Skype ko salaam

Almost everyone who has dear ones staying abroad stays in touch through Skype. Ravi/Meera Skypes us twice or thrice a month to keep us current on the latest antics of Sidharth and Nikhil. We - my wife and I - have got so accustomed to it that we can't do without being Skyped. It lifts up our spirits;and gives us something fresh to talk about, with each other. We usually spend the days between Skypes doing our own things, often without exchanging as much as a word for hours together.
I am usually at the computer, when I am not reading a newspaper/book or watching TV. She is into neighbourhood temple visits. And watches TV as well, but our programme
preferences do not always tally. So a Skype from San Ramon is about the only quality time we spend together. It peps up our spirits; and gets us talking on a subject of shared interest - our grandsons. Skype has evidentally been invented for the likes of me and Karthik. And, presumably, there are millions of others, for whom Skype serves as an emotional life-line. The last time I checked there were 10,031,930 Skype users online the world over.
Karthik,a nephew doing MBA in Tuscon, Arizona, is very much a family person who likes to stay in close touch not just his parents but also his uncles and aunts. His father Babu,I found, is proficient in handling Skype and also G-video-chat.
When we visited his parents in Salem Karthk came on Skype, to be able to video-chat with aunts - Baby and Subbu. They talked about the temples we visited and the menu on offer at Salem Anand Bhavan. At our request Karthik gave us a video-tour of his Tuscon apartment that he shares with two other students. Before signing off Karthik promised to Skype us from Los Angelese, where he planned to spend his Spring break with cousins Shivakumar and Shobi, and Paddu periamma.

We must thank Karthik for taking the initiative to video-connect us with Paddu/Shobi who are visiting Shivakumar in the US. They are due back in Chennai early April. We haven't met one another for quite a while. And here we were, in Mysore, able to connect with them in L A.
My mother appears very pleased at the chance to video-chat with Paddu. Salaam to Skype, for making it possible.