Saturday, November 24, 2007

C O M E D Y ..O F ..E R R O R S

I have this knack of getting into issues which cause excitement leading to palpitation but finally end in such a way that I can munch it through my life as sheer happy thoughts!This latest one happened less than 24 hours and before I proceed on my holidays,thought will share..Do you all have a choice..This time no yarn but the whole Truth except of course the names !!

Being a member of a Japanese association ,I was asked to host a dinner for 15 Japanese delegates in town.Normally for such occassions the office bearers troop in along and my job ends in smiles and paying the bill finally.So, fixed the venue as a club in the famous cricket ground at chepauk.

When I called up the club and informed them they cautioned me on the club dress code,and I faithfully forwarded the message to KARIKALAN (KARI)our association manager.In particular,I was warned that overseas people generally landed up in Bermuda,Capri and Hawaii slippers etc.This addtional caution was also transferred to KARI.

The guests were to reach by 730 pm.I was there by 7 pm wanting to ensure I played the perfect role of a host.The first salvo came in the form of..none of the office bearers could join but was told not to worry since two interpretors would accompany to take care of the language issue.KARI called up saying he would also drop out..hm.15 guests and two interpretors,fine I would manage.All that was required was a plastered smile(which I was an expert by now watching the stewardess during theinnumerable trips flying!! )

Dot at 730 got a call on my mobile from one of the interpretor

Saravanan.... Sir where are you..

ME.......... I am in the club .

Saravanan... Sir we are also there

I realised these guys must have landed in some other club across the stadium.Guided him on the phone and in 15 minutes(normally it takes 5 mins ) I could see the two vans entering the club premises.Rushed out,to invite each guest personally.I had already practised how to bow in Japanese fashion and I was well prepared.

The automatic door opened, I bowed to the first Gentleman and as I lifted my head the chill hit me..All that I could see was slippers,raised my head a little to see T shirt without collar and above that a face of a gentle grand old man who must have been well past 80.The smile he gave was wonderful with mouth full of glittering golden teeth.He was Mr.NAKAMICHI or NAKAMICHI SAN in japanese.(SAN ..means avargal!)

One by one they trooped out.Everytime I bowed I was counting ,HAWAI slippers,Collarless T shirts..So it was 5 people in HAWAI slippers,4 In collar less T shirts.I wanted to shoot ..KARI..Now the dress code was glaring at me.. these people cannot enter..The first thought was to call KARI,and ask him to rush.My two interpreters were of no use I realised.Still,I had no choice.I called them aside and explained..

Me.....Saravanan,Arun kumar please listen.Ippo avanga ulla poga mudiyaadhu pa.Ore vazhi,otthar poi ivangalukku nearest shopla T shirtum shoesum vaangi varadhu than.

Arun nee enkuda inga irupa.

Saravanan,nee konjam avangalodu poi vaangi kodu. Credit card irukka pa ?( do you have credit card )

Saravanan....Kondu varale sir.( forgot to bring it )


Me....Indha Rs 4738.irukku,please rush and try to manage in this.

(I told both of them now the guests cannot enter,so asked Saravanan to rush out and buy the shirts with collar and shoes,handed over Rs 4738 and asked Arun to stay back with me )

Both explained the situation to the guests and naturally they were disappointed and wanted to go elsewhere.I pleaded ,apologised.Saravanan did a good job and the guests accepted.Saravanan was off in a jiffy with them .Arun was standing aloof and I told him..INGA VAAPA..He started blasting me as how I could address him as vaapa popa..I told him I meant no harm as I was almost twice his age .I told him sorry.But every 10 minutes he went on harping on the same.Added tension I realised, but kept my cool and with the now infamous plastered smile.

One hour later saravanan landed with the guests in an attire not violating the dress code...9 pm already and club would close at 1030.

Everything went off well,and the guests enjoying the Indian beer and Whiskey.Experts will agree this is a potent combination.NAKAMICHI sans age was telling and by 11 he was fast asleep in his chair.At 1130 we were the only guests around.An one minute thanks speech and then we all started going towards the pick up van.Doors closed.Bowed down and started waving ,the bus stopped.

NAKAMICHI SAN and the lady leader of the team came down and told me something which I couldnt understand.They started running towards the restaurent which by this time was closed. Not understanding,I also ran behind them and they started searching for something under the table where we were seated.I again asked the lady who replied ...teeth! ... WHAT!!

NAKAMICHI SAN was wiser with his age , he just opened his mouth .The gold mine of his dentures were missing..Oh my GOD..

Over the table and under the table were clean..That meant two things..Either the hundreds of cats which loiter around could have picked up the dentures and rushed to their holes or the dentures might have gone off with the dinner plates.I chose the second option since I didnt want to go in search the cats.

Rushed into the kitchen,luckily the cleaning had just started.Went thru the plates meticulously and PRESTO..there it was gleaming gold mine of dentures along with the left over bones.,Happiness lit on our face,washed it with the nearest available mineral water and in a second it snapped on to where it belonged to..NAKAMICHI SAN was happiness personified.

Back to the bus,wished them a SAYONARA.AS I stared moving towards the car ,I could see thru the corner of my eyes ARUN walking towards me,perhaps just to clarify once more as to why I called him VAA,PO..I was in no mood to spoil my excitement and off I went..



TC

CU

85 comments:

Adorable Pancreas said...

Is his name really Karikalan? :D

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Adorable Pancreas
The truth is ..its not..lol.
TC
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Jaggu said...

Thats cool post...check out my updated blogs...

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Jaggu
Welcome..Will do
TC
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Preethi said...

Lovely... The missing gold mines must have been a sight!!!:)

Aarthi said...

Nice one...Nakamichi...sounded something like vanakam machi when i was reading thru fastly...he he...:)

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Preethi,
Hi welcome..you wont believe it..My God I donno how I resisted laughing at that very momemt !
TC
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Aarthi
Welcome Aarthi..Thats a new coinage..hope it doesnt spread around your younger circles like wildfire..LOL
Thanks for being here
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@வேதா
Nandri varughai thandhadurkum Boni panninadarkum..Boni illana na enna BOLI panni kudunga avvalvu thane..
Veppilai maandriyam ellam sari, ivvalvu kashtappattu ezhudina blog gukku commente kaanome ?
TC
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Fantasies of a Lifetime said...

rofl!! good one :D. . .

Vinesh said...

oh oh! sorry to hear - sounds like a real nightmare u had :-(

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Vishnupriya Janardhanan
Good one!!..Oh God..on the hind sight yes..but at that time..hmm
thanks for passing by
Tc
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Vinesh
hi vinesh hope you have recovered now..
Now on this posting,Well these things keep happening often
I have learnt to enjoy them..lol
TC
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Vishnupriya Janardhanan
You seem to have premonition ( I have to be careful )Your comment on last post was on TEETH...lol
TC
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Prats said...

golden teeth bows down to u :))

What a narration....by the way...was that rs4738 really enuf???

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Prats
Thanks prats..honestly I realy donno!!The guy didnt return back the balance.I must ask him..Did I get your question Right !! LOL

TC
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aMus said...

you really need the vacation!!!

my stress levels would have sky rocketed!! and i would have shot Mr. Kari appa :))

Unknown said...

:)) Happens all the time when my dad entetains arabs out here...!! In the end i'll waiting to lol with all the stories tht my dad has to tell! :D

The Artist said...

We had French Visitors at home but it was not as entertaining as your experience....

m.flowerr said...

Ah! there you are with a reality show...hope this one's not a fiction....btw well narrated.....

and nakamichi could find his saviour finally....am glad;)))

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Thinking aloud
Kari did come at 9 pm and when cofronted he said that he did tell them about bermuda and capri but forgot on slippers and collarles t shirts.Luckily I didnt have the gun
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Curious
You must post the Arabian stories too..Cross cultural fun
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@The Artist
Entertainment !! you bet it was !!
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@m.flowerr
Reality after a long list of fibs you mean ..lol
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Prats said...

perfectly right Sir!! :)

Sahasra said...

Hmmm,another titbit....

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@sahasra,
Another tit bit,right,question is,was it enjoyable..!!
TC
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Ponnarasi Kothandaraman said...

:) KASHTAM!

Karikalan name na enaku inimey ithu gnabagam vara poguthu! I have some1 known by that name.. :(

Ithellamey unmaya?

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@P K
Vaanga..Unmai,Unmai Unmai..peyargalai thavira..Athanala unga friendu Karikalanukkum ithukkum sambandam illai..neenga varutthapadavendaam avarai paarthu !!

TC
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PurpleHeart said...

ohh mine...I want to laugh and sympathise ! Is Arun out of his grumpy-mood yet ? :D

Shalini Gowrisankar said...

Sorry to hear , you should have ad a tough time.. But, reading this post I ended up rolling on the floor :D

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@purpleheart
Hmm..ARUN...Grrr
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@shalini
You too Shalini..Laugh Laugh Laugh
TC
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Sudha said...

YOu have told the story with suspense .Interesting.!!!YOu write stories well.Enjoyed reading it.

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@sudhakar
Thanks Sudhakar.as long as you dont give me the title as YARN MASTER..
Tc
CU

Pri said...

haha!! hilarious...
but hats off to u, u managed the situation well...
someone else would have fled from the scene...:p

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Pri
Fled the scene!!..I had half a mind of jumping into Bay of Bengal which is hardly few hundred meters from Chepauk..lol
TC
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anits said...

enna tamilan....cooooolllll post!

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@anits
Sometimes cool ones appear here !1
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Preethi said...

That was hilarious. lol. My day starts on a 'funny note'. Thank u. Came to your blog thru 'nother one.

ceedy said...

hehehe

were the teeth made in China (must be lead laced)
you have an exciting life I say....

cheers

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Preethi
Hi thanks for passing by..Hope you have a fun filled day !!Please do drop in when you have time
TC
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@c e e d y
Welcome..hmm..In life I keep looking for the lighter things..but its so hard to find these days !!
TC
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whAt A LiFe said...

hi there, quite a cool one.

:p

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@whAt A LiFe
Hi.Thanks for your words and thanks for passing by
TC
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Keshi said...

Mushi mushi CU! :)



**Karikalan

U must be joking rite! hahahahaaha!

Keshi.

venuss66 said...

Hmmmm good one. Is it for real?

Prats said...

Compasshunet tamizha.......yenge pa pudhu post?????

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Keshi
LOL,keshi..Karkalan exists in history..lol
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@venus66
Hi venus,absolutely real this time with just a little masala as far as the names are concerned
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Prats
Prats,Prats,Prats...Athukkulle aduttha post venuma..enna oru YARN master nu aakkiteenga..lol
Pottuduvom trip lendu vandha udane on 9 dec
TC
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Phoenix said...

ival en annna

:D sorry trying out my poor tamil skills...

a very funny post indeed...:D

hope you are doing well

Compassion Unlimitted said...

phoenix
Hi..Good attempt..only you got the gender wrong..it should be
Ivar en Anna

Porikkha kemon dhile ?

Hows is my bengali..lol
TC
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Raghavan alias Saravanan M said...

karikalan => kalakkittaaru!

super pongo!!

somehow you told a REAL true story this time..

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Raghavan alias Saravanan M

Varugha
REELUKKU naduvula REALU..ambuttuden

TC
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Joy said...

funny one...wonder how u managed to look for the dentures without lauging...

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Joy
If it was not there among the kitchen plates,then I would had to check and search every hole in Chepauk where the 100s of cats lived..That very thought kept my smile or laughter away !!

Tks Joy for dropping by
TC
CU

Dhivya said...

Funny incident! Its crazy though the things we have to do for the sake of our jobs, is'nt it? I mean- digging through dirty dishes for an old man's teeth- I bet they didnt mention that on the job description ;)

மங்கை said...

ஆஹா..நல்ல அனுபவம்... கடைசியில பல்ல கழட்டிட்டீங்க...:-))
enjoyed reading...

rayshma said...

LOL!
i quite like ur blog... think i'll be dropping by more often... will avoid visiting between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., however...;)!
thanks for dropping by... :)

Marutham said...

//One by one they trooped out.Everytime I bowed I was counting ,HAWAI slippers,Collarless T shirts..So it was 5 people in HAWAI slippers,4 In collar less T shirts.I wanted to shoot ..KARI..Now the dress code was glaring at me.. these people cannot enter..The first thought was to call KARI,and ask him to rush.My two interpreters were of no use I realised.Still,I had no choice.I called them aside and explained..//
LOL.....

I had never seen any of dad's friends in these outfits :P
LUCKY U!

Annachi said...

Makkale,

I was a part of this great evening (pity didn't get a mention in the detailed account by CU.....)It was an evening for us to remember and it certainly wasn't Kari's day....and to think of it, neither was it ours!
Wonder if CU went back to this club with a straight face?

Bungz said...

Ha ha ha... Imagine that!!! And you say it really happened!!!

Oh, you've been tagged in my blog.

Keshi said...

haha!

Keshi.

Anonymous said...

heyy.. this is so damnn hilarious..!!

The "Gold mine" seems quite a thing.. ;)

Nice post..!!

Phoenix said...

hehe ur bengali is good but it should be
porikha kamon dile not dhile :D

porikha bhalo chilo...exams were good..ar akta baki...1 more to go... :D

hey i tagged you :D i dont know if you ll be interested but still :)

Sairekha said...

Hehehehe... I entertained a japanese delegation same time last year... all I can say is thank god no lady colleagues with you!!!:)

Deekshanya said...

chancey illa. classic narration. hats off to your patience and control!

Preethi said...

Everything ok.. long time no blogs here??

Shalini Gowrisankar said...

You've been tagged by me.Check my blog for details :)

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@DHIVYA ARASAPPAN
From engineering industry to dish washing ..hmm..sure a transition not posted in job description..but one does have experience of dish washing elsewhere..lol
thanks for passing by
TC
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@மங்கை
Vaanga..romba naal aachu..palla kazhatti kaiila illa vaaila potachu
lol
meendum varugha
tc
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@rayshma
LOL..avoid the times and miss the fun..lol
thanks for your comments.keep passing by
tc
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Marutham
vaanga vaanga..enga romba naala kaanom.
As I said in the begining,I have the knack of getting into these kind of situation quite often..your Dad is lucky and the poor man me..have pity pa on this poor soul.i do agree japanese are very very protocol oriented..may be the word club made them take it easy..stil KARI ,I cannot forgive him.Maybe, because of KARI everyone of you something to smile about !!
TC
CU

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Annachi
Ada nee dhana adhu..Ennoda saviour of that evening.
Pottuduvom oru thani(thanni illa!!) blog unna patthi.
One phone call made you rush to my help that evening.

FRIENDS,INDIANS AND COUNTRYMEN(AND COUNTRY WOMEN)

BUT FOR ANNACHI I WOULD HAVE TOTALLY BEEN IN DEEPAR SOUP..
HE MADE ME SEE SENSES BY MAKING ME DROWN IN LARGER PEGS THAT EVENING!!

PODHUMA ANNACHI IPPODAIKKU

TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Bungi
U 2 BUNGI!!.tagging me..
I am waiting to consolidate all TAG requests..and also somebody help me with 10 questions
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Keshi
Thanks for passing by Keshi!!
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Nisha
Welcome Nisha.Now you know where the gold have disappeared from KOLAR GOLD FIELDS
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@phoenix
Hi,great ,you are thru with your exams and off to Delhi.Enjoy
Kobhe phircho,chennai esho ek bhar
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Ziah
Vaango..enga aala kaanom ..
How about your japanese experience..oru blog podungo
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Preethi
Hi Preethi.
Had been off to North to kullu manali and not forgetting to furthr pollute the Holy Ganges at Hardwar and rishikesh
Will release the next one soon
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Shalini Gowrisankar
Promise that I will reply all my friends Tag requests by consolidating.
The famous 10 questions are still eluding me
TC
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Compassion Unlimitted said...

@Deekshanya
Hi Deekshanya,..Patience and me !!Ask my office colleagues..absolutely short on my fuse..But that evening,if only I had a gun,...LOL
keep dropping by
TC
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plush said...

:)...i take a bow at ur courage!

Compassion Unlimitted said...

@plush
Courage !! you should have seen me at that time.
Thanks for being here
TC
CU