saiecology

26 July 2005. It's been more than ten years to that day, but whenever it rains heavily in Mumbai, most of us here say "It's raining like 26th July" or "26th July is here again" as if the rain gods have set a benchmark for us. Everyone who stepped out of the house or stayed indoors that day has some story to tell. I've heard three kinds of '26th July' Stories. 1) The absolutely unaffected ones: These were the people who were living far away from flooded areas, the ones who got back home before the deluge happened or the ones who were out of station. 2) Moderately Affected Ones: They had to struggle to get home, some got stuck in office for two days, others were stuck in traffic for one day or were stranded in some public space.Good part was they were safe wherever they were. They managed it somehow and got out of it later. 3) Super Affected Ones: This has a long list, but I'll make it short for you. These were the ones whos...

"Had it been any other problem, I would understand, but this is very annoying", Mom said. I started losing hopes regarding our family trip to Dubai . Though, I balanced it with a lot of shopping. Dad found himself lucky as he was busy with work during that month of mess and uncertainty.     It was 2013. I was about to turn 18 in a few months. I was not going to be a minor anymore. My passport had to be renewed.  No, this was not a problem. I filled the application form, collected all the necessary documents and kept everything ready as per the passport agent's advice. I went to the passport office for the final round of procedures. They said that my passport will be delivered in 15 days. Mom and I peeped through the keyhole whenever the doorbell rang. 20 days went by and finally I could see a postman standing at the door. I was happy to see an envelope in his hand. To me, he was a Santa Claus in guise of a postman. Mom gave him some water and a sweet. We closed the doo...