It was 8pm last Thursday , while driving back home from work ,I suddenly found an unknown warning light blinking on my dashboard. After a closer look I realized, it was something to do with the brake lights ...... and true to my guess .. found my left brake light at the back kept sleeping , when it was supposed to wake up as i apply my brakes. Now this was a serious issue (although it may sound funny to people who are used to driving back home), because I didn't want any stupid cop to stop me for "visibility violation". Hence decided to have a look once I reach home.
At this point its worth mentioning that ...., when in Durgapur my dad used to drive a Premier Padmini. And minor issues like a fused light , low battery, short spark plugs etc (which were in plenty) .... were taken care of by him inside our small garage itself. So years of experience as my dad's assistant, gave me some idea about these issues in a car.
But this time it was different , I was a little apprehensive to try my tricks on my new Toyota Camry....... after all it wasn't a Padmini !! But as they say ... old habits die hard ... so my Indian roots overcame my "american apprehension" .. and I started working on the brake light .....
The journey started smoothly ... open the hood .. remove the mat .. unscrew the access screws .. and unplug the sensor clip ..... and then .. there u r ... u can actually c the bulbs ...!!!!!! That was exciting .. coz here i was saving around $ 50 !!.. good enough for 5 crates of Guiness !!! But soon my excitement faded away .... and thats because .. I could only get a glimpse of the bulbs .. but could not reach either of them ....
But despite this, I was happy with my effort and contended with the fact that it was nothing to do with the circuits .. and just a fused bulb (which i could see)... I called it a day .. with a Guiness anyways.
By now you must be wondering why am I writing these things ? Well, so here comes the interesting part. ..... Next day , morning , the first think I did was, take my car to the local Toyota Showroom / Dealer, where they made me wait for 2 hrs (since I didn't have an appointment !!!!!! ) and then a smart looking guy .. in those "pit stop" attire, came to fix the problem . I will try and dramatize it .. (although I dont remember the exact dialogues... )
Toyota Guy (TG) : Hello sir ! how may I help you today ?
Me : I have this warning light .. blah blah ... seems to be my back brake light .. blah blah .. seems like the bulb is fused.. i tried .. blah blah .....
TG : Sir , it is dangerous to play with the complicated machinery of your car without proper training. I advice you to please come to us directly, next time there is any problem .
Me : OK !!!!!!!!!!! ( @#%@#$%@#$%#@$)
TG : Why don't you have a seat (pointing towards a chair at the corner, inside the workshop)?
so I sat and watched ......
He started by opening the dashboard first ... looking for any fucked up wire (sorry for the language ! .. thats an expression of my frustration) ... then ..something in the engine !!!!! next it was the circuitry at the back ... accessed from the boot !! ..... AND then .. finally ... after about 1 hr 10 mins ........
TG : Sir , its a simple fused bulb .. I well get that fixed for you right away !!!
Me : Thank you soooooo much !! I knew you guys are trained to do this .. I shouldnt have played with the " complicated machinary " ( .... stupid ass !!!)
and finally THE Bill .... $180 ( $40 new bulb , $ 80 labour charge , $ 60 for some "loose wiring replacement"... which I never knew existed !! )
.. No Wonder .. 70 % of USAs intellectual force consist of foreigners ! .. BUT STILL THEY CAN FIGHT A WAR IN IRAQ WITHOUT A REASON !!!
.. Thank God .. it wasn't a starting problem !!!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Contact / No Contact
The other day I was wondering how I have changed !! I remember in my bachelor days (READ BSc DAYS ), I could spend hours on the fone talking (rather as we call "Bhat mere") with a lot of people .. some friends some just colleagues , some seniors some juniors. Rather I would love to call up people and knock them , when I realised that I am loosing contact with them !
Naturally when I count the number of people who were in my "circle of friends / acquintences / senior / junior / non-of the above etc etc etc " in knew then .... I find that the number has dwindled gradually over the years.
But ask me if am worried about this .... and I will say , I feel better now !!
I feel its human nature ... as you undergo the transition from school ... to college .. to professional life ... you tend to "loose "people on the way .. rather the better word is " select". You select those who you know , can be there for long .. those who wont mind if you don't call or talk to them for days !! After all its not possible to maintain a huge number of people in your "good contact list" when you are professionally occupied. Now-a-days I don't even feel like calling up or even contacting people online, just for socialising (although i have to do it sometime for reasons which are complicated ). Thats because I am happy with my small circle of friends ...... Its correct that "good things come in small packages"
Disclaimer : Blogging for me , is just a way to express my ideas/views and feelings, and not to impress anyone with unfathomable language and classical English. So if you expected this to be a literary gem , then am sorry for the disappointment.
AND this post is not meant to offend anyone.
Naturally when I count the number of people who were in my "circle of friends / acquintences / senior / junior / non-of the above etc etc etc " in knew then .... I find that the number has dwindled gradually over the years.
But ask me if am worried about this .... and I will say , I feel better now !!
I feel its human nature ... as you undergo the transition from school ... to college .. to professional life ... you tend to "loose "people on the way .. rather the better word is " select". You select those who you know , can be there for long .. those who wont mind if you don't call or talk to them for days !! After all its not possible to maintain a huge number of people in your "good contact list" when you are professionally occupied. Now-a-days I don't even feel like calling up or even contacting people online, just for socialising (although i have to do it sometime for reasons which are complicated ). Thats because I am happy with my small circle of friends ...... Its correct that "good things come in small packages"
Disclaimer : Blogging for me , is just a way to express my ideas/views and feelings, and not to impress anyone with unfathomable language and classical English. So if you expected this to be a literary gem , then am sorry for the disappointment.
AND this post is not meant to offend anyone.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Oh ! Kolkata !
Incident 1 : some days (weeks?) back there was a very moving story in almost all the dailies circulated in kolkata .... The incident was the brutal beating of a lady by her inlaws. Infact the lady was in Kolkata Police (Sub Inspector if I remember Correctly)!! The reason was the age old family feud and dowry issues . She was tied to her bed , and marcilessly beaten by her brother-sister-mother in law and may be by other members !!
Incident 2 : This may not be a single incident , but this is the almost regular killing of men - women - children , by a bunch of psychotic Kolkata bus drivers .
Incident 3 : .. well if you ask me the date and time when this happened .. or even the newspaper that reported it .. I wont be able to answer .. but .. trust me .. this happened sometime back , and it happens every alternate day in kolkata and elsewhere in the country . I think it was reported a few months back how a 22 year old girl was burned to death for falling in love with another guy ,despite being married !! ... it happend in the city ! and then there was this sick shop owner who attempted to rape a 9 year old gal !!!!
and now lets come to the latest issue ... the very hot "Rijwanur death ". I find everyday that someone says something about it ! Be it politicians (that's nothing new),writers, poets , artists, women right activists ,students... and the innumerable intellectuals of the city !!! They are staging dramas, painting graffitis,reciting poems and doing everything they can , to make sure that its recorded by the spice thirsty media !!! I feel disgusted to see this .. and in my perspective its "pseudo-intellectualism" .
I would like to ask those people, who are shouting now for rijwanur, where were they when all these above incidents took place !!!! where were you guys when a child was raped , a lady was tortured or even that girl was burnt ! What happend to your humane feelings then ????
So is it because Rijwanur case involves some glamor , a scandal involving a rich businessman , and the very spicy hindu-muslim marriage issue .. that you guys have suddenly become active !!
I sometime feel like deleting these bunch of pseudo intellectuals from the face of the city !!
Incident 2 : This may not be a single incident , but this is the almost regular killing of men - women - children , by a bunch of psychotic Kolkata bus drivers .
Incident 3 : .. well if you ask me the date and time when this happened .. or even the newspaper that reported it .. I wont be able to answer .. but .. trust me .. this happened sometime back , and it happens every alternate day in kolkata and elsewhere in the country . I think it was reported a few months back how a 22 year old girl was burned to death for falling in love with another guy ,despite being married !! ... it happend in the city ! and then there was this sick shop owner who attempted to rape a 9 year old gal !!!!
and now lets come to the latest issue ... the very hot "Rijwanur death ". I find everyday that someone says something about it ! Be it politicians (that's nothing new),writers, poets , artists, women right activists ,students... and the innumerable intellectuals of the city !!! They are staging dramas, painting graffitis,reciting poems and doing everything they can , to make sure that its recorded by the spice thirsty media !!! I feel disgusted to see this .. and in my perspective its "pseudo-intellectualism" .
I would like to ask those people, who are shouting now for rijwanur, where were they when all these above incidents took place !!!! where were you guys when a child was raped , a lady was tortured or even that girl was burnt ! What happend to your humane feelings then ????
So is it because Rijwanur case involves some glamor , a scandal involving a rich businessman , and the very spicy hindu-muslim marriage issue .. that you guys have suddenly become active !!
I sometime feel like deleting these bunch of pseudo intellectuals from the face of the city !!
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