Two things happened last week. I got my first shot of vaccine against Covid-19, and I threw my iPad on to the floor. Lest you conclude the second is a lesser known side effect of the first let me hasten to add, the two are totally unrelated. In fact the second happened first and the first, second, but I decided to put the second first and the first, second. While you untangle that one, I will continue my story.

Before I proceed however, I will have to let you in on my sleeping habits. I am a restless sleeper and need lots of space. Like a dog looking for the right spot, I move from one spot to the next on the bed all through the night. Sometimes I am sleeping with my head at the foot of the bed. (Yes, I have been kicked in the face by the L&M suddenly moving his feet, not knowing my head was where feet should be). At other times I am sleeping diagonally, either with my head dangerously close to the side of the bed or sometimes with my feet sticking out. It is a good thing that the L&M is a sound sleeper and is not disturbed by all this moving around, for if it was me sleeping in the same bed as myself, I’d have kicked me (or myself) right out of the bed and sent me (or myself) packing the very first time around.

Anyways, now that the background has been established, I will touch upon my before-sleep activities. I sometimes read from my iPad, or play games, before sleeping. Though people tell me it is not a good idea, I have never found that to be detrimental to my sleep. A few minutes of it is all I get before I am too sleepy to go on. I then switch off the bedside lamp, shove the iPad towards the head of the bed, and fall asleep. On the fateful day last week, I followed my usual routine, without factoring in that having taken advantage of the fact that I had the bed to myself, I was sleeping crosswise on it. Result? In the stillness of the night, I heard the sound of a loud crash as if the world was coming to an end. I had no clue what had happened. Wide awake now, I sat up and switched on the bedside lamp. On the white tiled floor, a few feet away from me, my iPad lay face down in its casing.

As for the vaccine, it gave me a headache and I also felt extremely fatigued. Twenty-four hours later though, I was okay. I feel as if I have been in a raging battle, I told the son the next day when he asked me how I was feeling. Well, it was a battle raging inside you, wasn’t it? he asked. Come to think of it, he is right. I bet all the tiny little thingamabobs inside me who fight off intruders on my behalf have been at it pretty hard the past day, having been forcefully introduced to a new enemy. I hope they remember now and are well prepared for future intrusions. Thank you, science and scientists!

Psst. The iPad is a little cross with me for inadvertently sending it flying into the night, but otherwise is in perfect working condition.

© Shail Mohan 2021