A perplexing question

I am always mystified when I pass by the much-adored Magic Box that has replaced Cauvery Circle in Sadashivnagar. I had heard about this engineering feat from residents, who attributed all kinds of good things to it - reduction of traffic, noise, improvement in morals etc. So I couldn't wait to check it out.

However, when I did see it, I was completely confounded. I couldn't ( and still can't) figure out what it's good for. My first theory was that it was to enable Sadashivnagar residents to bypass the circle. Fly in the ointment is,the underpass surfaces *before* the circle, so vehicles don't really avoid it. Then I was told that it's to avoid a traffic light and congestion. That explains it a little bit, but not really. For one, the magic box is cunningly engineered to fit just one lane of traffic, with a bump at the entrance to boot. So there's build up all the way to Malleswaram. Second, anyone going South can't take a right anywhere between Mekhri circle and Guthalli. And anyone going North has to take a left, a U-turn and another left before they can just go North as God intended them to do . And another thing...oh, forget it, my mind gets all confused just thinking about this eighth wonder of the world.

Perhaps it's a puzzle, one of those living mazes one hears about in Videshi countries. When combined with Bangalore's whimsical one-ways ( guess !! is the high grounds road one-way today or not ? And in which direction?) it's definitely good for keeping the brain agile and preventing Alzheimer's.

Really, it's a tragedy. One hears that college students volunteered to help the BMC out with this thing, and in fact did a lot of manual labor while singing patriotic songs. But it's such a pity that the result had to be, well, what it is.

On the plus side, I am inspired to think of new ideas while I wait for the traffic to clear. For example, I think we should build a large saxophone next to the violin-shaped Chowdiah. Then we can all rightfully bemoan the big time Sax and Violin(s) in Bangalore ( you need to say it out loud to get it).

I suppose some others would say that this just adds to the number of reasons as to why one should get rid of the Magic Box.

The market, economics and business channels

Quick post - whats up with these CNBC and NDTV business channels - cant they make up their mind? Two instances:

Instance 1:

December 2007 stand - "Markets (sensex) are estimated to be at 25,000 levels by March '08 and 30,000 levels by Dec '08"

February 2008 stand - "At 15,000 the markets dont look like they have found the bottom as yet"

Now I understand that they dont drive market forces etc but if they are authoritatively making predictions they ought to have been making them with the knowledge that they dont drive the markets so there must be other data somewhere that they refer to.


Instance 2:

Even if I am not an economics student nor a finance wizard even I can catch this shift even though it pertains to arcane currency markets.

Sept - Dec 2007 comments - The rupee is growing stronger, that's really bad for India inc." etc. So it is established by them that lesser rupees to a dollar is a bad thing. (although with my minimal understanding I know its a bad thing only for exporters who have quoted in Dollars, but anyway)

Todays comment ( background: in the last week or so the rupee has grown weaker i.e. there are now more rupees to a dollar, however yesterday it grew stronger by 1 paise) - so their comment - "Not enough but thats some relief there with the rupee growing stronger"

!!!!

Make up your mind is it a bad thing for the rupee to grow stronger or is it a relief ??? I am sure that cannot be sentiment driven!

From closet TV & Movie buff to spotting the worst design

So pressure builds up. We've started a blog and we don't know what the heck to write into it everyday. Any thoughts right through the day pass through a filter of "Is this blogworthy?" and a few are flagged. Come the end of the day and flags suddenly disappear. So then the mind wanders and looks for something.. and then all one can come up with is Radio, bollywood or TV related! My worst fears might yet get confirmed - AM I A CLOSET TV & MOVIE BUFF?? I hate those fimi and tv types.. I've never wanted to be one of them. Of course then I realise its not that I am a closet anything - pure and simple - I am thinking of topics for this blog when I am watching TV or listening to the radio - duh! what other thoughts do you expect?

That behind us, One of the flags that came up today - I might safely conclude that middle seats in flights are the biggest design flaws in the world of transportation and yet no one seems to want to do anything about them. Why cant there be two armrests or an armrest that's as broad as two? I am almost certain it is so that people have something to do during the flight. Almost like they provide you with a game of chess that you play with your neighbour. You battle your wits with the person and after a satisfying hour or two, you are ready to land.

Here is what typically happens when you somehow land up in the middle seat - you slowly start fighting for space on the armrest/s. You think the other guy does not notice when you slowly slip your elbow in - somewhere in between the two back rests. And then start moving it forward on the armrest from there. But if he is a veteran, he knows (maybe he does the same thing when he is in the middle) and so you feel resistance. His arm just does not budge. All this is surreptitious. Overtly its like nothing is happening - you both look at each other and you give him a nice "Mr. Bean" type grin. He returns it. Both know what's going on. No one says anything about it.

By now you feel you have gained two inches on the armrest. That's the flat part. Then begins the battle of the bulge (which BTW I think is not a very family-type of name). Various tactics come into play and from here on its sheer cunning that can win you your 4-6 more inches. Get those and you are set. You have won. The score thus far - 6 inches needed in one hour to win, 4 inches to draw. You gather your wits and inspect the field. Your surroundings indicate that maybe he has a newspaper in his seat pocket and you don't! (this idea originally belongs to Rajesh Iyer at whose house we had this discussion at length) You ask him for the newspaper in his seat pocket. He might just lift his arm and give you the paper at which time you swoop in! Move your arm the requisite 6 inches or even 8 and stay put! Don't move. You have gained territory but it might be short lived. Keep the extra 2 inches so that you may concede those under pressure at some time in the future before landing.

If the newspaper trick doesn't work then the nastiest one is the coffee or tea spillage on the neighbour trick. Which almost always works but leaves you with a slightly pyrrhic victory type of feeling. If you do reach the end of your tether and have to use this remember - at this point the gloves are mostly off. Anything nasty can happen to you as well - Beany smiles are laid to rest now. The middle seat is right under the baggage rack and "mistakes" can happen when your neighbour tries to get his bag from the rack and some other bag (mostly of the heavy kind) might just slip out and fall onto anything under it, mostly the inviting expanse that is your head.

Anyway and so it goes... there are several tricks in between the two extremes of the newspaper and the tea/coffee spillage tricks and add to that - the whole battle might change if it were a girl/woman next to you. Just too many variables, so many strategies, so much stress... by the time you have landed you are ready to tear the head off any negotiator you were flying in to meet.