The Uber Driver

 This was the first time I saw this trick done by an Uber Driver & I take an Uber ride about once a week on average since last three years so its a lot of uber rides. When I got on the cab the driver asked me what the fare amount was. I told him the amount, but at the back of my mind there was a doubt as to what he required it for. When the trip ended, the fare was Rs337, which was what it had showed and I handed him Rs350 and prepared to get out of the car. Now the guy started to hand me back Rs10 as change when I told him to keep it and end the trip. I observed that he was fumbling with the money I had handed to him. He was actually hiding the Rs50 note I had given to him at that point. He ended the trip , but he asked me "Aap ne mujhe kitne diye the?" I said Rs 350, to which he replied nahi, 300 hi diye the. Dekhiye mere pas koi Rs50 nahi hai, he said showing me the money I had given him, having already hidden the Rs 50. Abhi appko Rs37 aur dena padega. I was amazed at this and retorted "To tumne Rs10 kyon lauta rahe the? Rs50 tha usme isliye to Rs10 wapas kar rahe the mujhe ki nahi? To this he stated to raise his voice and demand Rs 37 more from me. But I just firmly said no, and that I would be putting in a complaint to Uber and walked out of the car. Later I realised that he would have raised more of a hue and cry to demand Rs37 extra, but since I was waving my mobile about when having this conversation with him about the fare, I may have been making a video or recording of the conversation, he did not dare to do much more. I gave him a low rating and reported it on the app. I have seen this trick played by auto drivers earlier also, but it was the first time I saw it happen with a Uber driver. 

Curious Coincidence

 

Whether you are an ardent fan of Shah Rukh Khan or just a daily news reader most people would be following the news about superstar Shah Rukh Khan and son Aryan Khan involved in NCB dragnet.

The chief NCB official involved in the operation Sameer Wankhede triggered my memory as to its familiar ring and I recalled that Shah Rukh Khan had been embroiled in a previous controversy too involving the name ‘Wankhede’. In 2012, after Kolkata Knight Riders beat Chennai Super Kings in the IPL final, an allegedly drunk SRK got into a scuffle in full public view with a security guard at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.

What’s the odds of Wankhede being a perennial red flag in Shah Rukh’s life? Or is it just a curious coincidence.

#coincidence

Who was Pegasus?

 Pegasus, in Greek mythology, is a winged horse that sprang from the blood of the Gorgon Medusa as she was beheaded by the Greek hero Perseus. In Greek mythology, Medusa  also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those who gazed into her eyes would turn to stone. Medusa was the  With Athena’s (or Poseidon’s) help, another Greek hero, Bellerophon, captured Pegasus and rode him first in his fight with the Chimera and later while he was taking vengeance on Stheneboea (Anteia), who had falsely accused Bellerophon. Subsequently Bellerophon attempted to fly with Pegasus to heaven but was unseated and killed or, by some accounts, lamed. The winged horse became a constellation and the servant of Zeus. The spring Hippocrene on Mount Helicon was believed to have been created when the hoof of Pegasus struck a rock.

Pegasus’s soaring flight was interpreted as an allegory of the soul’s immortality; in modern times it has been regarded as a symbol of poetic inspiration.

Pegasus is a spyware developed by the Israeli cyberarms firm NSO Group that can be covertly installed on mobile phones (and other devices) running most^[1] versions of iOS and Android. The 2021 Project Pegasus revelations suggest that the current Pegasus software can exploit all recent iOS versions. As of 2016, Pegasus was capable of reading text messages, tracking calls, collecting passwords, location tracking, accessing the target device's microphone and camera, and harvesting information from apps.  The spyware is named after Pegasus, the winged horse of Greek mythology. It is a Trojan horse computer virus that can be sent "flying through the air" to infect cell phones.

Best Practice for Oxygenation during COVID 19

 As per doctors a good solution for increasing oxygen levels for covid patients is

1. In case oxygen as measured by pulse oximeter < 92 the prone position is good for improving oxygen levels in the blood.

2. Patient should be kept in a well ventilated room with fan, blower, cooler blowing cool air so that carbon dioxide does not accumulate. 

3. Some homeopathic remedies may also be tried.

4. In case of acute oxygen distress oxygen concentrators, medical grade oxygen may be required. contact Emergency Helpline Nos 

Covid Relief Resources

https://covidrelief.glideapp.io/

CIPLA for Remdesivir : 8657311088

Beautiful Flowers and Bouquets video with song

 

Budget 2021

 

From the budget 2021 one interesting information was that states with the most reported growth was Sikkim and Highest Capita Income is Goa. What parameters made Sikkim the state with highest growth would be one interesting aspect specially in Covid times where tourism is non existent. Bihar comes as the state with lowest capita income. No surprises there.

Another infographic compares India's performance with various countries on human indices. Still a long way to go!

Beginning of New Year 2021

 Year 2020 gave me one last shake when suddenly after running around hospitals thrice a day on 28th Dec2020, in the evening I suddenly developed high fever (101 deg C). I was sure that I had contracted Corona, would most likely give it to Ma and Baba as I was in their house, and would have to spend new year in isolation if not in the hospital. I took crocin, and fever subsided, once more it came in the morning. Once more I took crocin and then took a taxi to come to newtown after breakfast. We were supposed to go to Bangalore on the 30th. Hearing of my fever, Sum decided to cancel our tickets (lot of money got deducted) and tied up with Sona  so she could come to  Kolkata on 1st by herself.

      Thankfully my fever had subsided by 30th, I had no other symptoms so it was decided that the fever was possibly due to overstrain and I need not isolate. On 1st Jan 2021 I made a special lunch

Basanti pulao, shukto, cholar dal, beguni

In the evening we went to receive Sona at the airport. There was a huge traffic jam near Eco park, so a trip of 20mins took more than an hour. Thankfully we were just in time to receive Sona. She looked very dull and listless and the return trip took more than one hour again. After coming home, having dinner, Sona cried a lot due to PMS and some hassles at her apartment with her friend. We talked for a long time and I tried to console her as best I could. Hopefully this year will be a bright one for her and for us and corona will be delegated to the back of our minds with the arrival of the vaccines.