Elvis & Alice

When I lived in Chennai, I used autos a lot and a place I needed to go to a lot was ELLIS Road. ELLIS. ELLIS. ELLIS. 

Anand, who took a special interest in hailing my autos for me, INSISTED on telling the auto driver that I had to travel to ELVIS Road.

ELVIS. Like the singer.

Not ELLIS. (Ellis, like the road).

I tried many times to correct him but failed, and ultimately gave up.

Then suddenly, a few months back, I remembered he used to call Ellis Road ELVIS Road. Why did I suddenly remember this? Because I'm simply that awesome.

I said to him, "You used to always say Elvis Road instead of Ellis Road."

He said, "Yes. Because that SHOULD have been its correct name. I mean, atleast everyone knows Elvis. But Ellis? Who the fuck is Ellis? And anyway, it's Alice.  Who the fuck is Alice. Not Ellis."

French kiss

Yesterday I was at a cafe by myself when a man came and sat next to me.

Our eyes caught each other, I smiled, he smiled, we talked. He was French. No, it didn't end in a kiss.

It was broad daylight, this was an outdoor cafe, and in any case, my life is rarely that exciting.

A conversation with a complete stranger. Male stranger.

I wouldn't have had it with him if he was Indian.

If he was Indian and he smiled at me, and tried to talk to me,  I may even have left my meal halfway, paid the bill and walked away.

But maybe if he was Indian but very old and doddering and his eyes caught mine, and he smiled at me and started a conversation, I would have responded.

Sigh.

Men and their reputations.

side effects of chemotherapy

Disclaimer: These are my observations as a lay person. For a trained medical opinion, please consult an oncologist. 

On the day of the chemotherapy itself, you are likely to feel nothing.

24 hours after your chemotherapy, you will need an injection to boost the count of your white blood cells. This is because a side effect of chemotherapy is that it reduces your white blood cell count. White blood cells are important because they help your body fight infections. If you are under chemotherapy, the susceptibility of your body to infections increases.

Chemotherapy kills the cancer cells but it also kills the normal cells. You may feel very weak as your heamoglobin levels tend to fall. You will be required to take blood tests often throughout the course of your treatment and if your doctor feels your heamoglobin level is dangerously low then you may need a blood transfusion. 

You will experience hair loss but how quickly it sets in or the rate at which it falls differs from patient to patient. Some people lose all their hair within the first week - 10 days, others lose theirs gradually, over the course of their chemotherapy sessions.

You may have body pain, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, diarrhea, constipation or general weakness. The week immediately after your chemotherapy session is the hardest. If you have been advised to undergo chemotherapy on a weekly basis then you may feel like you are constantly having to deal with its side effects. However, if your chemotherapy takes place with longer time gaps between the sessions then you may even feel fit or normal after your spell of weakness. 

Depending on how strong you feel, you can drive, go out to work, meet friends or go to a party.

Everything is possible because anything can happen at anytime.

chemotherapy

Disclaimer: These are my observations as a lay person. For a scientific explanation on chemotherapy, please consult an oncologist.

Chemotherapy is not radiation. The 2 are different and you shouldn't get confused by the movies.

Chemotherapy can be given as oral tablets, as an instant injection or through a slow drip.

The chemotherapy given as a drip is the most common and also the one that I have closely observed.

You check into the hospital with your prescription. When you check in, they begin preparing your chemotherapy drugs. Preparation has to be done in a sterile environment and the drugs must be used immediately and not stored.  This is why they will begin preparing your drugs only once you have checked in. It can take anywhere between 45 minutes to 2 hours for the lab to prepare the drugs that you need.

Dosage and types of drugs are different for each patient. There are more than 50 different types of chemotherapy drugs. So once you are checked in, the lab prepares the drugs for you in the exact concentration and dosage as has been prescribed by your doctor.

Once the chemotherapy drugs are ready, they are administered to you via a drip. You can spend anywhere between 5 - 8 hours in the hospital while you are on the drip. You can lie down or sit up. You can read, eat, watch TV or sleep. You can even ask the nurse to disconnect your drip if you need to take a bathroom break.

You will most likely feel nothing. Side effects only kick in over the next few days.

Depending on the dosage prescribed to you, you may need one or more drips. When they have finished giving you all your chemotherapy drips, they will give you a final saline drip.

Once they have finished giving you the saline drip, you can leave the hospital. Your chemotherapy session is over. Each session is called a "cycle". The frequency of your chemotherapy cycles are decided by your doctor.

creative explanations

"Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) launched on 3^rd December, 2005 the Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) and Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programmes (IHSDP) are being implemented which focus on basic services to the urban poor and integrated development of slums."

-- Press Release, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Government of India

house wearing t-shirts

Anand: I want to go to Sarojini Nagar. Let's go to Sarjoni Nagar.

Me: What do you want to do in Sarojini Nagar?

He: Buy cheap stuff!!!!

Me: What type of cheap stuff?

He: House wearing t-shirts!

Me: Do you need house wearing t-shirts? How many house wearing t-shirts do you already have?

He: Many!

The idlis are delicious. Did your mom cook them?

My mother is Punjabi and she doesn't know how to make idlis. In fact, she doesn't even know how to cook. Yes, my parents had a love marriage. Get over it.