A-Z Challenge: A

#AtoZChallenge - 4-4-2017 - Letter A

AUTO

Far from starting with the letter ‘A’, I might just end up using a lot of curse words, having been upset (to put it mildly!) by the Autocorrect feature. On the not-so-smart-phone, this busybody takes it upon itself to transform my words without so much as a by-your-leave. On the computer, its twin naggingly puts squiggly red and green lines under my words, with an air of “Are you sure you want to go with that? Didn’t they teach you anything in school? Here, let me----!”

Well, I did go to school, thank you! I’m no Autodidact! Of course this breed is nothing to be sneezed at--- teaching oneself is not everyone’s cup of tea!

 I am suddenly struck by the ubiquitous “Auto”. So many things we use and encounter have this prefix, that it deserves an article all to itself.

“Auto!” is how we hail Autorickshaws. This much-reviled, three-wheeled public transport zips between other vehicles, doesn’t balk at jumping over dividers when desperate and blithely threatens to turn turtle even! There is only one thing it does not do--- it doesn’t go where you want it to go!

Many of us are no longer dependent on the autorickshaw since the Automobile came within reach of the middle-class. The roads which were graced only by stately Ambassadors and feisty Fiats are now teeming with every sort of car, from Marutis to Audis. Yet I long to sight a classic convertible once in a while at least!

Convertibles were the stylish car of choice for my favourite lawyer Perry Mason. I used to be fascinated also by the the snub nosed Automatic that kept appearing and disappearing as the case sped to its conclusion. A couple of Autopsies would liven up the tale in case interest flagged.

A shared love of detective stories and reading in general brought me in touch with a senior citizen. She reads everything she can lay her hands on and it was she who told me about the Nobel Prize for Medicine awarded for research on Autophagy. It has been linked to the practice of fasting, which is so familiar to Indians. The cells of our body consuming themselves might sound gross, but it seems to help the body heal itself.

I wish I had time to read more than I do---- routine takes up a major part of the day, even though I plough through my work like an Automaton sometimes. It would be nice if the house ran on Autopilot though. As it is, the young adult kids want Autonomy, labelling me an Autocrat!

Sometimes one has to come across as stern and no-nonsense, especially with people like the snarky credit card salesperson, who offered to fill up all the forms; I just had to “Autograph them please”! Could he not have said, “Sign here,” like everyone else?

Well, this seems to have turned into a mini-Autobiography!