Sambeet Dash
Today I was supposed to travel to India on a month long vacation. I planned the trip way back in January, bought my tickets in advance in Delta Airlines (Atlanta – Delhi – Atlanta) and in Air India (Delhi – Bhubaneswar- Delhi). Never in my wildest of dreams I ever imagined that I will have to cancel my tickets (cancelling tickets does not mean anything now at a time when Flights aren’t operating).
As I completed two months of working from home, social distancing, rubbing sanitizers and frequently washing my hands, the first long weekend of the year is approaching in this unusual time of COVID-19. Most years I go on vacation at this time of the year – the last Monday of May being first Holiday since January in a country where number of holidays are limited. When I should be munching succulent Mangoes and stripping off white flesh off Lychees in 100 degree (38°C) heat of Bhubaneswar, I am hunkered down inside my bunker in Georgia.
My trip to India this time was supposed to be eventful. A diehard Modi Bhakt (Blind follower) not long ago threatened me in Odia “Bhubaneswar Ku Asile Godei Godei Khanda Re Hanibi” – will hack you down with a sword by chasing you soon after you land at Bhubaneswar. He probably saw one of Shakti Kapoor’s movies where the perpetual badass of Bollywood cinema was chased by the hero Mithun Chakraborty with a scimitar on hand as his fitting finale revenge.
I would have loved all of you to arrive one fine sunny morning upon my arrival at the Bhubaneswar Airport not to miss this classic scene of me running bare bodied only attired in my underwear, chased by a sword holding guy. You could have recorded it for posterity and shared on social media. It would have assured you of getting million plus hits. Unfortunately, the spectacle of the century needs to wait. COVID-19 put a wrench on the wheels on my dream and dreams of many.
These days I shave once a week. While shaving I am reminded of the popular Palmolive Shaving Cream Commercial during my growing up days in India – “Kapil Dev, tough cricketer, tough beard”. I am not a tough person from any angle, but my razors stumble on my stubble gained in a week, giving me a tough time. Shaving saga apart, so far I have managed to save my job as tens of millions of Americans join unemployed bandwagon every week. Things not looking so good at this moment.
This is not the only thing I have saved so far as my expenses are inadvertently curtailed. I am not helping Uncle Sam as much as 2/3rd of US Economy is fuelled by consumer spending. Despite record low gas prices, I don’t drive more than 10 miles a week. I filled gas only once in last couple of months. Under normal circumstances, I fill up my gas tank at least once every other week. Not anymore. That’s the first time in America in nearly quarter of a century.
Yet on a positive note, I help the environment. Lesser use of car means less emission of toxic greenhouse gas. My environmental support doesn’t stop there. Lesser use of Office resources like computer printouts, electricity, elevators, AC and so on. I can proudly proclaim of saving some trees and restricting the use of CFCs (Cloro Fluoro Carbons).
When I feel bored I used to loiter around Groceries and Pharmacy Stores, Strip Malls (usually avoid Malls. I feel them artificial and boring, though I love their food courts). Now I am the only person in my family who goes out, very frugally no more than a couple of times a week to buy groceries and run other errands. Define monotony.
I hate alcohol during the day. But the Coronavirus has forced me to do so – in the form of hand sanitizers and alcohol soaked hand wipes. While entering the store, I use hand sanitizer and after returning back to my car I use again. I wash my hands way too often and way too long, thanks to this nouveau virus – would have been easily branded as Suchibai Rogi (An Odia slang for a psychological patient with the habit of compulsive cleanliness, a tell-tale sign of insecurity).
Taking no chances against this dreaded COVID-19 for I have no desire to get infected and gift it to my family. Twitching the usual Odia proverb a bit – “Hatha Dhou Tha, Guna Gau Tha” (Wash you hands, sing paeans of praise of COVID-19). Learning to stay safe the hard way.
My first tryst with Corona was not virus, rather a brand of shoes. During my childhood days there were only a handful of decent shoe stores in Bhubaneswar, prominent were Bata, Corona and BSC brand carrying stores in Unit II. I could relate to a friend of mine in school who had an aura about him, his claim to fame was following ABBA, Boney M music.
There were hardly anyone to fact check on him. Often he used to sing something with snorted lips, which resembled “Corona…Shoes…..Shoes….Shoooooes.. Whoooos”. I was completely spellbound. Ignorance can be bliss, but for me it metamorphosed into sheer adulation. That’s the only Corona I was aware of until the arrival of another kind earlier this year.
A person once went to an astrologer, who after seeing his chart said ” After two years you will enter into a state of poverty and start begging”. “What will happen after that ?” asked the person who now was somewhat concerned. The astrologer responded “You will get used to it”. Eventually we will get used to COVID-19.
(Sambeet Dash is an Odia technocrat living in Georgia, US)
(Any views or opinions expressed in the article are personal and belong solely to the author and do not represent those of the publisher.)
