These English movie directors make such big pictures, but my daughter says even Christopher Nolan cannot capture our morning mist over the hills. She is studying in Guwahati, her fees I think about during my night shift. In the quiet before dawn, my small cup of tea and an old radio song feel more real than any cinema.

My daughter wanted to try the Rotax class last year, but between the entry fee and the travel to the nearest track that's not falling apart, I ended up spending more than her whole semester's hostel rent in Guwahati. I see parents here pouring money into these machines, and I wonder — aso, if the state chipped in even a little for local tracks, maybe more children from the hills could afford just to see what a kart feels like. But that's my old thinking; you young ones are probably right to chase speed. Just be careful with the setup — a loose bolt I didn't tighten on a radio once cost me a whole week's listening.

Ah, Korean salary and savings talk. Back home, I never had a proper bank account until I started this BPO job. Every month, I put aside a fixed amount for my daughter's college – not in some fancy savings plan, just a simple recurring deposit. The interest is small, but like fixing a broken radio, slow and steady gets the job done. You see, aso, all these complex products they push, they mostly benefit the ones selling them. The real test is simple: does it leave my family better off or not?