Choosing the Best

We take our grandson to Chuck-e-cheese in Lexington. We have won some coupons and he gets to choose a gift. There are tiger masks, attractive building blocks, puzzles,  large beads and what not. Our little boy places a finger at a 3 inch plastic blue car. I want that he says. We try to distract him with other 'BETTER' things. But he is determined. So we save most of the coupons and get him his plastic blue car.

We visit the super bazaar in Gurgaon. I am looking for rice. Plain rice to go with sambar and saaru. The helpful assistant tries to tempt me with umpteen options of Basmati rice. This has very good aroma, this one cooks in 12 minutes, this is special long grain ....   Arre baba, please! I dont wan't Basmati. I just want plain rice. But ma'am, he looks at me, pained, We offer the best. This is BEST rice.

The best?
Doesn't that depend on what I want.
The BEST varies with every person and every need.
Before we join the bandwagon let's get in tune with what is BEST for us ... in the given situation.
and go with that choice. Then there are no regrets.

Jaya by Devdutt Pattanaik

Jaya - an illustrated retelling of the Mahabharata 
by Devdutt Pattanaik

How well do you know your Mahabharata?
The basic story?
Some popular anecdotes?
The whole works?

A cousin from Mysore came to spend a few days with me. We hop on to a metro and explore our part of Delhi. And at this book store she tells me, you must pick up this book on the Mahabharata... gift from me. she says.
I squint my eyes at her. Seriously? One more Mahabharata? aaah
But we go on and buy it. Now that we have shifted and sort of settled down. I begin to read the book.

You know how it is when close family has a chat. You can sail from Meena's flashy new sari, to Naren chachu's inconclusive bride hunting, to Pannu's pakora fiasco and Jaji's jasmine garden of the 80s and everyone is in total sync. for they have experienced it all. and know the connections.

Devdutt knows the Mahabharata like that. He sits down at the courtyard to watch the princes throw dice, he takes a stroll with Krishna as he discusses strategy, he watches Kunti helplessly hold baby Karna in her arms, and reaches out to Duryodhana as he trips into the water-pond.

If you know the stories of the Mahabharata, then you must buy this one. It takes you from one story to next, breathlessly weaving in connections and analogies. And you gasp and say O ya .... hey I had never thought of that.
And the line drawings are endearing. You can see the love that Devdutt has for his subject by his drawings.
I like this one.
it's re-a-l goood.

Sufficiently efficient

We move into this new location in Delhi in the hot summer month of June. We have 5 air-conditioners to be fitted. We are frantic and sweaty.
The AC guy comes with a black tool kit. He takes note of the ACs and counts off the 5 rooms into which they are to go. He peers into the ACs and shakes his head, like a worried headmaster. Service karna padega. They are dirty. they need service. OK do it. we say.

He takes the one window AC into the bathroom. Half and hour later we look for him. Where is he?
He is still with that one AC. Going into every curve and crevice with a fine toothbrush that he has attached to a thin wooden rod. The AC is shining. clean and happy. cleaner than it was even in the factory it came from!
we are impressed.

Two hours sail by. He is with the third AC. Why don't you fit in one AC? Let all ACs get service. Then all ACs get fixed. He says firmly, as if to an 'unreasonable demand of an impatient kid'. I don't want to mess with his feelings. he is doing a fantastic job. By 7 in the evening Our wallet come out. And notes get counted. Kaam ho gaya? Job done? we ask. ready to pay and send!

He ignores us. He walks up to the ACs with a clean cloth and wipes off marks that he has left while fixing it. In true spirit of the Japanese ACs he has come to fit. aaah! OK. done? we ask and open the wallet again.

He traces steps to the hall. He re-positions the stabilizer. snap! the wire link is off. So he connects  it again. and wipes it clean. Now are you done? the wallet is open again.

He almost has his hand out. But no. He remembers that he has left the bathrooms messy. He asks for a broom and cleans up the mess. Ooof! this is way too much efficiency. NOW are you done?

He marches off to the various rooms where he has left the ACs on. Come saab. See the ACs working. He says and diligently turns them all off again... keeping the remotes securely in place. Aaaaah! now he is overdoing it. OK GO! Thank you we tell him. and open the wallet

He stands erect for the first time. Looks up and says... What ever we do, we must do well. Kaam saaf hona chahiye. Our work must be clean and good.

I ponder over my feelings. I admire his commitment. But I am not willing to give him the time. If a job has to be done well, it demands that much time and attention.
How do we reach that optimum point of sufficiently efficient?

• economy of time 
• coupled with perfect completion.

--------------------------------------

------------------------------------