De-creeping

Bangalore has a special kind of winter chill (if i may use the W word at all for this place) - it's creepy. It literally 'creeps' inside your body, settles itself there nicely and then starts sends pangs inside your system, everyday. The same cool breeze & sun-less sky, which some weeks back made you scream "awesome mausam!!", now make you cringe and tug your jacket a bit tighter. For some people, it manifests as a never-ending cold - you can't decide you're healthy or not. I guess i'm beginning to understand why some people can wear thick sweaters in Bangalore too - too many creepy winters accumulated.

Though last weekend, i crept outta its grasp and found myself on my way to a picnic some 150kms off Bangalore. I couldn't keep my eyes off the Karnatakan landscape (magically enhanced due to the bewitched, overcast sky) and wasn't really expecting much from the first place on the agenda - Shivasamudram Falls. My first glimpse of it evoked feelings similar to probably what Fernando de Berrio would have undergone when stumbling through the South American jungle he would have found himself in the company of Angel Falls. Shivasamudram Falls felt like another world from another time. The fact that i had to do a little bit of river crossing to reach it, added to the adventure. The Falls' water was pleasantly cool and the water's slaps felt like an aimless massage on my muscles. Though the slimy rocks did play spoilsport and didn't really allow us to play free, everyone looked like a bunch of wild kids let loose after many days. Worth climbing down each step of the 80 stepped, stone set of stairs (not recommended for oldies or those with knee problems btw).

The other place, Talakad, was exactly the opposite of the Falls. We found ourselves plopped on baby-soft, seaside sand on the banks of Cauvery. Cauvery which was ever so gentle and placid, invited you to try all your wildest swimming stunts. The river was so shallow there, that the men giving rides in Coracles (the small round boats, inlaid with woven wooden strips, covered with plastic cover and then tar for waterproofing), also known as "tappas" locally, used only a long wooden stick to push the river's floor and move the boat forward. No oars, no motors - mere pushing. Across the bank i could see a forest so beautifully ethereal that it seemed outta a storybook. I guess the clairvoyant sky added to it. Although it was just across the river, it felt like a land which no one touched or ventured into. Laden with secrets and camouflaged with fleeting pristinity...

Funnily enough, i found myself back into my cotton kurta sans a jacket/stole when i went back to office this monday. I guess i shed some of the creepy winters back there. I think i've found a way to de-creep myself from the Bangalorean chill! :D

The song tonight, is a song which has gripped me off late. Downloaded by a friend on my laptop, this song, "Eyes on fire" by Blue Foundation has a feel which is chilling yet sensuous. I bet you'll be tempted to play atleast twice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IHFVn0sv14

Eternal sunshine leaves a Spotless mind :)

A few days ago I got a bit wet in one of the perennially unexpected showers that Bangalore is endowed with. Starting to shiver a bit, I got on to a bus, which was a First for me in this city. Not a good start to attempt a First surely. My language handicap coupled with my haggard state slowed me down which in turn turned up the conductor’s temper. With a shiver that was starting to spread speedily now, I managed a ticket which would get me somewhere familiar. My eyes darted for a seat and zeroed in on two targets: one was a fragile, middle aged lady holding a ‘1by2 kaafee’ (typically, Bangaloreans are found enjoying their coffee in tiny glasses, hence the name 1by2) and the other was a young girl, iPod pumping through her head and a blank face staring into nothingness. I found myself sitting down next to the old lady. Typically I would have chosen the young lady holding the promise of knowing a language that I could converse in. Suddenly, two words flashed across my mind and I believe I found an interesting explanation for what I’d just done. The words were – “Attribute Substitution”.

More than a couple of months back, I’d stumbled across this concept and since then would consciously try to see if it actually worked like it did on paper. It refers to a phenomenon whereby we judge something seemingly more complex (target attribute) on the basis of our understanding of something  comparatively easier (heuristic attribute); meaning that we take a simple judgement, like noting a warm or cold day, and apply it to a larger, more complex one, like whether the planet is headed for global meltdown.

“This substitution is thought of as taking place in the automatic intuitive judgment system rather than the more self-aware reflective system.” Extending this funda to our day-to-day situations throws up interesting inferences. Multitude tests were conducted in this regard which included: a stranger holding a cup of hot coffee when compared to one holding iced coffee, yielded more positive responses from people when asked to rate the person. Reminds us of our own 1by2 lady, eh?

A more scientific explanation for this intriguing occurrence is through this part of our brain called Insula which acts like a cross over between the outside world and our experience with it. So sensations like disgust at a gory scene or craving for a chocolate can be blamed on this. It’s also your social guide wherein it hints us when to feel guilty or joyful or embarrassed. Now this tiny, peach shaped entity holds the key to some of our unconscious behavior - warmer the temperature, greater the level of trust exercised. Sunnier days amplify trading of riskier stocks. Waiters’ pockets are heavier when it’s warmer. Think about yourself and recall your moods on sunless winter days. I tend to hear a lot more cribbing, overcast thoughts rule the skies, and in general merry making slips. If you Wiki it, you’d get to know many other such examples, each with its own sense of intrigue. For the lazier ones out of you, here’s the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attribute_substitution

This is yet another display of how much our unconscious governs our lives and how at times, we are mere puppets of our own selves. It explains why and how our biases and prejudices grow within us and take root, without us even knowing. Why the picture of our minds bears unwanted blotches. This also goes to to display how our physical manifestation, our bodies are connected to that which we can't see, our unconscious. I could go on and on about this, but keeping certain readers in mind (especially you, Alan Sama), I’ll cut it here and leave you with a song by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkle, "Dust in the wind". Uncoil... :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11mYdYrZfSI