When a lockdown was declared in Thimphu four days back – not many were surprised. Most of us have been expecting it. I mean proactive leadership by His Majesty the King and strong containment measures by the government notwithstanding, few cases of leakages were to be expected – it would be paranormal if Bhutan did not record any community infections, particularly given that the blasted thing has been going on for the past 2 years. Three more days of lockdown is justified – regardless of the inconveniences it causes.
The problem with lockdowns is that it causes a very strange and unusual problem – tiredness brought on by having to do nothing!
Long periods of inactivity can be terribly unnerving. What can a man do? – hour after hours and days of being confined within a limited space can wreck havoc on your patience and tolerance level. The monotony can get frustrating.
On the second morning of the lockdown, I decided to treat myself to an assortment of activities. I began by vacuuming my car and meticulously wiping the dashboard and other plastic and rubber paraphernalia clean of dust and grime. Then I pulled out my water jet/spray system and washed my car to a subdued shine.
With still plenty of time in hand, I looked around to see what else I could do. I noticed that the drain was quite simply filthy - cluttered with pebbles, swollen grains of discarded rice, onion peels, cigarette butts, rags and numerous waffles of dried red chilies from some castaway Emma Datsi.
I began to jet-spray the drain with my water jet system, making sure that I control the force of the jet so that the plasterwork do not peel off. It took me a while because the damn drain runs into over three hundred feet long and the work is a laborious one. But at the end of my endeavors, the drain was squeaky clean and free of years of muck and filth. That done – I still had time in hand. I realized that the compound around the building was strewn with trash.
So I put on my hand gloves and started to pick the trash and deposit them inside a double-layered trash bag. In the middle of it all, my wife comes out of the house and taking on a posture of an indignant Mama-san, wants to know:
“Why are you picking the trash? We do not throw trash around – they are the ones who do. So they should do the cleaning. Why should you do it?”
I replied:
“That, you see Madam, is the difference – that is the reason why I am a better person than they are.
“That is why they are the Dashos, while I am the Draksho!!"
She gives me a quizzical blank look and tells me:
“Whatever …. up to you.”
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