Back With My Scooter

In my last post I had shared my experience of dancing while driving.

The new experience makes me laugh and thank God at the same time.
Well, not so long ago as always I was getting ready to leave for home.

So as usual after collecting my stuff which include a bag, an empty tiffin, the helmet, the jacket, then connected the mobile to the hands free, switched on the FM, wore my anti-glare, located the scooters key (phew!) and walked out.

As soon as I walked out of the building I saw two of my colleagues coming back from a meeting and after exchanging good byes we continued our respective task, I started walking to the parking and they puffing there already lite cigarettes.

Again, as always I placed the tiffin and then my bag in the front carrier of my scooter, unlocked the scooter, wore the helmet, pulled it off stand, turned it in the direction of the road, put the stand back, kick started it, boarded it and when I was about to put it in gear I saw another of my colleague joining the earlier ones. He was standing at the corner of the road and my naughty self was in mood of full action.
The scooter moved and I stopped it right in front of my colleague trying to make him edgy by racing the accelerator and making the scooter move forward a notch and then stopping it again.
Soon I decided to let go (after all it was my petrol which was burning!). After another round of good byes I started off.

The scooter lunged forward and before I could realise I along with my scooter was on the ground.
The first instinct was to get up and hope no one has seen me fall...

Unfortunately I saw not just my colleagues but security guards, drivers and other people present there run towards me.

The colleague whom I was troubling reached me first and help me remove my helmet and assess the damage. Nothing much was evident that time.

Now the million dollar question... How did it happen?
I don't know.
My colleagues.. don't know. They heard a loud bang and saw me flat on the ground.

The line "Humpty Dumpty had a great fall" came to my mind and seemed so apt.
I started laughing and my colleagues joined me.

I suddenly remembered to access the damage done to my scooter and was hurt to see what had happened.

Anyways when I reached home I realised the full impact of the fall as my both palms, knees and stomach were paining. My right hand had suffered the biggest blow and was scratched from the elbow to the palm with blood oozing out nicely.

A freak accident, but a thought which came to my mind seconds after the fall was Thank You God for this and not something bigger!

Well the physical damage I suffered has almost healed but till date I don't know how it happened.

Me, My Scooter & The Music

A combination of Me, My Scooter & Music.... seemed very normal and usual till few days back...

One fine day the meaning of this combination changed....

How? When?? Where???
Here it goes...

One fine evening, few days back, like always I walked out of my office, plugged my hands free to my mobile and switched on fm, started my scooter and was on way to home.

That day my scooters accelerator was giving me some problem and used to get stuck at a place if raced and had to use slight pressure to move it down.

I thought that I'll grease it when I reach home.

(Un)Fortunately the RJ was playing all my favorite songs, some which I had not heard for a long time and was enjoying it thoroughly.

A song got over and the next song which started was, Mambo No 5...

I have some very sweet memories with this song and I till today don't know what got into me then.

I broke into a dance.
Yes, while riding my scooter I was dancing.
The accelerator problem helped me here as I had coolly left the handle to guide me rather than the other way round.

So after few mins when the song ended my hands went back to the handle and I again started guiding the scooter.

At that moment I realised what I had done!

I have a smile playing on my lips when I am remembering that now.
It was a very stupid and risky thing to do but I don't know what got into me then.....

I have not mentioned this at home or I would be banned from even touching the scooter....

I do ride my scooter with my hands off but that is for very short duration.
This particular instance was the longest and the best....

Oh How I enjoyed it!!!!!

I hope I am able to muster enough courage to try this again....

I would love to....

Freedom

I have been driving my two wheeler for a long time and I am very sensitive about it.

I get very offened if someone calls my Scooter, 'scooty' coz I dont drive a non geared vehicle as I Hate them.

I have driven my scooter at all possible speeds and there was a time when we friends used to compete to drive the slowest....On the contrary We used to indulge in racing too....
But those were my school/college days!
Driving my scooter later had become just a necessity and somehow I just stopped driving.

About 2 years back I started driving again.
I once again realised the joy of driving, rediscoverd the feeling of ecstasy when the breeze kisses your face!
But this joy was not long lived and again I went back to days without my scooter.

I was back on the seat of my scooter few months ago but the elation I used to feel was missing and driving it from IP Extn to Okhla -III & back had become a normal, monotonus routine.

But all changed today.

I like most days was running late for work and to top it all there was a HUGE traffic jam from Sarai Kale Khan till Ashram which meant a delay of atleast 1/2 hour.
I dont know what came to my mind and I made a U turn and took the Pragati Maidan way to Okhla via Jangpura and Nehru Place. After I crossed Pragati Maidan, I was pleasently surpried to get traffic less road and I raced up the accelator and was driving at a speed of slightly above 80 km/hr. But before I could start enjoying it, I reached office! I must add, in time....

But opportunity knocked my door again.
Later in the day, I was running late for a very important meeting in NOIDA and to cover up the lost time, I decided to drive down.
I took the DND Flyway and I didn't realise when I reached my destination. The most surprising part was that I didn't think about the meeting at all.

So on my way back I again took the DND Flyway and relived the joy of driving.
I rediscovered the feeling of ecstacy when the breeze kisses your face, driving with half closed eyes with a smile playing on your face.

I felt that the glass wall around me has broken!

The breeze had taken away all my worries and the capacity of few emotions to make me gloomy. Oh I was alive again.
I was free......................... yet again!

Changing Ways!... But

I have been noticing certain changing ways.
Of????
Of we Indians. Yes the ones staying in big city. I won't be able to comment on the ways of smaller towns or villages as have recently not been exposed much to the way of living there.

Rakhi came and went two days back.

I was happy that my office had declared leave on the occasion of Rakhi and would give me some time to spend at home and do some pending household work.

But, I was not atall ready for what I experienced.
(Un)Fortunately I had to step out of home, and no not to tie rakhi as I don't have any real brother and my cousins don't stay in the same city.

The first 10 minutes on road were a smooth drive and then suddenly all hell broke lose. There was traffic chaos everywhere. The vehicles would not stop coming and we were stuck in the middle, couldnot go in front nor could turn back.

In all the chaos and confusion as usual my mind started running on another tangent.

In my mind I was running backwards, yes back in time.

I ran back in my memory to that thread end which I could remember and stopped.

Then I started walking again from my past towards my present.

Festivals in my childhood (won't say my younger days as it will sound as if I have gone old!) were also occasion of celebrations and ways of sociallising with family and friends. And such occasions were few to be precise 3 occasion throughout the year viz; Holi, Dushera & Diwali.
But with years more festivals started gaining importance socially.
Soon it started becoming a status symbol to celebrate festivals.

And after the Indian Economy boom it is reaching a new high...Commercially.

Yes Our festivals have become commercial.

Just think and see around you. The euphoria created due to any occasion is so inflated that its glitter sometimes take my breath away.

On the brighter side, we are becoming more and more secular and flexible. Baisakhi is no longer a festival celebrated in specific states of North India. Be it Pongal, Idul-Zuha, Id (oh I love demanding Idde from elders), rakhi, karva chauth, chat puja, christmas or anything, everyone wants to celebrate every festival, give and receive gifts, and just have a gala time.

But, I don't know how right or wrong is this.

It's just that I find it wierd. Guess somewhere deep down in my heart I am still old fashioned.
Maybe my lifestlye, my behaviour, my actions have changed as per the 'culture' prevalent around me. But somewhere a corner of my heart has refused to change...

May Be...