Ancient way of Negotiating Prices

Yesterday I happened to see a small part of a documentary on the TV (stands for Television for those of you who don't know what that is and the only good thing about it is there's no buffering) that showed a few Forest ranger officers in the Indian Government trying to buy elderly elephants that would be used for tourist rides from the villages that own them. One thing that struck me was how the rangers negotiated on the final price of the elephant. The head villageman asked for Rs. 50000 which the ranger struck down immediately saying there's no way they could afford that. The next scene showed them negotiating in an "ancient way of negotiation" that involved them grasping each other's right hand while both the hands were covered with a piece of cloth. Apparently, the buyer and seller then negotiated on a suitable pricing by applying pressure on each other's hand when they found the price to be mutually acceptable or something like that. I am very curious on how this negotiation takes place with just the hand pressure without talking a word (I think). Would be great if anyone with knowledge about this method of bargaining commented with an explanation below. The documentary ends with the new mahout trying to gain the elephant's trust while the previous mahout in the village loses his job. Anyway, if you're interested in more modern techniques and strategies for negotiating not just your salary you should definitely check out this cracker of a book: Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High. 

How to Get Rid of your Hangover in 5 minutes Flat! Worked for me!

Today morning was a bad morning. Yes, I was feeling hungover from being goaded on to drink more than I could by my mates. I had all the priceless symptoms of a proper hangover, stomach feeling somewhat, mouth dry and of course a good debilitating headache combined with a solid bodyache. Yes, I was good to go. NOT!

So, without much ado, let me get to the part you drunks are waiting for. What did I do in this messed up state that helped me stop feeling hungover? I first downed a few glasses of water. No difference. Then I did something I didn't expect and this is why I think I'm a Goddamn genius: I did 40 situps just for the heck of it. Yes, you read that right. SITUPS during a hangover. At first I felt just as bad with the water moving inside my tummy. Then I felt a light sweat as my unfit body tried to cope with the strain. I tried regulating my breathing to be steady while doing it. Then, mother of God my darn headache which I was sure would stay with me for a year at least, just packed up its uncouth bags and left. I do not know why or how. Apparently the vigorous physical activity did the trick. And now I too must leave. If you find you're feeling good and whole again, do yourself a favor and check out some juicers (fruit juices are good too you know!) starting with this awesome Breville one. Bai and see y'all later with some other barely helpful shite.