House Hunt 2010

Finding a good house in Bangalore is herculean task.I have gone through this many times before.. But it was in the same area where I live.But this time I have to find a house somewhere else...far away from my current area.My office is shifting to a place 27 Kms away from my present house. I did a measurement this Saturday.

There is no way, I must shift. I can not drive 27 Kms everyday because It takes hell a lot of time to travel 27 Kms in peak hours in Bangalore.

I tried through my friends first.. I started from Koramangala some of my friends live there.It seems one part of Koramangala is only for Millionaires. The other part is just the opposite.I could locate a few houses...but there is not parking facility...That's a major criteria for me.

OK. fine ..I decided to see another area..So visited HSR layout with my friends.There were a lot of good houses...good location..but I was lost after some time..The area is too wide. And no trace of human beings on the roads. Felt like I am in some alien land.We searched some time for TO-LET boards. But we found none.

Ok. That's fine..Good things don't happen so easily. we moved to another area. This time we have an agent with us.People say agents are the best people for anything..but you need to pay them one months rent as brokerage.

He boasted us about a lot of houses in his custody and showed a few of them. None were good. All of them looked like haunted apartments.

Disappointing....But I still have hope...now a days I am going through a lot of these..So I have become more experience in keeping hope...even when I don't see a remote possibility of it happening in near future.After all hope is the thing that keeps us alive.

I registered in www.sulekha.com, an online classified and yellow pages service. I short listed a few house owners in the Airport road area.. Their rent seemed cheap compared to market rates.Visited the area.... whole day... tiring search. First thing area was not good. Secondly all the houses are pretty old...looks they were constructed in British colonial period. I couldn't finalized any..

I contacted one of of my old colleague.. I visited a few houses with him..The first one was a really haunted one.Second one looked like a joined family in Tamil Nadu...Five houses in one row..Women and grandma's were siting out side with kids and small babies...One of them is doing  zoozoo in the middle of the small courtyard. For a moment I imagined about me doing baby sitting....No No.. I don't want this..

Third one was on 2nd floor..But the rent they asked was not worth it. The last one was a good house..in good residential area.. have car parking..semi-furnished.. Looked like the one I had in mind....The broker said owner is willing to let out.I am yet to talk to the owner...

Traffic police fined me again

They did it again....This time they fined me for jumping the signal. I know for sure that it was green when I  crossed the signal...I am so angry that.... smoke is coming out of my ears....

It was around 8 PM..I was crossing the Sadasiva Nagar  signal.. as soon as I crossed, a police man stopped me. He told me to park my car because I jumped the signal.. I told him several times that "It was GREEN"..."It was GREEN"..

He asked me my license..the usual trick...I took out license and given to him..He took me to another AH.
I told him the same... "It was GREEN"..."It was GREEN".. No response ...Grrrr...I shouted.. IT WAS G-R-E-E-N. He did not even look at me... He is busy operating his Blackberry...

Finally he said..either pay 100 Rs. fine or take court notice.. Hmm..court notice..I know..what that is..I had an incident before..I had chosen court notice instead at that time..but when I reached court, they did not accept it..They said its a fake slip to scare people...there is no case...nothing..

So I confidently said..Ok give me court notice.. He said..I will cease your car..(another trick)...Ohoho...
You will cease my car for jumping signal ???

By that time lot of people assembled..I noticed...a queue forming behind me..they all told me in feeble voices.."Yes It was green" and they were murmuring each other..."Yes it was green" "It was green"....

Oh!..I have lot of supporters now..I shouted again.."This is unfair"..I asked the police man "Do you have proof that I jumped the signal?"..He said yes we have cameras all around this signal....

Finally my supporters told me "Bhaiyya fine dedo.. and get out of it." Ok. Ok... I felt that it is better to listen to them..than to waste the rest of the day..proving that I did not jump the signal....

Meanwhile I saw another funny incident..one guy..is giving 70 Rs. bribe to escape from 100Rs. fine..
He is almost hugging the police man, begging to accept it....who to blame for these ??? pathetic!!

I know for sure, whatever happened today was planned..It's a big scam..they are collecting a lot of money as fine and bribe too....
May be their they did not meet their monthly fine collection target..
Or May be its time to pay house rent..buy sarees and lipsticks for wives..

Today they stopped a lot of vehicles...the last ones who cross, before the signal stops are the victims..

To protest against this injustice.. I jumped the next 5 signals...even when it was red...By the time I reached home..I was relaxed that I saved 400 Rs..You must be thinking how..Its simple mathematics.

Jumping 5 signals, Fine = 500 Rs. But actually I paid 100 Rs. Only. So... profit 500-100 = 400 Rs.
Smart isn't it?