Umbrella in the bag from June, not from the first rain
The rule that actually works: the umbrella lives in the bag from the first week of June to the end of September, whether or not the sky looks like anything. Every year the first soaking is the one where it was at home.
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More Mausam jugaads
Tape the window gap with foam
Self-adhesive foam strip along the window frame gap stops the cold draught that no amount of blankets fixes. Same strip keeps dust out in summer, so leave it on year round.
MausamTable fan + gili chaddar = poor man's AC
Hang a wet bedsheet or khus mat right in front of the table fan and point it at the bed. Air comes through the wet cloth and drops the room temperature by a few degrees. Re-wet it once at 2am. Works best in dry heat — in humid coastal cities it just makes the room sticky.
Silica packets into the shoe rack
Save the silica sachets from every shoebox and packet of namkeen and drop them into the shoe rack in monsoon. They hold back the smell and the white fungus that grows on leather in a closed rack.
Onion in the pocket for a heat day
An old loo-season habit: keep a raw onion in your pocket or bag when you have to be out at 2pm. Whether it does anything physical is arguable — what is not arguable is raw onion, water and salt at lunch, which genuinely helps.
Newspaper under the bedsheet in winter
A layer of newspaper between the mattress and the bedsheet is a surprisingly effective insulator on a cold night in a house with no heating. It crackles when you turn over, which is the price.
MausamNewspaper on the west-facing window
Tape a double layer of newspaper on the outside of whichever window catches the 3pm sun. The room stays noticeably cooler till evening and it costs nothing. Comes off in two seconds when the season changes.