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Oops! I forgot something
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A holiday need not be spent worrying whether you locked the door or turned off the gas. A checklist and proper planning will help
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HAPPY HOLIDAY But don't forget the keys Photo: K. Ananthan
Whether you are off on a vacation or ambling down the road to pick up eggs, a suspicious feeling of having left the front door open, the tap on, the gas unturned can wreck your peace of mind. Pictures of curtains going up in flame, the hot red iron devouring the unsuspecting shirt greedily and then moving on the mattress or the filthy black cat lapping up the milk start running riot in the mind.
An unexpected office meeting or an instant holiday is a perfect situation for this pattern to emerge.
"I always forget my toothbrush," says S.M. Das, a bank employee. He has company. "My wife forgets our home keys," he adds with a laugh. So at times they have made a back door entry into their house. The railway station is a perfect place where you will find many who have been bitten by this bug.
When you meet a beaming Vasantha, you wouldn't suspect that she has left the fridge switch on as she goes off to a small family get-together in Vijayawada. "I will be back in five days," she says reassuringly.
A. Mohan Reddy and his wife Parvathy, who were visiting their son at Coonoor almost missed their train. The reason, they forgot their keys. "We called our son and waited for half an hour," they recount.
But at times, forgetfulness can mean paying for the same ticket twice. Mohammed Arif at the bookstall on the platform says, "Some passengers are so busy buying books, they leave their tickets here."
Some people are so excited that they leave some pieces of their luggage too.
"We find two to three bags daily," says a Sub Inspector of the Railway Protection Force at the railway station. One such experience that sent shivers down his spine: "One day, I got a call that a bag had something in it which was ticking. I rushed to the platform and swung the bomb detectors into action only to find an alarm clock ticking inside," he says.
But not everyone forgets. Says Shanthi, who works in the Postal Department , "Switching lights and fans off is routine and I plan for holidays well in advance."
Adds Lalitha, a network marketing executive, "I have a bag where I keep all the things I need, so I rarely miss out anything."
Vijaylakshmi Prabhakaran, a mother of two, says, "I make sure when we are going out that I switch off the lights and fans, the gas, the iron and then recheck." She believes that the habit of forgetting shows that a person has not been trained to plan and take on responsibility. She says children should learn that picnics and holidays mean more than just fun, it means shouldering a share of the responsibilities. "My daughter is responsible for locking the doors and the water bottles have to be put in the van by my son."
Don't forget...
Tickets, passport, medicine, official papers, cell phone charger, telephone numbers and keys.
Checklist
Taps, doors, geyser, iron box, washing machine, gas, fridge, fans and lights.
If you have more appliances, just add them to your list and go on a holiday.
PUJA S. NAVIN
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