evahelvok

It’s not what you think.

If you have read my previous (also my first) blog, you would know that I’m not an adult (if you didn’t know, then know it now). Yes, I still go to school, but I’m not going to tell you which grade. I could be in fifth grade, for all that you know.

If you have read my previous (also my first) blog, you would also know that I live in India. Most schools in India follow the uniform code, where every student in a particular school wear the same uniform.

My school uniform obviously includes socks.

Socks.

Those wretched, stinky things you willingly wear on your feet.

If you go to school like me, or if you go to your workplace, you have to wear socks. Going to a chilly place? Socks. Off to a formal event? Socks. Off to save Rapunzel? Socks. Want to free Dobby? Socks.

I have to wear socks every single school day. My mother is very strict with things like rules or presentation, so no exceptions. Even if I cut my foot, I’d have to wear them. Even if I lost my foot, I’d have to wear them. Even if I died, I’d have to wear them.

And my school took the horrible choice of making the students wear white socks.

I despise white socks. Loathe them. And if you were in my place, you’d hate them too.

One of life’s greatest mysteries is how my white socks manage to become so dirty after I wear them for a day. My sock-covered feet wouldn’t have even touched the floor. But somehow, it becomes filthy.

But that’s only half the reason I despise white socks.

The History

My mother, for some godforsaken, flabbergasting reason, never puts the socks in along with the laundry. Never. I don’t know whether she has an issue with the dirty socks in the washing machine with the other clothes. If she does, then she is mistaken. There is something much worse than dirty socks with your laundry.

Underwear.

Especially, other people’s underwear.

The fact that my father’s or brother’s or mother’s underwear is tumbling around with my clothes disgust me. Fills me with abhor.

But I don’t mind socks with my laundry. At least it’s better than underwear.

As I was saying, my mother does not put the socks in with the laundry. So, me and my father have to wash our own socks. Mother doesn’t have to; she’s a teacher and she wears sandals to school everyday.

Father doesn’t mind; he washes his socks with great gusto. But I hate washing my socks. And here’s where the white plays in; white socks are harder to wash.

Trust me, I know. Try washing a pair after you’ve worn them for a day. With your hands and some bar soap. Nothing else. You will know the struggle I go through everyday.

Father doesn’t care because he doesn’t have to wear white socks, he can wear any color. But I can’t just wear what I want. Mother would kick me in the derriere. Therefore, I have to wear white socks. And wash them. Like a maniac.

You should know one fact about me; I’m the laziest god-sent creature on this planet. But if you were in my place, you would be too. Because, the way my parents tell me to do things makes you want to rebel and not do it, thereby making you lazier and lazier.

Father came up with an “innovative” way to make me wash my socks. As soon as he comes home from office, he’d come straight to my room and ask me, ‘Did you wash your socks?’ I, obviously, would say no. He would then pester me to wash them until I go and do it. If I don’t do it within two minutes of him pestering me, he’ll start screaming at me.

I know people who lament about how their parents lovingly ask them what they did during the day. I’d rather have parents like that. You’d also want a change in parents if your parents were like mine.

Father doesn’t even bother to wish me a good evening or ask what I did that day. He’d straight up storm into the house and stand right outside my room.

‘Did you wash your socks?’

It gets really annoying. If any parent is reading this, please, and I mean, please do not do this to your child. Yes, your child will do the task, but they end up hating you and your voice. I dread Father’s voice now. I just realized it sounds like a cow’s.

It’s better if you found better ways to make your child do things. Like, doing the task with them, making the task interesting or offer rewards at the end. You know what, I’ll write another blog for that.

And there you have it, a talk about socks.

Signing off (after spilling the tea),

Eva Helvok

(NOT!!)

The Big Deal: Lok Sabha Elections 2019

Elections are coming up quick. There is tension (and profound accusations) in the air as we all sit and wonder who is going to win. The main focus is on the two parties that has been on each other’s throats for quite a long time. Yes, it’s the BJP and the Congress I’m talking about.

On one side, there’s the BJP, the current ruling party, the chowkidars. On the other side, there’s the Congress, the current opposing party, the terrorist supporters. Both sides have good (and bad) reasons supporting them. Both sides are equally appealing. But which side do we vote to?

The Deal About BJP

The BJP has been here from 1980, and has been steadily increasing the number of seats from the 1984 elections. It won the elections in 2014, after which Narendra Modi, now one of the most popular figures in India, was sworn in as our Prime Minister.

Narendra Modi has the typical rags-to-riches story. During his rule, he introduced a multitude of schemes, which has benefited many. Some may not be very popular (*cough* demonetization *cough*), but what many seem to ignore is that it has helped us a lot. Click on the link below to know more about it (demonetization, I mean).

https://deepshikhamohla.wordpress.com/2016/11/20/demonetization-the-new-black/

India, undeniably, has gone through development after the BJP came into power, even if anyone else (*cough* Congress *cough*) says different.

The Deal About Congress

The Congress has been here from 1885, and the amount of seats they win has been in a rollercoaster for all these years. India was ruled by the Congress a lot of times, but I cannot exactly tell you how its rule was, since I wasn’t born at the time.

What I can tell you, however, is that the Congress has also led India through major development, has adopted helpful schemes, and has an interesting story behind how it was formed (by interesting, I don’t mean in a corrupt way or anything. Go read your ninth grade civics textbook).

After the BJP won the 2014 elections, though, the Congress seemed to turn from this sweet party to a snake. Frankly speaking, ever since Modi came into power, the Congress has dissed him a lot. It has become worse now. To give you an example, here’s a page from their official website:

In fact, their entire In Focus tab seems to be a homage to the BJP and their ‘foul’ practices. In comparison, BJP’s official website had only one or two mentions of the Congress. The Congress’ Key Issues tab is also filled with articles opposing the BJP.

Who Should You Vote For?

That’s entirely up to you. Who do you think is right? You could vote for the BJP, Congress, any other party, or go NOTA. I’m not here to pressurize you to vote for any party, nor am I supporting any. I’m not part of any political party. Hell, I’m not even old enough to vote! My point here is to show you the different sides of these two major parties. Both the BJP and the Congress have an impressive history and has done good for the nation. Both the BJP and the Congress have made mistakes and dissed the other party. Another point I have to make is that, please vote. One vote can make a huge difference. And I mean, huge.

Vote For Congress!

Hahaha, I did tell that I wasn’t going to pressurize you to vote for a party and that I wasn’t supporting any. But, what I mean by the heading is just that, vote for the Congress. I’m asking you to do this because I’m simply curious. I want to know whether the Congress would actually do all the things they said they would do. Especially, the NYAY. I’m pretty skeptical about it. I honestly don’t think it’s financially possible to provide 5 crore households Rs. 72,000 annually. Here’s an article proving my point:

https://www.dailyo.in/politics/nyay-lok-sabha-elections-2019-rahul-gandhi-narendra-modi-why-the-math-doesnt-add-up/story/1/30233.html

And here’s an article which explains the whole deal behind NYAY:

https://scroll.in/article/917836/nyay-what-we-know-about-rahul-gandhis-rs-6000-per-month-income-scheme-for-the-poor

So, that’s why I want you to vote for the Congress. I’m not forcing you to vote for them, I’m just requesting you. There’s a reason why I don’t mind the Congress coming into power.

The Unknown Power The Citizens Possess

If you remember the civics you learnt (I think you don’t), you should know that we have a power not known by all. We have the power to change our rulers whenever we wish to. After all, India is a democratic country. The Constitution gives us the right to change our rulers if we think they are not serving the country well. Many seem to forget this very important fact. We citizens are our own rulers. We create the government, we give power to political parties, we allow them to remain in power. And, all the parties know this. They know that if they don’t do as we say, they could lose their power. But they still manage to deceive us, buy our votes, lie to us. It’s because not many know about this power we citizens possess. This is the reason why I don’t mind the Congress coming into power. We can kick them out whenever we want to. We don’t even have to wait for the next elections.

And there you have it, a breakdown of India’s politics.