August 31, 2007

The Rookie Bargainer That Is Me

"Here's the rule for bargains: Do other men, for they would do you. That's the true business precept."
                                     -- Charles Dickens

          I've always wanted to improve my bargaining skills and i got the perfect opportunity for that when i went to b'lore with my chums. Well, i was planning on a shopping spree plus an opportunity to booze up. Shopping spree just means hunting for cheap t-shirts and fake watches. The only branded thing i wear is my beloved nike shoes (but that too, one i bought at a discount from the factory outlet). Yup i'm not a sucker for brands, i look for cheapness and utility, a trait that is passed on to me from generations. But, unfortunately, yours truly doesn't exhibit good bargaining prowess. So for the benefit of the posterity i decided to improve upon it.

DAY 1:

I went to this place called commercial city. There was a plethora of shops juxtaposed in that long never-ending road. Saw a young chap selling fake esprit and diesel watches. His seemingly innocent face made me want to attack him. I scanned all the watches and put up a mature face with an omniscient look.

me (taking the esprit watch): kitna?

young chap: 220

me: nahin nahin, 200.

young chap: 200, leeloo.

me: uh!! (damn it, should have told a 100)

Nevertheless, i bought the watch.

DAY 2:

After a not so succesful barganing attempt , i went to this cool dude, who is a self proclaimed maestro in bargaining. He took me out to some corner of the city, planning to buy a watch for himself (fake ofcourse). He picked up a seemingly good old man, senility seemed to have taken the better out of him.

cool dude (picking up a watch): ye kitna ka hai?

not-so-cool old man: 225

cool dude: 25 ko dedo

not-so-cool old man: @#$$#@$#@................@#$%$@##$@

Though i didnot learn much about bargaining , i definitely learned a few "good" hindi words.


P.S. The watch i bought for 200 bucks still works perfectly without a single complaint so far.

10 comments:

AnU said...

It's worth reading.
And.... as u said....& also frm d way u bargained & bought tat watch its clear tat u r really a "poor" bargainer.but nyways......in futue if u get nother chance....try to be a better bargainer....
But nev'r like tat cool dude.....coz he was tooo gud....
And u guys were lucky enough to hear some "good" hindi words.....
&...... u could hav hav waitd for som "gud" hindi actions.....lol...
ippo manasilayille bargain cheyumbollum oru mayyam okke vennamnu........

KP said...

funny............
The blog helps everyone to find a tutor for Hindi.............

thomas said...

@anu: "gud" hindi actions undaakunnathinu mumpu thanne nammal sthalam kaaliyaakki, hehe. Btw, will not quit with this. Iniyum avasarangal undaakumallo

@kp: Ya, anyone who needs coaching in "good" hindi words can approach me.

Anonymous said...

Never commented any blog so far....but this one is worth reading..keep it up thommu...inspire others tooo....cheers..!!

thomas said...

@zach aka chatti: thnx for dropping by, my dear project mate.Hope u've done with ur googling.

Anonymous said...

hey nice one..again..
well this guy has definitely got a solid hold over the language...
about bargaining ..its all sure luck..
if ur thing lasts-u r luckiest person
if it dosent-u hav been fooled..
simple...
anyhow thomas keep up the good work...

thomas said...

@ashwin: Thanx raja. Well,the watch still works, its been over a year, but got a coating of rust on its sides, so bought a diesel watch last week (cudnt bargain though, hehe).

Anonymous said...

clearly a poor bargainer!!!
200 moneys is worth for 2 watches...super spendthrifts will always be like tat.....he he....
reason for calling him a superspendthrift is that bluffed story of NIKE shoes....
imagine about a guy who buys 2 pair of shoes of different brands in span of 2 weeks...tats thomas!!!

crazybiker46 said...

actually i'm not into blogging........tats y no name....but a comment is worth 4 my pal.....

thomas said...

@anonymous aka crazybike46 aka rossi ka beta: Anif, its u, isnt it....no:46, rossi's biggest fan....And one of the few ppl who knows about the so called "bluffed" nike story. Finally u visited my blog....Cheers. By the way, i hate being called a spendthrift, the nike case was a different story altogether.