Cyclone Nisarga : the terror

I am terrified. I am anxious and I dont know what to do with myself. Just a few days ago, West Bengal was hit by a cyclone. Cyclone Amphan. It left behind many a deaths and a lot of destruction. Houses were destroyed.

Mumbai, for the first time in a long long time, is awaiting its cyclone. I am living in Mumbai, and I am scared. It is supposed to hit today, at 3 pm. It has been raining since morning. We can notice the rain intensify every hour. It was drizzling at abpout 8 am. Very light drizzle. And it has constantly intensified since.

We have a leaking roof. It always leaks when monsoon hits. Since we live on the top floor of our apartment, water collected on the terrace comes trickling down our window. It has started leaking again. To prepare for the cyclone, that is said to last for a few hours, three hours precisely, I have filled in water bottles and our big water container. I wanted to get candles as well, but its Corona time, and shops are either shut or too crowded.

I don’t know what else I can do to be prepared. But honestly speaking, I am more worried about the crow sitting on our neighbour’s window. Cawing incessantly. I’m scared for the many cats on the streets. I was told nature will take care of them etc, but I don’t believe a word of it. I’m scared for the people in chawls. The people without homes. Or homes too weak to protect against the rain and the wind.

Meanwhile, my cats, Morty and Loki are quite enjoying the weather. It has been very very hot in Mumbai for the past few weeks. It has cooled down a considerable amount since last night. They like it. It gives them a chance to cozy up next to the window.

Morty 🙂

I’m trying to keep myself busy so I don’t worry too much. I am to make biryani for lunch. I think I will go prepare for it.

Review: Turtles All The Way Down – A Must Read

Books that talk of mental illness have a special place in my heart. I cannot really say why, but books like Perks of Being a Wallflower, Norwegian Woods and now Turtles all the Way Down will probably always be on the ‘books I can read over and over again’ shelf.

Turtles All The Way Down, the latest by John Green was a brilliant read and a bloody fast one too. But before everything else, here’s a confession that I need to make: I have never read a John Green book before. So I won’t be able to tell you how the book compares with the other ones.

Turtles is the story of Aza, a girl carefully named for her father wanted her name to cover all the alphabets. Like most young adults, she has a best friend, Daisy, and a crazy love story going on in the background. Her love story with Davis Pickett has a mystery angle to it as well, in which Aza and Daisy go on to look for a runaway billionaire which has a promise to make them rich. All these stories run in the background of the central theme: Anxiety.

The book has an overall philosophical tone to it, which gets a little over-the-top sometimes. But otherwise when you’re done with reading and you lie on the bed thinking, it all makes sense. This is a book that makes you wanna think, really.

Among the many reasons as to why you should read th book, the prime one that strikes me is this : the characters are real. The people in the book are so real you’d think you could really meet one of them in real life. For instance, Aza has a car named ‘Harold’. Yes she has named it and she has a relationship with the car as if it were a person. Her emotions with the object are real. We all know at least one person who has real relationships with objects.

Another thing that’s commendable about the book is John Green’s knowledge about other things. Animals, stars, medicine, tech and so many other things. It is amazing to read so many new things.

This is a book you shouldn’t give a miss. It is a must read. Young or adult.

Oh and, the cover is beautiful.

Book: Turtles All The Way Down
Author: John Green
Publisher: Penguin Random House, UK
Pages: 286 (Hardcover)
Rating: 4.5/5