Lessons from a Flat Tyre

I remember a book about motorcycle maintenance that was a rage during my college days. This is not a book, but a mini-essay on my recent experience at fixing a flat tyre (do not vent your ire at the spelling, the English do spell it  with a 'y').

I had a flat- it was doubtful at the start, and took its time deflating, but at the end, it was undoubtedly flat. Having ascertained the fact, the next step was to remove the spare tyre from the dickey (not the trunk), and replace the flat with the rounded.

There was only a small hitch. The last time I had fixed a flat myself without assistance of expert 'fixers' (not the IPL types) was about a decade ago. So I had to recall how I had done it then. A difficult thing, given the state of the random access memory (also known as RAM). But then, with an indomitable spirit (no, not the kind you are thinking of), I went to work, flat-out.

After a few ups and downs and wrong turns of the screw on the jack, I managed to lift the car off, unbolt the old tyre, and put the new one in its place (I discovered that I liked putting things in their place, just like people). It taught me a lesson. When you are willing to put in blood, sweat, toil and tears (though I only put in two of the above), nothing is impossible.

Getting a fix on the now-flat tyre was postponed to another day. After all, Rome was not won in a day. So why fight all your battles at one time?

Fixing It

Here are a few dictionary definitions to get us started (from the web).

Definition of FIX

transitive verb

1

a : to make firm, stable, or stationary

b : to give a permanent or final form to: as (1) : to change into a stable compound or available form fix

nitrogen> (2) : to kill, harden, and preserve for microscopic study (3) : to make the image of (a photographic film) permanent by removing unused salts

c : affix, attach

2

a : to hold or direct steadily <fixes his eyes on the horizon>

b : to capture the attention of <fixed her with a stare>

3

a : to set or place definitely : establish

b : to make an accurate determination of : discover <fixingour location on the chart>

c : assign <fix the blame>

4

: to set in order : adjust

5

: to get ready : prepare <fix lunch>

6

a : repair, mend <fix the clock>

b : restore, cure fix

ed him up>

The recent meanings, however, if you have got a fix on them, have much to do with shady dealings. Whether it is the Hansie-Cronje-led fixing of matches in the 'gentlemen's game' a decade ago, or similar things happening now, the word 'fix' has become known for its underhand meaning. 

Maybe we could instead define things that are fixed/fixable/that have been fixed/that have potential to be fixed, like

LIBOR- that which gets 'fixed' by Barclays, UBS, and RBS.

Real-estate based Derivatives- those are fixed by Wall Street traders, the best of the best.

Olympic Associations- these remain unfixed because you need to know how they work in order to fix them.

For a fix in high places, you can say words like "Insider Trading", or "IMF Chief", or "Prime Minister of a country north of the Mediterranean". Ahem!