[The Silver Bullet>

I'm spending time on a book called 'Making Decisions' to compensate for lack of attention during my two statistics classes (one was a dud, the other was a super brilliant guy who loved Emily Dickinson -- and Emily Dickinson was what I got out of that one). But not all decisions are analytical. Some are not even remotely so. One such decision is my buying the Royal Enfield (RE) Bullet a few days ago. Like my former friend (!) Bhaskar said he's "more intrigued with the random mind that attempts to make these decisions than the decision itself." The RE company showroom is in Bandra - close to where I live. One day - for no apparent reason, I walked into the showroom and admired how beautiful those machines looked. A few days later - again for no apparent reason, I walked into it and test drove on a Thunderbird. The next day - for a very apparent reason, I walked into it and test drove a Bullet Electra that still beats on the original Bullet engine (the Thunderbird has what is called an AVL engine). 5 minutes after that test-drive, I purchased the silver Bullet.

Mostly, it is the sound. The sound that doesn't rumble but a thud, thud, thud, thud, thud timbre that by its unhurried bass indicates - ok, I'm here. The beast is fat - it's just fat - not muscle, not shapely - fat - Sumo wrestler fat - like it's intended to be. And it's beautiful. Whether one is enamored by it or not, one can't really avoid its presence - it's there - it's just there by itself without really caring what's around it. It reminds me of the aplomb of the mountains -- they just stand there without inching an inch (yes, theoretically they do). The handle makes your shoulders more strapping than they are intended to be. It has no major gigs - its metal is beautifully wrapped over a solid engine - simple. And all this is without even driving it. When you do drive it, it doesn't instigate you to go fast -- it makes it as appealing when you drive it slow. It's the sound. It's also the smell and heat brought about by its exothermic endeavors. How its body balances when you curve, how it makes you comfortable when driving down a slope, how it pauses cars to give you way, how it sucks up the potholes and buffers it for you, how it placidly beats at the traffic light and doesn't need you to prod it -- oh boy, it's got soul. How a company that was lugged out of the edges of bankruptcy could wrap so much beauty and soul into one machine is truly amazing!