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KEETAROO Keetaroo is Hindi for Germs. Germs and bacteria, as we all have been taught in early school years are things to be vary of. Some of the germs / bacteria are good, such as lactobacillus which forms Yoghurt (Dahi). They also cause fermentation which makes wines. Quite a bunch of bacteria are present in our mouth, stomach and sundry organs which digest our food and help us to live in general good health. And everyone would tell you that Germinated grains are good in your breakfast. The Marketing world has latched on to this and made it the unique selling point of most things made by them. It also does not want any one to forget it. It  keeps on bombarding us day-in & day-out that these ketaroos are out to get us. “Use our products or else !” they keep on dinning into our ears vehemently on the TV, Radio and Press, spreading the keetaroo mania and brainwashing all future generations to come. Here are a few examples ….. Napkins for Toddlers : The advertisers ...

TOMATO The breast beating;  the breaking news of tomato prices by the  MSM (Main Stream Media);  the tirade by the evening scotch drinkers with ice tinkling in their glasses and 'ice' dollops adorning their ears and necks;   against the current government  has now become an annual affair. It happens every year and the show put on as if it is a first time happening.           Tomato – the shiny red vegetable (or is it a fruit ?). Children and adults alike are fond of it, and a salad without it is unthinkable. Required for making most vegetable curries tastier. In all of north India , it is grown only in the cold / winter months, as the plant cannot stand the summer heat of the region. Availability till the 1980’s or so was only in the winters, i.e., from November to the start of summers of end March. As the summer heat started, the prices of tomatoes would crash as the fruit ripened fast. Housewives waiting for this ti...

Visitors Excuses To You Normally human beings do not like to live in isolation. They socialize in several ways, at the workplace, at a public place such as at the doctors, or the grocers, or the park with neighbours, and so on. But persons of your liking and nature may not be at the workplace etc, so people visit each other socially. Children meet daily for games in the park, students meet for a round of masti at their ‘adda’, college, canteens or elsewhere and so on. It is the adults with their busy lives of jobs, self employment etc., who have to make efforts of going to meet others. We are talking about such persons here. Why they visit you, or do they visit you very often, or pay a perfunctory visit of few minutes just to keep up the pretences ?  The reasons can be several and need serious thought. Here are some causes on the subject, in first / second / third  person  - not given in any particular order … # “ Dahling, you live on the first floor and...

SHIRT   BUTTON The other day, one of my brand new shirts was put up for washing after being worn just once. Imagine my surprise that after washing it transpired that one of the spare buttons had broken in half. Half of it was still hanging on. It was one of the two spare buttons which the manufacturer stitches on the lower edge of the shirt for your use if any of the regular front buttons break or gets damaged. It was fully intact when I had worn it. The shirt was fine in all other respects. I am in a big dilemma as to what to do. If any of the main front buttons had broken then simply sew on the spare one. But what to do if the very spare is broken ? There are several options available, and so many things can happen. Spare buttons provided with shirt 1. The shirt can be taken back to the store (I have the receipt) where they may admonish me “Only the spare button is broken, the shirt is intact, why are you making such a fuss ?” But it is a matter of principle a...

CITY ENTRANCE All of us must have visited scores of cities, and would have formed some opinions about them. But how do you form an opinion ? As soon as you step into the city or after staying there for few days ? Opinions are said to be formed mostly on first impressions, and so it would be logically true for cities too. Now a City can be entered only in two ways – from a Railway Station or by Road. Arriving by Air is NOT a third option, as airports are on the outskirts of the City – so you practically enter the City by Road. I would prefer to enter a City from its Railway Station instead of by road, and can give sufficient reasons to do so. Delhi Arriving in a City by train is a joy in itself. The wait in the train as it nears the City, the clatter of the tracks as the train slowly navigates the railway yard. The duration taken in the yard varying according to the size of the City, in some cities it may be half an hour or more, in some only a minute. Finally the...

PACKAGING To the majority of us, the philosophy of packaging is a mystery. Or you can say that the packaging industry takes the customer for granted or a ride – choose anyone.                    If this sounds like an exaggeration, remember what happens when you try to unwrap a new shirt ! If removing all the plastic parts and cardboard was not enough, remembering to remove all the pins is a task in itself. If any is left out it is sure to pierce your shoulder when you wear the shirt, or if the unwrapping was done on your bed (as is normally done) it may well puncture you when you go to bed !          Another item we all come across is the small tomato ketchup sachets provided with your breakfast on trains etc. Bravado eggs you on and you take the courage to try to tear it open – first with your fingers and then with your teeth. Other passengers are looking on in gleeful anticipation on whethe...

           Although Blitz and Current were courageous, gave investigative journalism with lots of hoopla; but light entertainment was in not heaped out. Tit-Bits This was a British weekly magazine available all over their colonies. The magazine was a joy to read having interesting bits of information from Books, Periodicals, and Newspapers of the World. The emphasis was on human interest stories concentrating on drama and sensation.                                          Although available few weeks after its dateline, no item in it was out of date and it made interesting reading.                                         It was available all over the country in magazine stores even in average sized towns at a very nominal price. We ...