Organized an offsite session for the team yesterday, at Eagle Ridge. Went off pretty well. Used the six thinking hats technique and came up with a nice long list of issues and ideas.
I wanted to return home early, so hitched a ride with Narasi, a co-worker. His car broke down in the middle of nowhere, also known as Bommanahalli. We were trying to avoid the Silk Board junction and had just entered a river cleverly disguised as a road when the car stopped and refused to start. We pushed it, we pulled it, we murmured sweet nothings into its bonnet but it just dug in its heels and didn't move.
Narasi calls the Hyundai Mobile repair folks, who assure him they would reach the spot in 45 minutes. This is at 7:15pm. We get a call at 8:30 reassuring us they were on their way, they got held up at Tumkur Road. In between these two calls, we witnessed a fight between two cows who had come over to examine the car.
We decide to get a mechanic and hail a passing auto. The passing auto has a passenger who has almost passed out, drunk. He very kindly gets out and ushers us into the auto. He then proceeds to walk away without paying the driver. The driver reaches out and slaps the guy twice. The guy shouts. The driver yells back. We sit in the auto, looking at each other. Eventually they kiss and make up and the driver takes us to Hosur Road, informing us there is a service center for cars very close by. There sure is one - a Maruti service center. The car we have is a Santro.
After much coaxing, we get the Maruti repair guys to come over and look at the car. The autodriver hangs around as he has nothing better to do. Its 9:30pm now. Narasi gets a call from the worthy folks at Hyundai saying that they are very close to Silk Board junction and should be at the site any minute now. We tell the Maruti guys to hurry up. They do and get the car to start. They advise Narasi not to jerk the car as the fuel connection to the engine has a loose contact. Narasi pays them, I pay the auto guy, the cows finally get some sleep and we drive off into the moonrise.
PostScript - Narasi gave me a set of chocolates today, thanking me for sticking with him. Nice of him, really.
This is so funny to read. The actual experience might have been harrowing though!
ReplyDeleteChocolates from Mr. Narasi!?
ReplyDeleteGimme the wrappers! gimme the wrappers!!! :))
Sounds pretty much like Asterix in Bommanahalli.
ReplyDeleteLooks quite interesting. But from the sample snapshots, looks quite tough too ! I don't think I'll join up. Probably lurk around a little
ReplyDeleteYou must be REALLY patient... I can't imagine how frustrated I would've been if I'd tried to get somewhere early and all this had happened.
ReplyDelete