Our life in Bangalore

Woods and the Trees

2011-11-10T21:31:00.000+05:30

We're pretty interesting as a species.

We experiment, spend time/effort/money to make automobiles just that 5-10% more efficient. Even a light 1000kg car - with 2 passengers - essentially uses most of the power to move itself.

We invented CFLs, LEDs and increasingly way more efficient forms of lighting. To light pathways, roads, streets and places with a near-zero human population or movement all night. In fact, a city is praised for "being well lit" all night even tho the number of bulbs faaaaar outnumber the number of people all night.

We watch "reality" on TV.

We ALL want exclusive, unique experiences.

We want super efficient production - the goal being the elimination of as many people from the production cycle as possible. In heavy engineering, in agriculture, even in software. We also have started replacing consumers with super efficient ones that support "growth" is price/sales - via commodity trading! All so human beings can lead better, happier lives.

We define and seek templates for how to break the mould, think out of the box and chase our dreams.

We all want to better than average at most things.

We believe in notions of equality, fairness. We also use or invent all available ways to assert dominance, authority and superiority over everyone we can.

We want a better future for ourselves and our kids. We're mostly caught up is quarterly results and short term goals.

We want to explore the world for newer, stranger experiences. We are investing heavily into, and using readily, technology to connect more and more with "people like us" and ideas we agree with.

We have more, faster tools for communication. And we do much more tof this:

We have more information than ever. Attention spans have shortened and deep thought has fled us.

We have cut down forests, directly and indirectly. And support "plant a tree" initiatives all the time.

We are all expressing ourselves more often, more widely and more loudly. To an audience that has less and less time, or inclination to listen in toviews other than their own, or to anything thats not entertaining.

We want our impact on the planet to lessen. Starting after we are done buying the SUV, or large screen TV, or 5 more energy consuming devices.

We want dustbins in every corner. So we can "safely" dispose of - read move out of sight - all the junk that we did not need to generate and throw into garbage cans in the first place.

We have invented increasingly complex monetary systems that none of us understand or control anymore.

We spread and support democracy with a missionary zeal. Yet a few companies control most foodgrain, and a handful control most production and monetary flows in the world - much fewer than ever before.

We are inventing shoes that help you feel you're running barefoot. Expensive shoes :)

We fly across the globe as ecologically conscious tourists.

I could go on, but I think you get the idea.

I don't think its hypocrisy. Its probably some kind of blindness, or at least myopia. We really cannot see the disappearing woods and get caught up in delighting at the artificially grown trees as part of our massive landscaping effort.

Social Net ke Side Effects

2011-08-15T08:51:00.001+05:30

One thing Facebook, Twitter etc have done is to make it even more important to appear to lead an interesting life than actually leading one.

Applies to entrepreneurship, patriotism, concern-for-causes too - ?

Everyone's marketing - their lives, lifestyles, their relationships, their heartfelt causes, and of course (and maybe most appropriately) their businesses :) Its reverse-voyeurism, in a sense. And surely, our social networks can be for so much more, can they not ?

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

London Fires

2011-08-11T08:14:00.001+05:30

London portends an ominous warning for all of us.

Its not a happy world. Not too long ago, we'd have taken poverty/tough times in our stride and been thankful for whatever we got when we did.

Our current growth models and their needs and structures help and serve a few, and that again in the short term. We almost design them to be win-lose, and just too many are shown unreal and sometimes illegitimate dreams, and then kept away from them. Our sense of achievement comes often from having "risen above". We have a stronger and stronger awareness of what we're not getting - and we invent newer needs and mechanisms to keep defining "risen above", in the wake creating a feeling of restlessness and impotence in so many who, in the first place, couldn't really be bothered about those 'needs'.

Watch out, you may be starting fires today that you'll need to fight tomorrow.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Anna Hazare, Ramdev, et al : What Are We Fighting For?

2011-06-11T18:02:00.000+05:30

Somewhere, I don't believe that its corruption per se that bothers us so much. Its existed forever. We've participated in it, willingly or otherwise. At the very least, we're desensitized to the whole thing.

So why have these fasts and protests resonated so much, especially amidst the GIMC ?

I think we're feeling left out, and reasonably helpless. The dialogue between us and the ever-aligned politicians has completely broken down over the last couple of decades. And we hardly vote, in any case. The political class has freely "participated" in the growing GDP with no checks and balances, and the excesses, brazenness of it all, coupled with the current lack of even a semblance of any counterbalance that we might be able to provide to this has finally gotten to us.

I think, despite the very very naive and sometimes even dangerous thinking thats trying to fill up this vacuum, that this is a good thing to happen. Our overall cynicism levels might actually drop. The best case outcome will be a process that starts and sustains an issue based dialogue between legislators, administrators and the citizenry. Of course, this'll need "them" to re-establish some credence and us to be less suspicious of everything political (in itself not a dirty word, its only muddied as practiced, quite like religion).

Engagement, and not hostility and antagonism, will be the right way forward and hopefully we'll get there as the current flare-ups settle.

The really really big question is - do we have the sustained enthusiasm and interest in a functioning democracy and dialogue? Or will a short term assertion of citizen power satiate our collective egos ? Many in the classes that stand to benefit from our lack of involvement will be counting on us to run out of breath and soon get caught up again in upgrading our lives as dictated by the glossies and the idiot box.

Our Cities

2011-05-20T23:07:00.000+05:30

Was discussing traffic, housing and suchlike in the context of what hope our cities have going ahead of being better places to live and work in. It should not strike the fear of God in your heart to have to go meet someone at the other end of town. Or to just dress up and get to work every single day.

Then there's stuff like this, and water. And air. And the fears we've trapped ourselves in about our kids walking/cycling/busing around the city by themselves.

All those carelessly written words and notions in essays one wrote as a kid about "Technology : boon or bane" seem to have acquired a real, dangerous edge to them. We seem to have acquired a lot of ability, and gotten most our goals wrong.

Of course capitalism and the free market are god. But why do we destroy cities by forcing schools, and public utilities, and parks, and commercial real estate, compete for the same land ? Obviously a few of these either move out, or become unsustainable or too expensive. It sounds very communist, but the need to ensure that each micro-city - and keep them small for god's sake - has space allocated for people, the things they do, their schools, parks, lakes. And that each of this does not have to compete with multinational corporations or real estate interests with deep pockets.

We need to ensure with interact with, and understand well the cycles of, the producers - of food, of sources of water, of energy. Not merely sweep these connects under massive carpets of retail and services interfaces. We'll drive lesser, eat healthier, and do more meaningful stuff in life. It'll be more about the people in them, rather than about the cities themselves, or about their modes of transport etc. Cities need to impress and dazzle lesser, and accommodate and nurture more.

Our cities are killing themselves, and dragging us down with them.

Arrogant Money

2011-04-20T00:31:00.002+05:30

A lot of the old world money is humble. It has worked hard for it. It is generous, large hearted.

A lot of the new money is arrogant, with a massive sense of entitlement. Its got it a little easier than it ever imagined, and needs to put on a display of inflated self worth. Its also more money minded and usually not big hearted. Its more suspicious of motives, others and believes in exclusivity and existing in islands.

Chennai, By Bike!

2011-03-25T11:39:00.003+05:30

Nopes, I did not go cycling all 350 kms! But have stumbled upon a wonderful way of getting around when visiting different places for meetings, family trips or just plan going seeing them.

I needed to travel to Chennai for a short meeting yesterday. The plan was to catch an overnight Volvo, find a place to shower/change, wrap up the meeting and take an afternoon bus back again. The meeting was someplace in Thoraipakkam, about 20kms or so from the centre of Chennai. The dreadful tales people recount when they speak of Chennai's infamous autokaarans were enough to make me, very obviously non-native, very very nervous. Cabs would be very expensive. And given the paucity of time, figuring out buses and shared-autos was not a viable solution.

An then, just a few hours before I left, it occurred to me that I could take a bike along! 20kms is hardly anything esp given Chennai's flatness. Yes, there was the weather to contend with - but I'd be getting there early in the morning, had access to a guest house for a few hours and was planning to shower anyhow. A little extra sweat is hardly a deterrent for a biker.

Next, what bike? My Merida would be the most familiar, but a little large - and the bus guys end up (unfairly) charging for it. I remembered Ravi's bike rental venture - and found theBTwin Hoptown at 200/- a day over weekdays. Perfect!

The BTwin Folder awaiting the Volvo

The bus dropped me off near Chennai Central - and it was actually quite pleasant in the morning! I'd been told autos would take 40-60 minutes to get to my destination depending on traffic. I got there in 50mins, despite many stops to ask for directions (btw, Google maps + GPS on Android helps a lot!) Without pushing at all since I was trying to sweat as little as possible. Saw a lot more of Chennai than I ever have, and got a good morning workout without no extra time spent. And its great to have endorphins and positive energy in your system before a meeting.

One curious thing : everyone I asked for directions - even 5-6 kms before the destination - first started with telling me "oh but thats faaar" (I do follow a little Tamil so could get this much even from the vernacular interactions) Its surprising how the notion of distances has changed in our cities, and how difficult people think cycling is.

Got in, showered, had a good meeting (or it seemed like that given my happy state) and got out of there. Fortunately, all morning had some cloud cover - but it got sunny on the ride out to Koyambedu, from where all the buses leave. I was advised to take an alternative, though slightly longer route by one of my biker friends in Chennai so encountered little traffic till I got into Guindy. Upto that point, the air itself never felt hot (unlike in the heat of the northern plains) though the sun was strong. Sunglasses helped, but I never got too uncomfortable.

Similar story with the bus guys on the way back. This time, a bunch of fellow passengers got excited about the bike as well - a couple even test rode it around there as we waited for the bus. Had a bus change owing to an issue with a brand new Isuzu and got a comfortable, but slow sleeper. Got to Silk Board at 11ish, and unfolded - with excited auto guys helping out - and rode back home.

The folding bicycle is a terrific tool. Benefits :

Its easy to put into a bus, and takes up as much space as a large suitcase, and is lighter too! Obviously the bus guys charged me nothing for it when I just said "my luggage" and handed it over :)
Its a major conversation starter! The bus guys were only to happy help load it. Everyone wanted to know more. Even the auto guys at Silk Board (on the way back), instead of being disappointed about the loss of business, atually tried helping out unfolding it! (Not that you need help - it takes just a couple of minutes and is a breeze).
Its pretty fast for city traffic - despite smaller wheels. The gear ratios are different from your regular MTB, and changes are quick and easy.

If you need to make outstation trips, this is a good way to carry your own transport along! Mumbai might be a little too large if you have to travel a lot for meetings, but for most cities, this is a great option.

Otoh, if you're travelling into Bangalore - give Ravi a buzz and get a bike delivered at your doorstep for the duration of your visit. Freedom from autowallahs, the ability to go-anywhere, and getting to know the city much better are huge payoffs. And you're getting your dose of exercise even when you travel.

As you might have noticed, am totally smitten with the idea. Both, of the folder itself, as well as the idea of carrying it around when travelling!

Hot or Not or Whatever Happened to Joy ?

2011-02-06T11:20:00.000+05:30

There was a time we caught two movies a week, sometimes. We did not always need to know from the reviews beforehand if the movie was "worth watching" - it was more about deriving pleasure and a good time out of whatever we watched. Sometimes we suspended disbelief, sometimes we needed to carry empathy as we went in, sometimes we gave in to feeling spooked, and sometimes it was intensely and deeply intellectual.

It was not about 0 or 10 - all movies were certainly not reduced to a binary choice.

"We value our time more" - often heard argument in this context. Really? You'd just catch a movie in the time you spend reading the multitude of reviews and analyses of one. And if you value your time, you'll construct it in different entertaining surprising ways - not just in the mould of one dreary totally expected and conformist superlative.

The movie reviews (and of course those darned multiplex prices) have killed it. Bigtime.

The Tour Of Nilgiris Edition 3 : Riding again

2010-11-24T23:31:00.002+05:30

3 out of 3 on an MTB :)

Am riding the now-very-huge Tour of Nilgiris this year as well, and on the same old bike thats seen 2 TFNs already. The routes a lot different, and the Tour will have a 100 riders on it! Have not trained too hard, but a recent weekend of back-to-back centuries with 250kms covered over 2 days in ok shape give a lot of hope.

The first day is a 185km one, though! Traffic free roads, but a real long day nevertheless.

Looking forward to spending more time riding in the Nilgiris themselves this year. And more, and longer sections through the wildlife parks. The 2010 edition is a more backroads Tour than ever before - and there are hardly any major highways.

As usual, hoping to meet a lot of enthu souls on the ride. The camaraderie on the mailing list has been amazing. Itching for the ride to start...

Motorola Quench XT3 Review

2010-11-18T07:34:00.001+05:30

I got a Motorola Quench XT3 recently and have reviewed it here.
Overall, pretty happy with the phone - its reduced my need to go-check-mail on the laptop considerably.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The Motorola Quench XT3 XT502 Review

2010-11-12T10:15:00.009+05:30

A couple of days ago I jumped onto the Android train and got the Motorola Quench XT3 XT502. The budget was "as close to 10k as possible" given the benchmark set by the Spice MI-300, and I really started to need email and calendar on my phone for Linger related work.

Why this over the Samsung Galaxy3, or the Spice, or others ? Honestly, what clinched it was the build quality/looks. The specs are very very close amongst these 3 - and heard a couple of thumbs downs from the twitterverse about the Samsung. The HTC Wildfire was never in because of being the priciest with the lowest resolution screen.

This will be an ongoing review written over the next few days as I get comfortable with the phone. So far, from day-1 usage:

Fast enough with no serious freeze-ups. Hanged once when I was playing with multiple apps.
"Dialer One" is way better than the default one
Speakerphone's ok, not great. Voice quality is good otherwise.
VCardIO helps read vcfs so my E65 contacts got imported ok.
Took me a few hours to get used to the ultra sensitive touch keyboard. Fewer typos already :)
Battery lasted a little under 24hrs with lots of wifi usage, some bluetooth copying, many calls + smses and a decent amount of first-day-playing-around with the phone.
I haven't been able to get Airtel Live to work on the phone yet :(
No FM on this phone.

More as I do more with the phone. Email, and calendar sync - my 2 primary needs for this - are already proving handy. A good side-effect is that I'm switching my laptop on lesser for "just checking mail" and getting sucked into the social whirlpool. This might actually end up creating more time in the day in a funny way :)

Day 2 update:

Another rounf of bluetooth transfers, some use of the camera, an hour or so of wifi usage and the usual calls + smses today - and the battery's done much better. No GPRS yet, so still awaiting Airtel "help" on that.

Have gotten much better with the typing. The shortcuts to to toggle WiFi, Bluetooth, brightness etc are v useful. The screen does smudge, but not too bad looking despite that.

More than once person has asked "Is that a Droid?" :)

Days 3-6 :

Carried the Quench on a bike ride and used the preloaded Tracker app to get the distance right (forgot to hit save, and it was lost with the app :() The phone battery was at over 50% that evening, including the morning's 6+ hours ride - with the GPS on for 2.5 hrs or so, lots of email/some tweets over GPRS which was switched on intermittently, and some over wifi at home.

The next days ride was longer. No GPS but GPRS was on, and used for over 13 hours. I had a minor fall but luckily no impact on the phone. The battery was at over 50% again at the end of the ride. The GPRS-Wifi switchover works very very nicely.

Other observations:

Have gotten more used to the keyboard(s) - yes - you have 3 options to choose from! Can even type with one hand.
Still looking for a good GCalendar app to sync my personal as well as domains calendars in one place.
The camera is average (daylight conditions only) and the video grab below average.
Music audio is ok thru the speakers but nothing great - have not tried it with headphones.
The smudges have not gotten better, or worse. Now keep a soft cloth to wipe it once in a while.
Call quality has been good across usage scenarios - including from inside noisy BMTC buses.
My SMS costs are going to go through the roof with this phone :)
And finally - Android can cure backaches! :) My time on the laptop has reduced considerably, lessening my upper back stiffness right away.

Almost-a-month-Update

Its been nearly a month, and there's the bigger cousing of the XT3 - the Zeppelin XT5 - available for not much more money. Its essentially got a better camera (the XT3's is strictly great-light-conditions only) and comes with a 2G memory card.

The Quench has been in my pocket through buses, the TFN, light rain, long drives, and taken it all quite alright.

Bug : Some Android phones apparently have this issue where the phone fails to acquire an EDGE/GPRS connection - you switch it off/on and it works and continues to work. Its not too frequent but a pain nevertheless.

Am very impressed with the battery. Charged it just twice on the 8 day TFN! And this with some calls, mails, SMSes though with overall much lesser than normal usage. And I switched it off one night. Even with my typical usage - a fair bit of email, calendar and todo syncing, 12-15 calls and a few SMSes through the day, I see the battery last nearly 2 days.

The phone does not lag at all anymore - as long as I make good use of the task killer. Internet is pretty fast with EDGE.

Just installed Swype on the phone today - its totally mindblowing!

Oh, and rooted the phone using Z4Root. Was looking at a custom ROM install - but got cold feet when I read about Cyanogenmod draining battery on this platform. Will wait a while before I try that.

FxCamera works better than the original camera. Its still not a substitute for a real camera when you need one. And yes, installed Hangman - my first game ever on any phone :)

Overall, quite happy so far with the phone - its doing its primary intended jobs really well.

CWG ke side effects

2010-09-25T10:36:00.000+05:30

Of course you know about the massive scale of corruption thats supposed to have happened during the buildup to the CWG. Of course you've been drowned in the bad news and images that the 24x7 media bombarded you with unrelentingly as one shocking expose after was presented to us.

The CWG surely has lots of smoke. There are likely to be massive raging blazes of horrendous management, nepotism, corruption, and most glaringly, a lack of any pride associated with trying to organize it well. The IPL had shady behind-the-scenes going-ons as well, but the show was pulled off really really well.

But in the runup to the event, the media (as usual, one might add) went nuts. Whatever happened to balance ?

There were nicely done venues as well.

Delhi's infrastructure overall did improve.

The new terminal was completed ahead of time.

There were surely other positive stories as well. Sure, the bridge (under construction) that collapsed was a horrific sight. But thats hardly licence to make it a one sided, cynical story and provide fodder to the whole world to go-right-ahead-and-bash-us.

Events have failed elsewhere (and this one hasn't really, not yet). Freeways have aged and collapsed. Scams have killed economies for various durations. Yet one does not see the kind of we're-a-laughing-stock approach to news that the media, and yes, also the middle class - represented through the twitterati - have descended into. The over-the-top (or if you will, under-the-bottom) resigned-ness and self deprecation is pathetic, and mostly just a facade to (a) do nothing towards solving anything oneself and (b) distancing oneself from any possible failure and any sense of responsibility at all. The media and this section of the population have become echo chambers for each other. The 'can-do-will-do' reaction to problems is so missing that its almost criminal on their part to be making a noise about this.

In all the noise, I heard just one lady from Chandigarh wonder why a Sukhna-lake-revival type of shramdaan was not something the Delhi folks cribbing about this were thinking of.

Then there were other aspects of reporting that went missing.

The north's been reeling under some of the worst floods and rain the area's seen for decades. In many countries, this would have been cause enough for a national emergency and all other activities would have been postponed till the crises was over. We're either resilient/apathetic depending on how you want to look at it.

The labourers who worked on the CWG village, the guys who were called in to clean it - they inhabit completely different worlds and the disconnect between "water in the basement" and their likely-flooded homes and villages right now could not have been starker. No story there ?

Sure the OC and a bunch of jokers are responsible for the mess. Yet, a lot many contractors from both amongst Indian private players, and abroad, were responsible for construction, material etc. Not even questions about these were interesting ?

These are just things I could think of sitting a couple of thousand kilometres away. I'm sure, on the ground, many more threads would've been worth pursuing. Definitely more interesting/insightful than shots of Mike Fennel landing and getting out of the airport.

What about a report on what other events India's done in the past - successfully and those with hiccups ? What about a comparo of cities that have/could have pulled off the CWG ?

It seems that the media's gone really lazy, and just feeds off, and into the heightened state of cynical limbo the middle class exists in. There's very little genuine effort, or imagination.

And definitely no notion of balanced reporting. Make-the-most-noise is the only approach to television journalism.

To Own A Car

2010-09-20T17:12:00.000+05:30

I've always loved driving (at least outside town, certainly not inside it). And stretched myself to pick the OHC in 2001 on a tiny salary.

9 years and 73k kms later, the car still serves me well. But purely from a financial pov, does it make sense to own a car, esp when you start with a new one ? The alternatives of using public transport/autos/taxis etc needs a little more planning-ahead, but thats not too bad a thing, and there's tons of options now.

Lets see - I paid 8.2L for the car in 2001. Today, I might get 1.8 at most. Thats an erosion of 6.4L - almost Rs.8.80 - per km! Of course fuel, on an average, at 11-12kmpl, has been at Rs.4.60. Insurance, maintenance, tyres, minor repairs etc would be another 2/- per km or so. That adds up to a cool Rs.15.40 per km!

In town : bus fares are 85/- for a Volvo day pass, autos are 8.50/- per km, even Meru cabs etc are 15/- Outstation Indicas cost 6.50 and even Innovas are under 12/-

Of course, it'll be different for diesels, and for higher usage. But most don't even keep a car for 9 years, and a Honda's wayy more reliable, and I've not included voluntary upgrade and other costs.

Financially, taking a cab makes a lot more sense anyday! In fact, you can pretty much do it off the capital needed upfront alone! Of course, the "fun-to-drive" sinks dramatically, and a little bit of the convenience - or at least the notion of it - reduces. But throw in a few go-karting trips, and you're still way better off :)

LingerLeisure is live

2010-09-19T08:02:00.003+05:30

What started as a one-off experiment last year is a bigger now.

Linger Leisure is live, with 2 locations, and the hope of many more to come. And Vijay is part of the Linger team now.

Its not just about adding places and rooms and accommodation, but experiences - as local and authentic as we find them. Its about exploring these ourselves. Its about learning, being surprised, the unfamiliar and unknown - these are what make travelling worth it.

We're looking out for more pretty places, different experiences, and even folks who're keen to do this sort of a thing.

Total Mall's Drop (Bus) Service

2010-09-19T07:55:00.002+05:30

Pretty good move! Total Mall on Sarjapura Road has started a bus service to drop people who shop there to their doorstep. The map attached shows the apartment complexes the service is available for. No more need to take your car, and no autowallah headaches. All they need to add is a pickup service at a fee thats redeemable at the Mall.

Happiness

2010-08-16T08:50:00.000+05:30

What is Happiness ?

That you're loved and treasured ?

Superiority ? Status, as measured ?

Security, comfort ? Riches, glory, or fame ?

A respected, recognizable name ?

The joy of giving something your all ?

Being able to get up after you fall ?

Freedom, or even an irresponsible path !?

The courage, means and will to follow your heart ?

That you're as curious as you ever were ?

Contentment ? Or a forever hunger ?

Is it in you, or around ?

Is it lost, or is it found ?

Is it merely a lack of reasons to be not ?

Only in its absence sought ?

Is it a state ? Or in one, a pause ?

Just an effect, or as much a cause ?

Does it makes all these feel true -

The things that add up to ?

Encounters

2010-08-11T16:20:00.001+05:30

The few times I've come across death.

Or the idea of it.

Its been about numbness.

Futility.

Randomness.

And sometimes a feeling of being totally helpless.

All the control, cause and effect, effort-reward,

Seems fake. False.

Everything is not as it seems.

Priorities get seriously relooked at.

The celebrated seems puerile.

Goals, dreams, fears all in the realm of the inane.

Unreasonable.

Life becomes about moments.

Lived, loved, smiled.

Lost, fought, regretted.

But each important.

What am I chasing ? And why ?

The journey is not important. It is all.

For it can end. Cruelly. Randomly.

Econsciousness : Updates from Around Here

2010-08-11T16:17:00.000+05:30

The grocery store next door - SMART - has started charging folks extra for plastic bags. Just a buck each, but you do see some folks getting their own bags or refusing bags for just a couple of things they could carry home.

Also, started keeping aside plastic packaging (milk, bread, cereal, and pretty much everything else!), tetrapaks, etc in a separate container for pick-up by our cleaning crew who said they can make some extra change by selling it at the local kabaadi-wala. A lot of the organic waste already goes to the composting bin. The fill rate for the dustbin has fallen dramatically again!

A couple of more residents in our apartment complex have picked up cycling.

And a lot many are interested in the bottle-in-the-flushtank idea.

The Conscience of Things We Do(n't)

2010-08-11T16:15:00.000+05:30

We, collectively, have a very funny conscience. We've trained it to keep it clean with the much practiced technique of not-digging-deep.

So trash put "neatly" in trash bags and picked up by staff on the premises is "well taken care of"

And an emission check actually makes us believe our vehicles are environment friendly

Water from the deep (borewells) is used just like water from easily renewable sources

And because they said its bio-degradable plastic, we can use as much of it as possible

The "re-cycle" mark on so many products makes it perfectly legitimate to chuck things in dustbins

And the colour green or the label "herbal" actually passes for the real deal

Notions of convenience, comfort, even extreme ideas about safety trump responsibility all the time, and the latter is anyhow outsourced - to service providers, manufacturers, the government. In short, "them".

So we can continue with our lives as we have gotten used to. And do as little as we can.

Experiment. Help Me Choose A Phone

2010-06-17T20:05:00.002+05:30

I usually think of the next phone when the current one breaks, is lost, stops working, etc. But recent Android devices have caught my attention and I have been thinking. Also want to run an experiment on how the community might be able to help me decide.

Need: Replacement for my old, but perfectly alright E65

Want: Android

Budget: As low as possible, max around the 15k mark

Used/new - either's fine.

Need upgradability (why buy an Android otherwise)

Not likely to be a very heavy web user, camera doesn't matter much. Don't hear music much either.

Would like to use apps. Not that I've managed to use any so far despite a few downloads.

So. Do I need an upgrade at all ? Wait ? Buy now ? What ? Will I ever pay for pricey 3G plans ?

Have taken a peek at the Samsung Spica, HTC Tattoo, and Sony Xperia X10 Mini.

Comments, suggestions, advice, etc, please.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Riding the TFN Again

2010-06-16T09:36:00.001+05:30

I had done the TFN08 and TFN09, and the TFNTen has been announced.

I was wondering if I should, and if I financially could, but once the recce team got back with their pictures and description of the route, the lure of the big ride got too much to resist, and I signed up.

Its a tougher, longer ride this year, with the first day itself being around 170km long. I think day 3 will be the most challenging - since there's a lot to do before the Gudalur-Ooty stretch starts, and then some more en-route to Kotagiri. Gotta start training seriously!

But for this, my cycling this year was down to a few in-city rides for meeting people etc. So hopefully, the TFN will get me pedalling again.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The government, the government

2010-06-12T19:31:00.001+05:30

Everything is wrong because the government does nothing.

Thats our reaction to, and way and extent of dealing with issues that we come face to face with, and having done this, continuing whatever it is we were doing earlier.

The environment is not the government's responsibility. Its ours. We wither encourage, or let the government do certain things and so they happen. We clamour for better roads because we collectively have faster, better, more driving as a goal we've acquired from our trips to the western world, and want to see that here.

The GoI has implemented a whole lot of laws for controlling pollution, protecting forests, etc.

We - citizens - homeowners, industrial stakeholders, consumers, car drivers, etc - try our damndest to maintain status quo and not disturb things unless it has a direct positive material impact on our lives.

The BMTC has improved bus services manifold, both in terms of quantity and quality. Yet we continue forwarding one excuse or the other to avoid giving up on our perception of "convenience" in our own cars. Inertia is dearer to us than the condition of the species and the planet going forward.

We ape bad retail habits we have seen in the west merely because they seemed cool there, and we are too shy/lazy to stand out refusing plastic to put each individual vegetable purchase into before getting it weighed at our malls. Blame the government for that too ?

Sure these are small steps, but there's little hope of evolving the right collective goals, pushing the government towards real positive change, etc, from a population thats by and large content living off unsustainable behaviour for short term gains, and considering finger pointing as adequate contributiuon.

Somewhere, I fear the future will treat us with irritated scorn and incredulous disbelief for our shortsightedness.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Fears

2010-06-02T12:15:00.002+05:30

They play on our fears

Only because we have them

And choose let them rule us

We pray, pay and prepare

We cross the line, oftentimes

The "truths" continue to fool us

The spirit dies

Our existence is just that

Freedom is when fear's no more

The lips move, conforming

Speak of goodness and shoulds

What cost, to make us so secure ?

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Legacy

2010-05-29T16:11:00.001+05:30

The kids need a better world.

Better broadband ?

Better digital interfaces ?

More connected online communities ?

Cooler handhelds ?

Quicker cars ?

Or cleaner air ?

Water ? (Man, this one is getting close.)

Livable cities ?

What do we leave behind ?

Plastic hills ?

Fenced, protected, expensive fresh water sources ?

Bubbles of glass inside which breathing is possible ?

Anger, despair, anxiety as the collective consciousness ?

Will they mock us ?

Curse ?

Deride our shortlived choices ?

Our escapist mechanisms to cope with threats ?

The generations that did not stand and fight and solve.

But escaped into the nether.

Created money, and used it to hide the sins.

Our lifespans are a curse, I read somewhere.

Looks like the curse is on our kids. And we're responsible.

I'm just wondering if there's a breaking point someplace and if we're all Neros.

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Rant

2010-05-29T12:24:00.001+05:30

Dear GIMC,

Know what, I'm starting to get pissed with all the cynicism.

Let's show some spirit/character here, and stop using the shield of resignedness and hopelessness to avoid action/responsibility/effort, esp collective responsibility.

Its your job. Not your job "too", but your job. "They"/"the government"/"politicians" are not responsible for everything. You leave a vacuum, some or the other vested interest will smartly fill it up. So stop sitting on your rearsides, and stop leaving these vacuums.

Aaaaaaarghh.

Rgds,

Sameer (erstwhile member)

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Honesty

2010-05-27T18:52:00.001+05:30

Like that cigarette packs carry warnings, and scary pictures.

Shouldn't car ads show the 2.3kgs of CO2 ?

Shouldn't "convenient" sachets and packaging show the mountains of plastic piled up everywhere ?

Shouldn't the super-floor-cleaners, and soaps, and detergents, carry "screwing-your-groundwater" signs ?

Shouldn't food mention the pesticides used ?

Its all about convenient truths or inconvenient lies. Some, we just ignore.

Of course I do not support smoking. I'm just saying we need to apportion our horror and disgust to other equally worrying problems as well. Irrespective of how benign advertising and media messages makes them seem (esp car ads!)

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My form, and my function

2010-05-22T15:19:00.001+05:30

The Mangalore tragedy today saddened, and also provided a moment of reflection - what if I were to go today. It can happen randomly, after all.

Biologically, at 36, am over the hill. My bit towards the continuation of the species is done. I have participated in a fair bit of economic activity, ensured at least a decent future for the family and kids, and made at least a little bit of a positive impact here and there on society.

What remains ? What will be lost if a flight I take crashes and I join some random statistic ?

Probably my creativity. Probably boundaries unexplored. But these are unknowns, unburdensome things. So perhaps the best way to live now is freely. Each day. Each decision. As it comes. No isms, no preconceived notions. No "challenges" but mere explorations - whatever and whenever possible.

So that when it happens, there is hardly any regret, and only joy and thankfulness for whatever was possible.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Road Widening and Homeowner Pains

2010-05-18T11:23:00.001+05:30

The BBMP has marked 216 roads for widening.

As someone has tweeted recently, widening roads for increasing traffic is akin to loosening one's belt as a solution for obesity.

How long will this help ? Wider roads - smoother traffic for a while - encourages more to drive - back to square one! A year's benefit, at most ? The sprawl problems in city after city have proven beyond doubt that merely wider roads are no solution for traffic issues. To make people lose their homes, land, etc permanently for a short term gain is extremely duh. Especially when done by an authority which has not shown that its solutions have actually improved traffic sustainably in any part of town. the Silk Board, Bannerghata Circle, Nimhans stretch - all are as bad as ever. Traffic has a way of catching up real quick. Without demonstrating a more wholesome plan for a long term traffic management solution, its downright horrible to destroy homes etc.

There's another point to the whole story. Even if widening work does happen, it should not be done for private transport. The extra space needs to be marked for public transport, pedestrians and cyclists. There are many stretches - Haralur Road where we live being one such - where walking is a nightmare, and there is a proposal to make it wider so vehicles can zip even faster. Its a recipe for more pedestrian fatalities in the imminent future.

My home is not impacted by this TDR mess, but I fully intend to lend my voice and support to those who're protesting this. BBMP, grow up and think of solutions. You cannot fight cancer using band aids, and certainly not band aids that help the growth of that cancer itself!

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R-oh-I

2010-05-18T08:17:00.001+05:30

There's an ongoing debate about the need for recharge wells that we're trying to sink in our apartment complex. During this, someone threw in, "I would like to know what the ROI on this is."

This is a question thats brought into many debates - including some at my earlier jobs - as a red herring. Its often done without homework, or imagination, or creative, proactive thought.

For instance, to continue with the case for water itself :

How valuable is water ? 10/- a litre ? How much would you be willing to pay if there weren't any ? Thats starting to happen to Bangalore! How do you calculate a number for this ? Intuitively, and with some homework about Bangalore's water situation, the answer is reasonably clear - we all need to turn producers, not just consumers of this dwindling resource, and recharge from stormwater drains is a major strategy thats part of this. It also counters a lot of the runoff losses caused by the concretization of surfaces, and its proven to be faster than shallow, surface level water recharging as is done through lakes etc.

There's also the question of priorities. Whats the ROI on your car ? The fuel it uses ? The LED TV you've bought ? Sure, the answer is likely that its what I choose for myself and the satisfaction and happiness it provides me. But very similar to the same sentiment is the set of choices we make collectively, and the satisfaction those will provide to us collectively. There's also the responsibility that we have collectively that we should not, and increasingly, cannot shirk just because there's a Government.

Think a little, and you'll see that the ROI question is moot.

I'd opined earlier why I thought apartment living might be unsustainable in the medium term, and now I add one more reason to it - the hardening of the consumer attitudes of our society as a whole. It's unfair to blame individuals for it, for we've moved in this direction as a whole. Our sense of entitlement, and resistance to having to do things ourselves has trounced all other attributes. We live together as a community, locality, city, state, but see ourselves more or less independently, only banding together reactively for certain causes. Go to store-pick from shelf-checkout is our sum total of actions towards living, society and the world around us. Anything else must forst prove its ROI in hard numbers.

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What Phylum Are You ?

2010-05-14T10:56:00.002+05:30

Back in college (school, to those of you who subscribe to this strange usage from across someone else's pond) we had a euphemism for casteist leanings and biases - phylumbaazi - basically the urge/desire/need to classify, bucket, put in groups everyone you meet.

There's been some controversy over caste questions in the ongoing census (though in my personal experience, was not asked any such questions!).

Made me think about these issues, and their reduced relevance to at least a slice of our society. Our son had a similar question before him when some kids - barely 8 years old - were rather innocently figuring out their ethnicities. Shubha's a Palghat Iyer who grew up in Jharkhand. I'm apparently from Rajasthan, with our ancestoral village in the UP heartland, and grew up in Jamshedpur as well. For the last decade and a half Bangalore is home, and between the two of us we speak a little bit of Kannada, like the people, coffee and this is firmly home. We've setup a home in Coorg and might just decide to retire there someday! Like I say in jest - we have no roots and many branches. What ethnicity do the kids claim ?

I guess for the (growing) bit of the population which is in the same boat as ours, these identities and questions already have little significance. It can only be good for India. But sometimes, the others expectation of a clear response to the "where are you from" leave one a little bothered. Most of all, the government!

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Why Do I Do What I Do ?

2010-04-30T13:40:00.001+05:30

[ Warning/Disclaimer: This post is an exercise in self-analysis/narcissism, depending on how you look at it. It if helps clear someone's thought, great.]

I'm dabbling in multiple interests right now.

Linger kicked off the experimentation with hospitality - and there might be more happening soon. I'm enjoying the experience - there's a lot of product management, online marketing, brand building involved and the smiles on people's faces when they experience a good thing is a huge reward.

The consulting on Product Strategy and Execution continues at its own pace, with a lot of interesting conversations, numerous interesting problems to solve. There's been some good outcomes already, and the learning is very fulfilling.

Then there's the non-career interests that keep life's spark going. There's already a serious enough effort that goes into managing one's finances and running the household amidst all this.

Most of the above are either non-remunerative, or not paying too much right now :) And it goes against the common wisdom of being focused, doing one thing with no distractions etc. Is it the right thing to do ? There are regular jobs in great Product companies and teams that are available, and lucrative. So why this ? Its not just a rhetorical question - its also what I ask myself, if just to keep the head clear each time a major offer comes along that I have to say no to!

I've kind of hypothesized that I am happier, more productive, useful and agreeable when I do multiple things. Reflecting upon my past life - its also clear I've always been that way! Its also one reason I loved the whole startup experience though it did not bring monetary rewards of any sort. As an aside, its also become very clear to me that the $$ dream is not something I can ever chase for its own sake.

The current mode of living/working (at least as long as I can sustain it) gives me a lot of freedom to push my own boundaries. I had zilch experience in hospitality, for instance - but that sort of starting point has so far worked in my favour even in the tech jobs I have done. It helps create and interact with an amazing network of people from whom I learn, understand everyday. My skills have gotten a strong real world flavour added on to them. And I am now beginning to question a few beliefs about certain things I has assumed I would never (be able) to do.

Sure, at some point the focus on one of the multiple activities might sharpen, and the time devoted it it might increase. But as of now, I'm enjoying it all, having fun being able to do it all, and will let one pick me, rather than the other way around.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

You got 20 years more. To live, or learn.

2010-04-28T07:56:00.002+05:30

http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2008/mar/01/scienceofclimatechange.climatechange

Sounds like paranoid scare-mongering ? His last round of 'predictions' would have too. But its not that tough to imagine, given the collective state of denial our species has adopted! Be it water, or energy, we refuse to challenge and relook at "life as we know it" and every little battle between convenience and effort towards making a change is lost to the former.

While its probably true that the tipping point might have been reached a while ago, but hey, we gotta try something. At the least, it'll help us adapt more to living a different life - where a lot we take for granted will not be available - easy water, boundless fuel, flights over Europe. We are already paying for the mass produced excessive lifestyle invented and marketed by the last couple of generations, and our kids and theirs will pay the most for it.

Enjoy it while you can, to whatever extent you can. Or learn to grow some food, water, and live with erratic weather real quick.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Aviation Crutches, and Lessons From The Ash

2010-04-23T12:36:00.002+05:30

The unpronounceable (by most) place where the unexpected volcanic eruption spews unwelcome volcanic ash is all over the news.

It scared the airlines who didn't want to lose planes, people.

It left people "stranded" all across the world, since so many could not take a flight into/out of Europe.

It lay bare the fragility of businesses that are perpetually on the edge, operationally. Not healthy!

It forced people to take boats, trains, buses, connections. Meet other people.

It generated bookfulls of stories and experiences. So many people lived a little more.

It forced people to think local in terms of food, produce.

It forced a little humility into mankinds sense of control, conceit.

I think we need a 5 day outage every year!

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The Mantri Mall : Have We Gone Nuts ?

2010-04-09T17:32:00.002+05:30

http://www.mid-day.com/news/2010/apr/050410-traffic-Sampige-junction-BMTC-bus-stop.htm

This is incredible. First they plan, permit and actually build a gigantic Mall in the worst possible location. And then immediately throw tantrums with a sense of entitlement! They want space for a 1000 more cars, and sorry bus folks, you're not welcome here.

(click on the above pic for the Bangalore Mirror article)

The sense of priorities is so clear, and so screwed up.

We don't need parks.

Or bus stops.

We need malls.

And more parking for private cars.

So we can all drive more and more and more and more of us can do it.

So we choke the damn air with carbon.

And to hell with buses, pedestrians, cycles,

And to hell with perspective.

We need more selling, and more buying.

Damn, I might start sounding like a left-leaning bozo. But the truth is, this sense of entitlement on top of extreme short-sightedness, chasing the wrong set of goals and the blind belief in the glitz people have seen someplace without understanding the implications is beginning to get to me.

I do not expect better of Mantri and other developers, cause they'd rather do this, but all ye others who are responsible for the city, and profess love for it, whither ?

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Its probably just age

2010-04-07T10:49:00.001+05:30

But I do not enjoy 20-20 cricket at all. A 50 over innings leaves some scope for swings of fortunes, building up an innings, strategizing, and recovering from a few bad overs. IPL has totally failed to keep me hooked, despite the odd match. Test cricket these days is very interesting too - not that fewer teams are playing defensively.

Similarly, the whole iPad (and earlier, iPhone) wave has not caught my fancy at all. I mean - whatever. Its just a device, world, and get on woth your lives please. Nokia still makes better phones (though God knows why they're trying to play everyone else's games). And cool lasts only so long. Here we are, overburdened with info on our existing devices already. Do we really want more pain without figuring out better, easier ways to use/consume/reject this info overload at the right levels without totally losing our lives inside the maze.

Probably just getting old, huh ?

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Water : Its already happening!

2010-04-04T17:14:00.001+05:30

Just go through these:

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/61652/building-activity-sucks-city-dry.html

http://www.greatindiansale.org/2010/04/so-whose-water-problem-is-it-anyway.html

Its not an in-the-future crisis anymore. We've not only been shortsighted, we're being blind now. The neon, glitz and civic cynicism have pushed us into more or less a denial mode where we rarely put this on our individual priorities, following which collective effort is lacking as well, and are ever-ready to pounce upon any argument that wonders if this is just a bogie being raised by doomsday scenario advocates.

I, for one, am worried. Very. Both about the crisis, and about our continued irresponsible, consumerist attitude towards something thats not just a need and right, but our responsibility as well.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The coming water disaster

2010-03-27T09:37:00.003+05:30

Water and a City : Saw this film yesterday. Its full of facts and insights of this everyday need that make you sit up and think hard.

Update: Water And A City's blog is here

Scary how we behave like mere consumers with a sense of entitlement towards "Cauvery Water" - like its unlimited, and meant purely for our own consumption. The notion of responsibility, sharing and controlled usage does not enter our heads. We've been gifted with numerous lakes, which we've killed. We've managed to lose a complete river with our greed and short sightedness. And yet we do not learn. Its a problem that needs a demand side fix as much as it needs a supply side one.

The Catskill Mountains near New York are the primary catchment area for its water supply. New York has consciously taken to acquiring large tracts of land up there for natural preservation of the region, and in turn its water needs! Recently, they've demonstrated that even financially, the long terms benefits of this move have outweighed the costs they would have paid for the water related issues they would've faced without this. Can we do this in Coorg and Wayanad before we clamour for a larger share of the Cauvery ? Can we first ensure the health of what we've been gifted with, and demonstrate that we actually deserve these ?

If you see the movie, it explains in great detail how those who use water the most pay the least for it. Those without access to BWSSB water end up paying nearly 300 per kilolitre! Even tanker water is at 50/- pe kl and BWSSB supply starts at 6/-, ridiculously lower than the 35/- per kl that it costs to pump it up from 100 kms away, with almost a 500m ascent up to Bangalore! Unless we pay more for it, and more equitably, there's little likelihood of us learning to conserve it, recycle it, and make the best use of rainwater etc.

Groundwater, which Bangalore uses at a ferocious rate to meet more than half its demand, is under even more strain. Its a 'historic' resource, since the deeper you go, the 'older' the water thats percolated in. Its critical that we not only appreciate these differences, but pay much much more for more historical water, and make as hard an attempt as we can to replenish it as we draw water from the shallower aquifers themselves.

We may soon get real broadband at affordable rates. We're already benefiting from the telecom revolution. But basic stuff like water - thats in our own hands. Its a hard hitting movie - try getting a copy and watching it. Really scary.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Linger is Live

2010-03-17T08:23:00.001+05:30

Have been at Linger most of the last couple of weeks, getting loose ends tied up, the kitchen setup and training the staff there. Its ready, and the last set of guests who helped test the place enjoyed their stay there immensely.

Linger is now ready and the requests are already happening :)

Here's some pics from the last weekend, when a couple of avid birdwatchers/photographers spent time there :

Prem's Bird Shots

From Tharangini's Camera

Sridhar's

And my, less accomplished snaps.

You should come to Linger to take time off, do things you've not done for a long time, and slow down the rush that life's become. The library, the walks, the bikes, the board games, or just putting up your legs and sipping endless chai should all help you do that.....

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Train timings at Carmelaram Railway Station

2010-03-03T07:34:00.001+05:30

Posting a mail I received - this can become a major commute option for people living around Sarjapura Road.

Train timings at carmelaram railway station:

Trains going towards salem :

train no 2677 intercity exp 6 46 am

6232 mysore mayiladuthurai exp 19 42 hrs

6732 mysore tuticorin exp 21 59 hours

6527 Yeshwantpur cannanore exp 20 44 hrs (wed and sat)

572 bangalore salem passenger 7 54 hrs

yeshwantpur salem pasnger 17 00 hrs

bangalore dharmapuri 19 13 hrs

Trains going towards bangalore city, yeshwanthpur,mysore,

train no 2677 intercity 18 47 hrs

mayiladuthurai - mysore exp 04 30 hrs

Tuticorin/ mysore exp 0515 hrs

cannore yeshwanthpur 05 46 hrs ( mon wed sat)

Dharmapuri bangalore 07 09 hrs

salem yeshwanthpur exp 09 05 hrs

salem bangalore exp 17 11 hrs

it is better to call the railway station for the exact timings for the day the station num is 28441615

However the express trains are stopping on trial basis only, if the passenger usage is not as per expected levels they would discontinue these stops, request all to use this service and make this service a regular one.

If you live in the vicinity, do explore this. Its gotta be faster than anything else!

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Final steps towards the coming true of a dream

2010-02-27T00:19:00.001+05:30

Many moons ago - in fact monsoons ago - we started pursuing a dream - of owing a little place in Coorg that we could both call home, and plan a foray into hospitality using. Over time, Shubha and I have learned about Coorg, its people, the weather, coffee, construction using laterite, Mangalore tiles, and a lot more about wood than we ever knew. Of course, its a baby step, but the house is ready, and with a week or so more of effort, Linger will be reality.

Its a green, pretty place and we're trying our best to not 'landscape' it cause we can hardly hope to achieve what nature's managed. Yet there's the odd bit of work left, and books to be bought, and cycles to be added, trails identified, and food tasted :)

Linger welcomes you starting March 1st, 2010, to come, relax, do nothing and, well, linger!

http://linger-at-coorg.in for more

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

BMTC services on from Koramangala to Electronic City

2010-02-15T18:49:00.003+05:30

Update: created the schedules for 341H and 341Q

Got this via Forward150:

Good Morning! Another feather added to the Forward150 cap.

Our active members again successfully negotiated with BMTC CTMO for the following feeder services. These services are exclusively run upon request from Forward150.

341 H - St John's Hospital to Electronics City via Haralur Road & return
341 Q - St John's Hospital to Electronics City via Hosa Road (Jail Road) & return
I request you to forward this information to all the residents in your locality and spread awareness to make use of these services.
Let us be proud to use public bus services and reduce pollution.
Our active members again successfully negotiated with BMTC CTMO for the following feeder services. These services are exclusively run upon request from Forward150.

341 H - St John's Hospital to Electronics City via Haralur Road & return

341 Q - St John's Hospital to Electronics City via Hosa Road (Jail Road) & return

I request you to forward this information to all the residents in your locality and spread awareness to make use of these services.
Let us be proud to use public bus services and reduce pollution.

This is awesome - the entire set of people here can now get buses to most places in the City - via St. Johns - even without going to Sarjapura Road. The PDF schedules were attached and there's a bus every 20-40 mins on each route - and together (through slightly different routes thats every 20 mins for sure!).

Thanks BMTC, and thanks Forward 150.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Bus-ing helps! Proof is good :)

2010-02-08T17:40:00.001+05:30

http://bangalorebuzz.blogspot.com/2010/02/pollution-levels-dropped-on-bus-day.html

And thats just a few folks who tried the bus on the day. If each one of us makes a bit of an effort to 'get used' to busing/cycling/walking just a little more, think of the awesome positive impact that can have on our city, our air, our health, our lives!

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Rubbish!

2010-02-07T18:44:00.001+05:30

This is very very critical information - please do watch the full video.

We often worry about plastics, and sometimes about garbage strewn visibly. But the whole picture is so scary. And even scarier is our lack of action on this, and the attitude of "oh but I've paid my taxes" and "out of sight, out of mind" that seems to define our approach.

Shall we set a few personal goals ? And maybe derive a few apartment/community level ones from the same ?

Start with the most important of them all - segregate. Yeah for starters "it'll all get mixed later" is true, but keep doing it anyway.
Lets send out as little organic waste in the bins as we can. Compost at home ?
Reduce the "throw the trash out" frequency to a third of what it is ? Given that 60-70% is organic, this should be doable!
Get into the recycling food chain. I'm gonna try and find out resources on this and update, for Bangalore.
As communities, explore biogas options ? What are those usable for ?

I do think larger and larger hordes of us having become "consumers" is a self-destruct mode as far the planet and species is concerned. Personally, we'll try and bring some changes to our lives, at the least. The composting and lowered trash-disposal happen to a certain extent already, but probably not as aggressively as should be given our responsibility as citizens of our city and planet.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

"Alternative for waterproofing?"

2010-02-05T13:35:00.001+05:30

I was asked that question by @flipkartdotcom in response to the feedback I gave them once I got my first set of books ordered there delivered - in really good shape and within the promised time, I must add.

Question : how do we solve this plastic-derived-convenience issue ? Undeniably, the books might suffer a bit if there were no plastic wrapping (tho, of course, one wrapper for both might have used at least a little lesser). Its a question of probabilities, but the cost we, as a society, are willing to pay in our quest to be 100% on service, on convenience, etc, is not really being counted economically. Obviously, I do not expect Flipkart, a fledgling startup, to start charging consumers an additional fee for plastic wrapping - they've got to stay competitive - but somewhere, our 'needs' consumers themselves need to be redefined, and policymakers need to ensure some of these:

The usage of plastics in packing, shipping etc, must come at a cost thats reflective of its entire lifecycle, and the indirect costs in terms of landfills, health issues, loss of agricultural land, etc, so that

alternatives are explored
the need is pondered upon real hard on a case by case basis. A Bangalore delivery, in winter, by courier, wrapped in a very sturdy and "minor splash resistant" cardboard box, when the forecast indicates no rain - will probably not qualify if the cost barrier is not kept artificially low like it currently is.

The industry that introduces plastic, or any other material into the consumption cycle, MUST be made responsible to ensure they provide a collection mechanism for suchlike, as well. All tetrapack manufacturers, for instance, MUST be made to buy back a certain percentage of aluminum that is recycled from older packaging.

The sad truth is that our dependence on plastics has gone up phenomenally - so much so that we cannot even see alternatives, or alternative paths, for many of our day to day needs. Its like a smoker who's lungs are beginning to give up, yet cannot give up on the habit. As a species, we're so screwed if we keep going down this path.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

What I need on Facebook

2010-02-05T09:33:00.001+05:30

Facebook is up to 400 million users. Thats almost 6.7% of the world population! Awesome.

What does it mean to me ?

On the plus side, I've "reconnected" with a whole lot of folks from my past life. school, college, hometown - they're all in there. I've also connected with a lot many new connections that I forge through cycling, or other activity I participate in these days.

Amongst these, I get to know on an ongoing basis who's working in what part of the world, and who's had kids, and partied last night, and even the political, social views of many of these folks. Sometimes, I feel like an inadvertent voyeur!

Too broad a social landscape ? Too much info ? Some of these are context specific contacts, and while I do share some interests with them, I do not need to know every little detail in their lives, their friendships, their views on everything! In fact, with many there's little beyond the "Add as friend", and apart from having access to their inboxes, or walls, etc, there's little else by way of friendship or any sort of relationship. The context's too weak, and too distant, and its a farce, really.

I certainly am interested in a smaller, tighter circle of friends, and have been actively thinking I need to keep my 'active social circle' much smaller, and more meaningful. Sure, I do interact with the larger set of people on specific interests, and it would be great to tap into their collective knowledge and wisdom on a need-basis - but without the full duplex intrusiveness of every little update from each others lives, social circles, etc. I might be old fashioned, but Facebook is not how my social life - at least the meaningful part of it - really operates. This was NOT that much of a problem when the number of connections was smaller, but the amount of fluff has grown manifold since. And turning a request down has since become some sort of a social faux pas.

There's opportunity for a different layer atop Facebook - which is reducing to some sort of a storage and archival medium for one's entire social graph - personal, hobby-derived, official, formal, etc as well as the activity on it - that helps consume the data from this store in a more meaningful, natural way. Either Facebook could add features to enable this (they were kinda forced to handle the Twitter deluge using the "Live Feed" vs "News Feed" split) or a 3rd party app/site will spring up sooner or later to do this. The noise in there is getting a little too much, and I've been wondering if it really matters whether I'm "on Facebook" or not.

Those who really need to find me or talk to me, will, anyhow. The rest is often just noise/PR.

Posted via web from workFront

Bangalore's Bus Day Tomorrow

2010-02-03T15:38:00.001+05:30

Its Bus Day in Bangalore tomorrow and everyone's encouraged to keep off private transport for a day. Even a fraction of the 35+ Lakh private vehicles staying at home will make a huge difference! Pretty awesome.

However, I have one fear. Often, these well intentioned one off events do little for the cause, and in fact might have the opposite effect. The bus services have grown manifold - indeed their growth has far outstripped the growth in population. Yet there are geographical, time-sensitive stresses on the system. Now imagine that going up by, say, even 15% on a single day because of a 'mobilization' like this. The newbies who dare to try it out tomorrow might be put off buses - wrongly so - for a long long time to come.

Hopefully, BMTC would've factored in the increased traffic to a certain extent, and (I say this only pragmatically) hopefully not too many will hop on all at once. The shift does need to happen, but more persistently, gradually, and permanently.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Spelling It Out

2010-02-03T10:27:00.001+05:30

Voila, NOT viola : see, there!

Trial, NOT trail : trying something out kinds

Lose, NOT loose : the former makes you sad, the latter hides the girth

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Interdependence

2010-02-01T11:47:00.001+05:30

In the city, we depend on so many people, systems, organizations to just get on with life. Yet we pretend we have complete independence, and giving or taking help is usually after much thought, calculation and consideration. We cannot grow our own food, we cannot manage our own waste, we cannot get our own water, and more and more, we cannot even cook a decent percentage of our meals. We've invented this thing called 'currency' and ideas of 'fair value' and transact in it, often hiding the dependence, and the interactions without which the currency or the value we associate with the transaction are pretty useless.

Out there in the village, and I suspect even in smaller towns to some extent, people still manage more of their lives directly. Yet the dependence is more 'out in the open', acknowledged, and included in social interactions. There's less of the 'I don't need anyone' and 'let me not inconvenience anyone'.

Strange.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

A few minutes at a bus stop

2010-01-25T19:13:00.002+05:30

I stood at the stop near the HSR BDA complex, on the Outer Ring Road, today.

Since I had time, and nobody to speak with, thoughts crossed my head, and I saw many things. Amongst them -

Damn, soooo many one-person cars. Drivers with the owner do not count.
That ONE Volvo has as many people as the 40 cars I can see occupying road space from here till wherever!
Who threw these bus tickets/cigarette packets/wrappers around ? Do we have the slightest right to crib about governance ?
All this road work is so we can have more people drive in cars alone, and then start needing more road space ? Dumb.
Bangalore still has lovely weather.
The traffic and construction dust is killing it though.
Thank God for the many who take the buses. Esp those who could've otherwise been in cars.
Hmm, no 'choice' cyclists in the 20 minutes I've been here. Still a tiny minority, obviously. Or they take a better route!
Why does everyone honk so much when it has absolutely no impact! Frustration, I guess.

Anyhow...

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

How to plan your finances sessions

2010-01-16T10:20:00.001+05:30

I'm no finance whiz, and definitely not an investment-geek.

But I think I have figured out how to plan finances long term, and make money work for you as opposed to working for money. Long term goals, the true meaning of risk vs return, why your huge salary hardly leaves you with any liquidity, etc etc.

I did a quick run-through for a pal, and my brother recently. And so far, it seems to be helping clear the clouds.

So here's the deal - if you think you need help, and are ready to share - in strict confidence - your numbers, I'll give you 3 hours of my time at 1500/- and coffee and help you make some sense of it. Its not too much cash, and I'm hardly trying to make a career out of this, but I would like you to take this session really seriously, and only if you want to shake things up a bit.

The advice will NOT be about the exact financial instruments you should or should not invest in - cause (a) there's professionals for that sort of a thing and (b) there's legal requirements to be able to do that. It WILL be about how you look at your goals, vs income, vs cash flows, vs savings plans, etc. It'll be about planning life from "here" to 85, or so.

Who should even consider this ? You're probably not "already there" financially, still need to meet a plenty of goals and could even have some liabilities, and might have given financial structuring a shot or two without really having a good solid grip on things. Over this session, hopefully that'll improve. At the end of it, you should have a layman's spreadsheet that helps you plan, understand and track the finances, including upsides and downsides, etc. It'll help you make better choices without financial imprudence, or, otoh, needless tight-fistedness!

This is crazy, but since I thought of it yesterday, I thought I must offer it. Let me know if you think it might help. If its just 1500/- down the drain, think of it as a bad movie + lousy dinner date :D

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Three Dozen Gone

2010-01-11T13:37:00.001+05:30

Turned 36 day before. Not so long ago, those in their "forties" were "senior" folks :D Well, its knocking at the doors!

Seriously, the midlife has come with all the accompanying confusion, clarity, freedom, anxiety all at once. Feel healthier than a few years ago - probably due to cycling and lack of the 9-5 stress, have a larger 'zoomed out' view of many things, and yet there's a tinge of ennui.

Looking ahead to the next dozen :)

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The Tour of Nilgiris, Redux

2010-01-11T11:34:00.001+05:30

Background : 2nd edition of the TFN. 70 bikers, 20+ support crew.

Day 1: Bangalore to Mysore : 150kms or so.

We left the Koramangala Indoor stadium around 8am, and till we got to Kengeri, it was the usual morning madness of Bangalore's traffic. A quick regroup and we were off on the mostly downhill, great tarmac route to Chennapatna, where our first support station was at Kadambam (the gentleman who owns this is a Bulleteer, and was extremely enthusiastic about the TFN, and even hopes to ride next year! Compared to last year, I rode it real easy. The knowledge of the route, and available time, meant no pressure to 'beat the sweep vehicle' and I enjoyed the ride and the route much more than the last year. Took lots of pictures, had lunch by a lakeside and made full use of whatever the support stations had to offer :)

The weather stayed very benign right through, and even the second half - which I mostly rode with Jas - was easy. Jas had some knee issues as we got closer to Mysore, so we took it real easy and slow towards the end. Despite all this we got to the Regaalis by 5:30. The early birds made it by 1:30 or so and had already had a nap!

A bunch took the Volvo made available by the Transport Dept to Chamundi and the Palace. I preferred to hand around and chat over chai and snacks. The dinner was good, and accommodations top grade. The bikes, laid out gently across the lawns, made for a very pretty picture :)

Day 2: Mysore - Hassan. 124kms + a pretty 8km detour

The day started with a nice breakfast spread, and Vasu's instructions! The first few hours were done in a very very light spray and clouds. The roads stayed fantastic upto Hassan limits, and the roadbikers just ripped through, especially after the turn off the Madikeri Road as traffic thinned out (esp compared to the Mysore road). Adi, I and Jas rode most of this day together.

The route was so amazingly scenic - we just had to stop for a gazillion pictures, chai and what not. At one looong stop near a temple, a local even tried out Jas' bike and came back grinning ear to ear :) The whole area is totally green, and the Cauvery and other streams criss cross your path. There are numerous lakes as well, and of course we stopped at a couple for photo ops and generally chilling out!

The afternoon saw some climbs though nothing serious. The sun came out strong too, so we took an hour's break at the last support station where we also had lunch. A whole bunch of kids gathered around, curious and excited, and it took Kamesh's impropmtu quiz (and lots of biscuit packets) to keep them from huddling around the bikes.

A little before Hassan, 4 of us took a detour left at Mosale Hosahalli to check out some old Hoysala Temples. These were clearly not the objects of even infrequent visitor attention, and it took some persistent interrogation to get directions to the place. But, as the pic shows, it was totally worth it!

The last bit to Hassan, and the town itself, was lunar. The poor roadies complained about it for a long time, but little did they know things were turning in favour of us MTBers ;) Hassan itself had little to offer, and neither did the hotel. We went deep into town and managed to hunt down a solitary board of ludo+snakes and ladders, and that salvaged our evening.

Day 3: Into Coorg: Madikeri via Gorur, Shanivarasanthe, Somwarapet. 125 kms

This is where things got interesting. After renegotiating the battered Hassan exit roads, we were on a not-too-wide stretch leading to Gorur. The road was perfectly ok for us MTBers, but the unevenness and the odd pothole appearing randomly presented a negative surprise for a lot of the roadies - especially those who'd switched not too long ago from their MTBs.

I ripped through to Gorur, pausing for some pics (including those of some roadies as I overtook them 3 at a time :D). And at Gorur, we were welcomed by the local cops who'd not only opened the dam to us (courtesy the Transport Commissioner, who was a fellow rider on the TFN) but also arranged chai, biscuits and presented bouquets and garlands to us! Riding on the dam was one awesome experience.

The roads got a little worse after this, and the scenery got much better. Upto Sanivarsanthe, where the next support station was, was mostly rolling hills except one steep climb and one long, fast descent before that. A lot many riders got the first taste of what it meant to be Touring these parts on this stretch. After Sanivarsanthe, the coffee plantations on both sides meant a lot of tree cover. The road was better too (though some roadbikers still had issues, with already aching shoulders). The climbs got progressively steeper as we got closer to Somwarapet, and the sun got stronger as well. We ran out of steam just before Somwarapet and locally procured Coke + Chips provided enough emergency fuel to get to the lunch point :)

The route got prettier and much, much tougher between Somwarapet (just after which we had awesome rolls at the support station - I had 2 packs!) and Madikeri. The last climb was some 8kms long, and the lower gears came into play for the first time.

The last 5kms from Madikeri to the homestay broke the spirit of many a rider, and not just the roadies. Of course, prior knowledge of the horrible horrible surface there meant I knew what was coming, and actuallu wuzzled my way through the potholes, gravel and traffic. We also picked up some more coke and chips at Madikeri, but this was devoured by hungry bikers as soon as we got to the destination. There was also nice chai served as we reached. The acco was in dorms + rooms, and those of us in the dorm were treated to some great surround-snoring deep into the night :D

Day 4: To Iruppu, 143 kms of which I did about 125. Toughest day.

Started the day with a fast ride to Cherambane (averaging 21kmph+ through the hills!), where I met Satya (pal who's helping me with the house we're building around there). Treated a dozen riders who stopped there to Pattal-Kadla and Salaam Bhai's chai. This turned out to be a real long break. Adi pushed ahead and missed all this, and stayed ahead all day. Jas and I then stopped at Chettimani to take a look at the current state of the construction, and were pretty much the last to reach the support station at the base of Talacauvery. We'd lost a lot of time because of the breaks and had to take a call on whether to miss out on this, vs stopping a little short of the destination for sweep. Again, I knew the craziness that awaited us a little before Iruppu in the form of craters and lousy traffic, and the choice was clear. The ride up Talacauvery was a much easier 8kms than Nandi, and up there I watched the bikes as the others went into the temple (which I've seen plenty of times already). Chai and vadas kept me in good cheer, and fuelled up for the 10km hell ahead.

A quick ride down, and 6kms of slick roads later we hit 'the patch' of the entire tour. A lot many riders will remember this more than any other part of the ride. every bone, every part of the bike, shook, rattled and was severly tested. After a couple of downhills, I got used to no-brakes-fast-downhills and watching for potholes, gravels, turns all at once. It was immense fun - doing the climbs real slow at 2-2, 1-3 and then letting go on the descent.

The support station provided welcome lunch and Appy, and the road improved within a couple of kms after that. The backroads of Coorg, all the way to Virajpet, had lots pf coffee, little traffic and were ok for the most part except some rough stretches. The entire day was full of delights, challenges, and incidents. Helped people get off the grass after bus scares, fix flats, and brakes. And most of all, fight the devils that played with the mind!

We took a 'snack break' at Virajpet and downed Thums Up, Chips, Badam Milk. That was enough to do a rapid ride upto Gonikoppal (averaged 24+ on this stretch!), and from there to the last support station some 16kms short of the destination. We stopped at around 6pm and waited for the truck to come pick us up. The truck was filled with bikes so we got an Omni which bumped its way to the homestay.

The next day was a rest day so fun, games and general cacking went on late into the night. Some guys went star gazing, some found beer, and some played dumb-c.

Day 5: Rest, Massage, Waterfalls-that-I-didn't-see and Wildlife Trips

I got up later-than-usual-for-the-trip and had a couple of chais over morning gup. Went over to the pond in the property for a massage and some idle time. Next figured out a way to do some laundry. Sauntered over to a local shop for some 'Sunspot'. Vasu offered to, nay, insisted, on cleaning my bike's chain. There was also lunch somewhere in the midst of all this, and then someone mentioned a trip to Nagarhole which sounded like a good idea. Some enthu junta had done a quick ride to Iruppu falls by then! Very packed day!

The wildlife sanctuary ride was nice enough, and apart from the usual spotted deer we saw a turtle and a lone tusker which I guess was kinda used to traffic so no charge.

Day 6 : Iruppu - Sultan Bathery. 80kms or so. Overconfidence and Hunger.

Apart from the stretch upto the Wayand WLS, the roads turned out to be better than on the recce and the last 25kms was a dream run. Of course, it being a 'short ride' day I 'forgot' to have proper breakfast, and the hunt for an omelette in Kerala proved to be futile. The sun came out strong, and the climbs got serious after Kattikulam (though it was very very pretty all along) and I felt really drained towards the end.

In terms of the route, this was one of the more interesting ones since we actually passed through villages, beside numerous little Churches that dotted the landscape, lots of small streams and there were turns every few kilometres.

At one place we had some local savouries and chai, and chips and coke elsewhere. No lunch before we got to Bathery since I dumbly decided to not eat the rice at the support stations! One of the shorter rides on the trip, but took the most out of me.

Oh, and the unniappams inside the WLS were toally awesome! (This will be remembered as my for-food-ride!)

In the evening we visited the Sultan's Battery, and interacted with local enthusiasts and historians. Courtesy Sajan, a local TFN supporter, we had decent media coverage there as well.

Day 7: Bathery to Ooty and the big 24km climb. About 100kms

I am truly proud of how well I paced this. I use "paced" in no relation to "speed" here - that was for Gaurav Dwivedi who got to Ooty in just over 4 hours! I knew the route exactly, and unlike the previous year, was totally at peace about "will I reach before I'm swept" despite lengthening shadows, and dropping temperatures. I also did the entire climb in 2-2, 1-3 and at no point hurt any knees or ankles or other muscles. Also took fewer breaks.

The previous and this day, we had Anand Iyer for company as well, and courtesy his constant string of jokes about this, that and everything else, I was forced to take LOL breaks lest I fell off, literally! That, perhaps, helped not notice the ascents to some extent :) Jas had some trouble with his calves, but thankfully it did not worsen.

We took lots of tea breaks, and at Devarasholai Anand took what I think was the snap of the ride!

Just before the 24km unbroken climb, we decided to fuel up at Gudalur. Once 4 egg puffs, 2 full plumcakes were devoured by the 4 of us, the guy there obviously got curious about what we were doing :)

The climb was pretty, pleasant, and because most people were mentally psyched up for this one, felt easier than it was. We had lunch at one of the support stations en-route and got the hotel by 5:45 despite hazaar pics, breaks, chai, and just plain admiring the pretty vistas around us.

In the evening, the exhilaration of 'having done Ooty', and imminent end of the ride meant a lot of bonding amongst riders. We took an SUV into town with a few support guys (packed like sardines, I must add) and had some yummy egg rolls, did some chocolate shopping and generally had a relaxed time. There was a very light drizzle and it only made Ooty look prettier.

Day 8: The Very very Descent. 58kms. Mental Struggle for most!

The Kalahatti is one steep downhill. Good roads, 36 hairpins, and a second's break in concentration and you will surely lose control. Yet it promises speed and if you brake too much, you'll have red hot rims.

I discovered the downhiller in me :D Fast descent into the bends, hard braking, and actually pedalling out of them kept me going fast and needing to overtake all the traffic. Stopped at one place to take pics, and still made it down to the base in about 20-something minutes. Totally mindblowing, and I had half a mind to take a bus back up there and do it again! Did all of it wearing jeans, too!

The route went mostly through forest - Bandipur, Mudumalai. We rode in groups though the inevitable scattering happened. A lot many riders didnt really expect climbs after the downhill, so started to tire mentally. The climbs weren't too steep, but they were persistent - all the way to MC Resorts, where the TFN finally ended. The sun got bright and hot and the 'wild' surroundings were probably playing on people's minds as well. In fact, one of the riders had a fortunately-not-major run-in with a pachyderm as well.

Have done 2 TFNs already. Both very different from each other. Both memorable and both tests of endurance, mental preparedness. Have made gazillions of friends on these rides. People who challenged their limits. Some who're totally astounded that they actually did it! Totally worth doing once in your lifetime, at least.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The Obama Nobel

2009-12-13T15:03:00.001+05:30

If it was a Peace Prize, its timing could not have been more unfortunate. And the burden of this clearly showed on Obama and hence his defensive "what else can I do" acceptance speech.

Here's what I think he could have done. Decline to accept the Nobel.

An Obama who then explained that yes, he was the Commander-in-Chief of a nation waging two wars, and there was that part of his responsibility as the President of the US of A that he is bound to execute, even as he stays hopeful and works towards a solution for peace, would have kept alive the vision he attempted to define through his oratory. He would have done much better to decline, 'for now', the Nobel and offered to pick it up when his dream and vision actually translate to reality. That would've really turned things around for him everywhere.

Oh well, I guess the big medal was a bit too much to resist. He's human, too, after all.

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The Water Miser Foot Tap

2009-12-10T20:27:00.001+05:30

We recently installed a WATER MISER foot tap - details here (http://watermiser.ning.com/)

There a is pedal that is installed near the basin, when you pump the pedal - you have water in the tap. Its costs Rs 650/- (including installtion). We installed one at home in the common bathroom - and the kids loved it. Initially there were some leaks setting it up but the water miser staff was very prompt and fixed it. I think there is water saving - especially when we soap our hands and wash it/kids brush etc

A pic of our home installation attached. You can contact Chetan (9620483436) for more details. He actually comes around and does the installation too.

You are also most welcome to come and take a look at our home installation.
Is anybody aware of any other vendor for a similar product ?

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The BSA TFN Support Stations

2009-12-05T19:46:00.001+05:30

The tent design for the TFN was sent by Hemant of Pappillon Design today - and it looks pretty awesome. So if you see one of these on the TFN Route somewhere, you know succour is close at hand :)

In case you're looking for this sort of a thing, Hemant is a very helpful guy and can be contacted at:

Mr Hemant(D)

+(91)-(80)-8025263, 41153854

+(91)-9845444854

hemant62001@gmail.com

Address: 1316, Near Leela Palace, 11 Th Main, Indiranagar, Bangalore - 560008

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

The TFN Needs Your Support!

2009-11-30T11:25:00.001+05:30

We have BSA-TFN09 Posters for letting people know about the longest, funnest cycle ride in the country, and maybe even get a few more folks to take cycling up.

If you know of a place you can put one up please fill this out and wee'll deliver some posters to you. Thanks!
https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dERxV1ZoXzdFSV9fVzBvUWw1UERCVkE6MA

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

When we run out of cooking gas

2009-11-26T08:58:00.001+05:30

All our kitchens have been designed to accommodate LPG/electric cooktops. What next ? A higher dependence on electricity ? Solar options - both as converted to electricity, and perhaps using it directly through fibre ?

There's probably a cleantech innovation waiting to happen in the kitchen. We're probably not going back to firewood and coal :)

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Awesome Photographers

2009-11-17T09:04:00.003+05:30

Take a peek at The TFN09 Official Photographer Contest Finalists. 3 more days before the Winner's announced!

Lotsa people have shared their opinions on the pics. Do share yours. After all we need help to pick only ONE of the 3 really really good photographers as the TFN09 Official Photographer!

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Bangalore could use some of this

2009-11-16T18:22:00.002+05:30

New York has reclaimed some space for pedestrians!

By the same logic, buses should get 35-40% of Bangalore's space, cyclists at least 10%. Yet we cater most to private transport, and in fact more to cars than to two wheelers. Inverse proportions!

One major stick to improve city planning, carbon dependence, cycling usage, and more livable spaces will be to take away from cars and private transport, and give to public and non-motorized transport. There are just too many positive side-effects to ignore, apart from the fairness of the act.

How about starting with the Brigade Road. Church Street areas ? No traffic, street-cafes, bands - wow - that'll make it worth going to the city center once again!

Posted via email from bangalorekaapi

Moving

2009-11-05T19:06:00.001+05:30

For a while, at least, to http://zenx.posterous.com/
Like the easy - flow and the fact that emailing a post in is easy. Lets see if its just euphoria.

Spread the love

2009-10-29T21:54:00.002+05:30

The TFN poster is here, in all its high res glory! Please take a printout and splash it on the nearest wall in your cubicle/office. Even better, use it as a wallpaper, and help spread the love for cycling!

Life in Progress

2009-10-23T20:22:00.006+05:30

This is why I love Coorg. Whichever direction you look in, there's beauty, fresh air wherever you go, streams that have their own music, and a nice easy pace at which life does not rush past. The construction's started and cannot wait for it to get over! Also learned some stuff about wood selection, timber, rates etc over the last two days I was there.

Doing what you've never done before is sure a lot of fun!

BMTC Site Updated

2009-10-19T09:22:00.005+05:30

BMTC 'upgraded' it site, and there's a search etc. The earlier static pages to the Vajra and other services are missing - and the route search takes you to the schedules as earlier. You can search via a route number, or using an auto-suggest of source and destinations. Clicking on the service links does not provide any route/schedule info yet, and a lot many source/destinations and routes aren't up there yet. The site also needs to get a little quicker (cannot imagine too much load on the servers right now). To be fair, they have put up a "Website under testing & final stage of construction. Route search is not updated." on the site - will check and update this entry once thats fixed.

Oh, and there's also a new service from HSR BDA Complex to BIAL (The Bangalore International Airport, i.e.) - the BIAS-7A goes via Indiranagar instead of Shanthinagar. This means a bus to the airport almost every 30-40minutes for HSR folks.

Hopefully, a step in the right direction - though needs to be complete before its actually useful. They'd do well to expose an API so a mobile service could provide updated info over SMS etc.

Time. And Money.

2009-10-16T10:19:00.006+05:30

For a while now, I've been mentioning to people that for the next raise/job change, they could ask for the hike/ compensation partly in time. After all, we all repeat sooo often that age old adage - time is money - that its time we put some money where our time is :)

(Image Credit)

Here's a good one I read in the context of some very very compelling reasons to take up cycling :

"...why spend loads of time working to pay for the car to get to work to pay for the car"

What you choose to do with that time is then the next question. It could be spent on places you've wanted to go to, books you wanted to read, or relearning how to play the guitar, or even just spending more time with your kids (at least till such time that they tolerate your company :) ) You could finally start executing on those amazing ideas you've had. You could go back to school to acquire some additional skills!

How ? A few hours a day ? An extra day a week ? A few months a year ? Different jobs will suit different plans. And it also depends on what you want to do - you can hardly do that trans-Himalayan-unsupported-trek a few hours a week.

The really really tough one is to have a somewhat clear understanding of your financial situation, and the discipline to arrive at an appropriate tradeoff between Time and Money, the two parts to that whole equation. You'll need to fund the "time-off", plus the thing you want to do during that time. But usually, we can, and just go overboard on the "need more" front. More often than not, we're not too clear on how much of the latter we need/want/can use, and end up overstocking on, at the cost of the former. Its just a way of playing safe.

But safe isn't fun, is it ?

Update:

Right after the post - read this. Slightly unrelated, but appropriate :) Cannot say this has not crossed my mind! Oh, the strength....

Update #2:

Just saw this (recvd thru a tweet). Can't agree more. And for all of those - you need to invest - time!

TFN09 Updates

2009-10-13T20:46:00.003+05:30

Some TFN09 news :

RJ Anjaan of Radio One will pick 3 lucky peeps to ride the Tour of Nilgiris - free - this week! Tune in to his show at 94.3FM!
Lotsa people have started training seriously. (I still need to :( )
The contest for the photographer and blogger should be up tomorrow or so. The goodies are in, and quite yummy!
Ladies - immediate registration privilege extended to the next few registrations from you. Do spread the word amongst women you know who want to go on the bestest, toughest, funnest ride.

The Big Routes

2009-10-13T17:40:00.003+05:30

The Big Circle Buses have quietly started functioning on the ring roads. Here's an updated map describing the routes:

(click to enlarge)

Unfortunately, the information dissemination on the routes, schedules etc is still quite lousy. For instance, it seems that the Big10 frequency on Sarjapura Road is higher now, though there's no way of knowing that for sure.

Anyone know the frequency of the Big Circle buses ?

Crossroads

2009-10-11T19:24:00.003+05:30

Whither ?
So many pointers...
Lucre.
Freedom.
Regular Content Joe ?
Exploration.
Fame.
Which way does it go ?
Is safe safe ?
Risk risky ?
Is choice a "yes", or "no" ?
Reason.
Dare.
All kinds of swings - to, fro.
Avoidance.
Discovery.
Or just let moments flow ?
Which
The truth ?
Which the show ?

You're Grounded!

2009-10-06T12:45:00.004+05:30

There was a recent mail on our apartment mailing list which informed us that about 1/2 of the 2000 borewells in our area have run dry, because of which the water tanker supply was likely to get erratic. We were requested to brace ourselves for water shortages, at least intermittent ones.

At least a couple of weeks a year, BESCOM, anyhow struggling to keep pace with the ever increasing need of a burgeoning city, fails to supply power for hours together. Our apartment's diesel gensets have been known to run overnight. These run at a maximum of 35-40% efficiency, and the entire dependence on huge amounts of fossil fuel directly to keep the lifts etc working is definitely not a very ecologically conscious act.

Vertical living just needs more natural resources and energy. The lack of these is starting to cause minor inconveniences and may give us a taste of major failures in not too distant a future. It'll take very little time for these tall edifices to our conceit and imagined prowess and mastery of the elements to be uninhabitable. Sure, sounds like a doomsday movie, but I'd almost bet that 24 hours of no water supply will be a real, quick trailer in not too distant a future.

Are apartments, as they're designed and built today, sustainable in the long run ? An 'independent' home on the ground level can live off human effort and power, harness enough solar energy, harvest enough rainwater, and redo stuff like plumbing etc more easily as newer, smarter, more efficient solutions are found to reduce our individual footprints. The pressure an individual home exerts on the earth is lower, and can be reduced quite dramatically. Can apartments do it ? Will real estate values start getting tied in to these fundmentals ?

Should I really start thinking about that house ?

From The Biker's Mouth : Cycling Safety in Bangalore

2009-10-05T16:43:00.003+05:30

Its very tough to really really convince people that cycling is hardly an act of daredevilry. Its a normal, safe, mode of transportation and recreation, not an adventure sport meant only for those living on the edge!

This was posted by Kanishka Lahiri in the course of a discussion on one of the lists I'm on:

"I have some personal experience that might help dispel certain myths. At the outset, I am a far more experienced driver (~15 years) than I am a cyclist. I consider myself a careful and good driver. I moved to BLR in 2007.

In 1.5 years of driving around Bangalore, I had 4 (all minor, but highly stressful) accidents. That;s more than the number I had had in the previous 14 years. This includes brushes with auto rickshaws, cars, and one stupid cyclist. On a separate occasion I got punched in the face by a motor bike guy because I braked to allow an old lady to cross Sankey Road. Needless to say, each incident resulted in high levels of stress, and a feeling of being physically threatened.

I started cycling in June 2008. Number of accidents in nearly 1.5 years --- ZERO. Number of near misses: I'll admit there have been a few, but in almost all cases, I could attribute the near miss to stupidity on my part. There are a set of rules one ends up following when cycling on Bangalore roads. Mature cyclists make up their own rules to make themselves safe in what otherwise looks like a hostile environment. As a result, for me, while concentration levels are high when biking, emotional stress, and physical risk levels are very very low. Much lower than when driving.

The point I am trying to make is, the notion that our roads are highly unsafe for cyclists who have good judgment is a myth. And my contention is, cyclists must have good judgment, else they have no business being on the road. So I agree, an 11 year old who has little experience, is well-advised when told to stay away from busy roads. But then, why single out cyclists? All road users are required to have good judgement, since city roads are a shared and potentially life-threatening environment. That's why we issue driving licences, and that's why we don't let 10 year-olds drive motor cycles.

At the same time, I am not saying that all is well for cyclists. Things could be better. Much better. Many of the rules I practice when cycling seem unjust to me. I practice them because I need to be safe. But ideally, policies on road-space sharing should be designed in such a way that I do not have to follow some of these crazy rules."

So there. This one's as unbiased as they get. I've a similar story (more in relation to motorbike which I used a lot before I started cycling) but by now, I'm probably considered an outlier. The whole effort reminds me a bit of Wall-E. Perhaps even walking will be considered something fraught with risk and not something that normal members society undertake.

[ Earlier post on this discussed what we mean when we talk about "safety". Do read for a very nice pov from another thread on another forum. ]

Green Break : Chikmaglur and Coorg

2009-09-28T10:25:00.007+05:30

Dusshera holidays and most of the kids friends having left on vacations meant we needed to entertain them. And the usual mall/amusement part/restaurant routine did not appeal at all.

So a location was zeroed in on, reservations were made at a resort-in-a-coffee-estate, and off we went.

For some weird reason, I decided to chance the Tumkur road ('should be ok early in the morning') and regretted it all the way upto Kunigal, where the alternative Magadi-Kunigal drive would've met the NH-48. There's construction work all the way upto Nelamanga, bad surface, awful traffic, and dust. And early in the morning is ideally when you want to feel the fresh air through open windows.

A little ahead you cross some windmills on your left - in fact the road goes all around them and you get a 270 view of the hillock with these huge white beauties atop them.

The road after Kunigal is mostly in decent shape, and traffic got a little lighter too. The weather was very nice, and the sun did not feel warm at all. We stopped on the roadside for a quick breakfast - stuff we'd carried from home to save time - and were soon at Hassan.

Hassan itself is dusty, with broken roads, and traffic. Its a major agri-trading town and that shows in the businesses you see around there. We did a quick refill at an ATM and got out of there as quick as traffic would permit.

The Hassan-Belur stretch is an absolute beauty - both in terms of the rolling tarmac (painted shoulders and all!) as well as the scenic countryside you pass through. Another set of windmills on the right, a couple of very pretty lakes, the huge reservoir of the Belur dam, and great weather kept us company. The road became a little iffier after Belur, but the view from the window got better and better as we got to Chikmaglur. It started drizzling a bit as well.

Chikmaglur has gotten a lot more crowded since our last trip there nearly seven years ago. One ways and quite a lot of traffic meant some time spent crossing the town. Once past, it became apparent why this region os called the Scotland of India. Coffee, tall trees, rolling gren hillsides and gentle rain.

To get to Hunkal woods, we had to keep going straight past the Kymara junction - where I'd earlier taken a left towards Kemmanagundi - for about 20 kms. The traffic dropped as we drove on the curvy roads around the cloud covered hills.

At Hospet village, we saw a smart looking board saying "Hunkal Woods 3.2kms" pointing left (There were signs at every possible fork - nicely done). The road was narrow, broken and went right through pretty coffee territory. After about a kilometre or so all there was an uneven dirt track and carefully kept the tyres on the higher parts of the road to avoid bottom scraping. The woods got thicker, and the rain much heavier as we gained elevation rapidly and reached the property.

The service at Hunkal Woods was warm, effective yet unintrusive. Nizam, the main man there, suggested lunch, some rest and a trek to a waterfall at 4pm. The food was basic, tasy and very nicely served at the open dining area.

So off we went on the trek through coffee, some bush, waterfalls. There were some steeper sections, and a couple of leeches to spice up the trip :)

That trek was cut short (though we did reach the waterfall) due to failing light and Shubha having slipped and bent a finger a little hard - so we returned and promised to go on a longer one the next morning.

Just before we got back, Nizam took us on a slight detour to a coffee drying yard where the guy running the place passionately explained the pulping, cleaning and drying process, the difference between Arabica and Robusta, and let us know that their coffee had won a prize announced by "Ely, of Australia"!

We got rid of the leeches (salt really works!) as well as the kids' squeamishness, had a bath, and were wondering if we should have another round of coffee (its on the house, unlimited) when the lady who runs the kitchen there herself brought very welcome mirchi bhajjis with a gentle knock on the door.

The bonfire was a little tough to get going, given the wet ground below, but it was worth the effort. Dinner was another nice affair though the kids were beginning to get sleepy and we retired early.

We got up at 5:45 am - no alarm - and thats one of the best parts of a being in a place like this. The kids got up a little later, and after some coffee and milk, we got ready and set out for the morning trip. This was a longer trek, and Nizam carried our breakfast. Upto the grassline was mostly coffee plantation dirt roads - wide and easy - though we did cross some creeks, bush and other assorted obstacles. One stretch was a little steep along the sides of a hill - but they grow coffee everywhere!

Soon we had walked to the grassline. Courtesy the acclimatization the previous evening - and Nizam's assurance that the juice from the bitter-lime fruit he'd plucked as we started would keep leeches at bay - the kids were feeling much braver. I was anyhow wearing gumboots, and Shuhba seemed to not care. The views of the rocks - which seemed to be covered with soft grass - kept egging us on to go further and further. We stopped near the edge of the plantation (place that used to be wooded till a few years ago - 'Tiger Woods' ?) for yummy Rava Idlis and very fresh coconut chutney.

We soon reached the top of a grassy hill a little below Hunkal Hill, and started our descent towards the last evening's waterfall below. Once we got to the road, Nizam and the kids took a ride in a passing truck to the estate, and we walked down to a hot lunch before we packed up and headed out.

We drove back to Hassan, and from there towards Madikeri via Arkalgud, Sanivarasanthe, and Somwarapet. There's a huge dam and hydro-project at Gorur that I knew about only when we came across it :) The road was iffy upto Sanivarasanthe, and past that it got more and more amazing every passing kilometer. Tata Coffee has some huge plantations is the area, and the well maintained hedges and tall, old trees in the plantations give the entire stretch a very picture-postcard feel.

Next day we did a quick trip to Dubare to try and "interact with the elephants", as one of the sites described it. There was a place serving bread and omelette there, and I was almost thankful for the regular breakfast. We took the boat to the other side, did the mandatory elephant ride and walked around to where a wild elephant had been held captive for taming. Felt sad to see man's efforts to break the spirit of these huge creatures.

Spent another day near Bhagamandala- mostly work involving trying to figure out next steps for getting the house in shape - and we headed back home. An amazing 4 day break, green, fresh air, the kids' fear of leeches gone forever, Dubare finally seen. (The huge bonus was the fuel efficiency that the old workhorse managed - 15kmpl+!) Gotta do another trip to Hunkal Woods - probably in January when the coffee is dried, and the air's cold.

TFN09 Framed

2009-09-15T16:47:00.002+05:30

TFN09 Frames:

Follow maadi. Ride maadi.

Wall Painting

2009-09-14T11:52:00.005+05:30

Over four years in our current house with toddlers and theie armies of friends around did take a toll on the walls. A couple of them more than the others, and a lot of switches has smudges around them.

Shubha was keen on a DIY, so off we went to a hardware store.

2kgs of white distemper, a brush, a roller, and a few words of advice from the not-particularly-convinced guy at the store set us back about 230/- or so. So far so good.

A little bit of reading on the web brought some confidence to back up the advice received earlier, and we started with optimism. Well, at the back of the mind was the knowledge that it could hardly look worse than it did before the repaint effort :D

Step 0. Move the furniture around as needed. Keep a ladder, wet cloth, lotsa newspaper handy for managing the dripping.

Step 1. Scrape, scrape, scrape with sandpaper. The walls need to be rid of warts, heel scuffle marks, pencil art, and powdery stuff. Its pretty tough to get a totally smooth finish, but this part of the process (as we realized a little later for some patches we did not quite attack to enthusiastically) is the most critical one.

Step 2. Put on some nice music and take a break/chai/juice. All that scraping makes you a little tired. You also might want to do a little bit of cleanup now before it spreads all over the house!

Step 3. Mixing the amount of water in the paint. For oil bound distemper, we needed to add between 0.5-0.65 litres of water per kg. We played a little cautious and used only about 1kg to start with - and it turned out to be enough. Mixing it well is important, especially towards the bottom of the bucket.

Step 4. Slop, slip, splosh. Applying it onto the wall. We started with a lot of uncertainty. Unclear how much should be 'used' per stroke, and in how much of a patch it should spread. But stuck with vertical strokes of the brush initially, and used the roller once the 'painter' moved onto an adjacent patch. Trick : since it was white on white - matching colours was not critical and even not-too-great a job on applying it uniformly did not matter at all. Kept wiping off the paint that dripped here and there. Also, contrary to advice - started from the bottom end since those were the really dirty parts and we weren't sure if the paint would be enough :) Since it was starting to blend in easily as it dried we took a call that it would not matter even if we were unable to do the top bits - those were hardly dirtied anyhow.

After the first wall the confidence shot up, and we touched up pretty much all the major greased-up bits around the house!

Turned out to be a decent job. Not too expensive, and overall, we might've spent 4 hours including the cleaning up afterwards. The brush, roller etc were easily cleaned after dipping them in water for a while.

We've possibly pushed out a full paint job by a couple of years. And its nice to see clean walls :)

TFN09 : All Systems Go!

2009-09-11T20:24:00.003+05:30

The donations needed for TFN09 have been announced.

The invitations for the registration should start going out now, and we should have the riders for this edition known in a few weeks at most, if the signups happen fast.

All systems go. Go train!

Is It Safe ?

2009-09-11T19:37:00.006+05:30

Thats the most common question/fear I've heard from people when it comes to considering cycling in and around Bangalore.

[ Personally, I find it safe enough. 80% of road fatalities are those of pedestrians, yet the question rarely comes to mind whether we should avoid walking! Most often, one's either ahead of traffic or behind the lot thats gone past, so you need only a few moments of alertness and you're good. Way lesser risk, and stress. ]

Here's a few interesting viewpoints on safety:

Jayadeep talks about subjective safety, and the Insecurity Syndrome associated with cycling. Honestly, I have almost no incidents on a typical cycle trip, and at least one or two "braked too late" or "got a little closer than I'd have liked to" ones when do a similar ride on the motorbike. In a car, it still happens and its still unsafe - for someone else!

While on that, here's a beautifully articulated viewpoint from Rajat on the Bangalore Bikers group:

Ever since I started commuting by cycle, time and again I have pondered over the safety aspect of cycling when used as a means of transport. Even though the statistics point to a low accident rate, the danger of being hurt sometimes fatally is ever present. An increasing number of bikers and daily commuters will undoubtedly increase the probability that our community may very well have to deal with some really bad news sometime or the other. Each time out on the cycle we are aware of this undeniable fact and yet we ride unafraid, extra cautious maybe, but unafraid nevertheless. We ride our cycles not for lack of choice but because we want to and we choose to. It is my great pleasure to ride each time, either alone or with others, secure in the knowledge that in however small a way it may be I am making a difference in this fragile world of ours.

Somewhere, traffic's started becoming an arms race! No winners there. Just larger SUVs, more metal, road rage and a downward spiral. The humble cycle might yet break that loop.

More cycles -> fewer cars -> safer roads for all!

And honestly, the last 2-3 feet on Bangalore's roads are unclaimed and quite safe :)

Other tips:

Be V-I-S-I-B-L-E. The helmet helps. Reflective strips, lights at night.
Don't stick too close to the edge. Motorists apparently leave as much space from you as you leave from the edge!
Use your arms etc to "puff yourself up" and define a space around yourself clearly.
I sometimes stand on pedals to appear larger/slow down vehicles right behind.
Make sure all your actions are indicated in advance to people around. Visibly, and if needed, audibly.
Be polite. Make eye contact.
Yet, be assertive. You know how it is around here.
Before even a minor swing out from your lane/line, look over the shoulder. Practice this.
Flow with the traffic - especially when switching sides of the road etc.
Avoid making dumb mistakes yourself :)
Give right of way. Especially to pedestrians.
Have fun.

LifeSchool : Investment Advice

2009-09-09T11:12:00.003+05:30

I've been investing for the better part of a decade now. Insurance, stock, mutual funds, structured products, real estate. (The only no-no has been derivatives cause it just sounded too not-me.)

Yet one learns all the time. The most recent learning ? that "portfolio allocation strategy" is more than just a phrase.

Part of my investments are debt heavy, and defensive. Another part was meant to be the aggressive part which was to pull up the overall numbers. The idea was also to not worry about this for a 3-5 year timeframe, since thats a growth story for the Indian economy that I totally believe in.

The mistake ?

I'd had a decent mix of stocks for this part of the investment for a few years, and assumed the PMS product would continue with a similar philosophy when my investment advisors suggested the same. In hindsight (and for the future) I should've tried understanding clearly the goals and approach of the PMS before stepping in. Its the same stock, the same kind of research that they'd provided earlier, but very different results. Its not merely the difference between a bull and a bear market (have been through those earlier) but the difference in the goals and aggression levels for the portfolio.

The PMS was trying to be defensive on behalf of a large set of its investors and took large cash positions - and this was at odds with my intent. So it could obviously not cash in on opportunities when the markets recovered.

Lesson learnt : Just because the product says its of asset class X, do NOT assume that as the whole truth. If the goals a product is trying to achieve are not clear to you or are clearly divergent, stay away!

TFN accommodation gets swankier

2009-09-07T22:51:00.005+05:30

The Tour of Nilgiris just announced the places where the riders will rest their weary bones. Definitely better accommodation than for the 2008 edition - what with a pool, twim sharing rooms at some places and all that!

Iruppu is the break day - and the place looks fab. There's the falls closeby, and also some river rafting etc. Personally, even a chilled out day taking in the green surroundings at Coorg isn't a bad idea at all. Esp after the longest ride on the tour...

Rave

2009-09-07T19:03:00.002+05:30

Rode a good weekend ride. A short slow one in great weather today.
Lovely weather. Oops, said this already :)
Nice Dev D songs on the headphones.
Solar powered light in the room adds more feel good.
Had nice hot tea.
One more person following their heart.

It all adds up. Some days are just so full of smiles and buoyancy.

The Tour of Nilgiris 2009 : Dates, Route, Its on!

2009-08-26T20:35:00.002+05:30

Tour Of Nilgiris | Experience Nature On a Bicycle! | Dates/Route

Dates for TFN 09
Dec 15th : Reporting at Bangalore. Pre-tour briefing
Dec 16th : Bangalore - Mysore
Dec 17th : Mysore - Hassan
Dec 18th : Hassan - Mercara
Dec 19th : Mercara - Irupu
Dec 20th : Irupu - Break Day
Dec 21st : Irupu - Sultanbathery
Dec 22nd : Sultanbathery - Ooty
Dec 23rd : Ooty - Mysore - Bangalore - (Mysore to Bangalore by bus)

The route's got it all - flat outs, series of climbs, a major unrelenting ascent, history along the way, the most beautiful parts of the South, coffee, tea....

The Increasing Autombile Wastelines

2009-08-26T09:49:00.002+05:30

Inventing Green « We’ve Got 35 Times More Horsepower in Our Cars Than in Our Power Plants talks about the power generation capacity available through automobiles vs all the rest of them! Interesting way to look at this.

I'm sure that a couple of hundred years from now, folks will both lament and wonder at the stupidity and short sightedness of a few of our generations. Consider a few facts:

Cars carry mostly their own weight around. Most of their energy is used up in just moving the mass of metal, rubber and glass and plastics that they are!
Cars are getting more and more powerful - and at least in the cities (where most run) going slower and slower!
On board electrical capacity can usually power a host of appliances these days - including mini refrigerators and huge entertainment systems. Mostly goes unused!
Cars "sit around" for 90%+ of the time, yet a lot of us have one each.

The debate often reduces to personal safety, personal convenience etc. Case in point from the comments in the above article - "I certainly would not want to take my wife & 3 kids camping in a “Tato Nano”, much less worry about what parts of me will still be around for the paramedics to save after an accident." This is a very inward out, narrow way of looking at the problem from its current state alone. The fact is that as a transportation system, its pretty flawed from an efficiency (and even safety) point of view. These arguments often ignore that completely alternative transport systems are possible which consume less on an average, provide more safety overall and are just - well - saner.

But then purging was part of "modern" medical science at some point of time, wasn't it...

Eco-friendly Ganesha DIY

2009-08-20T08:13:00.001+05:30

This is what we did at home last year (courtesy Shubha's efforts). The plan is to do this as an apartment complex level activity this year. Cheap, eco-friendly and gets the kids involved!

Coorg-i

2009-08-19T12:02:00.002+05:30

Green. Beautiful. Dreams. Life? Finally. Phew.

Where the hell was I, and where were you ?

2009-08-15T13:16:00.006+05:30

First, just watch this one:

Crime/scandal on TV is a spectator sport. even Twitter is not too different. A breakup is about as interesting as a rice scam or corruption in a highway deal or irregularities at a Petrol Pump.

We catch it on all channels, we discuss it with indignation, clench our teeth, feel frustrated, and the next week brings a different story. If it happens to be another scam, rinse and repeat. If its Mdme Sawant or the like, add a few jibes, titillation and perhaps satire to it.

Whats amazing is, despite this mass of mere spectators, we have a relentless stream of whistleblowers! Jai Hind to those few, and to their spirit. I dunno about the spirit of Mumbai and all that, but these few individuals needed much more from us, the TRP/pageview drivers.

Update:

The "unnees, unnees, unnees, unnees ....... " was haunting me - so did a little bit on the web. Here's a blog post with the lyrics and the history behind them. I had completely missed, and not known about Navleen Kumar. Its a funny mix of feelings you get on hearing this song.

Save the Planet ? Nah, just your own skin...

2009-08-10T11:51:00.002+05:30

[ George Carlin was one heck of a stand-up guy and I discovered him on youtube only moments ago. ]

So you want to save the planet ? Well, the Earth doesn't really need saving, we do...

I soo agree with the sentiments he's articulated so entertainingly. We're the pesks, we're the problem, and the earth will probably just shrug us off. We're quite conceited in our assumptions of both our ability to engineer forces around us, and our impact on the planet.

Its probably just us we'll end up obliterating, and that is all we can help avoid, at least for some time.

Bangalore Innovates

2009-08-08T13:55:00.001+05:30

Great to see Bangalore lead. And I'd love to trike! It can actually be a good family shopping vehicle for a 2-3km trip.

New-s ?

2009-08-04T17:46:00.001+05:30

Ok, I got my 15 minutes of fame, or whatever, but seriously, that pic is from over a year ago, around the time we were leaving IIM. Probably the quote too!

Coffee ? Hangout!

2009-07-31T19:37:00.009+05:30

Have you been to all these Coffee Hangouts? They made it into my cell cam over the last few days. Amazingly, given the name of the blog, this is the first Coffee-Only post!

Thats Panchami Garden on Bannerghata Road near the Jayadeva Flyover

Thats the cute little BMTC Canteen - opp Qwikys, 6th Block, Koramangala!

2/3 Coffee, HSR opp the BDA Complex makes good Filter Coffee at 20/-

The CCD in BTM is on the 1st Floor - the basement holds music classes!

Thats Qwikys in Koramangala that was the usual hangout

The Cafe @ FabIndia in Koramangala is cheap, pretty...

... and the service is great too. Rolls, cake, chai.

Hmmm, no Darshinis in there yet. And they make the best, cheapest coffee. Gotta fix that soon.

Whats It Done ?

2009-07-31T17:04:00.015+05:30

I have be cycling for a little over a year now. Whats it achieved and what have I gotten out of this ? A list...

The SUB 40 at CCD, and Shubha's SUB 5 at 2/3 Coffee

I'm fitter, and a little leaner. Don't catch a cold as easily, and even feel less cold.
I'm more "weather friendly". Don't mind a little sweat, or rain, or chill.
My eyes opened up to public transport since I now find the car/motorbike cumbersome in the city!
Bangalore has shrunk! I've been to places I've avoided for years.
I've spoken to many more cops, and even other regular folks.
Our fuel bill has gotten much smaller.
Sold one of the motorbikes.
Made tons of new friends.
Have seen numerous new places, even on roads I've zipped past hundreds of times.
Saw the entire Nilgiris at the most relaxed pace ever.
Have become a lot more aware about our carbon footprint.

And ever since I lost the speedo - have cycled in a much more relaxed way :)

Update: Damn I almost forgot one of the most important ones:

I get to eat all the dessert I want :D

[ Tracking my rides here. ]

The Tour of Nilgiris Edition II

2009-07-28T07:46:00.006+05:30

The Tour Of Nilgiris in December last year was the fruit of some huge commitment from the volunteers who conceived and executed it in the space of a few short months from a scratch. For us riders, it was unforgettable memories and joy.

This year, the TFN machine is starting to get oiled, greased to roll out a bigger, better ride for 2009. The route's final, the numbers are being worked out - both the number of participants and volunteers as well as the financials that go into supporting and managing a huge event like this. Potential sponsors are being spoken to, and the TFN Facebook group has grown to double its strength in two short weeks!

There's also anticipation and excitement getting built up amongst bikers around here - 53 people have started logging their training and this time around tweetdom is alive too! Not surprising, since high end cycling has really really taken off in the last year, and for many, the TFN is something they aspire to do.

Here's the story so far for this year.

The Route:

Its a little easier this year, with the 160kms days being avoided based on feedback from last year. Most days are 80-100kms or thereabouts.

Day 0 - Dec 15 - Pre tour breifing - Bangalore

Day 1 - Dec 16 - Bangalore - Mysore
Day 2 - Dec 17 - Mysore - Hassan
Day 3 - Dec 18 - Hassan - Mercara
Day 4 - Dec 19 - Mercara - Irupu
Day 5 - Dec 20 - Irupu - Sultanbathery

Day 6 - Dec 21 - Sultanbathery - Ooty

Day 7 - Dec 22 - Ooty - Mysore (Transport riders + bikes + luggage to Bangalore)

There's more exploration of Coorg, and the ride to Sultan Bathery is a little less torturous since it starts from Irupu and not Madikeri itself. There is no rest day, since there's enough rest everyday! The trip should be as fun as last time, and more.

Accommodation and Support:

Enthusiastic support was what made the Tour doable even for us novices last year, though the guys doing it hardly caught a decent nap over the trip. This time around its being planned to be even better, and more predictable. There's likely to be support stations at pre-set intervals, and a couple of guys "patrolling" the highways to look out for those who may need help.

There were a couple of holes in the acco (and the blankets!) last year, and those will surely be plugged in 2009. Shorter rides and better acco - hmm - its starting to sound almost like a nice vacation ;) Of course, the Gudalur-Ooty slopes are unlikely to get less steep and there pedal-pedal-pedal days are still very much on.

200+ Enthu Aspirants!

The waitlist of those pre-registered for the TFN is huge! Bikers around here have already been trianing with the TFN firmly in their sights. Weekends towards Nandi Hills are starting to turn into cycle-jams, and the leaderboard on Dailymile starts at a 1000kms+ already!

See you all at the TFN! And I must start doing the longer weekend rides once again ....

BMTC information

2009-07-26T20:25:00.002+05:30

I see a lot of queries wrt BMTC bus services in the analytics for this blog. Thought I'd just provide quick links here for the various things available in a single post.

The BIAS service to BIAL (Bangalore International Airport Limited)

Volvo Buses Across Bangalore

The Big 10s (a map-based one here )

Live Tracking of the Big 10s here. (There's tracking of some of the Volvos as well - check out the dropdown)

No Cloud In The Sky

2009-07-26T19:59:00.003+05:30

We did a one day trip to Coorg. Its green, pretty, and a refreshing change from our traffic ridden lives, as usual...

But right through the monsoon, its really rained just 5-6 days so far :( Of course, then it poured, and one particularly bad 2 day spell saw 20 inches dumped all over with consequent flooding, damage and at the end, not even enough groundwater since the ground, after all, has a maximum seepage rate and this leads to a lot of runoff.

My friend there told us about a little piece of knowledge the Coorgis have gained through experience - a light rain and windy conditions is what keeps the springs going and the streams flowing! Am still trying to figure that one out, but will trust local knowledge on that.

My prayers for Coorg, a good sane monsoon and for all of us. The rivers we take for granted, and the rains that we assume will feed them year open year - nothing is a certainty in the dramatically changing climatic conditions anymore.

There is a keenness to try and understand the North Pole, the ice sheets and the general impact of warming, changing ocean currents, etc. Perhaps we all need to start having those conversations as well.

The Education Bill and the need for Democratic Debates

2009-07-24T13:57:00.001+05:30

[ Had posted this on my other blog by mistake. ]

Parliament just enacted this.

There are some goos intentions and clauses in there to ensure free minimum education levels. But, I have reservations. I do not understand the full implications of this yet, but a quick read did sound like one of those overarching policies that seeks to overhaul and pretend that things have improved because of it, rather than figure out what the problems are. As usual, its not the policy or the "system" but the execution that bears fruit.

The one big issue that I did get a sense of from this document is about bringing under excessive governmental purview the running and operational aspects of private schools. Sure there are problems there that needed fixing, and sure, some of those need legislation - but wouldn't it be the smart thing to first fix the delivery and operational problems at government run or aided schools rather than bring wholesale changes to those which are at least partly working well ? In many instances, I see the more enlightened schools lose a lot of creativity and freedom. It doesn't always have to be brought down to a common denominator, does it ?

Its rarely one size/one price/one set of books/one method. That cannot be healthy. I'm hoping - since I haven't yet understood the full implications of this yet - thats it not so.

The councils that schools currently sign up with (ICSE, CBSE) already dictate too much - even for the lower grades where, ideally, the schools and the teachers are more suited for crafting a course and materials that fit the needs of the immediate social circumstances they're working in. A bunch of guys sitting in Delhi trying to create a one-size-fits-all set of syllabi and courseware is - well - again likely to achieve nothing beyond the common denominator. To add to that, the council now wants schools to first get certification and then open up. A lot many schools founded on alternative education methods have not, and probably cannot afford taken this route on day-zero. Of course, fly-by-night operators use this too - but should one punish those trying to take education forward to curb those unscrupulously trying to make a quick buck ? That sounds dumb. The clause reeks of the slowly ebbing license raj, honestly.

Most critically, while some of the goals are lofty and noble, it'll all depend on execution even more - without which all thats likely is more corruption, shadowy deals and arragements to "meet this condition" or that - and less progressive thinking in education.

Finally, whatever happened to democracy ?

I did not hear of a discussion on this around here, forget participating in one. Exactly what is my elected representative for ? I'm really getting pi**ed with this get-out-and-vote noise - what for ? So someone can claim to speak on my behalf and help enact such legislation without me having the slightest clue to the whats, whys and whens ?

Its signed "ARJUN SINGH" so I'm assuming its some bureaucrats unfinished agenda since the miniter's gone. This urge to "leave a lasting legacy" come what may will cost us a lot, like @rameshsrivats observed wryly.

Who we are

2009-07-24T11:06:00.003+05:30

"...billions will inherit the results of the choices we make now"

Nuff said.

Update : Found some more...

Its Staring in Your Face

2009-07-14T08:33:00.004+05:30

Mid July, and the monsoon is still not really here. Great weather in Bangalore, sure. But precious little rain. They're saying it'll pick up soon, but its a month and a half late!

And its much much worse elsewhere. Imagine getting 30 minutes of water once every 7 days in a major city! Or killing people who steal it unfairly.

I still hear arguments about there being no conclusive evidence of human impact causing global warming and the associated changes. Does it matter ? What's scary is our state od denial, as a species. We continue to worry about property rates, and iPhone releases, and stock market swings.

It sounds like a doomsday scenario, but these troubles could arrive faster than we can live with. Our decades long focus on overspecialization may be our undoing. Shouldn't we all be learning - at a ferocious pace - how to utilize every last bit of freshwater that comes our way from any source ? Isn't it time to not worry about our inconveniences, discomfort, etc and fight whats rapidly becoming a raging inferno threatening to engulf us all ? Why are we so myopic ? Why are we so focused on the here and now that nothing matters beyond the next couple of quarters.

India's population - that had migrated from Africa - had supposedly been decimated about 75000 years ago. And we wallow in the shallowness of our "long cultural history" and what not. Do we even have a sense of how fragile we are, and how wantonly we could be screwing it up, and at the same time losing the skills that'll help us cope when things change ?

To me, its no longer a question of how much, or tokenism. The severe effects of climate change are here, now, and we better figure out both how to reduce our impact as catalysts (even if it is a natural process, the amount of carbon we're helping release cannot be without impact) and how to use whatever little we have as best as possible. We need to let go of our collective greed, look beyond our noses and egos, and not shy away from making dramatic changes. As individuals, as societies and as countries. The developed vs non-developed standoff on who needs to cut emissions by how much seems utterly puerile - you're hurtling towards a cliff in the same bus and debating about who needs to put the brakes on ? Perhaps we the crazy homo sapiens have it coming deservedly.

Admittedly, I'm not feeling too optimistic this morning. I only hope I'm not right either.

Look What I Got Ourselves Into

2009-07-06T19:44:00.003+05:30

Saw this driving contest thingy somewhere and signed up.

After the first couple of steps, realized they need you to spam your contacts over mail, facebook and twitter. That kind of put me off - sounded too much like Roadies or one of those weirdo reality TV shows. And doing that for something you believe in, sure. But for something as frivolous as this, and for personal gain - no way. Amazingly, there's no delete button so there we are - contestants who're unlikely to canvass at all :)

What The Hell Are We Doing ? At All ?

2009-07-04T10:59:00.010+05:30

Three things I caught on the great expanse of the WWW recently:

The Home Project has one of the best made videos I've seen on the planet and its issues. Its long, at 1hr 33mins, but totally worth a watch. Am planning to screen it in our apartment clubhouse over the next week.

This talks about the problems of the planet from the point of view of how it got formed, why life flourished in and helped accelerate the changes that happened over 4 billion years and what the impact that the the last ten thousand years' activities are having on reversing those changes that support life. A sense of whats holistic, whats important as a species as opposed to what matters in the day to day of an individual, and why these are sometimes at loggerheads, is strongly communicated.

Along the same lines, a more direct call to action is made by the Story of Stuff. (At 20 minutes, this is a much shorter video though there's a lot of new vocabulary thats). There's a direct linkage established between our consumption patterns (and the reasons those exist) to the unsustainability of the model.

And finally, the Onion did a satirical take on most people's stated concern about the environment, and congestion. Of course we all want better air, cleaner rivers, less crowded roads. But there are so many others who could do that for us! Of course we know that air-conditioning ends up causing more heat which justifies more air-conditioning .... but right now its a little warm and I'd rather feel cool.

The choices - often for that extra bit of "convenience" - we make today have costs. And the costs may be mounting rather more rapidly than we as a species can afford to.

Delhi loses 10000+ people to air-pollution related causes every year, and 4% of deaths in the US are linked to the same. If those numbers came off air/train disasters, we'd be gunning for so many heads it would shake up governments. But hey, this is not really immediate, is it ? Its just that a huge percentage of our kids will lead sucky, unhealthy lives.

If now is not the time to take dramatic, drastic steps, I don't know where we're headed as a species. Sure, you can argue that "global warming" might have happened irrespective, but the amount of carbon we helped free up (mostly in the last 50 year - just 50!) from its trapped pockets into the atmosphere is something thats not happened "despite us". And its something thats likely to have a huge impact on life as we know it.

But then, no species survives indefinitely. Its just that some of the pointers (listed below) hint that we're playing catalyst towards our own end.

By the turn of the century, there'll be nothing left to mine!
The population has trebled since 1950 - I'm actually wondering if lower mortality having been achieved before education/sustainability will really kill us all, and achieve quite the opposite.
We continue to be carbon-derived energy dependent despite having realized its ills a long time ago
Individually - we cannot seem to take "a little more sweat" or a little extra inconvenience of any form to reduce our impact. This is seen in choices people always make as affluence sets in.
2% people hold 50% of our wealth.
Most poor live in resource rich countries!
There may be no ice-caps left in the summers as early as 2015 (thats merely 6 years away!) or in the best case, by 2030 (our kids will be younf adults)
Freshwater reserves, rainforests which recharge them, wetlands which clean it are shrinking dramatically, and we haven't shown signs of stopping-it-right-now!

By some estimates, in another 10 years it will be too late to reverse what we've done. One does get a sense that natural forces are beginning to deliver us the natural equivalent of "one tight slap". Its proving to be so tough to shake off our inertia and move towards common goals of saving our skins. Right now, we're busy adding neon signs and gloss for individual selves in whatever time we have left.

We - are - so - screwed. And we do not even acknowledge it! I might sound like a prophet-of-doom-on-a-pessimistic day, but I think its critical that - starting now - we err on the side of caution. This is one issue where a 100% proof of causes and effects may be available too late.

Update: What really matters to Bangaloreans ... ?

Help Park-A-Cycle

2009-07-02T08:40:00.002+05:30

The RideACycle Foundation is a non-profit cycling advocacy group which aims to promote cycling for both commuting as well as leisure amongst Bangaloreans.

As part of this, we're rolling out a park-and-ride concept where people may use their cycles from their homes (off the trunk routes) to get closer to bus stops, park them safely there and take a bus. For this, we are requesting apartments, stores and other establishments which are closer to bus stops, shopping centers, etc, to donate 3-5 slots inside their campus for parking bikes and help promote this cause. We will maintain a list of such locations for all cyclists to access.

If required, RAC-F will put up a (movable) cycle rack to enable this.

We will be giving out id-cards for ensuring access control so no unauthorized people enter the premises, and users of this facility will be allowed only with these cards, and only if free slots are available. RAC-F will maintain updated contact details of all id-card holders.

The parking providers will have no formal liability towards the safety of the bikes inside their premises, and users will need to ensure they lock the bikes properly. [Of course, it would be great if we can request the security folks to keep an eye out, especially if these slots are located such that they are near a security post.]

It would be great if you could bring this up with your association, and let me know if we can get this rolled out at your apartment, or a store nearby.

Your Own Little Space ? Update on the Carmelaram EcoHomes

2009-06-25T11:30:00.001+05:30

http://docs.google.com/Presentation?id=dfps3jzd_98c85h84dd

We have 7 signups for the above so far, and that's enough to kick-off the project. The landowner has agreed, and the legal verification is underway.

However, this is not enough to go through completely with the self-funded model, and an alternative has emerged such that all willing to participate in the self-funded model continue to benefit from the prices worked out, and the developer, who will work out a funding/model for the rest will be free to price the rest to recover the costs of the additional funds and effort, plus margins. Of course, given that at the moment its a good 15% lower than market pricing will help ensure its probably still attractive, but we will not be managing that aspect beyond the first set of people.

We will continue to influence the design, features and philosophy for the project.

There was a call to meet the builder this Friday - but I'd like to give time to any other people who want to participate in this as part of the first group - so pushing that meeting out to sometime during the coming week.

The meeting will be to:

a) get an initial EoI in terms of a cheque and firm up the numbers of the seed group
b) get all your queries answered (financing, legal, model, etc)
c) draw up the list of "requirements" the initial group wants the builder to adhere to

The initial fund expectation from the early group will be in region of 15L over a few months.

Given the change in the model, the project will be branded under as a RareEarth project, and all subsequent interactions beyond this first group will be with RareEarth directly.

If you're interested, and would rather get it done cheaper, drop me a mail at getDOHTsameerAHTgmail

Be The Change : No longer a Corporate Cog

2009-06-25T08:17:00.008+05:30

[ This is the second one I'm doing as part of stories about people who embraced change . ]

Sharath Raju was in a great place in life - bang in the middle of the IT story with a nice juicy salary, a modeling career in parallel and pursuing his love for cycles in parallel.

But then, TFN happened, and Sharath actually quit his job to go on the tour!

Around the same time, cycling started becoming a big thing around Bangalore and along came an interesting opportunity - Decathlon started operations in India and Sharath got in touch to explore if he could work with them. Lower salary to start off with, at least, an uncertain path (its still a small market, really) and surely not the usual climb up the career ladder for folks in IT. But the heart ruled, and the promise of being able to professionally pursue something he really enjoyed was a major draw.

Sharath now works for Decathlon as their Biz Manager. He cycles to work everyday and is also a trekker, rafter, and model!

Sharath speaks about his life altering decision:

What was the change, and how did it come about ?

It was more to do with my psychological self. It had been 3 years into the IT field and life just went on. When i started exploring new fun-filled activities like biking/running daily/weekend, reality used to strike me to re-look into my real interests. While i was deep into the organizing of the TFN event, i woke up one fine day to realise, i am not gonna do this job anymore. I put in my papers, and headed off on the tour! :) .I think i chose to follow my feelings and not what the world has to say.

After i started working on making TFN a success through partners and sponsors, i got in touch with the Decathlon guys to see if they would be interested. Edition '08 didn't receive much support from Decathlon, but the relationship was developed and we were appraising them regularly about the success of the event, and the execution. In Feb '09 i got an enquiry that they were looking for Technicians on their Btwin brand. I decided to apply as i saw that was fairly in line with my interests.

Got a call in March from Prajval, the then Business head for Institutional sales and marketing, to discuss my interests and areas i would like to contribute. And in was on board without much delay in April.

Why ?

Peer pressure, immediate and extended family pressure, my marriage, all played a influential role at different stages. Living a life just to satisfy a imaginary level of ego, restricted my liberty to explore new ways of living life. I had to give that up and was waiting for the right moment.

Impact ? Financially ? Lifestyle ? Etc...

I was 'unemployed' for 3 months, which was like a WHOA? especially when you're amidst close family ties. Yes it was tough, and the pressure psychologically and emotionally was surmounting. But that grind only could make me stronger and look at the long term. Considering i had some outstandings, yes i was wholly dependent on family. I think i've never saved enough money in my life than i did in those 3 months.

Early thoughts ? Others' comments ? Self-doubts ?

Yes, i had a mix of positive energy bursts and emotional breakdowns at the same time. Being in close family/friend circle boosted my level of confidence. I suffered in my mind trying to figure out my real interest in my life. One question that always lingered in my head all through the day was to figure out what gives me most joy in doing and can be profitable as well.

Experiment, or sticking to it ?

I also said to myself, why did i ever leave my job, I could've just stayed on and figured it out on the way. But the best part of this is, unless you're put into this vulnerable position, we're always unwilling to come out of our comfort zone and put ourselves to the test.

Why did u persist ?

Because knew this is the chance to prove myself as an individual, and set an example.

Isn't it scary ?

Very, very scary. I decided to laugh about it, live the good times by catching up with friends. This helped me get away from lonely or diverting feelings. And I even got valuable advice to help chase my dreams. I realised one thing though, 'Time is the healer'.

Biggest benefits ?

Oh, once you believe this is where you belong, the sense of achievement and confidence is unimaginable. It strengthens your humility and respect the simplicity of life.

Why should others do it ? When should they follow something ?

It is better to realize one's interest early to lead a happy and contented life. Because once you grow old, all you have time for is to reflect on the good old days, and wonder if it could have been better. At least i don't want to die an unhappy man!

Tips ? Advice ?

Keep your head up, event at the toughest of times. Because even your strongest belief of being strong would be put to the test, and you will be forced to doubt your capabilities. Contrary to these thoughts, if you fight these emotional swings, one shall come out a winner! Life's only worth living to the fullest!

Sharath's switch was a bold move, especially from where he started on the new path. A lot many folks I know have wanted to make such changes at multiple points, but the decision to dive right in is never easy or certain. The fuzziness, nervousness is always a part of it, as Sharath candidly points out. The important thing is go ahead and make the switch. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. And its your dreams and your life at stake!

[ Oh, and now you know whom to ask for when you go over to Decthlon's huge store off Sajrapura Road to check out bikes and accessories :D ]

Sustainability : Needs, Possession and Sharing

2009-06-24T16:47:00.005+05:30

The Story of Stuff video that I mentioned in my last post talks about how consumption was pretty much engineered to keep the ever higher production capacities going. It mentions that 99% of all stuff produced in the US gets discarded within 6 months! People are egged to buy, buy more and keep buying by messages that communicated the strategies of planned and perceived obsolescence to consumers.

Need ?

Some words thrown in this mix of marketing, messaging are cool, need, efficient, faster, cheaper, savings. Its either a sense of comparison with the rest of the world around you, and often a false sense of missing out on something thats started to define even what used to be basic "needs".

Brushes that tell you they're due for a change. Phones which are so out of date in year that you have not even used a small fraction of its features, but that new one is so much sleeker. Cars which drive perfectly alright, but hey we're not keeping parts available beyond 2010.

Water ? Yes, even good old h2o has gone aspirational with major lifestyle water brands !

Possess!

Even worse is stuff that we use maybe a couple of weeks in a year, but each of us must have!

We have a ladder at home that's needed once is a while. A couple of people asked how much it was, etc, and I suggested they could use ours since we didn't need it at that point. It now gets circulated a lot within our apartment complex and its saved a lot of people a lot of space, money and all of us a lot of needless products sold!

Sharing is a simple tool that will work for a lot many things like it worked for the ladder!

Kids, for instance, see a lot of toys with their friends, and there's an immediate follow-up at home with a demand that the same be mad available. Parents, especially those with busy schedules and decent disposable incomes, by and large give in to "not deny my kids simple pleasures". The alternative, which a few parents around where we live have started practicing, is to encourage kids to interact, and share whatever they have. Not only does it avoid unnecessary purchases (have you seen the number of toys that just live inside boxes and under beds once they're brought home?) - but also helps social interaction, negotiation skills, and a respect for valuation of considered needs and desires over every impulse to own this and have that.

What else can we share ?

Carpooling is a form of sharing as well. Taking a bus is sharing-nirvana!

I remember a whole bunch of us sitting around our neighbour's TV set during major cricket series when we were kids. It was actually a whole lot more fun than watching the matches alone, as is the norm now. Hand-me-downs still keep my daughter's wardrobe quite fresh and there's a minor freecycling movement of sorts in our apartment around kids prams, cots, clothes, shoes, etc!

Its sometimes economics that forces these choices. But I have increasingly felt a need for these choices driving our economics. Built it around services that work for sustainability, and not consumption.

The Story of Stuff, the Price of Things, Etc

2009-06-23T22:33:00.004+05:30

Came across this awesomely done video that explains in brief what we've been doing wrong.

I'd written earlier about us not paying for the "real costs" and the need for building those into economic models so long term damage to the ecology, our health, our social structures is tougher to get away with. The video talks about that point, amongst other things. Its a very good way to understand what is really broken holistically.

The sad part is, the consumption led model and its associated economic, marketing theory was sold very aggresively through all the literature created around it, and all the institutions that sell it through multiple fora - both economic and social. Our world trade models, the basis of and assumptions for free trade, and even key economic indicators of growth, poverty and properity are influenced by these motivations and models. Its all pretty broken, and depressing. Modern economists are more or less at a loss when it comes to figuring out fixes that look beyond these problems that have led to ecological, social and more recently, even financial distress across the globe.

I think the solution is not top down, but bottom-up - like the video suggests as well. We need to move away from consumption at our individual levels, and stop identifying and defining our lives through the brands we own or consume and consumer choices we make all the time. It'll force a rethink and change at various levels, and best of all, will lower aspirational stress, improve our conenctions as producers and nourishers - not just consumers, and force the evolution of alternative models for economic success and growth.