Saturday, March 20, 2010

Sand trap


There is a lot of construction happening around the city these days. So there are piles of sand and brick and whatnot everywhere.
Near my neighborhood there is a stoplight with building going on around it. One evening as some friends and I drove through, we noticed a little Omni van stuck in a sand pit that had recently developed. The driver had spun the tires and dug himself in pretty deep--halfway up the hubcaps. So my friends pulled over and the two men in the car got out to help.
Who knows how long the man had been there, trying to get himself out. The rest of the traffic just drove by and stared at him in his predicament.
My friends lifted his little Omni van and he drove away.
I wonder if he thought to thank them...

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

I heart traffic rules


I saw this slogan imprinted on road barriers along a stretch of highway today: I heart traffic rules.
Will such signage really engender such an affection for traffic rules that people will really obey them?

Wait a minute--there are traffic rules?

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Y is supposed to

I have to fill out a form to get a pan card. A "personal something-or-other number" card so that I can pay taxes.
I went to the office, filled out the form, glued on my picture, signed it and submitted my application. I was told it would be a seven to ten day wait.
A week later I heard my form was unacceptable.
Why?
My name in the signature went outside the box.
Huh?
The letter Y is supposed to go below the line.
But no, this was a signature box, not a signature line and all of the signature must be inside the box.
For pete sakes.
So I went in this morning to try again. Filled out the form and very carefully signed it.
Waiting again for another seven to ten days.
And why do I want to pay taxes for such bureaucracy?

Friday, March 12, 2010

You don't


No, people-from-the-bank-in-India-who-put-out-this-mat-in-front-of-the-entrance, you don't.
You really couldn't possibly.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Unsuccessful errands


I had an unsuccessful day. I went out looking for four different things. I made three different stops. I found zero of what I was looking for. Took up five hours of my day.
But, as usual, I saw other interesting things
At the coffee shop where I stopped for some tea, I sat on the balcony and watched the tide come in on the sea of motorcycles below.

At another stop I saw something new.
Do you ever look up at the ceiling? I do. And today I was rewarded. There were barefooted men walking over the panels of whatever the roof is made of, squeegeeing it.
Here's a brief look at the action:

Complete

Here's my latest theme song:

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Random

I never get over the things I see while in an auto ride through the city.
Here's a list:
  • Girl slaps guy at bus station
  • Man with chicken under his arm
  • Man on the back of scooter holding a ladder straight up in the air
  • Construction worker digs around dog
  • Horse carrying bricks stumbles over speed bump, drops bricks all over the street
And you know what else? Amitabh Bachchan called me. (Okay, so it was just a mobile phone advertisement.)

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Pink people


There are pink people walking around today.
Why?
Because yesterday was Holi and they threw paint at each other.
Either it doesn't wash off easily...or they didn't try to wash it off.
There are also pink cows, dogs, streets and autos.
I guess it disappears after the next rain.