Random hits on the keyboard

It is a cold morning in Kathmandu. I, unwillingly, get out of a warm bed. It is still dark outside, and I get ready for a run. I turn on a hand torch so passing speeding vehicles on the empty roads can see. I pay special attention to stray dogs, although almost all generally ignore me, but some don't. Today, I scroll back to my older blog where I had written that Forrest Gump who said “That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd run to the end of town.... For no particular reason, I just kept on going.” Now, it has been nearly two years since I started to run, for no particular reason. I was not chased by a dog, nor, was someone chasing me with pizza. I kept running - for no particular reason but now I have one thousand reasons. The snowball effect of running is amazing. The willingness to hit personal records keeps me going. Firstly, non-stop 5 km was my ambition. Soon, it beca...

The email from my university arrived with an announcement I had been eagerly awaiting: my results had been published. With a mix of excitement and nervousness, I opened the email. I was relieved. Two years of hard work finally paid off. Now I can finally whisper to myself "I now hold two master’s degrees and the recent one is from Leicester University." Earning this degree has been an incredible experience. First and foremost, I was not sure that I could be a student at this age. I doubted that I could allocate the time and energy needed. A friend of mine says, 'If in doubt of climbing a wall, throw one of your shoes across." I did the same, I enrolled the college. It was in fact one of the best decisions I have made.  During the process, writing countless essays and my thesis opened my eyes to aspects of my thinking and writing. It wasn’t always easy to realise & internalise how bad I write. I even joked that I had to spend so much money just to know how bad I w...

Nepal is slowly being taken over by Black Friday. Traditionally, it means nothing to us - but with the rise of Daraz, a Nepali version of Amazon, and an online shopping platform, we educate ourselves about Black Friday. The stickers all around the shopping malls '50% off' is so tempting - until we see 'up to' written in small letters. For obvious reasons, we all like to shop.  Beneath this consumer carnival lies a fascinating interplay of psychology, marketing, and human desire. At its core, Black Friday is a masterclass in the psychology of scarcity and urgency. Retailers dangle offers that promise limited-time discounts so steep they’re almost irresistible. "50% off!" "Buy One Get One Free!" "Today Only!" These phrases tap directly into our primal fear of missing out—what if you don't act now and lose this chance forever? The bright banners and flashing timers play on our decision-making processes, often bypassing rational thought. Th...