Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Talisma at work!
I haven't been personally searching the web for news on how Talisma is helping our customers business grow. Here's one link that I got by mail today which shows how our software is helping our customers in the Higher-education field. Way to go Talisma!!!
Friday, February 18, 2005
Blurr's back!!
Woke up at 11 am yesterday and called up Raghu to ask him if Blurr was ready. He replied in the affirmative. Asked him for the estimate, he said that he was not at Auto Service. So called up Venkat. He didn't have the actuals so asked me to call him up after 20 mins. Called him after half an hour. He said that the estimate was around 2k.
Finished my daily routine and left for Banashankari. On the way, got to ride in Manoj's Baleno. Damn good car!! He dropped me off at office, from where I went to the ATM and picked up 2.5k - 2k for the bike and .5k for me. Got into an auto and headed for Banashankari. On my way, picked up a Steelbird SB13 for around 800 bucks.
At Venkat's picked Blurr up. The bill was Rs. 2613. And I luckily had just about enough!! Anyway, tried to start the bike but the battery was dead. Need to get it recharged. Front brakes were very spongy - obvioulsy damaged in the fall. Plus the headlamp glass needs to be replaced.
Looks like further damage expected; to my bank balance that is.
Finished my daily routine and left for Banashankari. On the way, got to ride in Manoj's Baleno. Damn good car!! He dropped me off at office, from where I went to the ATM and picked up 2.5k - 2k for the bike and .5k for me. Got into an auto and headed for Banashankari. On my way, picked up a Steelbird SB13 for around 800 bucks.
At Venkat's picked Blurr up. The bill was Rs. 2613. And I luckily had just about enough!! Anyway, tried to start the bike but the battery was dead. Need to get it recharged. Front brakes were very spongy - obvioulsy damaged in the fall. Plus the headlamp glass needs to be replaced.
Looks like further damage expected; to my bank balance that is.
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
The lottery ticket
I was getting used to the routine of waking up at 6 am, going for my daily walk, having tea at the tea-stall next to the newspaper stall outside the park, before returning home to the newspaper, TV, the novels and my kitchen garden.
I used to see him at the newspaper stall everyday. He looked to be in his forties, worked as a security guard in a textile factory nearby and was struggling to make a living. I was getting used to his routine too. He would come to the newspaper stall religiously at 7 am, straight from work. He would take out his neatly folded ticket from under his cap and search the results of the previous day's daily lottery, his eyes full of expectation. And it was the same old look on his face once he was through scanning the numbers; disappointment. He would then dig into his pocket and take out five rupees, and reluctantly buy a ticket for the day's daily lottery. The look of anguish on his face at having spent five precious rupees was heart-wrenching. I always wondered why he did that, why he spent five rupees everyday, instead of using it to buy food or clothes for his family. I decided to ask him one day.
I was at the tea-stall one day, enjoying a cup of tea, after my morning walk. And he was at the newspaper stall, going through his daily ordeal or finding out that his investment in the lottery did not prove to be profitable and spending five precious rupees on another ticket. I called out to him and asked him to come over and sit next to me. He look at me with an irritated look on his face and said, "What do you want? I dont have time to sit and talk. I have to go for my job".
"But I thought you were coming from there", I said.
"Yes, that was my night job. Now I have to go to the railway station. I work as a coolie in the day".
"Two jobs?! When do you sleep?"
"Sleep is one luxury I can do without Saab. And if you excuse me, I must get going now."
"Why don't you let me buy you some tea?"
The thought of having a hot cup of tea on that cold morning was a good enough reason for him to sit down and talk. I asked the tea-stall owner to give him some tea. The look on his face while he took the glass in his hands was like that of someone taking something very expensive and precious. It looked like a hot cup of tea was also a luxury he could not afford everyday. As he savored his tea, I asked him his name.
"Raju, Saab", he replied.
"Raju, everyday I see you buy a lottery ticket. And everyday, I see that you dont win any money. Then why do you spend your hard-earned money on the lottery?"
"For my daughter Saab."
"For your daughter?"
"Yes Saab. She's not well. And the doctor says that she needs an operation. And the operation will cost 50000 rupees. I don't have any money Saab. All the money that I, my wife and two sons make go into buying medicines for her. The money we had saved for her operation, our landlord took from us, as repayment of the loan we had taken from him. We begged and begged, but he refused to let us pay him later. Now, we have no way to pay for her treatment, and the doctor says, my daughter does not have much time left. But I'm not giving up Saab. None of us are giving up. I've got two jobs. My wife works in seven houses - washing, cleaning and cooking - in the day time, and weaves baskets and coir mats during the night. My two sons, one twelve years old and the other nine years old work at construction sites for twelve hours a day. We are doing all we can to earn enough money to get my daughter operated. We love her very much and are ready to do whatever it takes to keep her with us."
"If that's the case, why do you spend money on a lottery ticket everyday? Save that much money and you will be able to collect a substantial amount. Agreed, it wont be enough to pay for the operation, but it should cover part of the expenses."
"What about the rest Saab? However hard my family and I try, we wont be able to save enough to pay for the operation. And we already owe a lot of people lot of money. No one will lend us any more money. I buy a lottery ticket hoping that some day I will win, and that day my daughter will be all better."
Before I could say anything more, he gulped down the rest of his tea and got up. "Thank you very much for the tea Saab. May God bless you and your family. I should be leaving now." Saying that, he left. As I sat there watching him leave, I decided to do something to help him pay for his daughter's operation.
Over the next few days, after my daily walk, after I spent a few moments talking to him over a cup of tea, I went from door to door in my colony, telling my neighbors about the plight of Raju and his family. Some were sympathetic and donated some money, some were sympathetic and did not donate any money, and some just did not care. It was the children who really surprised me. Not only did they spare money from their monthly allowances, they also spread the word in their schools and collected a substantial amount of money. A week from the first day I had spoken with Raju, I had managed to collect a little over fifty seven thousand rupees. I said a prayer for the good samaritans and went to bed, looking forward to meeting Raju the next day.
I was done with my morning walk by 7 am. And Raju was at the newspaper stall, looking up the results of the previous day's lottery. The hopeful look in his eyes was exactly the same from the first time I had seen him. But today, instead of the usual look of disappointment after scanning the list, his eyes lit up with immense joy. "I won!! I won!!", he shouted, excitedly. It was heartening to see the look on his face. It was a welcome change from the usual pained look of disappointment on his face. I felt happy for him too. He was dancing on the sidewalk now, the winning ticket clutched tightly in one hand and the results sheet in another.
It all happened so quickly, its still a blur. One moment he was dancing on the sidewalk, the next moment Raju was lying in a pool of blood on the side of the road. The car that had swerved off the road and hit Raju had sped off, the under-age driver realizing that his high-speed joy ride had now become a flight from the law. A small crowd gathered around Raju. Someone asked, "Did anyone note down the number of the car that hit him?". Someone else said, "We should call the police", but no one did. While the others around him waited for someone else to do something to help, Raju breathed his last - clutching the lottery ticket in his blood soaked hand.
I used to see him at the newspaper stall everyday. He looked to be in his forties, worked as a security guard in a textile factory nearby and was struggling to make a living. I was getting used to his routine too. He would come to the newspaper stall religiously at 7 am, straight from work. He would take out his neatly folded ticket from under his cap and search the results of the previous day's daily lottery, his eyes full of expectation. And it was the same old look on his face once he was through scanning the numbers; disappointment. He would then dig into his pocket and take out five rupees, and reluctantly buy a ticket for the day's daily lottery. The look of anguish on his face at having spent five precious rupees was heart-wrenching. I always wondered why he did that, why he spent five rupees everyday, instead of using it to buy food or clothes for his family. I decided to ask him one day.
I was at the tea-stall one day, enjoying a cup of tea, after my morning walk. And he was at the newspaper stall, going through his daily ordeal or finding out that his investment in the lottery did not prove to be profitable and spending five precious rupees on another ticket. I called out to him and asked him to come over and sit next to me. He look at me with an irritated look on his face and said, "What do you want? I dont have time to sit and talk. I have to go for my job".
"But I thought you were coming from there", I said.
"Yes, that was my night job. Now I have to go to the railway station. I work as a coolie in the day".
"Two jobs?! When do you sleep?"
"Sleep is one luxury I can do without Saab. And if you excuse me, I must get going now."
"Why don't you let me buy you some tea?"
The thought of having a hot cup of tea on that cold morning was a good enough reason for him to sit down and talk. I asked the tea-stall owner to give him some tea. The look on his face while he took the glass in his hands was like that of someone taking something very expensive and precious. It looked like a hot cup of tea was also a luxury he could not afford everyday. As he savored his tea, I asked him his name.
"Raju, Saab", he replied.
"Raju, everyday I see you buy a lottery ticket. And everyday, I see that you dont win any money. Then why do you spend your hard-earned money on the lottery?"
"For my daughter Saab."
"For your daughter?"
"Yes Saab. She's not well. And the doctor says that she needs an operation. And the operation will cost 50000 rupees. I don't have any money Saab. All the money that I, my wife and two sons make go into buying medicines for her. The money we had saved for her operation, our landlord took from us, as repayment of the loan we had taken from him. We begged and begged, but he refused to let us pay him later. Now, we have no way to pay for her treatment, and the doctor says, my daughter does not have much time left. But I'm not giving up Saab. None of us are giving up. I've got two jobs. My wife works in seven houses - washing, cleaning and cooking - in the day time, and weaves baskets and coir mats during the night. My two sons, one twelve years old and the other nine years old work at construction sites for twelve hours a day. We are doing all we can to earn enough money to get my daughter operated. We love her very much and are ready to do whatever it takes to keep her with us."
"If that's the case, why do you spend money on a lottery ticket everyday? Save that much money and you will be able to collect a substantial amount. Agreed, it wont be enough to pay for the operation, but it should cover part of the expenses."
"What about the rest Saab? However hard my family and I try, we wont be able to save enough to pay for the operation. And we already owe a lot of people lot of money. No one will lend us any more money. I buy a lottery ticket hoping that some day I will win, and that day my daughter will be all better."
Before I could say anything more, he gulped down the rest of his tea and got up. "Thank you very much for the tea Saab. May God bless you and your family. I should be leaving now." Saying that, he left. As I sat there watching him leave, I decided to do something to help him pay for his daughter's operation.
Over the next few days, after my daily walk, after I spent a few moments talking to him over a cup of tea, I went from door to door in my colony, telling my neighbors about the plight of Raju and his family. Some were sympathetic and donated some money, some were sympathetic and did not donate any money, and some just did not care. It was the children who really surprised me. Not only did they spare money from their monthly allowances, they also spread the word in their schools and collected a substantial amount of money. A week from the first day I had spoken with Raju, I had managed to collect a little over fifty seven thousand rupees. I said a prayer for the good samaritans and went to bed, looking forward to meeting Raju the next day.
I was done with my morning walk by 7 am. And Raju was at the newspaper stall, looking up the results of the previous day's lottery. The hopeful look in his eyes was exactly the same from the first time I had seen him. But today, instead of the usual look of disappointment after scanning the list, his eyes lit up with immense joy. "I won!! I won!!", he shouted, excitedly. It was heartening to see the look on his face. It was a welcome change from the usual pained look of disappointment on his face. I felt happy for him too. He was dancing on the sidewalk now, the winning ticket clutched tightly in one hand and the results sheet in another.
It all happened so quickly, its still a blur. One moment he was dancing on the sidewalk, the next moment Raju was lying in a pool of blood on the side of the road. The car that had swerved off the road and hit Raju had sped off, the under-age driver realizing that his high-speed joy ride had now become a flight from the law. A small crowd gathered around Raju. Someone asked, "Did anyone note down the number of the car that hit him?". Someone else said, "We should call the police", but no one did. While the others around him waited for someone else to do something to help, Raju breathed his last - clutching the lottery ticket in his blood soaked hand.
Sunday, February 13, 2005
Damage assessment
Took Blurr to Venkat's yesterday. The list of damages
1) Bent front fork : has to be straightened
2) Bent crash guard : will be replaced
3) Bent handlebar : will be replaced
4) Broken front fairing : will be replaced
5) Broken h/l assembly : will be left as it is. Will replace it with aftermarket h/l cover.
Total estimate : 2000 bucks :-((
There go all plans of buying the Zma mag wheels.
1) Bent front fork : has to be straightened
2) Bent crash guard : will be replaced
3) Bent handlebar : will be replaced
4) Broken front fairing : will be replaced
5) Broken h/l assembly : will be left as it is. Will replace it with aftermarket h/l cover.
Total estimate : 2000 bucks :-((
There go all plans of buying the Zma mag wheels.
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Accident!!
There's a favorite saying of bikers. "There are two kinds of bikers; those who have fallen, and those who will". I guess I have one foot planted firmly in both the categories!!
Sunday, I was returning from Innovative Multiplex. Had gone to watch Black with a friend. While returning, I was "distracted" for a second. Next thing I knew was that I was too close to the median. Braked, skid, and hit the median hard.
People on the road stopped and helped me lift the bike. Took it to the side of the road. Did a damage assessment on self. No wounds that could be seen. Just small bruises on palm of my right hand. Right leg hurt like hell. But told everyone that I was fine. Asked my friend how she was. She said that she was fine. (Turned out later, that she had lied too). Assuming that she was fine and there was no need to panic, I decided to leave. Since my right leg was paining badly and my battery was discharged, I asked one of the good samaritans who had stopped to help me start the bike. But they were unable to do so. So I had to do it myself (my leg hurt like hell!!)
Started off. The road was bumpy and my friend asked me to ride a little slow. Apparently she was hurting. Told her that I'll take her to a hospital, but she said no. So took her home. And got home myself. Took off my jeans expecting the worst. But it wasn't too bad. My thigh was bruised badly. But not a very serious injury. My entire right leg hurt like hell. I couldn't sleep well that night.
Next morning dad took me to Baptist Hospital where the doctor ruled out a fracture. One painkiller and one tetanus injection later, I was on my way home.
That evening she went to a doc. After checkup doc told her that she was fine.
Thank our stars that we got out of it with no serious injuries.
Sunday, I was returning from Innovative Multiplex. Had gone to watch Black with a friend. While returning, I was "distracted" for a second. Next thing I knew was that I was too close to the median. Braked, skid, and hit the median hard.
People on the road stopped and helped me lift the bike. Took it to the side of the road. Did a damage assessment on self. No wounds that could be seen. Just small bruises on palm of my right hand. Right leg hurt like hell. But told everyone that I was fine. Asked my friend how she was. She said that she was fine. (Turned out later, that she had lied too). Assuming that she was fine and there was no need to panic, I decided to leave. Since my right leg was paining badly and my battery was discharged, I asked one of the good samaritans who had stopped to help me start the bike. But they were unable to do so. So I had to do it myself (my leg hurt like hell!!)
Started off. The road was bumpy and my friend asked me to ride a little slow. Apparently she was hurting. Told her that I'll take her to a hospital, but she said no. So took her home. And got home myself. Took off my jeans expecting the worst. But it wasn't too bad. My thigh was bruised badly. But not a very serious injury. My entire right leg hurt like hell. I couldn't sleep well that night.
Next morning dad took me to Baptist Hospital where the doctor ruled out a fracture. One painkiller and one tetanus injection later, I was on my way home.
That evening she went to a doc. After checkup doc told her that she was fine.
Thank our stars that we got out of it with no serious injuries.
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