The Joy Of Innocence : CC3 Toast Masters

He pounded my chest repeatedly with both his legs while I lay pinned to the ground. He had not an inch of remorse and wouldn't care for how I felt !!

No, he was not my enemy and neither did he hold any grudge against me. Infact I loved the pounding so much that I took it many times a day !!

He is..  my sister's 8 month old baby and the pounding is the joyous virtual cycling which he practices on me

Innocence is one of the most adorable human traits. Mannu, as we lovingly call him, is devoid of all the tainted worldly feelings. He knows only four things - eat, smile, weep and sleep. When I take this 10 kg wonder into my arms and try to kiss him, he returns my kiss by trying to have a bite at me with his cute little two teeth. His happiness,  takes the shape of a million dollar smile enclosed within two cute curves whenever his mom sings his special song or his dad playfully dashes into his tummy.

In his naive attempts to crawl, he often ends pivoted on his tummy, flipping his hands and legs as though he were swimming. The beauty of his innocence makes him so charmingly captivating that my sister would spend sleepless nights and not let a fly hover over him. 

We could witness some of the most beautiful expressions of Innocence as we watch children develop friendships. When they meet, they do not try to judge each other “Is she trust worthy ? Is he Honest ? ” They deal with friendship in its simplest form. They just think “You are fun to be with. Let's be friends” They quarrel, but then they quickly forgive and forget. It is not for nothing that it is said "you should have your hearts like one of these children to enter Paradise. Befriending a kid can be one amazing experience. It of brings out the kids in us. We smile a lot as we enter their unpretentious world pure feelings and emotions. 

Innocence doesn't only border around children and childhood. We could find traces of it in each of us and sometimes the trace could be as big as something I am gonna describe. Rahul was one of my best friends at college. Talking to him was a joy and his company always relieved me of my stress. I would sometimes ask him “Innocent Rahul how would you survive this wicked world ?” and he would swear “John I am not innocent !!”

Once he had called me at my home and my sister picked up. The conversation went like this :

Rahul - Hi akka, is John there ?

Sis - No Rahul he is out on an errand. I will ask him to call you back once he is home.

After bidding bye as my sister was about to hang up

Rahul - Akka, shall I ask you something ? Does John talk about me?

Sis - Yes Rahul he does.

Rahul - What does he say akka ? Does he say I am innocent ?

My sister had no choice but to say - Yes

Rahul -  Shall I tell you something akka “I am not at aaaall innocent”

As time passes by we mature but then some people defy this law of Maturity

A few days ago, I called Rahul and we were discussing something serious. He suddenly says - "John 2 minutes John" and he puts the phone aside. Then I hear distant shouts of Wow and Yay !!

After two full minutes he's back excited and says - "John, Just now a huuge Aeroplane passed by my apartment. It was so big and beautiful !!

Some good things never change

Having such souls around makes me feel - Life is beautiful and Innocence is a bliss. They remain oblivious to the cruelities in the world, stay guiltless and happy. Happy because what you don't know cannot possibly hurt you.

I often steal a moment or two from my life to celebrate "The Joy of Innocence"


P.S. - Names changed to maintain anonymity !!


Also my - CC3 speech at Toast Masters International.

State of mind

As time flies by, you sometimes sit back to think what came and what passed by,

In the sea of world and life, you sometimes realize the waves had just flown by ! 

It often aches the heart when I realize I hadn't done things, I ought to have done,

Perhaps, with my priorities, I was chasing a mirage while wandering in the wrong direction !

Women's day

Its quite symbolic this year to have the festival of colors coincide with the women's day !! Just goes to say how  pale and colorless the world would have been without these wonderful people around us. From being the person who introduced us to the world, made sure we got comfortable with it, to being the person whom you would call your better half, woman have been the essence of our lives. She is both the best celebrator of our successes and  the best empathiser in our tough and emotional times. So guys - Take time and acknowledge each and every special woman in your life, how important and indispensable they have been to us !!

To all the wonderful ladies who give meaning to our lives - a heartfelt bow from the male fraternity !!

The QUOTE for life

I heard this somewhere - "There would be one quote which will really inspire/ motivate you to do things you always wanted to do; so watch out for that 'one quote' in your life"

Ever since, I have been on the look out for any such thing which really motivates me for around a couple of years now. I thought my friends achieving things I always wanted, should inspire me. Then seeing the World Cup finally in the the hands of Sachin did have its bit of motivation.

As I continue with my attempts to break my motivation jinx, I recently came across this motivating quote which connected with me instantly and has been running around my mind for quite sometime (I don't yet know if this is the one which would really motivate me though !!)

If you have enough reasons, you can do anything by Dottie Walters

So, I have been jotting down reasons of late - why I wanted 'what I want' so bad, so that it etches permanently in my heart and the universe conspires to make it happen.

PS : On similar lines as Shah Rukh's dialogue in OSO -  kisi cheez ko agar dil se chaho to saari kayanath tumhe usse milane ki koshish me lag jaati hai !! 

On my way back home !!

It gives me a sense of power walking beside him,
People rushing to meet him with anticipation to the brim !


They try to please him with reason or need,
His courtesy can work wonders indeed !


He makes sure every problem is addressed,
By the time he's done, he is greatly stressed !


I have seldom regarded him with concern so deep,
Tonight only his mercy could give me a good night's sleep !


He's always suited up no matter dry or cold,
His sparkling white trousers are a sight to behold !


You may wonder who this champion could be,
He is none but my train's TTE !

Screech !!

I landed sitting upright after a somersault in the air. People ran in from around to check how well I had done the stunt. It took a while for me to figure out things in my mind and two things quickly called for attention : my bike and the guy who helped me have that leap.It was 6 AM and the city was just waking up. I was on my way to class when this man carelessly made use of half the road to make a casual U-turn and stumbled on seeing me approaching.

Everything happened so fast that the only thing I remember was sitting (after the land) with my hands over the head. I had travelled atleast 5-6 feet without my bike. People came upon to do the damage check and I got up with anger for the erratic man. I looked around for my footwear which had also flown across to the other side of the road with the impact. After glancing at the culprit, I began inspecting my bike which had minor scratches on the handle, a cracked speedometer and dented engine guard. It had just met with its maiden accident. The people around prompted me to first check myself. I had miraculously escaped with minor bruises. The Abercrombie Hoodie gifted by sis insulated my torso and the jeans played its part to minimise the bruises. The ripped gloves took the friction and protected my palms. But still it was miraculous for the fall I had - Thank you Lord for your grace !!

What followed was a series of interactions with people and I had to miss my class. I dragged Sabharish out of his sleep to help me in conversing with the people and he helped settle things.

Drive slower is what you would always conclude/realise at the end of the day and it definitely helps to have a steady head over your shoulders, but then the fact remains - Accidents are Accidental !!

A milestone for my buddy !!

This post has been in the mind, waiting to see light for quite sometime now. Wanted to write a bit about my good buddy for one year now - My Red Beast - My Avenger !!

Its been my companion in rain and in sun; in joy and in sorrow; in long lonely journeys and happy moments alike. Guess that seems too much of a patronization for an inanimate object - my friends often complain this too.. but I cant help my feelings 

Frankly speaking, I was not in much for this muscular monster when I was on the lookout for a bike. My bro had been influential partly in me finalizing on it. I had zeroed in on Honda Dazzler and had even made the bookings for it. But then, he convinced me that it was small and not quite suiting my personality. He wanted me to go for Karizma rather (his dream bike). I took his first advise, cancelled Dazzler and booked Avenger instead. The excessive plastic body as in Karizma or a ZMR did not appeal me much.It was then that I laid my eyes on this metallic beauty. Solid body, cool cruiser style and unique on the road - Feel like God - as the caption goes (I hesitate to use this caption here as it sounds blasphemous)

Needless to mention the bike has been tastefully made and I have grown to like and admire it over the period. The drive quality is great and I have realized that even a small hiatus of couple of days makes me long to drive. I had slight apprehensions about control on busy roads and parking in crowded places but thankfully, all it requires is a bit of hands on to get used to :)  Monsoons are what my bike dislikes the most - puddles of water, bumpy roads and the consequent risks of rusting. Though it has the luxury of getting a wash once every two days when it rains. 

I remember the first days last year when it was still a small baby, there were heavy monsoon rains and it inadvertently got wet. To my despair, I suddenly realized there were specks of rust on the silencer and in my desperation, I had washed it (with water again) only to see the specks grow in size and area. Experts came to my rescue and prescribed anti rust sprays and solutions which helped me in preventing the situation going from bad to worse. Henceforth, it has come a long way from its baby strides (at speeds <45 kmph for around 2000km) to now tearing the winds apart. I have had a couple of memorable rides to Mahabalipuram, and to Pondicherry and innumerable short rides within the city. With 4 services done (3 free and one paid) and having clocked 10000 KM, my friend keeps getting better and continues to amaze with a 40 plus mileage. Way to zoom buddy

A date with a date

Make a wish - we have an auspicious moment at hand which would never come again!! Is that really so or do we tend to look too much into ? We have always given special importance for things which occur rarely or events which have an interesting pattern. The "tootatha taara"  or the falling star which often prompts our Bollywood actors to 'make a wish' is one such instance ( I wonder how many stars our directors have successfully brought down though !!).

Today we have both of them i.e a rare event and a interesting pattern - At the eleventh second after the eleventh minute and the eleventh hour we have a 12 digit palindrome - 11:11:11 on 11/11/11. So what's special - The new millennium has thrown many such mathematical numbers which were palindromes ? The palindrome at hand really stands out as it has the same number for all its digits and would only occur after 100 years. Hence, our only moment in life. (findings courtesy : Tom Meltzer)

Science doesn't play down our interest in the date either. It says that the human mind has an affinity for patterns and delights in finding them. So folks, we have more than one reason to take a note of this day which stands out. You could either make it memorable by hanging out with your friends and loved ones or make an event of your life memorable by planning it on this special day. Venues for social gatherings have had an increasing demand and were booked well in advance. People planning to get married off of late did feel that they would not have a better day to exchange rings. Interestingly, over a 1000 couples became man and wife in a mass marriage ceremony in China. Expectant mothers wished to give their babies an exceptional date of birth and the hospitals were queued up. I too would do my part in having this date go down my memory lane by making it a point to have this blog published at that moment (though I am not sure if I could be precise to the 11th second).

Tughluquine Instincts

I am more than perplexed and frustated with the attitude of the present day government of Tamil Nadu. One could expect a school going kid to have better sensibility; let alone wisdom. Having said this, I do not take a political stand nor do I have a priority for one political party over the other.

I am just venting my feelings on a social or rather a personal platform from an "Aam aadmi's" perspective. The recent decision of Jayalalitha to shift the Anna Centenary library from its current location and to convert the existing building into a Pediatrics hospital was arrogance at its heights. The library built at a cost of around 200 crores is deemed the largest of its kind in South Asia. The Civil Engineer behind its construction obviously wouldn't had made the building flexible enough to accommodate varied set-ups.

The conceptualization for a library would have incorporated tailor made specifications for its layout, ventilation, drainage among other things. So converting it to a hospital would result in both unwanted and excessive expenditure apart from a 'not so efficient' end product. Thankfully, we have our dutiful Judiciary - the High Court which stayed the move.

Another high point of the self proclaimed "Amma's" tomfoolery was conversion of Secretariat to Multi speciality hospital - yes a hospital again - she is apparently very concerned about people's health and has a personal target of creating World Class Hospitals in Chennai. No complaints against her targets but why at the cost of meddling with BUILT buildings ?? The reason quoted for dumping the 1100 crore worth building was that it could not accommodate all the 36 government departments and the two km distance between the Assembly (Block A) and Secretariat (Block B) would make it difficult for the Ministers to function. At least that way all of them would have something concrete to do everyday i.e. travel to and fro. Sorry, I know this was a rather rude joke which the entire Executive doesn't deserve !!

Political vendetta could never have been more obvious. She had gotten 15 partymen of DMK arrested within 100 days of 'swearing in'. On this note one cannot fail to recollect the midnight drama a decade ago where she had Karunanidhi arrested as soon as she had stepped into power. This apart from the arrest of a dozen other Union Ministers.

How healthy would it be if politicians quarreled by trying to outdo each other rather than undoing what has been already done. By targeting the dream projects of her opponent, viz. the Secretariat and the Anna Library she proves how less she cares for people and their money when it comes to quenching her thirst for revenge. It also shows how directionless an administrator could get moving around things ala our great Emperor- Muhammad bin Tughluq.

P.S. : Tughluq was a Sultan of Medieval India whose over thought foolery of shifting the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad and then back is legendary.

Disclaimer : The views expressed here are strictly personal !!

http://theviewspaper.net/tughluquine-instincts/

A ray of light

As I write this, I have been in anticipation of a call from a Business Analyst who would be interviewing me !! It all started with talks with my supervisors for a Business role. I had requested for it a year back (was not given then) and more recently a couple of months ago when my promotion was at hand. The point to reflect was that 'Market Research' was a niche domain for a Business Analyst to thrive once he leaves Nielsen. Both Jinu and Mohan held the same opinion(both BA's themselves) and I was convinced .

But why do I see myself here then ? My agenda and my interests ended up being in the same direction after a ROLLER COASTER ride of decisions with my future (self inflicted and tumultuous). I was always keen for Business stuff and Management was where I had always placed myself at whenever I thought of my career in future. So I zeroed in on GMAT with the right amount of experience in my kitty. Typically a B School looks out for people who stand out with varied experience and I am here with four years of pure technical background. So I thought functional experience would be the right icing on the cake !!

Well, I now stand here expecting the second promotion (after IT Analyst) and the coveted chance promised by my Manager which would help me considerably in making the most out of my last chance to make a difference in my life !!

The Lokpal and Anna

The Anna craze has caught up big time and Jan Lokpal suddenly seems to be the magic wand which could get the ordinary man out of his daily quota of cribbing against Corruption. With the ocean of supporters that Anna has, he also has critics who play down his techniques. Intellectuals like Arundhathi Roy and other Polictical Analysts are of the opinion that Jan Lokpal would be a threat to democracy. Here, I would like to voice my opinion from whatever little knowledge I have. 

I am keen on seeing a BALANCED Lokpal being implemented which doesn't see itself sitting over and above the three wings of our Government namely Executive, Judiciary and Legislature. Change is what everyone craves and justifies the mad mass appeal our Anna has. It is on similar lines as the governments of TN and AP. People simply vote for the OTHER party !!

With great power comes greater responsibility !! But with it also comes great greed !! The futuristic Lokpal should be made accountable and shouldn't be vested with more powers than it can handle. It is rather evident that ANNA is not an intellectual in the way he bluntly says 'My way or no way' but he definitely is a Hero !! He has given a platform for people to demand a Better Living.

History says that great changes were brought in with street battles. You got to fight out your way on the street whether it is overthrowing a ruthless dictator or staging a protest against injustice.

The Janlokpal Bill is AMBITIOUS in having the President the Supreme Court and the entire bureaucracy in its ambit. But the govt Lokpal on the other hand was TOOTHLESS which would serve nothing in being incapable of dealing with CWG, 2G spectrum or the cash for votes scam.

The great powers vested with the Lokpal body is the single biggest threat which should be taken care of with the ongoing negotiations to shape up a competent authority !! It shouldn't be left from where it has reached.

India's Crusade against Terrorism - Time for a reality check !!

We continue to be the mute spectators we always are, as terrorists continue to rip India apart year after year. After the gory triple bomb blasts in Mumbai on 13th of this month, our honorable Home Minister wastes no time in putting his point across that every city in India as much gullible and that the blasts have actually come down in count. PC couldn't probably be more blunt. 

"India's post-26/11 police reforms painted stripes on a donkey — and passed it off as a tiger" - screamed a title from the editorial in Hindu. With the media acting as a window to our world around an average man doesn't need to stay with the presumptions of a complex constitution or an even more complex govt. and pass off for not even being intellectual enough !! At least in matters where the govt has promised and even boasts of things which it never desired of strongly. Not to forget the millions disbursed for such reforms.

A lay man's google or a casual browse over papers would give statistics which would make our honorable HM feel guilty after his heroic claims of modernising India's Mughal-era police. For instance, the Ministry of Home Affairs, year after year boasts of exactly the same achievements in exactly the same language in its yearly reports as if they were new achievements !! There's no fault in promising to achieve and then only achieving partly. But when it blatantly over states its achievements, its definitely worth criticism. 

Government has failed with the transponders it promised on merchant fleets. It is still short of bullet proof jackets, communication kits, training on intelligence and so on if what we need is statistics. The officials who came to visit the CWG games pointed that a very few of the thousands of police personal even appeared to hold automatic weapons !! A joke of sorts !!

We have a serious situation at hand, we have the funds, we have the personnel who could be recruited and we have the govt which boasts it has done things but the patchy reality stays that the funds don't materialise at every point.

Its not about the present govt. or the past govt. Its only about the attitude the ruling body has for an individuals safety. Life is deemed cheap and easy !! It's a mere statistic for a person at power, but life indeed is man's integrity. Even a person dying of cancer would want to live that one extra day and go for the inflicting chemotherapy. The question is why has life got so less importance in our country !! Its heart rending and ever so silly to even imagine that ATS chief Karkare was killed because of a spurious or duplicate bullet proof jacket.

One might find solace when he compares our situation with that of our neighboring Nations (where terrorism is creating greater havoc). But why should we even look at countries which still strive for the true meaning of democracy we have achieved decades ago.We aspire to be a part of the Security council at UNO. We dream of moving ahead to become a developed country from our persistent tag of 'developing country'.  We have already shed a lot of blood to reach where we are already. The collective GDP of many such nations together (which we think are more fortunate) would comprise India's GDP. Why should we look back when come a long way towards a better living ??


We should ideally look at Nations which are better off !! In 3 years after 9/11 the US FBI has the raised the number of its trained counter terrorism agents to double their number for a population which is only 3 times Maharashtra. India's pompous Investigation Bureau and Analysis wing together have less expert resources. 

 
This is where we should self introspect. Its not only about cursing your authorities when terror strikes. Little has materialized since the murderous 26/11 and is a reason for debate and the reason for a Crusade in its actual sense. Corruption hardly matters to a person who rarely gets a square meal once a day. We have a crusade waged against it !! We need a crusade against terrorism and it is by no means justifiable for the government to lend a blind eye to it !!

My Romance with the Indian Navy

Chest No 65 !! Came the call and I responded instantly with confident "Yes Sir" and walked past the Commander into the room to take my seat among the other guys selected at SSB 33. I was definitely expecting my number to be called out as otherwise I thought I would have been overqualified on similar lines as Abdul Kalam or Rahul Dravid :) I may seem to be boasting but that was what the circumstances seemed to be screaming out at me. I sat beside my close buddy TyagaRajan and we congratulated each other as we had "Screened In". We had cleared our first round at the selection and were among 30 others who got in from a total of 67. I was literally beaming with happiness and why not ? I was only a step away from my dream job !!

I always wanted to be an officer of the Indian Navy. It had a complete package of Discipline, Adventure, Physical fitness and most importantly lots of Respect. The memories of the 'Navy Day' celebrations where the men in uniform displayed their might (held yearly at RK Beach, Vizag) had etched permanently in my mind. The medals, the uniform, the courage, the thrills always had me craving to be a part of the Defence services. Having spent my childhood in Defence quarters and looking up to my father (retired as Lieutenant from the Indian Navy) as a constant source of inspiration, Navy was my obvious choice. My flirt with the Indian Navy started early and I wanted to pitch in with an Engineering course at National Defence Academy or National College of Engineering after my Intermediate. So much so that I had put my preparations for EAMCET (Entrance exam for private Engineering colleges) on a backseat, convinced that I had my destiny in the Armed Forces. But then counselling happened after EAMCET ( I had managed a decent rank ) and I had a Mechanical Engineering seat up for taking. Meanwhile I had cleared both the initial screening for NDA and NCE and was called for Interview and Physical tests. I consulted my dad and he did not want me leave the opportunity at hand. He wanted me to be better prepared for the Board Interview and the physical tasks and crack it in the first attempt as people attempting for the first time would be given preference.

I chased my aspirations while in college and I had been a part of the NCC (National Cadet Corps). Three years of training had given me a varied perception and outlook for the armed Forces. I was into Army wing and it was here that I learnt that defense was not all what it seemed from outside. I was mainly not convinced with the personal or social life of the soldiers. The rigors of work had made them tough both physically and from within. Solitary life had caused many vices to creep into their lives. Ruthless was the word I could attribute to many of the mentors. I always wanted my heart to be leading me in life and what I was witnessing was 'heartless'. But that is how soldiers are expected to be "Mentally tough and Physically strong". I learnt a lot in self dependence and discipline in the varied camps we had. I finished my course with an A grade and as a Senior Under Officer but with a little lessened passion.

I had on many instances innocently debated with my mom and dad - Is everything and everyone in defense the same ? and the reasoning at the end of the day was that it is you who define how you would shape yourself. I could look at my dad for that matter. He was into an entirely different 'class'. Moreover the life of the officers and the soldiers/sailors was not alike. The sailors had a lot of physical stress and were not paid well when in comparison with their efforts; whereas the Officers as they went up their ladder had more of mental work than physical and were paid handsomely (infact treated princely by the government). Then campus interviews happened in our final year and I was placed into TCS which was like 'another dream' come true. The IT boom and the craze for campus placements had me nurturing this second dream with a long term plan of Management.

Two years into IT industry, I was not liking much what I was doing and wanted a change. This was when my passion rekindled and I realized that I had my last few chances to give a go at the Defence services. I applied for the SSB interview for Engineering services and am here in Bhopal after hard fought 5 day leave with my manager. I had done a thorough preparation gathering enough material for the varied range of tests conducted. I also helped myself to a two month work out on physical fitness and jogging. En route Bhopal from Chennai, I was doing my last minute preparations (which I always do)

To Be Continued

Hit the nail "almost" on its head

Landed into Nielsen, one of the biggest accounts in TCS! Got the work of my choice having the potential for a good amount of Business exposure!!

Though initially hesitant, owing to the amount of responsibility (I would be responsible to the onsite co coordinator and the client on the other hand as a single entity which means no substitution of work) I finally made my decision weighing my options. I expect a good hands-on on the technical stuff too !!

My mentor is pacing up my KT with his "spoon feeding" lol @@

With the aesthetic campus of Siruseri and my pals for company I guess I wouldn't feel monotonous for the coming months.

The only point I compromised was the "Onsite opportunity" which is bleak in here. The paradox of the situation is - Onsite was the only thing in mind when I set off searching for a new project and in the process rejected around 5 other projects.

On the hunt

Just signed off from first project in TCS - SMB. The journey had been a medley of things for me. Wonderful friends (Best in fact), healthy environment and a good amount of exposure to corporate life is what I would really cherish having got at SMB. Got to know an entirely new definition of Management here :) which I would rather love to forget, but has in fact helped me equip myself for the war ahead.

Am on the look out for a nice project which would cater to my quest for business knowledge and also provide me an onsite opportunity at the earliest :)

A Tribute to my "All Time" favourite - Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar !!

Sachin is in the best of his forms from as much as I have followed him in the last two decades. My passion for the game and respect for the master blaster just grows with every single match he plays. No wonder he continues to mesmerize his die hard fans like me :) (Proud to be one) with his immaculate batting in all the formats of the wonderful game. The age defying energy which he puts in every time he carries his bat speaks volumes of his commitment.

He has always been a role model both professionally and personally. Bowlers have tried hard time and again to distract his concentration with sledging but he only lets his bat do the talking. His brazen shoulders have carried a billion hopes every time he walks in with his bat .

I always try imagining putting myself in his shoes and am forever surprised at the simplicity with which he carries all the praise lauded at him. There is hardly anything left to be conquered by the Little master in the world of cricket and yet he never lets his "Larger than life" image get over him.

Two things from my perspective have taken Sachin to summit of his profession :

• His never satiating "hunger for more" which makes him a constant learner and a perfectionist at what he does.
• His humility which has and will carry him a long long way.

I salute the best entertainer of my life time !!

Quest - On the cross Roads

Been quite busy for the past few months and couldn't make time to pen down my thoughts or experiences. Kept myself busy most of the time with Quest - A promising MLM business. I started the venture along with my close friends Raj and Chandu and built a good team of around 20 members. I achieved calculated results too. The business kept my mind occupied most of the time and my thought process revolved around it.

Even while at office, I was multitasking with all the plans, phone calls and discussions. I had proudly discussed my business indulgences with Dad, mom, sisters and friends. The confidence within was immense - courtesy the numerous meetings we had and all the support from various Business leaders. I made two business trips to hyderabad and attended a number of parties and meetings in Chennai. Notable among them was the grand training cum meet of the Ocean team at Chennai trade Centre.(India's numero uno M/s Padma convened the event) Quest became a part and parcel of my routine. Responsibilities grew day by day but I was enjoying them as I could visualize my success. It did bother me sometimes because my leaders always insisted me to take this up as a full time work sometime down the line, but I wasn't up for the idea. I wanted to balance it along with the regular job.

At this juncture when my efforts started paying off and success seemed unstoppable a heavy hindrance blocked my road. I had waited for months to gain confidence in the entire setup and to invest on behalf of somebody else (with the obvious assumption that they would pay back). I received my first token of reward, a check of eleven grand, the second was on its way and the third was ready to be despatched. Due to a few ambitious people's wrong business methodology the company stood exposed and media played the evil monster to degrade its reputation.

Initially, it was looked down upon as a passing cloud. The leaders gave assurance and cited a previous incident in Banglore which subsided eventually. But this time, one event led to the other and even people who have benefited from the company stand ready to complain. My mentors have belief that Business would be back and everything would be normal.

Now, all I can do is just hope that things would recover and expect the Business partners across to have a reasoning mind and not just panic. Thirty grand is on cards and 10 grand stands to be delivered.

I sometimes feel frustrated - why were my dreams nipped off in the bud !!! Or is this a testing time ??  

Lesson learnt

Getting up when half of the day is already over > getting ready leisurely > having lunch > spending a bit of time in the library > working out at gym > TT > dinner > sleeping very very late after chit chat with roomies. This has been my schedule for the past one month.

A dramatic incident calls for its mention which I would rather prefer forgetting. I felt it was fate taking its course. It's not always that you walk out with you original documents for three days in a row for xerox, get the work done on the third day, carry them to the office and suddenly realise that you have lost the originals  !!

There was a power cut in the Xerox shop on the first day and it was closed on the second day. I know it may sound stupid that I carried them 3 days instead of getting the work done elsewhere. But I had only this shop on my way to office and was lazy enough to walk to other shops which would mean an additional 15 minute walk. Moreover, if I had not missed them everything would seem fine

So, I wanted these documents to apply for a credit card. I had carried them in a folder which had an open ended slot for putting in the documents. While getting the copies done, I got a phone call which lasted until I reached office. It was only in the lift that I realized that I had missed the originals of Passport, Driving license and Pan card.

After the initial shock, I was assured that I had left them back at the Xerox shop itself. For a moment, I even considered having lunch and then collecting them. But then there was much drama awaiting. Back at the shop, the lady didn't respond on seeing me - my first instance of doubt accompanied with fear. I enquired after she dealt with a few customer if she had seen my docs. She flatly refused and said she hadn't seen anything.I then re-traced my path carefully back to the office.

I was tensed by now. I checked with guards and the Admin department which dealt with the 'Lost and Found' objects. Then I took help from  the agents at the main gate to help me in explaining the lady at the Xerox shop in Tamil.

I spent the next two hours searching frantically on the path leading to office and enquiring the shop keepers. There was a Satyam office standing opposite to the venue of all this drama. I talked to the guards and gave them my contact number; perhaps somebody may find my docs and deposit with them. Towards the evening, I had to digest the hard fact that I had infact lost my original documents.

With the suggestion of my friends, I even went to the police station to inform them about the loss of my docs before somebody could misuse them. But I was asked to go the crime report branch the next day. That night passed by with lots of tension and animated descriptions of how the day passed so eventfully

The next morning I had a surprise call for me from Vikky. I realized that somebody had found my docs and had telegramed to the address mentioned in the passport - a sigh of relief !! I hurriedly made a call to the number mentioned and set off to meet the good Samaritan.

I reached Perungudi. For the next half an hour I tried calling but my call was not being attended. I entered this office called Sanmar and further waited for around 20 minutes. I was finally called for. Mr. Srinivasan was an elderly person aged 55-60 and was a manager at Sanmar. It started with how did you come to know, why did you miss them and went on for the next 30 minutes on how I should be careful with things.

Then he called for the driver who had actually spotted my documents. Mr Srinivasan focussed on the importance of the man's good nature and his effort to send a telegram. He then spoke of religion and wanted to make a point that the way I have a God, everyone does and so does this man (the driver). He (the driver)  was due to visit Sabrimala and since he was very poor Mr Srinivasan offered me to bear half his expenses. I couldn't react for a moment -  I was a naive, two salary old employee.

Mr Srinivasan then tried to make me realise that I should be grateful to the person and also stressed on how blessed I would be. I kept on listening to what I was being told and nodded to his elderliness. The next day I went back with the amount (having a 1% thought if I could bargain to half the amount citing cash crunch). Mr Srinivasan made me sit, offered coffee and talked politely explaining how destiny has its way. He then cited an eg. of how a man who inspite of chaining his luggage while travelling lost a bag worth 50000. He further said that this incident occured in my life so that I could help a man on his visit to a religious place and it was his God that made him act that way.

Veterans have a way getting their points accross. I presented Mr Srinivasan a Parker pen and he was quite happy for his little gift. I felt content for being able to help somebody (though parting with 1500 was not that comfortable) I could see it as lesson to be conscious of my items in future.

Well then, I am leaving for Vizag to join Mom, Dad and Vikky for Christmas. See You !!

Chennai - Base Branch

It's been around two weeks since I came to Chennai. Had travelled from Vizag along with Mom and Bro - They were to spend their winter vacation with Dad at Kalpakkam and I had to join at my base branch. On the day of reporting, we(dad and me) started early and drove down to Shollinganallur. The roads at OMR were quite dusty. I was allocated to RTSC (block for Retail domain) at Karapakkam.I wouldn't have minded working at Shollinganallur too; the campus was quite beautiful.

I took temporary shelter at Vijay Pratap's room. It was very kind of him to accommodate me apart from two other of his friends - Pavan and Ashok. The hunt for a room continued for three days and we looked for rooms in Velachery, Thiruvanmiyur and Thoraipakkam. I personally loved a duplex at thoraipakkam and had almost confirmed it but we couldn't finalise it. Karapakkam was where we finally got our place of stay. We rented out 4 one BHK (read 1 bedroom hall kitchen) flats at a rent of 4000 per month/flat. With four of us staying per flat it was quite affordable and the bargaining skills of Mukesh had brought down the broker's commission from 16000 to 3000. The poor chap wanted a months rent as advance :)

60k is the advance we paid altogether. The room is a 10 min walk to office and with 14 of us staying together, I hope the days ahead should be fun.

The office at RTSC is an 8 storeyed building with well maintained corridors and cubicles. There is a gym which we plan to make the most use of. Our daily routine at office presently is to sign in the register and stay confined to the library and canteen as we are on BENCH. Some of us have already made reservations to pay a visit back home.

I am going home tomorrow to Kalpakkam where I would be joining Dad and Mom for their trip to Ooty and Mysore.

Adieu !!

Two months of ILP in Bhubaneswar rolled past as though it were just two days. I feel as if it were only yesterday that I walked into this room with Praveen along with our luggage !!

These were one of the best days of my life. Friends, studies, responsibilities, enjoyment ; there was a proper blend of everything. In two months I made so many friends !!

I am gonna miss this place. The memories will last long and strong.  I got my appointment orders today. We had our release process and all the other formalities were done. We also had our valediction function. Mementos were gives to best performers in exams and to CSR volunteers. I had to spend a lot of time on stage which was in fact a bit uncomfortable :)

I had a sense of satisfaction when our work at CSR was acknowledged. A power point presentation ran through summarizing all the activities. Back in class after the function we took many snaps and a class video which had each one's introduction. The moments slowly ticked away and finally it was time to depart. This was difficult to digest especially when you had grown so close with friends.

So, gotta leave Bhubaneswar in another couple of hours. Had a very memorable time here.

Good bye Bhubabeswar !!