My "Inception" ;-)

I woke up even before the alarm went off (this is a surprise even to me since I usually snooze the alarm and wake up only when it goes off the second time). I got ready and stepped out of my house to catch the bus to my workplace. Surprise! The streets were spic and span, there were full grown trees on either side of the road, host of sparrows (group of sparrows is called host; confirmed at Wiki Answers) were flying from tree to tree, the sunlight was just right, the climate was pleasant and there was peace all around (listening to the fluttering and chirping of birds is peaceful for me).

I just rubbed my eyes but, did not pinch myself. This was too good to be true and would be too bad to spoil even if were to be my dream.

People were jogging and walking on the streets (it is OK; 7.30AM is not so late to exercise), greeting one another. Everyone knew everyone and they all had the time to talk to each other. I continued my short walk to the bus stop feeling good about the environment, greeting everyone on the way. I didn't expect any more surprises for the day. (This would eventually turn out to be false as you read further.)

More surprises!!

The main road (we categorize our roads as cross roads, main roads, state highways, and national highways), now a 4-lane express highway, with service roads on either side, accompanied by the now familiar trees, was a treat to watch. The surface was smooth and the traffic was minimal. The public transportation seemed to have multiplied 10-fold. There were hardly any “personal” vehicles. There were designated lanes for bicycles and the footpaths were conducive for the pedestrians. The bus shelter was air-conditioned, had information kiosks and included a small library comprising of newspapers and magazines. There was an electronic information board which displayed the arrival time of all the buses to various destinations. A swanky new bus arrived at 7.37AM on the dot and I wasn’t surprised that it was the bus to my workplace. I settled down on a plush seat and turned on the in-bus entertainment (swalpa jaasti aythu/too much exaggeration). I had an endless choice of songs, movies and news channels to choose from. I selected black and white melodies and closed my eyes with the intent of taking a nap.

The good old melodious song suddenly changed into the alarm sound of my mobile. I cursed the sound (I usually follow this “ritual” whenever I wake up early morning (early morning to me need not be early to others)), stopped the alarm and woke up. Final surprise!!! I had not pressed the snooze button of the alarm.

And Thereby Hangs A Tale - Jeffrey Archer

First, let me be frank with you all. I am neither a professional book reviewer nor an expert critic. I am just a fan of Jeffrey Archer. I have read most of his books and look forward to reading many more in the coming years. The best book so far, for me, has been “A Prisoner of Birth” (based on this information, please align your tastes with mine before you read the review). The review given below is only my personal opinion.

The “collection” of short stories by Archer is definitely not amongst his best works (that is a huge disappointment, especially for me). You get the feeling of “been there; done that” after reading most of the stories. The volume of the book is less compared to Archer’s other short stories collection. It is hard to digest this fact after being used to reading the huge voluminous novels from the renowned author.

The book contains a total of 15 stories out of which 10 stories are based on true life incidents. The other five stories are the direct result of Archer’s genius. The endings are generally happy but you do get to feel sorry for some of the characters in some of the stories. The signature style of ending the story is an unexpected manner is the high point in this publication. The reader has to ponder over the things that might have happened after the story ends. The emotions amongst the characters are rightly captured. The characterization is apt and sufficient for the short story genre.

An ordinary citizen helps the Scotland Yard to capture a terrorist network. The mix-up (rather the goof up) is only realized when the Commander speaks about the actual terrorist.

The CEO of a company sells his soul to the devil on the pretext of having a second chance with life. He exchanges his life (and livelihood) with an employee of his own company fearing his eminent death. Alas, the exchange is a waste, just because the CEO did not ask the right question.

When one sensory organ does not work the rest of the sensory organs become more active and help the individual to cope with life. A blind man uses his senses to “evaluate” his fellow-beings and cross-verifies this information with a normal human being. He is pleased with his guesses on most of the occasions. But for once he meets his competition.

Overall the book is a good read but it definitely lacks the “what happens next” itch.

Go grab the edition if you are a true Archer buff. Enjoy the stories. Let us hope that Archer comes out with even better tales in the future.

PS: Am I missing something or is there really a lack of logic? How does person who dives into a large swimming pool with shallow water end up on a wheel chair? And thereby hangs a tale…

Awareness - Vehicle Service

I recently got my four-wheeler serviced at a prominent authorized service center. My previous experience with the same service center was exceptionally good and I expected similar, if not better, “service” from them. As the person (service adviser) who attended to my vehicle during the last service was moved to a different section I had to be satisfied with another service advisor. Being from the same background (I have done my Diploma in Automobile Engineering), I usually take interest in the necessary services to be carried out on my vehicle. In-fact, when I take my two-wheeler for its service I know what is being done (thanks to my initial work experience in the service centers) and where are the un-necessary services being offered on the vehicle. Somehow this time around I was sort of “duped” (read as services which are not actually required, but, offered for the prosperity of the service center) with some extra-care maintenance work. It is needless to say that the matter was resolved and a refund for the said activities obtained (wasting precious time and not to forget the three trips to the service center). Here are some “guidelines” to follow when you take your vehicle for its regular service (preventive maintenance).

1. Schedule: Read the owner’s manual of your vehicle. There would always be a section purely for the maintenance activities to be carried out on the vehicle. This section would specify the frequency of the service as well as the necessary replacements which should be made based on time/km run. The general norm for a two-wheeler service is 2-3 months or 2000 km, whereas it is 6 months to 1 year or 6000 to 10000 km for a four-wheeler; whichever is earlier. The periodic maintenance schedule will stipulate the time-gap between regular services. Vehicles under warranty must follow the schedule strictly; if not the manufacturer’s warranty will be void.
2. Service centers: Always take your vehicle to an authorized service center, more so if the vehicle is still under warranty. The manufacturer’s warranty will be negated if the vehicle is serviced in an un-authorized service center. It is also advisable to get your vehicle serviced at the same service center (chances are that the rapport built will make sure that unwanted work is not carried out on your vehicle; you might also get preferential treatment ;-)). Though the cost of service would be a little higher, you can be assured of genuine spares. There is always an option of “calling on the manufacturer” if/when there is a problem with the service [you can expect wondrous assistance if you know whom to contact, and what juicy words (never insult, just embarrass) to use].
3. Appointment: Most service centers offer the value-addition of booking a prior appointment for the vehicle service. Use this if you do not want to be sent back sighting flimsy reasons that the vehicle can’t be serviced because of excess inflow, shortage of staff, etc. Make sure you get the contact details of the service advisor while booking an appointment.
4. Service: It’s not possible to write on this important aspect using numbered list. So, please refer the paragraph below the numbered list.
5. Vehicle delivery: Taking delivery of the vehicle is as important as the service itself. This is the time to thoroughly inspect the vehicle for any defects (both in terms of functioning as well as the vehicle appearance). Failure to inspect the vehicle may lead to some serious guilt later on when you discover extra scratches on your vehicle. Service complaints can always be taken care of at a later point of time. But, if you miss to “capture” the new scratches/dents then chances are that you will be blamed for them. (Likelihood of fresh scratches is more during the servicing of a vehicle.) Try to take delivery during daytime. Check for the functioning of horn, indicators, brake light, head light (high beam and low beam function and focus), and tail light. Insist for a test drive if you want to check whether a particular complaint of yours has been rectified. Go through the receipt and demand explanation for charges which are not regular. You are also at the liberty of collecting the replaced components of the vehicle [don’t ask for the used lubricants ;-)]. Keep the receipts safe at least for a couple of weeks. If you replaced a component which comes with after sales warranty then the receipt has to be kept safe until the warranty expires. Components like battery, speedo-meter, tires (American English :-D), etc., have warranties of their own starting from the day of purchase.

Service

Again, I rely on the periodic maintenance schedule in the owner’s manual which gives a clear picture of what needs to be inspected, adjusted, and replaced. Most automobile manufacturers have a detailed schedule on the above mentioned services. Any doubts with anything mentioned in the job-card (the work-sheet where-in the complaints and the work to be carried-out are listed) should be clarified with the question “Is this part of the recommended service?”. If the answer is no, then probably the mentioned work is not required for your vehicle. Beware of some "catchy" terminologies like engine decarbonising, wheel truing, silencer cleaning, shampoo wash, Teflon coating (some prefer to spend money on this job), etc. Ask for an estimate of the entire service. It would always be better, if you make a list of the vehicle complaints and ask your service adviser to specify all such complaints in the job-card. Don’t hesitate to mention even the silliest complaints; it is the duty of the service adviser to give plausible explanations to your complaints. Make sure that the fuel available in the vehicle is specified in the job-card. All the scratches and dents should be “listed”. The service has to be recorded in the manual, if there is a provision.

Sacrificed Wisdom... Tooth ;-)

Most of us love to have wisdom teeth (one tooth will be more than sufficient); that's the only physical evidence of one's wisdom ;-). I had the opportunity of possessing one. This write-up is about how I "lost" it.
To be frank, I have no idea whether pre-molar tooth qualifies for a wisdom tooth. If at all a dentist reads, I request him/her to comment of the veracity of my claim.

For long, I had an extra tooth right before my left molar. There was no problem for it to co-exist until it started disrupting the harmony of my other teeth. The disruption was sensed by my brain as an annoying pain (something like the sing-song of a mosquito, hovering near the ear which can be ignored, but it can't be ignored). A visit to the dentist confirmed my apprehensions that wisdom teeth had to be sacrificed for my other teeth to function properly in future. Surgery was advised and an appointment was fixed. Now, what does surgery got to do to pick out an extra tooth?! I asked to the same question and the doctor enlightened me that the tooth was infact growing horizontal. I understood vaguely and nodded my consent. I was prescribed with tablets and instructed to start taking them a day before the d-day.

The appointment was in the evening, on my request, as I didn't want to take a leave for such a "surgery". I had also intimated my friend at work, that if things didn't go as per plan, I would be taking a sick leave on the following day. The means of communication was delegated to an SMS, mainly because I was not sure of my ability to speak, post the complications in surgery ;-). The d-day arrived.

The dental clinic is just a few meters away from my place. I was late by a few minutes (credits to the ever increasing traffic). The dental surgeon had arrived and my dentist was also there. There were also a junior dentist and a nurse for the operation. An x-ray was taken and studied. When I saw the x-ray I realized why it was called a surgery. Most of my tooth was concealed in my gums. Only a tiny bit was visible outside the gums, just the tip of an iceberg. The surgeon would have to cut open my gums and extract the tooth.

I was seated on the special dental chair and a lamp was focused on my mouth. The doctor gave two anesthesia injections to my gums (rather to two nerves in my gums). There was a searing pain. After a few minutes half of my mouth and my tongue were numb. The apparatus were laid out near the table; miniature versions of cutting, digging and grinding equipment. Then the surgery began. My mouth was open and the surgeon's hand was inside working on my teeth. My dentist was consoling and cajoling about the surgery. The junior dentist and the nurse were looking; horrified would be the right word for the expression on their faces.

(To be frank, I was enjoying the experience. Not the actual surgery, but all that was happening around me. I was so amused that I wanted to laugh out load. It may seem strange to imagine the situation but I had to make a very sincere effort not to laugh.)

The surgery was completed in 45 minutes. It culminated with two stitches. A ball of cotton was jabbed. Strict instructions were given on what to do and what not to do. I was not even sure whether I could open my mouth to speak. I was trying to explain the situation to them in a pathetic sign language, which of-course was a miserable failure. I even called my father (read SMS) to the clinic, just to speak with the doctor. The doctor looked at me in surprise and gave the go-ahead for me to speak. I just mumbled something which was not even clear to me. ;-)

I couldn't speak properly for an entire day. Half of my face resembled lord Hanuman. I was gifted with a cute x-ray (that's what my sister called the x-ray) and a bill of 1.5K.

Well, that's about the sorry tale of my wisdom tooth.

Are we socially responsible enough?

What is social responsibility? You might have come across this term many times during the recent past. What with floods, droughts, tsunamis and even earthquakes. I define social responsibility as giving something back to the society in our very own individual means. But, whatever we are doing, is it sufficient enough? Read on.

Most people know me for my community on orkut about blood donation. Well, though we have a head count of 1869, as of date, (phew! that's a huge number) we are still not in a position to meet the emergency blood requests, most of the times. Today was one such day where there was literally a struggle to find AB+ blood for a child admitted in Manipal Hospital.

I got a call (wake up call!) from Mr. Mahesh, the child's father around 10.30 in the morning. I was at home, sick (will be sick for another 6-7 days). The request for AB+ was made. Since it is a positive blood group I was confident of helping the father without much trouble. The spreadsheet I maintain was referred and two donor (who were residing in the neighborhood of the hospital) numbers were given out. Twenty minutes after, I get a call from the father, no one is picking the phone on one number, and the other donor is out of station. Well, this was not new. Generally people do not update their changed numbers (contact details) either because they are just not interested or because they would have forgotten that they are a part of a community to help people in need, in emergencies. Some people also feel that it is one other community on orkut, so why fuss about it. People also travel and such instances can't be helped. So two more numbers were given. It turned out that both the numbers were "not reachable". Now I get a bit worried, so I start calling people. There were around 25 numbers out of which as many as 15 numbers were "please check the number you have dialed" and "wrong number". This is not supposed to happen during an emergency where someone is battling for dear life.

Then, I had some partial successes. Two people agreed to come forward; but the time was a constraint. Then I called Varun, a student studying near Koramangala. He was ready to even bunk classes for the noble deed, if required. He was free during is lunch break and the doctors and father were fine with the time. After a harrowing experience of almost two hours some purpose of the community was served. Someone was indebted with gratitude; Varun had the satisfaction of being the hero of the day. Hats off Varun!!! For the rest of you, just think it over.

Now coming back to the subject, Social Responsibility. (You are not expected to read further; I have given some bitti [free] unwanted gyaan [knowledge] below.)

Every individual has his or her own way of responding to the social cause. Some people donate cash (easiest way according to me), some in kind, some donate organs (after death, of-course), even the entire human body (hey! i can proudly say that two in our home have pledged to do so), some teach, some clean the environment, some say no to plastics, some sponsor midday meals for kids, some take care of children education, etc. We have innumerable means of helping our fellow beings in times of distress and crisis. But is this sufficient? I am not blaming anyone; its just an individual's conception of doing things. Every person has his or her own priorities.

Except for human organs and human body, everything else has a substitute. Blood, is one such element in nature which cannot be substituted with anything else. People die when blood requirements are not met on time. Precious lives are lost just for the sake of the red liquid. Moreover the donor replenishes his blood within two months; with reduced cholesterol and many other benefits. So whenever you hear a cry for help, please respond positively.

Something to ponder:

1. Bindu: A very enthusiastic and eager blood donor. She has been to two of our blood donation camps, traveling far and wide. But on both the occasions, the doctors refused to draw blood because of weight issues. Please don't lose heart Bindu; just try to put on weight.
2. Rajesh: I proudly attribute this "ನೀರು ದಾಹಕ್ಕೆ ರಕ್ತ ಜೀವಕ್ಕೆ" (means water: thirst :: blood: life) to him. Words are very powerful, but what about the deeds? He has donated blood just once. His guise, when we have so many donors around, how does my donation matter. Buddy, you haven't experienced an emergency. Please alter your mindset.
3. Prakash: A donor whose weight is just around the borderline. Donated blood a couple of times; however the donations begin with a serious discussion with the in-charge doctor about weight, and number of donations made so far. I will always try to be of some use and never give up. ;-)
4. Putta: (Sorry, he wouldn't recognize if I used his real name) Not sure how many times he has donated blood. but he always has a dislike towards voluntary blood donation camps. I will definitely drag him to a hospital in case of an emergency but there is a need to change the mentality.

So, that is all from side. Let me know if some eyes have opened and please be responsive to such requests. Don't turn a blind eye as this may lead to a loss of a precious life.

PS: (not disclaimer!) All the names and events are true. Just don't sue me for defamation :-).

90 minutes sleep cost 10.5K!!!

Royally duped!!! That's what comes to mind when I think about what happened the other day.

My 90 minutes of sleep cost me a cool INR 10,500. Don't believe it? Then read on...

It was Tuesday, the last day of June 2009. My company was having its monthly shutdown (blame recession). Employees had to take leave without pay for a certain number of days in a quarter. It was one such occasion where-in even though I was on leave I had to go work. Since I was already without pay I look the liberty of going late to work. Rather than the liberty, I would say it was my love for sleep, my habit to get up late, my lack of enthusiasm to see the early morning rays, bluntly said my laziness. :(

The regular bus to my company starts at 7.40 am near my place. There is no other direct bus to the company. However another direct bus to my office leaves from Gangenahalli, which is exactly one bus stop away from my regular bus stop. As I have a valid pass to board the BMTC bus (that's our local public transport), I went to the stop to catch a bus. I avoid buses which are full when I have time.

On this particular day I was a bit late (thankfully not because of my laziness). When I reached the stop, the time was around 9.15. The stop was sort of empty, I was happy. A bus came, which was sort of ok to board. The bus had doors. Suddenly there was an influx of passengers who were not there in the stop earlier. As I was supposed to get down at the next stop, I boarded the bus last. There were people standing on the steps and asked others to get in. Their guise was that the driver would close the doors. The bus had already started to move. At that point of time, I received a call on my cell phone. Since the bus was now crowded, I took out my cell, put it on silent mode and again placed it in my pocket. As soon as I lifted my hand, the person near me told that someone's phone had fallen down from the bus and he wanted me to check whether it was mine. I was sure that I had kept the cell phone in my pocket, but even then checked to make sure again. To my horror the phone was not there. At the same time, another person told that a phone indeed had fallen off the bus and had broken into two pieces. You usually doubt when one person tries to confuse you. But, when two different people tell the same thing you will be forced to believe them. In my case, I believed them! The bus slowed down near a speed breaker and they actually made me get down, saying that the broken phone was there on the road, a few feet back. I retraced my steps back and then it struck to me. Eureka! I have been royally duped. The person/s responsible for stealing my phone made me believe in their crap story.

Now here is some introspection. As soon as I found my phone missing, I knew that I had lost it. My analytical mind put past a conspiracy that someone flicked it and threw it out of the bus to his counterpart. What my mind couldn't process was that, I was being innovatively duped, something which was never heard before.

So, on that fateful day my sleep had cost me dearly. INR 116 for every minute of extra sleep.

Though I have got a duplicate SIM with the same old number, I have lost all my contacts, reminders and photographs. So, when you call me/ message me and I will ask "May I know who is this?", please do not be offended. I may forget some important days as well; please forgive me.

Visit to Hubli

Friday the 29^th May.

The time was around 2 p.m. and I was working at my office. One of my very close friends called me and mathadtha mathadtha a program was fixed. ‘Visit to Hubli’ occupied our calendar for the weekend. I called another friend of mine and then there were three of us for the trip. After some failed attempts, the bus tickets were booked online and things were in place for the trip.

The onward journey was eventful right for the time I started from my residence. I was a bit late; reached the bus stop and wasted precious minutes for the local BMTC bus which didn’t turn up. Then I took an auto, cursing myself for being late. To my “delight”, the auto driver took his own sweet time to reach the bus stand even though I told him twice that I was in a hurry. I reached the bus stand just-in-time. My friend was waiting for me outside the bus. We boarded the bus and then the journey to Hubli began without much ado.

Our excursions are usually adventures (not adventurous, mind it) as we seldom plan in advance (whenever we plan something, it fails… that’s a different story). So, it was no surprise that even during this trip the adventure began just as the bus reached the outskirts of the city. The bus was stopped two times for duration of about 15 minute each. It was even taken to two depots for inspection. The driver had a misconception, that there was some problem with the vehicle. He was not convinced even when other bur drivers as well as the mechanics confirmed that everything was fine. Traffic was also blocked for about 3o minutes due to an accident on the highway. All in all, the bus reached the destination a good three hours behind schedule.

Saturday the 30^th May.

Both of us reached my friend’s place and freshened up. My friend in Hubli had booked a cab and sort of planned an itinerary. We set out for the first destination Badami after having our breakfast. The roads were a mixture of sorts; good for the most part and bad at some. Badami is famous for its caves. The one thing you need to make sure is, not to bring any sort of food or liquid items. There is practically an army of monkeys which literally attack you; especially if anything you carry interests them. The best thing to do during such an attack is to surrender and had over whatever interests them. Your heroics would be futile. We witnessed one such attack, and it was not a pleasant sight. We roamed about the place, took some pictures and moved on to our second destination Pattadakkal. Thereafter we visited Aihole. (Please go thru the links for details about the places.)

After Aihole we headed back to Hubli and on the way, had our lunch. The lunch was not exactly lunch as the time was 4.00 pm by the time we had it. Moreover the hotel we visited only had sandwiches. We reached Hubli around 9.00 PM, had a hearty supper and then started off to Dandeli. Just before we started we noticed that the air in one of the front tires was low. We suspected a puncture. The vehicle was fuelled and tires were filled with air. After filling air the driver confirmed that it indeed was a puncture but very mild. To our dismay, there was no wheel spanner in the vehicle, even though it had a spare wheel and a jack. The vehicle was driven in the same condition towards Dandeli. Though we were skeptical about reaching our destination without any incidents, we couldn’t help the situation. The driver was confident enough to take us in such a condition. We reached Dandeli in the middle of the night.

Sunday the 31^st May.

Dandeli is basically a wild life sanctuary. The safaris happen in private jeeps which are permitted for a fee. A guide from the forest department will accompany in the journey. The safari started at 6.00 in the morning; it was mind blowing. The sceneries were awesome! We sighted a couple of deer and 6 – 8 bison. There were more bison than deer in the forest. We were also taken to a view point in the forest. The view cannot be expressed in words; you have to see it and enjoy it. The safari was excellent. Our plan (or rather the lack of it) didn’t allow us to have breakfast. Don’t forget, we were still using the punctured wheel. On the way back we flagged down another vehicle, borrowed the tool and changed wheels. The spare wheel was also in a bad shape, but somewhat sustainable. As we had changed wheels, we also changed our plan and decided to go to a water resort for boating. One resort was full and we were directed to another resort nearby. There we decided to also have a water massage. The boat (coracle) ride was ok. We also took turns to row, and even to pose for pictures. After the ride we were led to place for the water massage where Kali River flows on/thru rocks. The deal is to sit on the rocks and experience the water pressure/flow. Wow! A unique kind experience. After this thoroughly refreshing “massage” we headed back to Hubli. We again missed out our food due to non-availability.

On the way back, the dreaded thing happened. The spare wheel which was not in its prime of health breathed its last breath! We had a flat tire in the forest. Though it wasn’t in the “middle of the forest”, there still was no human habitat around and we were in the middle of no-where. The driver of the vehicle removed the mildly punctured wheel from the boot, hailed a vehicle on the road and just left. There was no network coverage (for our cell phones) except for good old BSNL. We only had one means of communication and nothing else. But, my friend with the BSNL connection, instead of conserving the charge started playing games on his cell phone. This pissed me off and we even had an altercation. Three guys on the road, in the middle of no-where with a parked car having a flat tire… what more to say!!! We waited for a couple of hours and then our driver returned with the fixed wheel. As we still didn’t have the wheel spanner, we were forced to flag down a passing vehicle, borrowed the tool and changed tires. We again thanked the Samaritans profusely and continued our journey back. It was around 5.00 in the evening when we reached our friend’s place. We freshened and went to have some food. Came back, packed our things and headed for the bus stand. We stopped to have a full meal (the first one for the day). Due to my friend’s diligence we couldn’t have the local food (jowar roti). We were well in time to catch our bus back. The journey back to Bangalore was uneventful.

All in all, even this turned out to be something, which we usually experience whenever we go out on a trip. Adventure, thrill, fun, fight and bonding all thru the way.