Survival of the fittest!!

How did Darwin decide on the survival of the fittest concept? You think its coz he researched through a million papers and saw monkeys and fishes and amphibians and decided that we evolved coz we were fitter? NO!! He must have come to India and decided so.

Just back from HDFC bank and made these conclusions. Had been there to pay my Visa fees. (Yup, done that; Yay!!) I was waiting for the help desk to get information for the visa application as the guy in the counter was explaining personal loan concept to someone. I wait and wait with etiquette, and so many others don’t bother and budge in with their queries, get them clarified and leave. I still patiently wait for the person to leave and then ask them for the challan.

Get it, fill it and now will have to go to the counter to pay the fee. Wait in the long queue and for want of personal space stood with a reasonable gap between the person before me. By then two ppl stepped in front of me, with no concern what so ever that a girl was standing in the queue too. I realise soon that time is more important than personal space and walk up to person in front of me now and stood so close, that air molecules would have found it difficult to fit in. NOW, nobody intrudes. Lesson well learnt!!

I, wait and wait and finally very near the only counter that is open. All other counters have a board which says ‘COUNTER CLOSED’. Now a lady comes sits in one of the counters, and DOES NOT bother to remove the signboard. But once a human is spotted in that place, ppl from my queue ran to that lady with all their money or cheques or whatever. A lil less than a stampede, but still stupid to look at. The lady started collecting but never bothered to remove the sign.

I, my usual self, stay in the same line and wait for my turn. There is a bright yellow line across the counter which says ‘Only one person beyond this line’. There were 4 ppl beyond that line, all peering over the one guy who was depositing a few five hundred rupee notes. They were looking into the slip that had his account no/credit card no. Basically these things are very personal to ppl. These ppl who were peering over, may not do anything with those particulars. Knowing how much the person has in his account or how much he is drawing or depositing may not be huge issue, but it still is something personal. No matter how innocent their ‘viewing’ may be, it still is irritating. High time ppl realise it.

It was my turn now and I stood behind that line until all cleared away. Then I went forward, by which time the guy behind me had moved forward to speak to the teller. Yup!! he just overtook me to deposit his money. I excused myself and went forward and paid the money, while he was withdrawing his from the bag. Thank goodness for some justice.

Paid the money, thanked the guy in the counter (for which he looked up and smiled) and left. On the way back the roads yet again proved the same issue. A junction with no traffic signal and nobody is willing to stop to give way to another. I was driving and I waited until the point of me realising that I was real stupid and started moving the car, and inched my way through the major traffic and reached home.

Start to End.. Its the only concept that works. SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST!! and I am so not fit to be here!! humph!!

Why I can’t read maps!!

I can’t drive. Period. Not on these roads anyway. I have travelled to coll these 4 yrs by bus for 2 hours minumum each day. I have never doubted the driving. But I learnt driving barely 6 months back and I have been most scared to travel by bus now, though its the same ppl drivin, same route, same bus, but scary!!

Same issue with my dad. My dad is a super driver. A rash driver. He drives, drinks, smokes, eats and I have seen him changing shirts. ALL WHILE DRIVING!! Have I cared? No!! I trust him. Even when he goes at 100 kms/hr (which is a lot acc to me) I was cool.

Not anymore. I started driving and every turn my dad takes without me realising the decelaration I close my eyes and scream at dad. I started getting paranoid with my bus drivers driving. But I must really appreciate their precision. Two huge buses travelling side by side (that’s coz the drivers are racing against each other) and if I reach out, I can touch the next person’s face. The one that belongs to the gal sitting in the next bus!! One inch off, and at those speeds we’d have been spinning away to death. I do appreciate their ability to control their vehicles with such precision, but all these issues which were so oblivious to me, suddenly seem to completely disconcert me now. This explains why ppl say that IGNORANCE IS BLISS!! It truly is!!

So, why am I talking abt all this now?? I don’t know. I just realised yesterday that there is no way that I can ever drive. Two reasons.

1. The route to my dad’s office, a place to which I have been driven to, a MILLION times now. Do I know it? Do I remember it? NO!!

Do I know if SRMC hospital is in Porur? NO!! Not until my dad told me so last year and I have been passing that place for the past 4 yrs.

Basically I can’t remember routes to save my life.

2. I need discipline on the road, to drive.
When I see three auto guys occupying three diff lanes and all going in the same horizontal line, I just get soo irritated. They are deaf to the honking horns from my car. And there is no way that my car would fit between the two autos. Man!! Frustrating!!

Two wheelers need a completely new post. They, I do agree, have as much rights on the road as I do, but they should realise that the speed of a car and that of a bike are entirely two different things. So if they wish to travel in the middle of the road, the car will have to match to the speed of the two wheeler. Does it occur to them, that it slows down the entire traffic following. NO!! The road belongs to them and they shall travel right in the middle.

So what do I do? Decide not to drive!! Not that my driving is great. But I believe that I don’t intrude anybody, except for the once that I scratched someone’s car with my brilliant driving. Well I have been good since then, so lets not get into the details. My driving is great as long as someone sits beside me and tells me that I have to turn left, right, slow down, overtake now, brake and stuff. Basically I work with the precision of a machine, with absolutely no brains and yes I have a driving license.