Eco mode

Driving an EV scooter and using it as veggie storage box on the day I forget to take a cloth bag, is the day when sustainability becomes sort of unsustainable! 

Cashing in Casio

When screentime restrictions are in full-force, they said children will eventually choose non-screen activities, creative hobbies and sports.

Meanwhile in our home..

Love by the Limbs

For the past few days a 6-yo has been sleeping with his parents instead of his siblings, due to nightmares and other scary things..like his brothers!

Yesterday, he was lying between his dad and mom and I pulled him near me for a cosy hug. But he always feels the need to showcase his loyalty to his mom somehow (to ensure he gets the next meal, maybe). 

Then he turned his torso to be perpendicular to both of us and while having both hands on me, wrapped his legs on his mom's tummy and declared-

"With my hands I'm hugging Appa, with my legs I'm lugging Amma!" and promptly went to sleep.

Adolescenting by Painting

During a workshop in my sons school, we were guided to do a watercolour painting of a tree with colour themes set by the facilitator and asked to pen our thoughts on the theme of 'Parenting for Adolescents'

----

"The earth came first, the sky and the rest followed. 

The seed came from the tree, took root towards the earth and reached out to the sky, as it was always meant to!

But for the sapling to grow to a young tree and then mature to an adult, it needs all the water, air, nutrients, exposure to the sun, the elements and the seasons and quite importantly the space to shape into the tree that it would become. 

Remove one, it will remain a stunted tree or just a sapling. A parent tree cannot provide cool shade to protect the sapling and expect growth. The environment, the nourishment and the space is needed for full growth."

---

On a lighter note, I was just telling my 14-year-old elder son, that I attended a workshop for Parenting for Adolescents.. before I could describe anything, he interrupted me (with rolled eyes) and ...

"Oh don't get me started with one more workshop or advice on adolescence.. It's a period of great change.. great hormones.. great turmoil..etc.. just hearing all that makes me mad ... and rather adolescent! "

Idli-ing

We were dining at Murugan Idly, where they always take your order first and then keep tempting you with all sorts of vadais, kuzhipaniyaarams, podi idlies, sweet pongal on a tray. 

A waiter goes around all tables with these fresh items right under your nose, and soon enough, we succumb and point to one or two items, for starters.

A 12yo wise owl who accompanied me, calmly spelt our their strategy:

"Instead of asking 'Why?' they make you ask 'Why not?'!"

Hardwired Wireless

Beware of the ITTIAC techie.

-------------------------------------------------

First he rejects the e-waste generating bluetooth headphones, since their battery dies out oh so often. 

Then he buys a wired around-ear headphones and goes full retro.

Then he buys a usbC to 3.5mm Dac to connect to modern smartphones without the audio port.

Then he realises his new headphones cannot be connected to his smart tv at a reasonable viewing distance despite the 1.2m cable.

Then he uses a battery-pack to power a BT to 3.5mm USB dongle, to connect to smart TV, and then use 2-sided socket converter to connect both 3.5mm jacks of headphone and dongle to finally make an improvised...

....

...

..

BT headset!!

Aspiring in an Amaze

I was loading up the boot space of my trusty Honda, with a couple of badminton racquets, a soccer ball, a cricket bat and a bag of tennis balls, shuttlecocks and some boardgames, hoping to use them during a planned family outing to a resort.

A certain 12-yo witnesses all the ambitious stocking up of these play items, and goes...

"We finally have a sports car!"

Mistory

No one shall ever have to regret not paying enough attention (or dozing off) during their History lessons in school.

Just don't worry and be patient. 

History repeats itself, and you will get to read it in the news someday in future.

A Not Ball

New terminology alert for T20 cricket 

A Not ball..

Short form of Not-a-boundary ball, a boring tactic used by cricketers without intent, who just jog here and there just to keep the scoreboard ticking, and letting the other batsman do the heavy-lifting by hitting the ball enough to make it a not-not-ball!

வள்ளுவர் @2026

எப்பொருள் Online-Chatbot-AIக் கேட்பினும் அப்பொருள் மெய்ப்பொருள் காண்ப தறிவு

Organic Driving

Traffic lights, turn indicators, lane markings and other random rules of the road are alien to us and our culture, indicates a colonial mindset. 

We prefer our reflexes and gut instincts to take over on road, as nature always intended. Thank you very much!