Though the present generation may be accused of being spend-thrifts, our basic upbringing makes even the most extravagant among us to be extra-cautious when it comes to money transactions. However, ever since cashless transactions came into being, many people have started facing problems due to technical glitches.

Generally, if something goes wrong in the process of the transaction, most salespeople refuse to return the money, claiming that the transaction has not gone through. But there are always some exceptions, as a colleague found out. On a road trip to Lucknow in his friend’s car, the group stopped at a petrol station for fuel. Since his friend was running short of cash, he thought of paying through the online payment portal, Paytm. But then, the transaction failed the first time and he had to pay again.

However, his account balance showed that the amount had been debited both times. Though he tried to convey this to the attendant, who was dispensing the petrol, the latter was not ready to agree. Soon, the owner of the petrol station came up, perhaps hearing the commotion.

Understanding the situation, he promptly paid back the extra amount deducted from the Paytm account. This gesture really impressed our colleague’s friend and he thanked the petrol bunk owner profusely before driving off.

Another idiot?

Tales of mischief in college hostels are never-ending. An engineer acquaintance narrated how cleanliness was a major issue in his hostel. Boys would often eat in their rooms while studying late into the night.

The rule in his hostel was that students having meals in their rooms, whether fetched from outside or from the canteen, in their rooms had to wash the plates before returning them to the mess. Many a time, having to rush for morning classes, the boys left the dirty plates in their rooms.

This attracted cockroaches and mice, causing a lot of hygiene problems. Regular inspection by the hostel warden would send the boys scurrying around with a load of dirty plates and spoons. To avoid getting caught, this acquaintance had a brilliant idea.

He thrust his dirty plates into the refrigerator that was kept in his room and so managed to keep the room clean. This also ensured cockroaches and mice were kept away. And so, during an inspection, the warden appreciated his clean room.

Unfortunately, she walked up to the fridge to check and was shocked at the pile of dirty plates. Unable to resist laughing at the smart move, the warden, nevertheless pulled up the young man and gave him an hour’s time to clean out the mess!

Holi fun!

With people moving across the country, mainly to take up jobs, there is a healthy mix of culture. Several festivals that were traditionally celebrated in one part of the country are now enjoyed all over. Take for instance, the festival of colours, Holi, which is traditionally not celebrated in the South.

Thus, there is no holiday marked for this festival in the southern states, though youngsters can be seen throwing colours and water balloons, just as in the North. A colleague visiting his daughter, living in Kancheepuram, narrated how some enterprising friends managed to celebrate the festival despite it being a working day.

The group met up in a park outside the District Collector’s office very early in the morning. They had a good time smearing colour on each other and gorging themselves on a variety of sweets and snacks. They then returned home, cleaned up and got dressed, ready for work. That’s perhaps having a good time both ways!

Tailpiece

Police across the country has a fresh headache from now on ~ providing security to leaders’ statues, particularly post polls!

Contributed by: R V Smith, Rakesh Kumar, D S Velu and Asha Ramachandran