Friday, June 19, 2009

Nothing much to talk about today. Another routine day so far. School. And then nothing. It's too hot to even breathe! Have you tried breathing near a blast furnace? Try it. And you will know what I'm talking about.

I wonder where the kids find the energy from in this temperature. They are here and out in the field doing PT with Khagen. I asked him not to keep them out in the sun. But he thinks that after 4:00 it's cool enough. The children would be terribly disappointed if I asked them to stay indoors. But I suppose they were all (including Khagen) born here and are perhaps well adjusted to the temperature unlike "outsiders" (dikkus) like me!

I'll never get used to the heat. No matter where I live. It's the worst time of the year for me. I quite literally lose my cool during summer months. I've often toyed with the idea of dividing my time between the mountains and the plains like the British did when they were here. Nothing's stopping me really. But I know the guilt would kill me!

Now that we have enough solar power, I was also toying with the idea of buying a fan. Once again, the moment I thought about it, I started feeling guilty. I'm a lot better off than the villagers. And how could I possibly live among them and have mod cons while they don't? This debate rages within me every year. It also explains why there's light in the kitchen all evening (Suman needs it) and no light in my room except when there's a pressing need for it. I prefer to use the flashlight instead.

Hmmmm... I do live better than most. I eat well. I get three square meals. Sleep on a relatively soft bed. Have warm clothes for winter... and I'm surrounded by people who have nothing! Anyway...

If you are the praying kind, please pray for some rain for us.

Oh yes, the most eventful thing that has happened today is that we have managed to get two bullock cart loads of cow dung for the project today. Eight more loads are expected over the next couple of days. The trees need fertilizer.

3 comments:

Sharad Dutta said...

I don't know if you still qualify to be a Dikku sir. Sounds like kids are enjoying the laptops. Do these cameras have internet connectivity? I remember they have a video camera. Would be great to setup a video conference for all interested if it all works. Hope you are feeling better.

Siddharth Sanyal said...

This is my third attempt at leaving a comment. The connectivity is soooooo bad that it seems impossible. Wonder if this will go through this time.

Setting up video conferencing is no problem... but with this sort of connectivity, will it work?

As for being a Dikku. Unless you are born as a Santhal, you will always remain a Dikku in their eyes...

Sharad Dutta said...

How are you connecting to the internet? is it still through the Airtel card? We'll have to give it a try to see how performance will be.