This is the worst time to fall ill! And I am not even talking about the big guns here. I am talking about allergies, or that headache that you get because you haven’t slept too well or HANGOVER! Because the only way you can make the most of your quarantined time is by finishing off that bottle of wine. Symptoms like slight body ache, sniffles, or redness are alarming at the moment and they can get you into trouble. Just like it got me!
Once Upon A Time At A Grocery Store
I agree, stepping out isn’t the right thing to do at this time. The home supplies were over, so I decided to brave it all and step out of my house and head to the grocery store. I got the breads, eggs, the essentials and then it was time to buy the spices. Turmeric (haldi), red chilli powder, black pepper, salt, and garam masala. I got it all. But then something happened. I SNEEZED! Yep, in a time like this, I sneezed in a public place. Everyone stopped doing what they were doing, and looked at me, with those judgemental eyes piercing through their face mask covered faces.
I took out my sanitiser, cleaned my hands, picked up my basket and moved to the cash counter. An aunty then approached me, who suggested that I should probably think of buying a face mask too. Since, ‘clearly I did not have one.’
While I was in the queue awaiting my turn for the billing, the gentleman behind me asked me, if I had cough or fever. ‘It was you who sneezed right? Are you sure you don’t have any other symptoms? Cold, dry cough? Have you recently returned from travelling abroad?’ I was getting that same feeling that I get whenever I return home past my curfew time and have a round table with my folks.
I guess the cashier was listening in to our conversation. He had his face mask on and latex gloves as well. When I offered to pay him cash, he said, ‘Madam, aap PayTm ya BHIM UPI se pay kar do (ma’am please pay through PayTm or BHIM UPI).’ So I scanned the code, took my things and left.
When The Housing Complex Turns Into A Fortress
I have always been proud of my high metabolism rate. It helps me burn those 1.45 extra calories. However, the price that I have to pay for it is elevated body temperature. The guards at our colony have thermal meters where every person is being tested for fever. I was at 99.8 degrees and they won’t let me enter! Kudos for them for doing their job, but I wanted to get back to my house. I was absolutely fine. It took me a while to explain it to them that it was my normal body temperature. I am sure they weren’t convinced but they let me in none-the-less.
Also read: Air Pollution Levels Go Down In Delhi As AQI Drops To 129 After An All-Time High Of 1,000
Because The Only Way Of Fighting A Global Pandemic Is By ‘Eating Your Vegetables’
A late night and incorrect sleeping posture lead to redness of eyes, body aches at weird places. Over and above that, if you are allergic to pollens like me, then during this time of the season, starting your day with 3-4 sneezes and having a case of sniffles until you pop an anti-allergic, isn’t really that big a deal. But during this time of the year, of the millennia, it is!
According to Indian mother, the best way that none of this would affect you is by ‘having enough water, or eating all your vegetables’. Yep, add to that ‘haldi waala doodh’ (turmeric milk), and desi ghee over ‘all the junk that you eat from outside’, forget about pandemic, you can survive the apocalypse!
Also read: Eating Non-Veg Food DOES NOT Result In Coronavirus Infections: Myths Busted By AIIMS Director
I have said it again, I’ll say it once more: THIS IS THE WORST TIME TO FALL ILL, because you are just one sneeze, or one cough, or just 0.1 degree away from being quarantined or being beaten up in public (just like it happened with that guy in Maharashtra). What’s worse is that people didn’t realise, that if that guy really was infected, they did more harm to themselves by beating him up and touching him than just the sneeze would have done.