No work

In times of recession when professionals sit idle in office, there starts a trend of introducing what higher management calls 'development activities' and I call as 'useless games'. Reviews, safety seminars, technical seminars, leadership and management seminars, vendor seminars etc, are all a part of this plot.

Also, at such times, its interesting to see even the people higher up, going deeper down in the roots of superficial problems which otherwise are solved in a jiffy, without being fussed over. But the times are bad, and everyone needs an activity, and jumping on even a minor problem gives them a feeling of having done something. And so, start the 'tamashas', people yell over petty issues, take a bite at others, scramble like rats and blow up the whole issue into one big volcano.

Unrest is natural amongst all who are suffering woes having no work, but making a lot of noise, or making a mountain of a molehill gives some a feeling of importance which they miss in such times.

Believe me, its no fun going to a place where there is no work.....no work at all. Some rest in between is alright, but no work at all is bad, very bad. There are some who disagree, they say its good fun....no work and salary all the same. I beg to differ.

Dark times shall pass.

Itna kyun darta hai saaye se,

Saaya to deta hai saath....

Parchaayee ka andhera chaaye to kyaa hua...

Dooji taraf to kirano kaa bhi haath...

Kyun darta hai andhere se...

Andhera to aana hi hai...

Chalta nahi woh pura kaal,

Waqt do, usse jaana hi hai...

Darta kyaa hai kaale badalo se..

Dete woh hume paani...

Sarwaswi dekar apna balidaan,

Dharti khilaate hai saari...

Kyun darta hai Bhavishya se,

Ek din to aata hi hai...

Sukh se ya dukh se jaaye kyaa,

Usse bhi bhoot banaa hi hai..

Darta kyaa hai bhoot se,

Soch ki woh mayajaal,

Bhavishya ki chintaa to kar hi mat,

Apna vartaman sambhaal.

-by me.

The adventure of bargaining.

Bargaining is a part of shopping. Its a kind of victory that kicks the heart of a true shopper. And while these are the days of chain stores, fixed price tags and forever 'sale' strategies, hard true bargainers don't come off without trying. Just take an incident for instance. One of my relatives picked out around half a dozen books after half a dozen rounds in the book store spending half an hour there. After carefully picking out the books that he wanted....he asked the cashier fellow to bill it....and asked for a discount. The cashier replied by saying that the rates are fixed. So my relative left the store empty handed and asked some of his 'contacts' in pune to check whether a discount was available in one of pune's leading book store for the same books (he had memorized their titles). Now, going by the price tags of the books....I dont think it was quite worth it to spend that much time and energy.

Time....for the two trips we made to the store....once when he picked out those books for the first time and next when we came back to really buy those books, once he found out that his contacts in pune, too, could'nt get a discount on those same books!!

Energy....the car fuel we wasted in making two trips to the store + fuel in his contact's car for making their trips to the store.

So much for bargain !!!

With most bargainers there is a trend in bargaining.........Shopkeeper quotes the price......Hard bargainer makes a disbelieving face or a disbelieving noise or both......he / she says "Kuch bhi, barabar price bataana" (Tell the correct price). Shopkeeper goes on telling the customer how good the item is and how he wouldnt get the same quality item anywhere else in this world.

On which the customer replies...."Yeda mat bana.....baaju waale dukaan me same cheez kam price mein mil rahi hai.....main tumhare yahaan bahut saal se shopping kar raha hu....to barabar daam bolna...mein tumhara purana customer hu " (Dont fool me, the same item is available in the next store at a lower price....I have been shopping at your place for quite sometime now....so tell me the correct price for old times sake.) Finally after a lot of haggling....the customer and the shopkeeper settle down to a price which is round about a mean value of both parties' respective quotes. The shopkeeper puts up a show....his tone suggesting that 'these days we get fooled by customers'. However in reality he is happy with the deal as his margin is quite what he had expected !. The customer in turn after a happy bargaining 'stint' puts up his own show...where he grumbles about how things are getting expensive these days and that shopkeepers have turned out to be 'highway robbers'. In reality he is happy to have got a great deal or definitely happy by the sense of achievement given by bargaining !!

I remember some years ago...we used to bargain at fashion street in mumbai. When a shopkeeper quoted a price....we used to say to him "Itne mein dena hai to do." If he said no.....we used to walk on ahead...and many a times he would chase you...and say "Le lo saahab....aapke bataye hue daam par hi deta hu, chalo !!" We used to buy the item, then

There is a kind of adventure in bargaining which gives shoppers a high...From 'roj ki sabji' to expensive home appliances....bargaining rules. It adds an extra element to the shoppers delight !!

A difference in the lifestyles.

When I wanted a bon-fire lit up, I started searching for wood. The cold weather was just right to light up a bonfire, feel its warmth and hear its crackle. It was night time, around 10:30 PM and the night was getting real chilled up. I could hear the crickets making a racket and looked up at the stars. The air is so pure at my grandpa's farmhouse, it makes you feel like you're breathing life after living in a gas chamber city for a long time.

So anyway, I was just wondering where the farmhand could be, when I realised that he must be fast asleep.....it must be midnight for him. I didnt wake him up....I knew his lifestyle and he slept early and got up early as well.

For people living here (like the farmhand), life is very simple.....Sleep early at around 9 o'clock.....get up at 0530 hrs fresh after a great sleep.....go out to work on the farmland.....have something to eat in between.....work again.....lunch at around 12:30 noon.....then a power nap....work again till around 6 in the evening until the time it starts becoming dark.......dinner at 8 o'clock and then sleep at 9. Its a simple lifestyle.

Eat simple food of bhakris, chappatis and sabjis and rice.....breathe in pure air, live in the vast open space and have no fantastic desires....

For the average service class man in the city.....its something like this.....Sleep late at around 12 AM or probably next morning......get up all drowsy due to lack of sleep....a hurried breakfast......off to work....probably after travelling by local transport or through crowded roads...reach office....lunch at around 1, 1:30, 2 or mebbe just a hurried meal.....after this you'll feel drowsy again....but cant sleep....so drink tea or coffee twice or thrice....work around till 7:30 or 8:00 or even later.....then start off home....till the time you reach home.....ur bushed...Have a quiet dinner......watch TV or surf the net later on in your 'free time' for 'relaxation'. Sleep

Eating outside food is a must at times.....breathing polluted air is a norm, living in the vast expanse of the cement jungle is part of life........there is a lot of money and yet no one is satisfied...there are still those fantastic desires....there are a lot of facilities for easy living and yet life is tougher.........

I aint saying which is better.....its just a comparison.....a comparison between two totally different lifestyles.....

Money.

The days are long gone when man used to be satisfied in being self reliant in terms of food, shelter and clothing. Long ago there was something invented which would change the face of human nature forever. No one then could have ever judged the power of that rectangular piece of paper which is today known as money !!

-By me.

Valentines day.

As if I have'nt had enough of bad times currently, ebay sent me one of their regular update emails with the following subject line.....'Get free gifts for yourself this Valentine's'. The more I try to forget that stupid day when everyone has someone to gift something to.......the more I get reminded of it by these stoopid mails. I mean how can you remind someone so harshly....by saying......get free gifts for yourself on valentine's?
But then I thought, its indeed a great idea.....I mean what the heck.....who wants a girlfriend anyway......I love myself and I'll get myself a gift on valentine's day.

Boo to ebay and hurrah to ebay !!!