CELL PHONE ERROR!!! That’s how my day started and ended. Well Monday has always had the misfortune of being tied to being blue and a very not wanted day of the week but this one was exceptionally bluesy. Plus in my line of work every day is a Monday so this day falling on Monday is a mere coincidence. Poor Monday!

Getting back to the story: It was not cell phone error as in my cell phone, which I always suspect is a dupli(cate) one cuz it’s sooo slow at time and hangs, was not working but NTC (Nepal TeleCom - the service provider) having it’s usual ‘problems’. If you live or have lived in Nepal (Kathmandu Valley) for any period of time (no matter how small) and used one you will definitely know what I am talking about.

I am not so sure what happened in the later one (the ending) but the former definitely NTC’s fault. Clearly! I am absolutely certain that NTC was unquestionably and without doubt the party to blame (If you haven’t noticed then I have used six words which have the same meaning and are interchangeable which, my teachers and other very wise people say, should certainly never be used - claps and laughs please. This was definitely a clear and absolute piece of genius on my part. That is so undeniable. What an overkill I am).

The first thing I hear when I get up is someone at home informing that cell phone services are totally down. Huh? Wasn’t turning off cell phones one of the biggest reason that the previous government was ousted? Could the new one be following in the same idiotic path? Maybe it wants to see how loyal the people are towards it. I check my own and it’s totally working. “Must be pre-paids only,” my informant informs me. That’s not good either. There’s someone who’s got a prepaid that I’ve got to call a lot. I had to call that ‘someone’ that morning too so I do. And nothing.

Not exactly nothing. I got “MAPH GARNU HOLA. TAPAILE SAMPARKA GARNA KHOJNU BHAEKO MOBILEKO SWITCH OFF GARIYEKO CHHA. Sorry the mobile you have dialed is switched off.” I tried that a few times. And just before I started panicking tried Prabin’s. I got through smoothly. I was in big bad trouble now. The person in question and I had had a nice little tiff the previous evening and had probably turned off the cell. So my informant’s cell was probably not working. Well on with life. And then I get SMS demanding why I had not called. Let’s call the person in question C (feels like name that Alexander Fleming . . . errr… I mean Ian Fleming would have chosen. Did I ever tell you how I always thought of Alexander Fleming’s photo when I thought Ian. Mix up of having both people’s story in the same page in World Book and only one photo and Alexander giving the look of a writer than a scientist who made a big spill).

Seems the person in question, I mean C, hadn’t checked the cell all day and on finally finding it had no towers showing (connection strength) had restarted it and the device came back online. Took a lot of attempts at convincing that I had indeed tried a lot to get through.

Next Prabin tells me this site is operational and upon finding that I was still unable to type checks and finds that he had forgotten to give me, the owner of the site and the main character of it (in fact it’s even named after me), the rights to write - admin - as he (and the web) calls it.

He did the necessary and I deleted some test stuffs and appended the first message - My First Post.

Then came the treat (I’d like to add here that it seems the khaires, at least the khaires that came to work here in my office, did not get what I meant when I said treat. Maybe I should use to treat…or something like that if I ever address one of their kind). As mentioned in My First Post, I had to treat Prabin to somethings for the site. But again as mentioned in the aforementioned post I had very little to spend. As Prabin likes cold coffee in Indeni that’s what I offered him. He took sometime to understand what I was saying, probably because he had not read what I had said in gmail rather than him not being used to me giving treats. It was just supposed to be a teaser. A small thing prelude to the big bash after I had some money.

It happened that I got on the same lift as Manish and he took us for tea at the canteen and as always did not have change so I ended up paying for it all. There were some funny incidents here but it was the usual indecisiveness of tea or coffee for Prabin and some more which could be quite insignificant. I’ll deal with Manish some other time.

We went to Indreni. It was coffee followed by Sadheko Badam and cigis. Bill comes 182. Woof. I did not check the bill until later when some one asked me how that little cost so much. Turns out it was not Cold Coffee that was expensive (as I had assumed) but the Sadheko Badam which cost 60. That puts “being paid peanuts” in an all new perspective.

Next on the list was Bikash’s farewell at Maya, he was supposed to live for Lukla for a 15 day trip the next day. Later in the evening he told me that it had been postponed by to May 18 due to lack of sufficient funds (as of May 17, 21:39 hours the date he is leaving is May 20).

Had a coupla Venoms, on recommendation of C. Had a lot of talk on politics, suspensions, journalistic ethics (if you happen to be journalist, especially writing for page 1, then you might not have heard the word so I beg your forgiveness dear senior and great sirs) and a lot of other stuff that I don’t think I remember - paid some of the bill tipped the guard and went home.

Upon reaching home I called C talked a bit brought my dinner, ate it, talked some more. Time to go to bed. So brushed my teeth. While doing this I happened to notice that there was a piece or two of rice and curry on the dial-pad.

So I proceed to clean it - WITH WATER. The lazy thing that I am, searching for a talo was too much work so I used whatever cleaning agent was immidietly available to me. And the universal solvent did its work. A little too good.

It not only wiped out the ’stain’ but also the wiring system of the phone.

(Continued on June 11, the original one was started on may 18 or 19 or 2 and was posted as 15)

The water entered the dial pad and of course we’ve all been told again and again how water and electronic devices don’t mix…. well I have a very sad tail which does not involve the death of any person by electrocution but the end of a digital diary, but I will reserve this one for another day… hopeful…. this was way back in time… way back when my ex n I were just very good friends and even best friends had a few months to go. So the dialup went dead… nearly death most of it worked except the all important ones… the flash, speakerphone, and the 9 n 8 … those living in Nepal will know how important these are when you are calling a mobile cellular device.. These make the first two digits of all mobile numbers.

All other numbers worked but when you pressed any of the lower right hand buttons it went twaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…………………. So no call… Now this is what happens when you write a story after a gap of nearly a month. I forgot what happened to our cell phones… Either it showed one network error after another….but scrolling up I find that I had mentioned it could also be my mobile’s fault. So probably the number just didn’t dial… this has happened before too but not as much as that night… there was probably a few network errors too. I even tried Prabin’s cell n home phone with the same results ie no results.

I forgot what was wrong with her mobile .. probably was one way….. well I tried n tried n tried… nothing……I don’t remember if she did the same.. well I fell asleep . . . I had had a few and me n my sleep anecdotes are long.. I am like a dormouse I once even fell asleep standing. Prabin finally got through to me…. N told me to call C. I tried n nothing… but I did get through to Prabin this time n told him I couldn’t get through and my phone was blimp… I think he told me to come online… I tried phoning some more and bang I was asleep. Well you might guess all the reaction it brought up. I don’t remember what it was but it definitely was not pleasant. If I remember anything else I will add. But no-one probably is reading this.. especially since the few who do have waited to long… but it will help me remember some of it and not have to say I forgot the events of this eventful day. Peace….. haha

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