Survival of the fittest

You go to college, you make friends for life. Whatever you do, you do together. Play, Laugh, Study, Ramble, Bunk, Think, React. Everything is connected between you pals. Its a completely different feeling. And you get addicted to being together, being surrounded by people, always cheering, making fun, having a ball.

And then, later on in your life, when you sit alone in your room, with all the convenient things at your disposal, for which probably you would have struggled during the college days, do you feel happy? I bet no. You are so overpowered by a sinking feeling, nostalgia takes over you, and you start feeling that all this does not make much sense. A call from a friend, a distant gathering, a walk down the memory lane is enough to make you sad. All of a sudden you start questioning your life, your decisions, your present state, everything. And it becomes worse.

But, life takes it course. It shows you everything. The ups. The downs. The "happy" group hang-outs. The lonely days in a hotel lobby. It prepares you for everything. You have to be ready for change, which is a big thing for most human beings. Change. Different. Adaptability. Adjustment. Don't we so much want to avoid all of these? Don't we wish we could have the "perfect" life, with no changes? But, all this has a bigger picture I suppose. Life has a set path for us. It prepares us for any situation, and it believes in "teaching by doing" :) You would be thrown amidst a situation, and you got to learn. Adapt to Survive. Survival of the fittest. And the fittest is the one who takes all these changes with a smile. Who welcomes any situation, and takes every change as a learning, as a step towards his growth.

Its like going through a gamut of feelings, its like you don't know what to believe. Whether be positive, and confident about the change? Or regret it? It confuses you. Thats its job. But the one who moves on is the one who accepts changes fast. And makes the best out of it :)

PS: Hope I could do the same. Hope its for the best. Hope I survive :)

These old Sulkers :( :)

Ok. Take a deep breath. Put some swiss mocha frappe in your mouth, and repeat the "dum di dadi da" of Aqua's song "Roses are red" in your mind. Thats the way you cool down, from a day full of frustration, disgust and sheer annoyedness. Its become so usual these days, that I have started relating to these days as "sulkers," i really am afraid of them. The less of them, the happier I am. Not because I lose so much of my positive energy during these days, but also because I end up putting a lot of energy to get out of the "sulker." Like sitting at a Barista, sipping a coffee (which I am not really a fan of), trying to prove my point by blogging about it while pretending to enjoy the music of AQUA. 

It sticks. It really does. These sulkers are evil. Because, they won't let you think on anything else, or try to get rid of them. The moment you make a small effort to get out of the mode, they would rush back to you in a certain other form, an unexpected error, an uncontrollable mistake, an out-of-the-blue blunder, and you would be told on your face "THERE. HUH." 

Why do we (or is it just me?) have these sulkers? Ok, not a toughie. We ofcourse have them when things don't go according to us, when we can't see where things are going, when we are so unsure of anything and everything that we get anxious every now and then. Like when the car breaks down on a journey, and you feel sick of the fact that you are unable to move towards your destination, and you can't see when you would reach there either.

And then comes the solution. The TALK. The COFFEE. The MUSIC. And, the realization that it ain't that bad anyway. In good times, when I'm happy, smiling and confident, I often wonder about these sulkers? And, question why do I have to succumb to them? Why can't I face them directly on the face and thrash them, by not letting my mind be affected by them. But, the fact of the matter is that its only after i sulk do I get to thinking, talking and thinking, and it is then that I find solutions. It is only when i feel "enough is enough," that i get into the mode of "i need to solve it." May be I am wrong. May be not. But, thats how I am.

No matter how much I say I hate these sulkers, but they are always followed by success. For me. Always. And, I am so used to the success now, that i dare not change the way it is. And that is why I don't actually hate these sulkers :) 

PS: If you haven't noticed how I started with "why do these sulkers have to be there?" and I ended with "I actually am happy that i get these sulkers," then you are completely convinced by my logic. Otherwise, I don't really care :D

Hyderabad

Babu! Anna! Matladu! Chepu! Ray-taan! Cheque-an! Kitna Hona? Bhijata hun! Deta na main! Kiddar ku jaata? 4 days in hyderabad, and I have already heard these words enough number of times to have them registered in my cache memory :)

There are so many KFC's in this city. On my drive from office to home, i see atleast 3 of them, and have to control my temptation of digging into a zinger, courtesy my resolution to get slimmer.

There are more malls/retail outlets/pubs/restuarants in Hi-Tech city than IT offices :D

I get paranthas with curd, butter and sabzi for breakfast? Beat that?

The city is filled with "gudas," "purs" and "pets" (if you know what I mean :P)

I recently learnt that "nainu ninnu chimpastanu" doesn't mean "I Love you" :O It actually means "I will tear myself" :O :O :O

There's a type of paan called "Meenakshi," and the dosas aren't all that great here.

Every city looks so slow in front of Mumbai. So slow.

Cold War...

There are a certain people with whom you can never build a rapport. No matter how much you smile at them, or try to get into a polite conversation, they would always look down upon you as if you have been the reason why they lost their smile.

One such guy is the "toast wala" outside my office. Lets go back to a year and a half back, when i had first hit his shop for an obvious reason of grabbing a quick bite. Now, one of the reasons why you would eat a sandwich is that you want to save time and trouble of going to a restaurant. But, it wasn't so easy for me. I ordered the sandwich, and patiently waited. After some time, when I asked him about the sandwich, he gave me a "can't you see how much work I have?" look followed by a "dont dare ask about your sandwich again" frown. I was taken aback, and defended myself by saying "its been quite some time now," to which he refused to even react. I decided to stay calm, and waited for my sandwich to be prepared. Finally i ate it, and forgot the incident after a while.

But, next time I visited the shop, the same thing happened, only this time the owner gave me a "you always have to make a fuss out of everything" look and stared at me as if I was from some other planet. I was quiet this time, considering his shop had almost all of my office thumping here and there, trying to order or collect their sandwiches. Ever since then, I haven't been able to build a good rapport with this guy. Everytime I visit his shop, there's a strange exchange of looks that happens between the both of us. And although i try to politely ask doubts regarding the preparedness of the sandwich, he would almost always ignore me, or worse reply with an angry remark. So much so that now I have stopped trying. I just go order, and then wait outside until he or his helper calls me. Atleast I don't have to keep trying anymore. I know for a fact that this is it how its going to be. The "toast wala" and me are always going to be at a cold war, blaming each other for that first tiff, and hoping that we don't have to see each other. But, we both know we can't avoid seeing each other :)

Change = Life :: Life = Change

Life's different. Life's new. Life's changed. 

Ok, I understand I have used synonyms to express the basic feeling, but I'm sure I still have left a lot to be told, which is why what follows is an account of what I am going through these days.

My brief stint at Mumbai ended around 50 days back, and so did all the fun associated with being in Mumbai. The sales stint beckoned, and I waved goodbye to the city, some tears, some smiles, but all in all I had a mixed feeling, a feeling of leaving behind something plus a feeling of curiosity of the future ahead. My 100 days as TL had begun, and I reported at Kanpur.

After the initial 3 weeks of theoretical/practical training, I was alloted the area whose sales I had to increase by my managerial planning and execution. What I didn't know was that the time to follow would require me to stretch all my limits, in the wake of the new rule of the game "Adapt to Survive." Yes, the area that is alloted to me is in a radius of around 150 kms, so sometimes it takes me 6-8 hours while shuttling between towns. The initial days were gruesome, when once the bus on which I was travelling rocked so much that an innocent remark of a fellow passenger that "sometimes the bus topples here" sent shock waves down my spine, and the only voice I could muster to hear was that of my heart beating and praying "Safetly, Oh Lord, Safety" :)

Ever since, I have had numerous cases of exciting yet painful travel, sometimes in a jeep so filled with human bodies that there was hardly any space for air, and some other times half-dangling out of a tempo, because the only place available to sit was the middle seperator. I could claim to have tried all means of transport, the only one remaining would be a crane or a tractor :P Bike rides when shuttling between cities became common, and thanks to the condition of roads in this part of the country, my health was severely affected. But, I haven't given up. Yes, I haven't, despite suggestions that I should relinquish this pursuit. 

The best part of the last month has been visits to religious places in the jhansi area (orcha, chitrakut etc) and I plan to visit all good areas in and around kanpur/jhansi before the end of the stint. Yes, finding good out of the bad is one of the adaptability essentials.

Anyway, its been interesting, the last 50 days, and I am expecting the 50 coming to pass in an equally exciting way, good or bad depends on how I take it :)

Adventure Unlimited!

These have been the best 35 days of my life, undoubtedly! So much experience, so much fun, so much learnings, so much of "everything!" And adventure filled in everywhere, be it an outdoor trip organized as a part of the induction program, or late night rendezvous with 'vasai road.' Life's been amazingly different, in the good sense.

You land up in an adventure tourism spot, and see your tents, and the gang of men whistling for the sake of maintaining discipline, you understand that the next few days are going to be fun. And, when you actually climb rocks, descend them, or float after rafting, you do feel the kick, and the excitement overwhelms your otherwise restrained self. And, in between, if there are interesting team tasks/games/puzzles, you also use your mind (yeah!) and keep it from getting rusted among all the physical activities. Oh, and I forgot, nowithstanding the morning P.T. :D That was Kolad for us, an outbound trip arranged for all RPG GMR's (Group Management Resources) during the first week of induction.

After that, you explore the city which is Mumbai, the various beaches and sea sides, and explore the opportunity of buying (stealing :P) the 'sea view' appartments, amidst the hustle and bustle of the crowd and the various side-effects of staying in one of the most densely populated cities in the world trying to justify your presence here. Nariman Point, Worli Sea Face, Bandra BandStand, Juhu Chaupati have been my accomplices in this mission.

And then, one fine day, you land in nasik, of which you had a faint association with industrial setup. But, out of the blue, you are taken to "Sula Vineyards" and shown how wine is made out of grapes. And, as a bonanza, you get to taste 5 premium wines. Awesome! What can beat that?

You now have this sudden urge of arranging a trip on your own, and luckily the fellow colleagues are equally interested in going out. So, you land up in Lonavala, doing waterfall trekking (thrilling!) and shouting in the face of icy winds and rains. And, when you look at your wet clothes, there is a sense of satisfaction, not disgust! Rain GOD made your plan successful.

Now, now, now! The king of all thrillers! The 'rendezvous with vasai road'. Please read carefully. The night began when me and my friend decided to drop two of our friends (girls, yeah!) to a place called 'vasai road', from where they were supposed to board their train. The train was scheduled for 12:20 in the night. We decided to go by train, and yes, this was a mistake. The so-called Virar local is one heck of an experience (Dudes, never get into that train!). When 3 people are standing on your feet, and still look so proud, you can't blame them. Anyhow, we managed to reach Vasai Road Station. And then, bang, it cometh! The last local back home is about to leave, and so comes the dilemma. Should we leave them and go back? Should we? We wouldn't have, unless one of my friends hadn't showed the confidence that she can manage, and so we left! When we were almost near our guest house, we get this call from them. THE CALL which changed the night.

Apparently, the booking was made for 4th July, whereas since the day changes after midnight, it was supposed to be done for 5th July. Errrr, Grrrr, Phewwwww! Me and my friend looked at each other for a while, and our eyes said it. The night had just begun. We had to take a taxi back to the famous 'vasai road', and the experience was tremendous, considering we were crossing a dark, broken stretch of a highway, surrounded by either water or mountains. And, if that was not enough, the taxi driver provided the best amusement that one could have hoped for at that moment in time. Not only was he driving at 30 Kmph, but he actually shouted at every truck/bus driver who passed by him. It appeared as if he was playing 'Roadrash', the part where the moving cars scare the hell out of you, since you are not sure which way would they move :P

We 'somehow' managed to reach the station. Meanwhile, our female friends were having one helluva time at the station. Surrounded by 10 men in a dingy room, and told not to dare venture outside the station, it was their sheer guts to smile through that time, and keep messaging us. One of them was "10 men staring at us, no harm yet." :D Gladly, we came to their rescue soon, and the journey back home was sheer madness, bursts of laughter intertwined with jerks of sleep. We returned home, cooked up egg maggi, and decided to call it a night. At 5 AM. It was one hell of a night.

And finally, not to forget, today, on the special occasion of my birthday, the adventure continued when I was made victim to watermelon spray, flour + powder, tomatoes and fooled into drinking almost neat :P And then, we laughed and laughed, while my arse cursed me of the event that is my birthday :)

I love Mumbai

Yes, everyone is amazed by my public declaration, some think it is because of some added perquisites ;) and some others think i have gone plain crazy, but the fact is "I have before, and I still do love Mumbai"

There is a different feeling that I get in this place, a sense of urgency, to be always at my feet, doing one thing or the other. Never does my otherwise "ready to idle around" mind get a chance to analyze or over-analyze things which are better left unthought of. This place had a special association for me from last summers when i was here. I loved the two months that I had spent here, and had always wished to come again. This time, when i came back, its all the more better. I have made some real good friends, and have had some real good times with them.

So, be it fighting for space in locals, or watching the horizon on beaches, i am adding memories, at a speed much higher than I ever imagined I would. This city is giving me something that I had always desired, a simple yet satisfying life, where at the end of the day, I am happy, really happy :)