Health, Wealth and Strength

What a lot of people are worried about might be wealth, but what should bother them more is the concern about the health. There are surely a need to find the health, before we miss out on the same completely. Living in a busy world, it is really difficult to maintain one’s health, as there is rarely any time left for the same. Even when we have a holiday or two, there is always something else that comes to take away our time. Therefore, it is necessary that we come up with some idea to keep our life healthy, while not giving up on other things around us.

The one thing that I did without second thought is to keep bring vegetarian. It has surely helped to keep things in control. It made sure that I lost about eleven to fourteen kilograms of weight in a short period. There is something else that comes with being a vegetarian, and it is that we end up eating less. The fact that we eat more than we need is one of the reasons why we turn unhealthy. We think that we need more food, but the truth is that we don’t need that much, and this feeling that we need to have more and more is because it is the kind of food that we really love to have.

Well, this one stretches when there is the need, why don’t you?

Some regular exercise has always helped me too, especially with some badminton, and as long as we take every shot seriously, and play hard to earn every point, there is a lot of effort there, which will make sure that we don’t gain that much of weight. There might be other sports, but badminton becomes the easier and the most obvious choice as there is only need of two people, and less space. During those days when I used to have a lot of food, it was badminton that had kept me in shape – nowadays, it is the one thing that I miss the most and wish to get back to playing.

Doing some exercise at the same time as doing something else will also help the cause by saving some time too. I used to do some simple exercises while watching television, or some video on the laptop. It makes sure that no time is wasted in the name of exercise when we are struggling to keep things going due to the lack of time. Well, who has time these days – one has to wonder. Everyone is busy, and we wonder if some time later, people will just stop talking, and at some point will cease to recognize us, as we, our friends and relatives rarely meet.

An early walk or jogging can make sure that some of the health is regained or retained too. I used to walk a lot during my college days, as it also provided a certain chance of some exploration. If we have a large college campus, students and teachers do have that option easily, and we can always walk around the house, or apartments, and see the gardens or the surroundings, as well as talk to people. Having someone from the neighbourhood to keep talking while doing the same, will also be helpful. We see people taking that early morning walk together all the time.

There is one thing that we can avoid for sure, and it is to keep sitting at a place for a long time – it is quite common these days as people have to work in front of a computer the whole day. It is more or less sacrificing health when you look at it. Maybe, wealth seems to be more significant than health for many, but the question remains about where it would lead them. One would wonder what can happen without health, even if there is wealth. The loss of health in the name of earning money is not something positive, and it doesn’t matter what people say about earning more.

This one declares Badminton as her favourite sport! 😛

It is also the same reason why I left my job. My health was on the decline due to a job which had me sitting in front of a computer for the whole day. I finally decided to leave that job which had me stuck up on the same seat for the whole day including Saturdays and most of the public holidays. Now, I do feel better, both with my physical health as well as mental health. Maybe, I should have cared about my health much earlier. But it is better late than never, and hope everyone realizes the same soon enough too.

I am joining Saffola #ApneTareekeSeHealthy initiative and sharing my ways of being healthy in association with BlogAdda.

TeNy

The Lost Badminton Days

Among the best memories of life, there were always the days of the Badminton, something which I started in detail in the year 2001 with the first Badminton bat I ever had – Kamachi, a sporting season which improved further in 2002 and carried on with no real training and finding one weird way or the other to play the sport. Now, with almost no chance to play Badminton anymore, I take a look at those memories. The Badminton had somehow survived until 2014 first half for me; even now it is not dead, but is close to it.

The first season of the Badminton Days was the Kamachi season – it was a racquet that survived only to make way for the next one – Wish. 2001-2004 was rather my learning season, and it was the time when I tried my best to work on a certain style for my game, and was hoping to get at least a few smashes right (as long as I could keep getting the shuttle to the other side :D). Except for getting the drop-shots right rarely, I could only come up with some very rare surprises against those power-smashers.

You see the former racquet with a shuttle (pack is empty :P) a pole and the court too 😀

2004-2006 was my next season, finding the smashes with the new racquet, and somehow able to return some of those smashes, but still having almost no backhand. It was only during the 2006-2008 season with the next racquet Kennex that I somehow discovered that backhand shots could be played, and for that I can only thank my love for Roger Federer reaching new heights. Even as I liked him much earlier, the imitation of that classic backhand was coming to me this time, and there were the good-looking wrist bands and elbow supports to inspire 😀

2008-2011 with my next Wish racquet was my best season ever, and this was also the time of having best energy. With a ban on cricket, football and any sport which required a ball by our association, Badminton thrived at that time, and it is to be noted that there were so many people to play the game from 2001-2011, these ten years being awesome for the sport. I perfected the tennis shots during that season, and could do the tennis backhands too; and there was my tribute to Roger Federer 😀

A racquet to remember, as I would like to talk about it and those lost Badminton days 😀

2011-2015 is the time of the next racquet, the fifth in the list, the Silvers blue one which is continuing its journey even as there is no Badminton anymore, as my hope to find a place to play has failed miserably. This is my best bat so far and has lasted more than any other considering the years, but if we consider the time spent playing, this one is yet to see enough of the court. I have still managed to damage it enough already by diving on the court with it in the beginning stages itself 😀

Badminton has been so much of a fun game, and I miss it so much nowadays. I even miss that wind which helped me to get the shuttle in even after it was hit outside. Among the things that I really wish to do and bring back to my life, Badminton should come first. Our Badminton group used to be at its best at that time, and during a golden age, there would be about twelve people around just trying to get a game, and having tea or lime juice after the game was priceless. I wonder why there is not much Badminton around these days – lazy people all around!

The present Silvers racquet and the cute little kitty who wanted to join the game at night 😉

I miss playing those weird shots – those tennis backhands to the corners, the hook shot drops, the tweener drop shots, the surprise tennis forehands, the leg glance drop shots, the surprise slice drop shot, the diving sweep shot – all variety inventions which have a lot of chance not to succeed, but there is always that awesome day at the court when things work 😀 You can guess that this kind of strange nonsense shots are not going to work against a good, trained player – but there is the happiness that you get once some of these work and use the surprise elements to win against a player of your same level 😉

*All photos used in this blog post were taken on my Nokia N95 and Sony Cybershot DSC-W310.

TeNy

Escape from a Lost Planet

There is something about not being an Aluvaite. There is not much about leaving from a land plagued by potholes and disturbed by the Metro construction. It just adds to that harthal which devastates the state from where there is no escape. But forgetting all the troubles which are not really the part of Aluva alone, and missing being part of the same place is another thing. Forgetting having no more friends in the lands and no more of anyone to talk is rather the product of that engineering experiment to which our students have agreed, the result being more engineers than coconuts and all of them exported to Bangalore or Chennai.

The river Periyar which covers most of the town (taken on my DSC-W310)

The first part of not being an Aluvaite is not being UCean, talked about here : (https://theteacerebration.wordpress.com/2014/08/29/uc-as-in-you-see-and-mgu/). Not being part of the college had already happened earlier, but being not at Aluva adds more distance. Union Christian College, Alwaye comes as part of the town and it has been defined as one of the few things that define the muncipality, along with the Federal Bank, Sivarathri Manappuram and the Marthanda Varma Bridge. Therefore, UC College is the first thing to missed while leaving Aluva. For Sivarathri, we can always come here, and not travelling through the bridge is actually a boon considering the potholes – for Federal Bank, I am still a customer 😀

St. Joseph Pontifical Seminary & the church (DSC-W180)

The Aluvaite effect is kind of lessened when you are living in a flat – the feeling of living in a house being taken away for about fourteen years, and never in between those years getting that opportunity to feel really at a house except for may be at some of those tourst destinations. When you live somewhere with rules against playing cricket and football, plus the need to stop any kind of entertainment at 9PM, it gives the feeling of being in a totalitarian state which stretches its arms towards further control. There might be celebrations for Onam and New Year, but who cares anymore?

Siva Temple & Aluva Manappuram (DSC-W310)

Everyone wanted to play cricket and football and the replacement is badminton. But would the kids want to play that? No. Are there any old people who wish to play it? No. Can we ask any of the working people to come and play before 9PM? No, they won’t even reach home at that time. What is this other than an intelligent plot to stop people from having fun along with some exercise? Is it because the fascists can’t do that, the kids shouldn’t also do that? Should they just play the computer games and study during the rest of the time? Yes, create a video game playing, internet addicted future generation.

St. Xavier’s Church in the centre of the town (DSC-W310)

Now, what were these games for us? Were they just about doing something because we had lots of time? No, it was a place for socializing; for they were not just games. I have met more people while indulging in sports rather than being in a boring meeting talking about why we are so awesome and planning for some boring fake celebrations which are conducted. Nobody really cares about this dumb repetition every year, and some people just act as if they do. There is no real effort put into it, and we have a new generation not caring about the same, because it is what some people want, and youth wants no part of it.

UCC. The wonder that is a college (GT-B7722)

It is clear that most of the people don’t know anybody, even their own neighbours. We all know that person who gets out of the nearby door and comes back in. But who on the Earth are these people? Did they drop right out of hell last day with the expression that says “move out of the way or I will deliver you a clothesline”. So many families; we know a lot of them when we are a small group, but as the gang increases in number and diversifies, we ends up knowing none. There was only one cat that cared, but it got run over by a car.

Marthanda Varma Bridge. Defining Aluva (DSC-W310)

Can we be confident about the fact that it will be any better at a new place? No and it can be even worse, but we will live in a house, and when we are bored, we can always take care of a garden, and there won’t be the need to listen to that grilling which happens every day at some random rich guy’s flat who does that too often. What are you building? A Taj Mahal – Victoria Memorial hybrid? Who cares about this bloody bourgeoisie who thinks that money can get them anything; but no, not respect, unless you live like you deserve it. I see that most of the good people have moved or are going to move from our neighborhood – I will miss many good things about Aluva and my best friends were indeed from here, but add me to the list.

Chowara St. Mary’s Church; a beauty (DSC-W310)

TeNy