Seeing More on the Road
Let's start this post by a scene from the movie Sherlock Homes (2009). Sherlock, played by Robert Downey Jr. is blindfolded and taken to a place that is confidential.
Stranger: "Mr. Holmes, apologies for summoning you like this. I'm sure it's quite a mystery as to where you are and who l am?"
Sherlock: "As to where I am...I was, admittedly, lost for a moment between Charing Cross and Holborn.
But l was saved by the bread shop on Saffron Hill. The only baker to use a certain French glaze on their loaves. The carriage forked left, then right, a telltale bump over the Fleet Conduit.
As to who you are, that took every ounce of my not inconsiderable experience.
The letters on your desk are addressed to Sir Thomas Rotheram.
Lord Chief Justice, that'd be your official title.
Who you really are is, of course, another matter entirely. (my fav line)
Judging by the sacred ox on your ring, you're the head of the Temple of the Four Orders in whose headquarters we now sit on the northwest corner of St. James's Square, I think.
As to the mystery, the only mystery is why you bothered to blindfold me at all?"
SAVAGE!!
I get the fact that the scene described above is from a movie, and it is
a bit far-fetched to pull something like this in real life. Not
everyone gets to be blindfolded every day. Not in a carriage at least 😜.
Before I go any further, I must warn you that this post is one of those types that shine a bright light on the weirder side of my personality. I understand if you find the things I discuss here completely bullshit.
Now that you have been warned, here is a question for you:
What do you do when you are going in a cab OR sitting beside/behind someone who is driving? Especially if the route is same every day?
Most of the answers will be either listening to songs or busy watching something in phone (reels mostly). There is nothing wrong with any of these things, but there are others ways to pass the time and make the journey (however long or short) more interesting.
Pay attention to the surroundings. As simple as that.
Don't worry. I will elaborate.
I used to go to college with one of my
friends on his Activa. He used to come to my house to pick me up and
from the moment I sat down, I had close to 30 minutes until we reached
college. Even though we were the best of friends, none of us used to
talk while on the vehicle for some reason. Both of us listened to our
separate playlists for the entire journey.
Listening to songs was more of a background activity. I had room for doing something else too. But what exactly?
The thought of conducting a random experiment is always there in my
mind. Acting on the thought, I decided to count the shops that I see. Something like SELECT COUNT(shops) FROM surroundings; but in real life.
A bad idea.
Shops zoomed past on both the sides so quickly that not long after I started, my brain was not able to keep up with the count. A literal stack overflow of the brain. Something was needed to filter the huge amount of data. As the next shop I saw was a medical shop, I decided to count the medical shops.
SELECT COUNT(shops) FROM surroundings where category='medical';
This was better.
At least I had enough time to look in both directions. Now the thing with me is, I have very bad cache memory. I have trouble remembering numbers and such things for longer (even shorter) durations of time. I lost count several times and after reaching college, I had a vague count of medical shops in the way which I knew was wrong.
A device was needed to keep track of the count while I focus on the fast moving shops. Luckily, a counter is a common device used specifically for.....well....counting.
When I looked these up, I ended up getting all the three as they were quite cheap. After using each one for a day, I decided to go with the mechanical counter.
- Cost: Rs 45
- Small enough to be wrapped around a finger
- Not enough tactile feedback when pressed
- Will require a change of battery at some point
2. Android Apps:
- Free and tons of options
- No tactile feedback
- Screen should be on at all times
- Cause can hindrance while using music app or during calls
3. Mechanical Counter:
- Cost: Rs 125
- No battery required
- Very good tactile feedback
- The reset mechanism is so cool that it makes you appreciate mechanical engineering.
I have seen these mechanical counters in the hands of security guards of certain shops. I guess they count number of visitors with that. Also, IPL umpires carry them. Not sure what they are counting (maybe boundaries, wide balls etc.). If you know, let me know in the comments. I am eagerly interested.
Every day, I had something new to count and it was strangely enjoyable. Shops that I didn't even know existed came to my attention. I was passing them every day but never bothered to pay attention at them. New hair cutting salons, places to buy ice cream from, chaat shops, and even temples that I had previously missed, caught my attention. I thought of maintaining a list of the things that I count and even noted down some of it, but that is lost now. I can now read names of shop even while the vehicle is moving very fast.
Even if I am not counting anything, it has become a habit of reading out names of shops when I am sitting behind someone on a 2-wheeler. It has been pointed out to me several times by different people. Recently, by a Rapido driver who thought I was speaking to him continuously.
If you are still reading and not weirded out yet, congratulations!
You might not be interested in burdening your every journey with this silly exercise, but I suggest you give it a try at least once. For 1/100 people, who is going to give this a shot, here are a few things that can help you:
You can count any type of shop but a record/knowledge of health related shops and places in your daily commute way COULD BE helpful in an emergency. Hospitals, doctor clinics, pathology labs, diagnostic centers, VET centers is a good place to start.
I know all this information is just a quick google search away. The point of this exercise is to pass the time uniquely on a journey and train our minds to be a bit more observant. If you remember and use this information which saves you a web search then that's just a bonus.
After a while, counting shops can become boring. In that case, you could switch to vehicles. How many EVs you can spot? How many blue vehicles you can spot? How many luxury brand cars you can spot?
If that also gets boring, you can move to the number plates. How many number plates with only even numbers you can spot? When numbers are involved, the possibilities are endless so it's pointless to provide any more examples.
I'll admit that it's been a while since I have done this activity after college. I recently travelled some long distances by auto rickshaw in Bengaluru and decided to start this again. Furthermore, I have added the counter to my carry bag. Expect a post on the carry bag and EDC (Everyday Carry) soon.
I am also thinking of writing something on Sherlock's "The Science of Deduction". Let's see how that goes. Since this post started with Sherlock's dialogue, its only natural to also end with one:
You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear.
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