My difficult trips

"I hardly saw any news regarding World Hepatitis Day in the media on July 28, the day dedicated to raise the level of awareness among the public about the virus. I checked with my reporters and they said no events were held"

Trips do happen every day in my life, in everybody’s life. We go to a grocery store, to a pharmacy, to a fruit vendor, to a book shop, and so on.

Some trips are always a burden on my mind. Of them, trips to the mobile phone fixer do it to me every time. Whenever my mobile malfunctions or I have to buy a new one, I pretend to be a person who knows everything or something about the bug, tools, brands, etc.

I hardly know anything about motherboard, and charging and even if they are placed in front of me, I would not be able to tell which one is the motherboard. Similarly, whenever I go to a hardware store, I cannot tell if this tool is a hammer or a wrench and how to grip them.

The other day, I happened to be at a mobile phone accessory store to buy a headphone, which is also called hands-free or hand free. That’s it. The vendor placed a bunch of gadgets in front of me.

I examined each and every one pack if I knew their specifics. The vendor made a simple task so complicated by explaining the features of every cable. Such an easy task of picking a Rs500 headphone turned out to be almost too much for me. I picked all the headphones, looked them closely, up and down.

At last, I asked the vendor about his recommendation. He offered me a Rs1,500 headphone, saying it was the best product, and he was offering me at a discounted rate.

I regret why I did not pick the cheap and simple one. Expensive and fancy things are deceptive.

When I left the shop, I felt cheated.

This happens to me whenever I visit a fruit vendor too. The vendor either sells me fruit at higher prices or sells me rotten, overripe or sour fruit.

The same feeling strikes me when I leave a book shop with four or five books in my hands. I love to spend hours at a bookstore browsing books. I go there blank and decide instantly either to buy a novel or poetry or biography or history.

Later it turns out that of those five or six books, I am able to finish only two or three books. Sometimes, only one book. The remaining books are not too interesting to me. Or I am not qualified enough to read and comprehend them.

On the contrary, the other customers at a fruit cart, mobile accessory kiosk, and book shop are like experts in all crafts. They know the names of the gadgets. They can even explain the specifics of a tool to the shopkeeper. While browsing a book, they would whisper to their partner who is the writer and how the writer is notorious or famous for their work.

When I left the accessory shop with my new headphones, I felt like accomplishing a difficult mission.

I hardly saw any news regarding World Hepatitis Day in the media on July 28, the day dedicated to raise the level of awareness among the public about the virus. I checked with my reporters and they said no events were held. Hepatitis A, B and C are each caused by a specific type of hepatitis virus. All these viruses are contagious. Hepatitis A can spread through contaminated food, water, or personal contact with an infected person. Hepatitis B and C are spread through blood transfusions. These viruses can affect people of any age, including infants. Each type of hepatitis has different characteristics, and your doctor decides on treatment based on the type of virus that infects you. According to the research released by the World Health Organization, there are five types of hepatitis A, B, C, D and E. Among these types of hepatitis, the most dangerous are hepatitis B and C, which, if not treated in time, can be fatal due to complications.