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Tight Schedule- Spouse, Rat & 'craft

Discussion in 'Snippets of Life (Non-Fiction)' started by Thyagarajan, Sep 13, 2017.

  1. GeetaKashyap

    GeetaKashyap IL Hall of Fame

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  2. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:@nandinimithun Thank You for clicking the like. Regards. God Bless us All.
     
  3. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Thank you for our encouraging comments. Regards. God Bless us All.
     
  4. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Thank you. Regards. God Bless us All.
     
  5. jayasala42

    jayasala42 IL Hall of Fame

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    Dear Shri Thyagarajan,

    Amidst family chores I forgot to respond to your snippet.
    This is a snippet,Mooshika and America' written about my experience in US .
    in 2016.Members may kindly pardon me for the'repeat' mail.

    Being born and brought up in a remote village in Tamilnadu in a big joint family in an unelectrified house, I have never imagined even in my distant dream that I might make visits to the wealthy land ,U. S. in my life time.

    Great scholars and writers use their powerful pens to write wonderful essays on the beauty of Niagara, the amazing nature sculptures at Grand Canyon and the mesmerizing Fire Waterfalls at Yosemite Park.
    But I had altogether different experience at home.

    America found in me a rustic village old woman.

    Having read the snippet by animal lovers about the rights of animals enshrined in the constitution I feel rather scared to write this. Somehow JSKLS has given me some encouragement to narrate my experience.

    In 2012 we were in California to help our daughter-in-law who was carrying her second child.

    It was 2012.On June 15th ,two mice just ran across the dining table. Priya, my daughter-in-law,with full term pregnancy screamed, ran and fell down hindered by the chairs. Luckily nothing happened.
    From next day onwards two or three mice were in sight.The pest control authorities came, examined the surroundings.There was absolutely no inlet for the mice to enter.They provided varieties of mouse traps,traditional,electronics and glue traps to placed in vulnerable places.
    Meanwhile we had a new arrival-Advaith, my cute little grandson.
    The mouse caught thro traditional trap has to be left in a place at least 5 miles away;the distance to be travelled by car.
    The electronic trap emitted some strange odour which may harm the mouse as well as the infant at home.
    Glue trap was a torture to mice as well as the viewers.
    The glue trap was able to catch one or two mice a day.
    It is strange that the modern guys/girls who are brave enough to put their 45 days old baby in the swimming class,or do lot of trekking in dense gardens do hesitate to remove the mouse carcasses from the hidden place , depended on this 70 year old village woman for the sinful act.
    It is a terrible sight to see the mouse caught up in the glue,struggling to escape for life.We cannot be expected to be humane and show empathy.Sincere regrets to Menaka Gandhi! and animal lovers in IL.One or two days my grandson aged seven,, while running here and there placed his feet on the trap and could not take out his legs. He dragged his legs along with the trap and the entire wooden floor became messy and it took nearly 2 hrs to clean the house. Fortunately it was not a carpetted floor.

    My son got a cat for rent for two days.Immediately on arrival the cat picked a mouse and ran out in the garden. As we were feeling happy to have had a nice solution we saw the cat and mouse playing with each other.The cat was considering the mouse as toy and the mouse was playing on the back of the cat.The cat was silently returned to the owner.
    On the Dakshinayana Punyakalm Day I had the fortune of sending three mice to Moksham before taking bath.
    The search continued until we returned from US.The score Board was in display boldly written by a marker pen by my grandson.I had caught around 54 mice till my departure date,thrice of Mahabharata war figure and hopefully the MahaBharata war will end up here.
    Along with cooking,washing etc etc mouse catching had become a routine to find a suitable place to keep the trap and ensure that nothing else got stuck to it.Unlike crow catching which helps him that gives and him that receives, the mice catching helps neither.

    The garbage drawer attached to the cooking platform was closed.Two more garbage cans with airtight lids were bought and kept in two different corners.

    In between, my son and grandson gave lectures and talks of sympathy to animals, but persuaded me the grandma to clean up the mess, clean the fruit baskets, bread boxes. and to remove the half eaten apples, bananas and cakes left on the dining table. I started telling jocularly to my son and husband ( lovers of coffee) that droppings of mice are dried and added to the coffee seeds.

    It became doubtful whether I came to US for maternity help or mouse catching.
    Experience tells me that US is a heaven not only for motorists, nature lovers but also the mice.

    ( My son had to spend thousands of dollars to locate the mooshika entry.It was like a military strategy to seal all the entries .This was possible only after 8 months. Everyday My DIL would scream seeing two three mice crossing over the baby's cot.There had been occasions when the mice just ran over the sleeping infant.I think the baby felt a tickling sense and was smiling within himself.
    We thought that mice will be threatened by human movement and they would move about only during nights. But I think that mice felt more homely than ourselves and they never hesitated to run here and there even during day time.

    With profound regrets to Lord Ganesha we have prayed that we will offer 108 modhakams if we are successful in annihilating his vahanam.We had to wait patiently whether Ganesha lent his ears to our prayers.

    Even after returning to Chennai we enquired more of mooshikas than about our plumpy little grandson.After 70 years I was able to realise fully why Jaya, Vijaya,the gate keepers wanted to take birth as enemies of Vishnu.

    I think the famous song "muthu kulikka vareehala?Moochai Adakka Vaareehalaa?"(Are you ready to enter the ocean to take out the pearls and are you ready to control the breath?)
    may be rewritten as "Moonjur Pudikka Vaareehalaa ? ,Mookkaip pidikka Vaareehalaa/"( Are you ready to catch the mice and tolerate the nauseating odour?)
    We are living in our house in Chennai for the past 55 years.Not even once I had seen a rat or mouse.After returning to Chennai, I thought how comfortable we are compared to my children who think more of mice daily than about the baby food or school home work.

    I was thinking about the remedy or prayaschittham for annihilating around half a century of mice in a foreign land.

    Then only I understood that South Indian railway and Air India is doing a great service
    to these mice by allowing free entry in coaches and airline seats.Everyone wants to have air travel experience.Why not the mice? After all they too have instincts and emotions and they have to be pacified.

    In Railway compartments there may be at least 25% of mice as the number of passengers.

    We have necessarily to appreciate the participation of passengers in this noble service of railways.After all how can they exhibit their love to these creatures?

    My husband strongly gave me a suggestion to do the pariharam of having killed around 50 mice.I need not go to any kshetras or take bath in holy ganges, But we will take home made dosas and idlies during our travel by train and throw the remnants inside the compartment underneath the seats.

    The staunch devotees of Lord Ganesha, the Railway authorities treat the food as neivedyam for Lord Ganesha ( or his vahana) and consider the remnants as Bhagavat prasadam and never do the sinful act of cleaning the compartment.

    Can there be a better pariharam for having killed the mice and creating a record in US?

    I learn that railways ensure that there is no reduction of reproduction of
    mice even while entering into Pest Control Contract.

    Next month when we travelled to Kumbakonam I specifically took ghee dosa, and idlies smeared with milagai podi and ghee.

    As ill luck would have it, on that particular day there was some inspection and all the compartments were cleaned spic and span.

    Even to this day my pariharam to mooshika is still due.I pray Ganesha that remission should be accomplished during our life time.

    Expecting Ganesha to answer my prayers,

    No malice intended for mice lovers
    jayasala42
     
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  6. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Thanks for a mighty response.
    A long interesting nostlgic rewind of old rats. You have taken the reader on excursion to US Rats and discussed beautifully foreign rodents versus Indian rats revealing your soft corner for rats irrespective of their nativity.
    2. It is almost akin to repenting and therefore I expect Lord Ganeshji would suitably reward you.
    3. WHEN external audit questioned the huge expenses running to several lacs of rupees, the IAS officer of Food CORPORATION OF INDIA answered him that rodents multiply fast in their godowns. When the audit observation was about to be made as audit para, the ingenious officer told him that expenses would be minimised in the subsequent year as he had explored new resources and as a result, rats henceforth from FCI would be exported to Vietnam where it is devoured as delicacy.
    Regards.
     
  7. Jeeves

    Jeeves Silver IL'ite

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    That was a ovely RATTY experience !!!
    I am sure the Rat Bhagwan must be occupying the centre space in your Puja room !!And you must be offering Masal Vadai as Neivedyam every morning !! What a Saviour he turned out to be !!!
     
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  8. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:Super comment! thanks and Regards.
    God Bless Us all.
     
  9. Adharv

    Adharv Gold IL'ite

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    :lol::lol: :cheer: Embuttu periya sagasam seithu viturigal :eek:
    as always fun filled writeup sir. Ending part changed my mood from fun to serious.

    So very true. Lucky you!!:beer-toast1: Hope aunty didn't fail to thank the Rat :p

    Thank you and Good Day.
     
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  10. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :persevere::hello:despite depressing news around stock market , I was looking for some silver lining & your FB.
    2. Very satisfying comments and yes as you said we have keep rats close to our heart. Most redeeming feature of the day is your FB.
    THANKS & Regards.
    God bless the rat and is a vehicle for lord as you must have read about in another of mine.
     
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