55,000+ Kms

Our Swift has already clocked 55,000+ kms on the stock JK Vectras in just over 3 years. Though bald on the side-treads, they just don't seem to give up on the tarmac. Wet roads - thats the only place where they almost close their shop - having learnt that on our return from the last Pondy trip with quite frequent lateral shifts and roll in the rain.

Safety first - comes to the mind immediately - thanks to the trigger happy driving style which almost every day pushes the loyal Swift to its limits. Internet shows various colors and creeds - talk about rubber grade, tread patterns, season choices, terrain specifics, driving styles, not to miss 'what does 185/70R14-88H means?' Narrowed the list to Bridgestone Potenza G-III, Yokohama ES100 and Michelin Energy XM1+. It's now time for some field work.

Most of the dealers in India are actually unaware of even the basics; with recommendations primarily based on the economics - which ones sell more! If the customers are young & racy, the funkier the tread pattern, the better the tyre. The deeper the customer's pockets, the latest in the foreign brands is the best one in the lot. The location of the shop also determines which tyre is better, and so does what the dealer has ready in the stock. Thank god we have internet and reviews from trust worth sources! No wonder anything sells here, all you need is 'Yes sir, this is the best; everybody is buying this only!'

Though hard to find, you also have a handful of genuine dealers who would not sell things to clear their inventory, or because something sells like hot cakes, or try to corner you to make a particular choice. Yes they are there to make a buck too, but not at your cost; they don't just do a job, they are passionate about what they do and know what they sell. They woud listen to you, understand your need, show you the range, state the pros and the cons, and assist you in making the choice - your choice and not theirs.

Call it luck or our hard search, after tumbling through dealers of the first kind, we finally reached the one stop shop for what we were looking for. All the top ones displayed, explained and compared.  It took us no time to strike the deal in line with the recommendation, and the Swift was up on the jacks. In all it took around 45 minutes to get all the work done including balancing and alignment, and we were back on the road, ready to roll again, full on life, with the shining new Michelin Energy XM1+! :)

Michelin Man Logo courtesy Michelin website.

Flick of time..

Life has many things to offer.. keeps unfolding quite a lot of surprises.. and though everything is same, we choose to brand them good or bad. There actually is not anything good.. or anything bad.. just a matter of where we are standing.. what we want.. and what we are looking at. Events are just simple events.. its "we" that dictates our smiles or sorrows.

I believe that there is always a chance.. there's always a way.. but being human at the same time does make it a little difficult at times to hold that belief. When struck, we do fall.. tend to slip.. give way to subconscious fears and insecurities.. but as wise men say - Glory is not in the number of times you fall, but in the number of times you rise after you fall - keeps things moving.

After continuous years of working.. being in control of what you are doing or where you are going.. its little difficult to see that something outside of your control suddenly changed everything around. One moment you were in, and now you are treading the hard path. No matter how hard you try to keep hasty decisions at bay, one or two do creep in from the dark side, and stay with you for sometime. I guess thats just being human. Your beliefs make you move on.. take everything on the brighter side.. shrug off the residues of the dark side and see things though.. with a new perspective. Have you been of such a long paid vacation ever? No? Then get back to making the best of it. Spend time on things which were pushed back for the long years.. things that got dissolved due to hectic schedules or priorities.. things that you always had on your mind but could not take shape.

And as the smile starts growing bigger, you feel thankful for the contentment you missed for quite sometime. The behind-the-desk-syndrome had actually caught you by the neck and strangling you day and night without giving you the slightest clue. The flick of time gives you ample opportunities to think afresh.. start new things.. break from the routine and do something else.. You end up clearer in thoughts, and in actions.

Nothing is permanent, except Change. "We" should understand that and welcome it unless we want to be where we are - stagnant, stationery, and stuck. :)

Moving on..

I still remember the day when I landed in Bangalore - 26Nov1999.. all I had was a rucksack, cotton mattress, blanket, bike and few household items. Ready to move anytime, anywhere. Took up the accommodation the same day (a friend had helped a lot in arranging the same). And until today.. I was at the same place.

This place has seen me grow - from the time when I was one year experienced professional.. new in Bangalore.. to now when it touched the eleventh year.. It has seen me with friends.. and alone.. it has seen my late night parties and endured my blasting music.. me and my girlfriends.. my friends and their girlfriends.. it has seen the days of rucksack to every bit it has now to make it a home.. right from curtains.. to bedsheets.. to appliances.. potted plants.. kitchen.. and what not.. it has been locked for months in a row when I wasn't in town, and days when we used to camp in for days together.. from the days I was a tenant, to the day when I owned it. Its been a long time here with this house.. the first thing I build from scratch in my life for myself.. It was the same house that my better half came home to.. I guess that makes you develop a special invisible connection with the things around.. no matter how small or big they are.. you are connected.

The pinch of our routine travel times to offices and the related aggravated anxieties started to make their presence felt. With the growing city and its traffic demands, couple with inefficiencies of the local authorities resulted in ever increasing commute times. The serenity of our home and ambiance of its location started to lose its priority in our lives. We could hardly spare a couple of hour for each other after spending four hours of daily travel time through erratic traffic. When you are connected, its hard to think about alternatives. We carried on for some more time ignoring everything, before we came face to face with reality - we have to move on, leave behind connections, if we want have more time together, if we want to achieve things together.

Decision making has never been tough for us.. what is tough is to build up enough pressure to push us! :D This time, we have been pushed too far. So, the hunt began. And within a week, we found what we were looking for. Another week for packing and arrangements.. and we finally we shifted. The first day was heavy on heart.. the mind scrolling through the first day in the old house till now.. remembering all the moments.. looking at old snaps.. how we planned and bought things to make it a home.

Took almost another week to set things up at the new place.. at first all our stuff from the old 2BHK did not seem to fit in the new 3BHK - left us wondering how on earth did we manage all that earlier? :D

We still remember the good times in the old house.. and see it with a smile whenever we pass by it.. but with time, you have to make practical choices.. and move on.. :)

Attack of the virus...

Nothing is permanent except change.. and you realize it when the seemingly normal situations undergo change..

Its been quite a while now being alone.. all out by myself.. right from script to direction.. scene to shoot.. screen to criticism and applause.. being one man army, one man show.. leading to an ingress of enormous amount of behaviors and traits.. resulting in a self-sustained, self-contained, fault tolerant system.

By the time you perfect it, the permanent thing takes over.. Sometimes for the good.. state of double from the single.. lot of things change.. some visible.. others largely unnoticed.. time prevails.. environment settles in.. behaviors and traits realign to new circumstances.. the system advances..

And here comes the attack of the virus!

The largely unnoticed part suddenly comes to life.. with all fine details.. from small stuff to the large.. fundamentals gets challenged.. basic supplies get hampered.. you sit and think.. and think again.. plan.. call some shots.. make some decisions.. and life moves on.. with the hope that the better is yet to some..
Nothing is permanent except change! :)

I aint making any fault..

I hope I aint making any fault..
Have heard lot about the stuff.. lot of hesitance on what I would come up with.. had yes.. had no.. may be at times..
What the wreck! I mean what the heck! nothing to lose except a few words flowing on to this page..
So.. here I come..