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11月13日 Tobacco and meTobacco has been a part of our culture since a long time. Walk into a traditional household in certain parts of India and you will alwys spot the paan box. Women have paan with betelnuts and perhaps a hint of tobacco over a rich round of gossip. While men chew on it to spit the farthest, perhaps.
Whether its bidis or raw tobacco or creamy snuff,or cigarettes,it is the one stimulant most Indians can't do without.
So much so, that paans are named after the type of tobacco used. And paan shops are big business. You can even order paan on the net now.They all feature a webpage, or two. Some booming ecommerce sites, sell paan today.
In rural India,people make a living from selling tobbacco and the tendu leaves that are wrapped into bidiis- so cheap, and popular in our country.
Not that I am defending tobacco. Far from it. I should know better. My grandfather died nineteen years ago from mouth cancer. And he used to have a special tobacco paan more then once a day.And yes, tobacco was probably the cause. And the cigarettes might one day kill me too, if I am allowed to live that long,that is.Or you for that matter.
But tobacco is a stimulant we Indians cannot quit.Or is it? 9月24日 plastic & u.BAN PLASTIC: screamed the newspapers – loud and clear. So, one morning I got up and decided to throw plastic out of my life.
As I stretched and looked around the room, the first thing I noticed were the brightly painted walls-spotless…hmm thanks to all the new plastic coated emulsion---huh. Plastic coated…well. I guess I could invest in those trendy eco-friendly bungalows. I grabbed the tooth brush –nice and white- in its plastic case and smeared the toothpaste from a ‘squeezy’ plastic tube. Neem barks were a good alternative though would there be enough to last me a life time? (And what about the smelly mouth residue?) The plastic soap box was the next to be thrown out. But as I pulled out a fresh bar of soap, the brand advertised its plastic coated wrapper. Oh well, I guess I will have to settle for those cheap unwrapped bars, fresh from the factory (uh-oh). This was getting tougher. I do love the smells. And what about the hygienic soap dispensers.
Time to make breakfast, but first I must remove the beautiful protective plastic cover of my refrigerator. But even as it stood, naked and pristine white, it still had the manufacturers coated plastic ---should I switch to those high-end steel ones? Hum. Yes, the zip-lock bags will have to go. As for marketing, the good ol’jute/cloth bag is always there- I might have to fight with the vendor for that- they so love showing off their plastic bags! The dressing table was my next target. Grabbed the combs and replaced them with the steel brushes (I could always cut my hair short). And forget about shampoo- the home ground amla –shikakai routine – will have to do. Besides, I won’t require the plastic hair clips either. Creams – will have to make those at home too. And I can always do without make-up. I carefully changed my plastic folders and used some good ethnic cloth folders instead. I also replaced my plastic paper clips and staplers with steel ones. I reminded myself to change the rusted ones too. Dumped all my ball points, micro-tips and settled for some fat fountain pens. Even recyclable ball points have a plastic refill though. As I checked my wallet, my cards gleamed back at me mischievously. Did you know a lost wallet fished out of the sea after forty years still had intact credit cards in it? Naturally, credit card is plastic money – lasts forever or till you go broke anyway. So what do I do with the modern banking system being as it is-perhaps I should compromise on this one little thing-? Or should I? Oh for 24 hr- banks and no debit/credit card policies… A life without plastic? As they say- it might be impossible! Plastic is non-biodegradable. It just stays there. (Perhaps, one day the pile will be tall enough to reach the clouds and hey, guess what – it might just be our ladder to space- except once it crosses all atmospheres it might just melt-or will it?) |
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