them are part of the Indi alliance!

* Pondicherry. The incumbent chief minister is preparing to take oath with his new team.

* Assam. Hemant Biswa Sarma is preparing to take oath with his new team.

* West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee refuses to resign saying that she has won a moral victory - wonder

   what that is? She has refused to go to the Governor. Meanwhile, the BJP is preparing its team

   to take over.

Lunch, watched "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

The evening chores.

A quiet evening.

Tailpiece.

The atmosphere has definitely cooled after last midnight's rain! 

What a day?

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked on the courtyard, recited my prayers and carried out my exercise regimen.

Bath and breakfast of toasts, egg, chhole bhature.

Worked on my laptop.

An early lunch.

Off to the Saroja Multi-Speciality Hospital at Thrissur for Lekha's tongue's biopsy by Dr Sreekumar Pillai. By the time we left the hospital, it was a half past 5.

Wayside refreshments before reaching home.

A quiet evening thereafter!

Tailpiece.

The UDF has swept Kerala with 102 seats, with the BJP capturing Nemom (Rajeev Chandrasekhar), Chathannoor (Gopakumar) and Kazhakkoottam (Gopakumar).

BJP has won Assam, West Bengal and the NDA, Pondicherry. 

Kept me riveted on to the television during my spare time.

How to read anyone?

 * Status                          revealed by their shoes

 * Discipline                    revealed by their nails

 * Background                revealed by how they sit

 * Intentions                    revealed by their eyes

 * Personality                  revealed by how they laugh

 * Confidence                  revealed by how they walk

 * Loyalty                        revealed by where they look

 * Intelligence                 revealed by how they listen

 * Maturity                      revealed by how they argue

 * Respect                        revealed by how they treat people  who can't help them

 

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked on the courtyard, recited my prayers and carried out my exercise regimen.

Bath followed by breakfast of "chhole bhature".

Worked on my laptop.

Lunch, watched a longish episode of Crime Patrol followed by siesta.

The evening chores.

A quiet Saturday.

Got up at 5, sent all the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

Walked on our courtyard, recited my prayers and carried out my exercise regimen.

Bath followed breakfast of puttum gram curriyum.

Worked on my laptop.

Lunch, watched an episode of Crime Patrol followed by siesta.

The evening chores.

Back to back meetings on Zoom :-

    * With the ex-Kazak girls at a half past 6

    * With our batchmates at 9.

A late evening!

Fast track nod for China FDI in seven sectors.

The Modi government has identified seven critical sectors/manufacturing activities for faster approval investments from China.

The seven sectors are :-

     * Capital Goods Manufacturing

     * Electronic Capital Goods

     * Electronic Components

     * Polysilicon and Ingot wafer (solar manufacturing inputs)

     * Advanced Battery Components

     * Rare Earth Permanent Magnets

     * Rare Earth Processing

My take

A step in the right direction!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent all the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

Recited my prayers.

Morning cuppa with Lekha.

We were ready by a half past 7 and kicked off soon after. Rakesh was our sa'arthi.

The doctor reviewed the MRI scan and has called us on Monday, the 4th for further action.

A quiet day.

Lunch, watched "Snehakkoottu" followed by siesta.

The evening chores.