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  • Category: Miscellaneous
    Points:5

    What about return to nature for a good sleep

    While talking to a friend, now holed up comfortably in his farmhouse near Tenkasi, a fabulous town in South Tamil Nadu, I had a very nice input that took me to the good old days of my spending summer holidays in a rural setting in my native place near a town called Kumbakonam. Well, we do not own anything there, as everything was sold for a song long ago. Today, even the same village house, with minimum maintenance of, if we had just preserved the land and built a good new house for ten hundred thousand rupees twenty years ago, would be worth a crore, as we also had vacant land of 12000 square foot near our house.

    Today, my friend does what my late grandmother did long ago. She would pour some twenty buckets of water on the terrace at around 7 Pm and later on burn a pot full of dry neem leaves mixed with castor oil to kill all mosquitoes. We would then put our mats and pillows. After 10 PM, even in the second and third week of May, we would sleep very peacefully.

    Today,my electricity bill is at least 9000 rupees during summer( for two months), as we use the AC as if there is no tomorrow. My friend just laughed and suggested that we take our car, go over there and happily spend time there, with zero electricity bill at night.

    Even during day, he does not use the AC. Where are the good old days? In the name of urbanization, are we missing everything. Of course, my friend has also seen CSK smash the Punjab team in their own place up to 11.30 PM and then gone to sleep. He has not missed anything.

    Can we go back to such ways in summer?
  • #779131

    Points:4
    In village setting where people have spacious houses and land around, such arrangements are possible as most of the material would be available nearby in the farms or orchards but in urban setting we can only dream of these things.
    I remember when I was posted in North Gujarat area during my service life, we had single story houses in the housing society where I was living on rent. During summer it is very hot in that area and we did not have AC. In fact we could not afford it. So, in the night we took a mat and a covering sheet and went on the roof and slept. The wind was always good and mosquitoes did not trouble us. So, there was no problem of electricity bill.

    These things are not possible in small apartments where even the balconies are very small.
    Knowledge is power.

  • #779139

    Points:5
    These are all really good suggestions from the author but the real question is how many villagers are following these things. Recently I spent around fifteen days in my native village. A sea change is seen in the village atmosphere also. No house is there without an AC. Nobody is sleeping on the terrace. My house there is also a slabbed house and every day evening our servant maid there puts water and cleans the surface. We used to go and sit there for one or two hours. But the atmosphere is not like what I experienced in my childhood. We had a very big vacant land in our house and in the evenings my mother used to sweep that area and do the cleaning. At night, we used to spread foldable cots there and sleep there the atmosphere was very good and the breeze was very nice. Unless otherwise, we take steps to protect the environment we will not have comfortable open-air sleep.
    drrao
    always confident

  • #779141

      

    Points:3
    Just a thought- If your friend is following the method of placing buckets of water around his house to ward off mosquitoes, it is hoped that he will not throw away and waste that water later, but use it fruitfully.

    I also do not understand why people think it imperative to use air-conditioners and that too 24x7. When the power goes off and they are forced to sit in the heat, then why not when the power is available? Isn't it possible to use the fan only?
    When you make a commitment, you create hope. When you keep a commitment you create trust! ~ John C. Maxwell

  • #779142

    Points:5
    Whatever comforts you would like to have, the body will be adjusted to it. During my service - life, I was allotted a CD - type quarter for my accommodation initially. It was a spacious one containg two rooms, one drawing room and a dining hall enough for a small household.
    In 1990, the atmosphere was quite cosy and comfortable in almost all the seasons. There was no necessity for the installation of AC.
    I have had a roof which was used for sleeping purposes at night. The wind blowing across the roof was quite comfortable providing me with a sound sleep.
    Later, on changing this accommodation in 1998, as a result of the allotment of C type, I installed an AC due to the demand of family - members. However, it was fitted in the room of children and wife. I managed the night with the ceiling fan.

  • #779143

    Points:4
    The author has shown better side of the village which appears to be more near to nature. In reality it is not so. If one goes to a village and stays there for a few days then one will come to know that things are not as natural and rosy as the author has tried to depict in his post.
    The fact is that even in villages trees are cut and environment is not so healthy as it used to be.
    Today no one is ready to settle and live in villages. Everyone wants to go there for a few days for a change and fun. There is nothing more than that.
    There is an overall need for environment protection everywhere - village or city.
    Thoughts exchanged is knowledge gained.

  • #779153

    Points:4
    Putting thousands of buckets of water around a house! Imagine a situation when water scarcity comes in that village. There are many villages where people go 2 or 3 Km to fetch water for their minimum use. Can those villagers afford such things? In Bangalore, there is no water to drink. So I feel wasting such an amount of water may lead to another problem. To avoid overheats and protect the environment one should stop using ACs which will be releasing halon gases into the atmosphere and grow as many trees as possible.
    drrao
    always confident

  • #779157

    Points:5
    Vandana Madam, at that time in our Village there was no water scarcity at all. My friend pours water on the terrace floor and then the fire is all about a mixture of castor oil and dry neem leaves. The fire would go on for around 40 minutes and the mosquitoes would simply die. I have seen this even some four years ago. The cots and the mats are put only in the terraces. Yes, villages are changing everywhere and cable television penetration is pretty good too. To this village near Tenkasi in South Tamil Nadu, I had been there only years ago. This friend seems to be having a house there. It is not very far away from the town.

    As you would know, this town is situated near Kerala and naturally there is the Kerala influence as well. Trees are preserved to the best of my knowledge. I really do not know the present situation. I got up see some snaps sent to my mail. There was too much of greenery in that village, going by what I saw.

  • #779158

    Points:3
    There are too many rain fed areas where the ground water potential is still very good. Tenkasi, as many would not know, is also the place where the founder of Zoho Corp a leading IT product company, Mr. Shridhar Vembu lives and operates a big unit of his own company.

    However, my friend informs me that the village economy is very powerful and the trading activities are pretty good here as well.

  • #779167

      

    Points:3
    Your friend pours the water on the terrace floor. That's a waste, isn't it? If the greenery is well preserved, then why is he not doing his bit for it by putting the water to good use for the plants and trees around?

    Also, in areas where the groundwater potential is still good, that water should not be needlessly wasted. Shouldn't that groundwater be used judiciously?
    When you make a commitment, you create hope. When you keep a commitment you create trust! ~ John C. Maxwell

  • #779168

    Points:3
    I agree. But in a rural environment, people are always habituated to do all sorts of things. There is always a tendency to keep matters simple,but water usage is not one of them. Here again, there are some checks and balances where the water potential is not good. I really do not know what is going on. My friend shares certain things. Apart from that I do not know much as he is the only person known to me from that part of this State


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