𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝑾𝒂𝒊𝒍 ( දුක් ගන්නා රාළ )

Ceylon Electricity Board ( CEB ) interrupts power for at least 8 hours (from 9am to 5pm) every month in this area citing the reason as regular maintenance. Despite this regular maintenance, we experience at least 2 to 3 power interruptions daily. The interruptions last from a few minutes to hours even. Experiencing them daily I could not fathom, what sort of maintenance work they have been carrying out every month. It is time that we voice loud to break this Mafia unit and insist on privatizing power supply.

List of Endless Impossibilities Snuffing the Life Out Last Dance All Questions Degree Human Protectors Evolution Ever Failed to Tame 360 Degrees Otherwise Ubiquitous

List of Endless Impossibilities

A video started circulating in many social media platforms immediately after the results of the recently concluded presidential election in Sri Lankan was officially announced, where a group of claiming to be youngsters started beating war drums and openly threatening other communities living in the country. I decided to share the same on my Facebook wall with the title “ Is this what the country needs today ”? The purpose of the posting it is, hoping it would go viral and eventually get the attention of the authorities and put an end to such actions. Immediately after it appeared on my wall, many likeminded people of those war drummers in the said video started engaging me in heated arguments, defending their actions and some were even started hurling insult too at me. 12 hours later I got a message from the Facebook stating that they have removed the video from my wall after receiving many complaints as the video does not meet their set community standards. However, they h...

පෙරේරා "මට හිතෙන විදියට ලගදීම ඔය ඔස්ට්‍රේලියාවේ, ඇමරිකාවේ, මැද පෙරදිග රටවල ලොකු ආර්ථික වල කඩා වැටීමක් තියේවි". සිල්වා "ඇයි එහෙම කියන්නේ මිස්ටර් පෙරේරා". පෙරේරා "නැහැ අයිසේ මේ චන්දේ දාන්න කියලා මෙහේට දැන් එන සම හරක් ආයේ ඒ රටවලට නොගිහින් හිටියොත්?". සිල්වා "මේක සුරපුරක් වේවි කියලා හිතාගෙනද මිස්ටර් පෙරේරා?". පෙරේරා "ඔව් අයිසේ". සිල්වා "එහෙම උනොත් ඉතින් ඒ හරක්ට මෙහේම ඉන්න කියල මේ වයසක තමුසේලා අපිවත් ගිහින් ශපාන් එකේ ඉම්මු එහේ".

For almost three (03) weeks now, the Maharagama Municipal Council Garbage truck did not come to collect the garbage and things have started piling out at various places. It is an eyesore and not forgetting the health risks it poses too. Usually, the truck comes twice a week to collect the segregated garbage. The Council was called this morning and the switchboard was unaware of the situation but was kind enough to give a Public Health Inspector’s ( PHI ) phone number. That number rings eternally but the owner seems to be unaware of its existence and I could not help thinking of the purpose of giving such facilities to public servants if they do not how to put them to good use. The Chairman’s office was tried and after a few rings, it goes to a fax machine. The Vice Chairman’s number is no longer in operation, according to the automated recording being played. The Secretary’s office was called and after many rings, it was picked up by a gentleman called Indrajeeth . After a proper in...

Wije & I were in one group and once a GF flight came pretty late and with big dead loads in & out too To add more misery, the flight was overbooked as well. He & I managed to finish our work ahead of time and sitting on the ledge of the old departure building near the gate. Counters were not closed then and we were waiting for someone from GF to come and get the clearance to board the flight. Usually, KP does this and instead of him, Kamalini M came to the gate and looking at the aircraft which was parked right in front of the gate. Wije asked her what she was looking for and then she said KP had told, " Today I do not have to worry about the Ramp " and she was looking for who was handling the flight, as it was all quiet then no activity under the aircraft. One of the Best Compliments, we ever got. Wije was elated and said " How can I delay my own aircraft ", confusing Kamalini more. To put her at ease, he said to her " Look at th...

Remember when elections come nearer; "Air is full of promises and promises are full of Air" only. The past behaviour of someone is a good yardstick to measure the likely future performance of the same person. Remember as to why we all had to leave the country to earn a decent living and the future of your young kids too. If you think that your action today will ensure a good future for your kids and family tomorrow, then you are free to do whatever you choose to do. But do not forget that you will be held accountable for your kids someday of your action today. Take the right decision, not for your own future because we are almost at the end of the wick now. But kids today do / should not have to endure and experience the same that we all have gone in some form or the other. Let them go out and see/conquer the World in their terms and not on anyone else's terms. It is time to change the " Pecking order " of society today. Will they stay a " Bonded Slave ...

Good old days, every house (should I say almost all) in the villages had a fair amount of front garden as the land was not an issue then and they were spread well in any village. One thing distinctive in the beautiful front lawn was in one corner of it, there were Clothes Lines to put their washed linen to dry under the sun. No Gizmos, like Washers and Dryers then and all were hand washed and dried under the Sun always. This clothesline was used subliminally to showcase one’s possessions and status symbol as well. Fast forward a few decades to the front and things have changed quickly. With the population, explosion gizmos have taken over the world. Houses are so close to each other now that one can hear his or her neighbour snoring in the nights and not many front gardens anymore. With this change of scene, the Front Lawn clotheslines too have gone missing. For a period of time, many were lost not knowing how to expose their stories and wealth, of course subliminally with the missing ...

ක්‍රිකට් ලෝක කුසලානේ වෙලාවෙත් " පර සුද්දෝ " කියලා සුද්දන්ට බනින්න තරම් අපි අමන ජාතියක් වෙලා. සුද්දෝ ආවේ අපේ රටවල් වල තියෙන සම්පත් අරන් ගිහින් පොහොසත් වෙන්න කියන එක රහසක් නෙමෙයි. ඒ උන් ආදරේ උන්ගේ රටට නිසා. අපේ රට හදන්න කියලා ආපු රටට ආදරේ කියලා කියන අපේ කට්ටිය මොකද කලේ? උන් ඉස්සරා දනින් වැටිලා රස්සාවල්, වරප්‍රසාධ ඉල්ලන අය ඇයි "  පර සිංහලයා  " කියලා මුන්ට නොබනින්නේ ඇයි? මේකට උත්තරය හොයා ගත්ත දවසක අපි දිනුම්. නැත්නම් එක්කෝ පර සුද්දෝ කිය කිය දිගටම උන්ටම බැන බැන එහේන්ම කකා බිබී ඉදන්, මැච් එක දවසට විතරක් ලංකා කොඩ් වනමු. නැත්නම් සුද්දා ගෙන් ලැබෙන ආධාර එකෙන් කකා බිබී 2500 ට වැඩි ඉතිහාසය ගැන ලොකු කතා දෙමු. තිරණය තියෙන්නේ පර සුද්දා ගාව නෙමෙයි, අපි ගාව.

When we were in primary level, an extraordinary thing happened while watching a cricket match between Alma Mater and St Benedict’s College and it was played on the home soil. One batsman was given out by the umpire and it was a time when there were no reviews and re-appeals sort of things. So he had to leave. But after he left, the team Captain had a chat with the other team members and with the consent of the officiating umpires decided to recall the batsman who was given out as the team felt that the catch was not taken cleanly. The Captain walked into the visitor’s den and invited him to come back and have a go again. This drama took little time and the match was held and not many were aware of what was going on in the middle of the ground. When the captain and the opposite side player were walking back to the pitch from the pavilion only many realized, what had really happened and there was a dying and disappointing moan from many corners of the ground. The guy who ha...

Degree of Any Sort Blind hunger for a Degree of any sort Irrespective of whether the much-needed grey matter Perseverance, discipline and or endurance Are there or not Is something sad to watch. Fly by night Colleges and Universities Springing up at every street corner  Is fuelling the frenzy Making everyone wants to hold on to something Whether the capacity is there or not. Instead, engage the society in a useful manner Not always endorsing everything Encourage intellectual rivalry Stop following trends And be different. Ones who seek this path May end up sans a hood or a cloak Few photographs to adorn the walls At the end of the day. But when the push comes to shove Sharpness earned in such a manner Will hold their ground better Than the ones bought cheap  On street corners.

Human Protectors Why some dare to cross lines Wade waters Conquer seas With the intention of Protecting Gods (or and even Goddesses). Do Gods (even Goddesses) Need humans as their Protectors or Why cannot they do it themselves? Why not leave humans to protect Their own kind From murderers to rapists to wife beaters To you name it. What is our role here Sometimes I wonder Is it To protect Gods (or even Goddesses) Or Protect our own kind. This was something I wrote a few years ago and thought of reposting again after yesterday's bombing in Sri Lanka.

Kaum ( කැවුම් ) is an essential item in the Sinhalese New Year celebration. The people of yesteryears knew Kaum is not only a sweetmeat but can be turned into lifesaving drug too. Well before the western medicine identified the value and usefulness of Penicillin, people in this land knew about it and put to good use of it without calling the substance any particular name. The first Kauma made according to the auspicious time during the Sinhala New Year Celebrations time is dedicated to Fruit flys ( කොදුරු කැවුම ) and hung in the kitchen for days until the surface of it turns into light greenish. Fruit flies are essential in this transformation and with them, they bring in the Penicillium (ˌpɛnɪˈsɪliəm) ascomycetous fungi. The fungi grow on the surface of the Kauma and turning the dark brown colour of the surface of it into a light greenish in a few days’ time. Once that process is completed, the Kauma is then kept in a safe place and use as a First Aid, where all c...

Makumbura was another sleepy village along the High-level ( Colombo – Batticaloa Highway ) road a few decades ago but suddenly came under the spotlight, when the Kottawa-Galle Highway (E01) was planned. Makumbura got the first Entry / Exit point to the E01 Expressway  then and everything started to change rapidly. While the construction was going on, another place a kilometre away from the Entry / Exit point was commissioned to have a weighbridge to weigh in the heavy construction materials being brought in for the project. Once the construction was nearing completion, the weighing facility got another life. With the help of Japanese government grant, it was converted to a new Multi-model transport hub, the first of its kind in the country and seven more to be followed soon around the country. With this novel concept of Multi-Modal Transport Hub, Makumbura got another facility. In an era where everyone is concerned about the wellbeing, the newly laid Walking Path and exercis...

Makumbura Multi-model Centre , a novel concept of travel in Sri Lanka will be declared open and handover to the public this evening. All long-distance travel by road and Railway will be connected to the new facility. At a later stage, the use of one ticket to avail both road and rail travel will too come. By far this will be the most advanced and modern railway & bus stand in the country. Most of its energy requirements will be obtained by Solar panels installed on the roof. We moved into this idyllic and quiet hamlet called Makumbura from a very congested and noisy city, two decades ago after falling in love with the green surrounding, open spaces and calmness.  Now looks like that we may have to vote with our feet again after the new facility is in full swing. 

ඊයේ අපිට හිසරදේ ගෙනාපු එවුන් අමතක වෙලා, අද අපි රවියාටයි , බදුර්දීන්ටයි බනිනවා, හෙට අපි බෝට්ටුවල නැගලා අවතැන්වුන් අය හොය හොය යනවා කෑම පාර්සල් බෙදන්න. අපිට විතරද පායන්නේ, අපිට විතරද වැහි වහින්නේ. මේ වැටෙන වතුර කන්දරාවට අපි මොකද කරන්නේ, අවුරුදු සියයක කාලයක් අපි මොනවාද ඉගෙන ගත්තේ. බැරි වෙලාවත් හිම ටිකක් එහෙම මෙහෙට වැටුනොත්, මැද පෙරදිගට වගේ තද රස්ණේයක් ආවොත්, අපි මොකද කරන්න හිතන් ඉන්නේ. රැල්ලට කුණු අදින්න, රැල්ලට ගස් හිටවන්න යන්නේ නැතුව, කුණු කසල පාලනය සහ කළමණාකරනය කරන්න පුළුවන්, ගස් කොළන් වන සිව්පාවන් රැක ගන්න පුළුවන්, රැල්ලක් හදමු . තප්පර 15 වේ ප් ‍ රසිද්දිය පස්සේ නොදුවා, දශක 15 ක් ඉස්සරහට හිතලා, වැඩ කෙරුවොත් නරකද, අපිට.

A printing establishment in Ampara, Tharindu Offset Printers, had gained the attention of many in the country recently as its owner Mettananda Rubasinghe had cut off parts of a very expensive printing machine in order to save the hand of an employee.  However, sadly the insurance company had refused to pay compensation for the machine.  As a result, this printing press owner is facing a very pathetic situation, I spoke to him little while ago and suggested to him that we would like to start a “Fund Him” campaign on social media, for which he politely declined to receive anything as “Donation” but would be delighted if someone or some institute can lend him Rs 1.5 million right now, so he can pay his previous loan areas straightaway and get his name out of the CRIB . His compounded loss due to damage to the machine, loss of business etc run up to Rs 7 million but he was confident that he could make his business flourish again if his initial difficulty of finding Rs 1.5...

After watching the recently concluded Child Genius UK 2019 a couple of times, I think it is reasonable to assume that the conductor was openly favouring one contestant. Every time when William gives a correct answer, the conductor was quick to compliment him by saying “Well done William”. This he did five times to William during the competition and once to the other and that too was very tersely. I think she deserves complimenting openly more because she managed to give the correct answer twice when William failed to do so. How would you describe this behaviour? Was he xenophobic? Should such people be given such opportunities even in this century?

කෙනෙක් අමාරුවේ වැටුනාම මැසිවිලි කියන එක නරක තමා. නමුත් අපේ පොලිසියේ ක්‍රියා කලාපේ ගැන සතුටු වෙන්න පුළුවන්ද? පොඩි එකා දැක්කම එලව එලව ගහන එකා, ලොක්කෙක් දැක්කම කුක්කෙක් වෙන හැටි අපි දැකලා තියෙනවා ඇති තරම්. විජිත රෝහණ විජේමුණිලා ලංකාවේ පොලිසිවලින් කවදා බිහි වේද? එහෙම උන දාට ලොක්කෝ ඉස්සරහා කුක්කෝ වෙන අය ඉස්සරහා ලොක්කෝ කුක්කෝ වෙන හැටි බලන්න පුලුවන්. දැන් පොලිස් ස්වාධිණ කොමිසමකුත් තියෙනවනේ.

It was a bumper harvest for pumpkins this year. The government intervened and bought large sums to ease the situation but many had to be thrown away later due to poor storage. Another wasteful expenditure by the government again. Recently a friend of ours sent an SMS asking those who visit outstations to buy as many pumpkins as possible without bargaining from poor farmers. And it seems a reasonable and timely request. Help another when in need is not a bad thing. Last weekend we visited deep down south of Sri Lanka on a pilgrimage and on our way back bought as many pumpings as our car boot could hold. No bargaining and paid the requested price. We were thinking that we made both the grower and neighbours happy with that gesture as we distributed all the pumpkins among the neighbourhood later. Today we went for our groceries to one of the nearby Supermarket and there I found pumpkins similar or larger than the ones we purchased on our way back on display. Out of curiosity, I picked up ...

Yes, I am changing, After loving my parents, my siblings, my spouse, my children, my friends, now I have started loving myself. Yes, I am changing, I just realised that I am not “Atlas”.  The world does not rest on my shoulders. Yes, I am changing, I now stopped bargaining with vegetables & fruits vendors.  After all, a few Rupees more is not going to burn a hole in my pocket but it might help the poor fellow save for his daughter’s school fees. Yes, I am changing, I pay the taxi driver without waiting for the change.  The extra money might bring a smile on his face.  After all, he is toiling much harder for a living than me. Yes, I am changing, I stopped telling the elderly that they've already narrated that story many times.  After all, the story makes them walk down the memory lane & relive the past. Yes, I am changing, I've learnt not to correct people even when I know they are wrong.  After all, the onus of making every one perfect i...

Every time when I lose faith on humanity, something magical would happen to change my opinion again. I went to the Tuesday fair this morning looking for some " Murunga " leaves to make a medicinal preparation. Asked a few manning stalls with no success and finally the lady usually selling Waraka (Ripened jackfruit) at the end of the fair directed me to someone selling some other fruits at the very end on a makeshift stall. I approached him cautiously as he was preparing his own stall and ask where if I could find some Murunga leaves. He was still busy arranging the stall but asked me as to why I was looking it. “To prepare some medicinal external application” , I blurted out without having not much of hope. He immediately stopped his work and said, “Yes, I have a tree behind my house” and started heading towards his house abandoning his half arranged fruit stall. I started following him not knowing exactly where he was heading. Five minutes later, he arrived at a dilapidated...