Thinking Aloud

On last Vesak Poya evening, my MIL wanted coconut oil to light lanterns, picked up a bottle and peddled to Rupasinghe stores near cool planet (I was once wondering from where the name has come from) The friendly grocer, young Mr. Rupasinghe, a fellow Anandian enthusiastically serving me mentioned that I was one of the rare kind to the shop for coconut oil with a bottle! And almost all the ladies asked for oil in polythene bags! We are in the blame game on the garbage menace but are we doing our part in resolving the problem? NO, we keep doing the wrong and blame the governments from independence for not taking action.  Sticking to topic, from the day the Meethotamulla dump collapsed I took a stern decision to reject all free polythene bags, and I usually carry a backpack or my favorite messenger bag (I am a freak of) wherever I go, even to the supermarket and trust me I would have saved over 100 bags (big & small) within a month for sure.  I recall my paren...

We all know that we should not try to start a submerged vehicle (rule of thumb - water above head lamp level) or vehicle stalled in water. T here are many things to do but the very first should be informing the insurance company immediately. Once done the insurance company will usually advise you to move the vehicle to dry land / garage for their inspection. Even if they don’t you can tell them that you will be moving the vehicle to avoid further damage. Now you shift the vehicle but you should not dismantle any part until the assessor arrives. Once the initial inspection is done by insurer you will be able to do the preliminaries like manual cranking by removing the plugs, injectors etc. and check the oils and filters prior trying to start. However the job is not over yet, our opinion is no point repairing a newer vehicle with serious electronics and especially the hybrid and electrics. It’s best to claim it as a total loss if your insurance cover has the provision. But t...

SAITM and the view towards Doctors aren’t great these days. Even my opinion stay that the freedom of the medical education should be given whilst preserving the free education. Further the strikes and protests created a huge disturbance to people’s lives and the Doctors were the focal point of criticism of the business community, aka tax payers who fund the free education. Amidst all that I was diagnosed Dengue and after three days of monitoring at home admi tted to Sri Jayawardenapura Hospital as soon the platelet count drops below 150K. I have been monitoring the processes, caring and medication of SJGH and comparing with the recent resident experience at Central Hospital for the same illness with my son. It is amazing the Ward # 17 of SJGH handled an overflowing number of cases nearing 200. Big bouquets of flowers to Medical care: The doctors were so focused, knowledgeable on the subject and eloquent on all patients. They spent ample time on each patient whilst running...

I ndustrialists and business are having a critical HR issue in Sri Lanka due to the lack of trained professionals entering the job market/workforce. It's a known fact that Three wheelers and small lorries of owner-drivers creates a massive negative impact in building skilled workers which is the lifeblood of any developing nation. Sad to see even the parents and the public is responsible for this by funding them for three-wheelers and lorries.  Just after O/L s and even after A/L they think running a small Tuk-tuk or a Batta on their own will give them the liberty in money and life. But it's too late when they identify the real story, which is largely contributed by the Banks, sellers of these vehicles, and the community. The government should ban this menace since industrialists do not have enough professionals for most trades available for the age group of 20 to 30. Some jobs available in plenty and we all know their wages before they hit their 25th year of life, ...