Do You Believe in Miracles? (Part II)

Do you know how it feels when you lose your phone?

It feels as though you are marooned on a lost island in the middle of an ocean. No way to talk to people. Out of touch with civilization. Away from technological conveniences.

It feels as though you have been apparated to an unknown land all of a sudden. One moment you are talking to family and friends, and suddenly you are so far from them. The distances become real and every kilometer makes its presence felt.

It feels as though you are stuck in traffic. The frustration of wanting to do something, but being unable to. The urge to do something with your hands while waiting but having nothing for it.

It feels like when you forgot your wallet at home. You have to depend on others’ phones to make important calls.

 

Do you know what it is to lose your Android smartphone?

You have gotten used to the 24 hour internet access. The regular FB updates. Being online and available all the time. The dozen apps to pass the time when there’s nothing to do.

It feels like suddenly pulling the brakes down hard while speeding down the expressway.

Without the phone, you are feeling the strongest emotions of loss, sorrow, anger and frustration. A genuine moment for a FB status update. But you can’t do that.

You want to look something up urgently. You want to check your mail. But you can’t do that.

You need to talk to somebody and think of catching them online at that time. But you can’t do that.

You are at a new place and not sure of where to go. You want to use the navigation tool to direct you. But you can’t do that.

Do you know how it feels to lose a birthday gift from home?

It feels as though your guts are being wrenched out. It feels like when you accidentally stepped on your favorite toy. Sad, guilty, angry at yourself. You want to blame somebody and beat that person up. But that somebody is none other than you. Your insides writhe as strong sentiments rage under your chest. Your mind is in turmoil.

Add all these up together and you will know how it feels to lose your Xperia Andriod smartphone gifted to you by your parents and sister.

Do You Believe in Miracles? (Part I)

A tragedy had befallen me! A calamity so grave that it undermined the misfortunes any ten people in the world might face in their lifetimes! A mishap that plunged me into the dark shadows where voices are silenced and words don’t travel far!

My phone was stolen!

And it was not just a phone… It was Sony Xperia X10 Mini Pro! My first Android smartphone with a smooth touch feature, qwerty keypad and an awesome 5MP camera.

And it was not just any Xperia… It was a birthday gift from home! A beautiful amazing cool phone!

This was the phone that was stolen right from my office desk. My office desk! From my cubicle left empty when I was working late, my Xperia was gone! Gone, vanished, disappeared, lost, STOLEN!

Whoever first talked about Monday blues must have been through the same!!

Puneri Tadka

Pune… A rocking city. The hub of the young generation. The IT city. The seat of culture.

Maybe everybody has heard this much of the city called Pune. A small place that’s growing every day. The city where everybody’s heading to.

It’s hard to believe that now I am living in this city on my own! The anticipation and excitement that filled me when I came here nearly two months ago has still not faded out. And I haven’t been to any of the rocking places yet! No restaurants, discs or any of the ‘must-see’ places in Pune. But the experience of getting our own rented flat and looking after ourselves is overwhelming enough.

What should I talk about? Should I tell you about the 15 houses Sunshine, Nautanki and me looked at in 4 days before finalizing on this one? Or the lovely flat we had found in the midst of our search but because of a last minute change of the owner’s mind, we couldn’t get it? But I guess, whatever happens, happens for good. If we had not lost that flat, we wouldn’t have looked at this flat that we are living in now. We took less than half an hour to decide to take up this flat – the quickest we had reached to any decision till now!

Although it’s a bit old – ok ok quite old ( 15 years old actually) – it is charming. As soon as we entered the flat, we liked the atmosphere. And the area is superb. It’s just slightly off the main road. The main road becomes quite happening in the evenings. Everything’s nearby – a supermarket, a cool eatery, Pizza Hut, dance classes, gym, Fab India outlet, vegetable market, good restaurants. And the best of all – there is a Crossword right outside our lane! What can be better!!

I know what’s better. Having all friends living nearby itself. Whenever we feel like it, we gather at anybody’s place and have dinner together. It is great fun to cook and eat together. Here’s what happened once when we got huge sized rasgullas! Thankfully Sunshine and I are not in this video… we were even worse off! This was after the amazing dinner cooked for us by Mummy, who had come to stay for a week with us.

Of course there are always speed bumps in the way. There were clashes with our broker. Somehow people don’t remain good-natured after their work is done! Then once we were locked out of home late night. It was a worried hour that we spent outside the door before the owner came and helped us out. There are also the daily clashes with the auto walas who are basically looters in disguise! But well, it takes all kinds of people to make up the world.

And then we do get to meet some good people. Take, for instance, our owner uncle and aunty. They are so nice and helpful. We feel like there’s somebody to look after us in this new city.

So, although we get tired of the long ride to office and back every day, of getting stuck in the terrible traffic and breathing in the suffocating polluted air in the city, it’s kinda fun here. It’s not very far from home and I can go back every fortnight. My parents and sister can also come here when they want. (You know, Mummy bought no less than TEN sarees when she came here!) There are many friends around too.

And getting our own paycheck and spending our own money on ourselves helps, I guess! ;)

I Am Not A Cricket Fan

Let me be frank. I don’t watch cricket. I haven’t seen a single match in years. I don’t follow scores and records. Heck, I don’t even know the names of all the players in the Indian cricket team!

Yes, it’s possible I am a rare specimen of the Indian janta. An anomaly. Who doesn’t show at least a slight interest in the biggest craze of this country? But well, this is who I am!

I don’t care if there’s a crucial match scheduled at the same time as a good movie on TV. I would rather watch that flick. It doesn’t matter to me that Sachin lost on his hundredth century in some match. (Correct me if I am wrong!) I would show the slightest attention to the fact that India is playing in our city that day. I may absent mindedly read in the newspapers about India winning or losing the latest match; then would turn over to the comics, forgetting all about it. I don’t even notice when the World Cup or IPL or what all there is comes and goes.

I have never sat myself down on my couch for a cricket match. I have never asked anybody about the match results or the next match; even though I am surrounded all around by huge fans of cricket. I have never read up the player stats or match analysis reports.

I don’t know the rules properly. I hadn’t known about the different styles of hitting the ball before the recent Pepsi advertisements. I don’t know the difference between spinners and the rest of the bowlers.  I don’t understand the different signals used by umpires except the most popular ones of signaling a six or four or out.

I don’t get it when people get so excited before a match. I don’t understand how anybody can watch a whole match ball by ball from the start to the end. I find it utterly boring! I am totally clueless when people start discussing cricket. The language of cricket is Greek and Latin for me.

Well, when I say that I am not interested even in the matches between India and Pakistan, enough is said!

But what happened yesterday? Was yesterday’s match any different from any other World Cup match? Have we not played against Australia before too? And in previous World Cups too? Have I not remained unaffected by the excitement in the people around me during the previous matches?

Then why did I catch myself praying in my mind for India to win the match yesterday? What was the tension coursing in my body for? Why did I feel the electricity that was sparkling in the office yesterday give me a jolt as well? And why did I feel my heart skip every time I was reminded of the ongoing match while I sat at my desk pretending to be nonchalant?

Is it because we are so close to holding the much coveted Cup after a long time? Have I heard enough praise for Dhoni’s men to start believing in them myself?

Is it because of one legendary man and the nation’s expectations from him? Is it because deep inside I too feel that Sachin and India deserve a World Cup now? Is it because this is his last World Cup?

Has something of the country’s mania has leaked into me too? Am I hit so hard by the wave of cricket mania? Have I been bitten by the cricket bug as well? Am I also feeling the patriotic urge to support our team and wish it good luck?

Whatever it is, I am starting to feel the same as India prepares to play (beat? J) Pakistan in Mohali. This match might find one more non-follower unable to contain the excitement as Sachin opens the innings on Wednesday.  Maybe after the World Cup, I will return to normal disinterested state. I may not know the dates of the next upcoming tournaments. But the World Cup 2011 has converted at least one person to the religion called cricket, albeit for a short time.

This time, as in the India – Australia match, I might again feel like whooping when I hear the crackers of celebration bursting after the match!

The fever is catching on… let the thrill begin!

-- Pune, 25th March 2011

Mysorean Days

15 August, 2010. This was the day we entered the grand Mysore campus of ‘Infinity’. At that time, we knew that we were entering into a new phase of our lives. Leaving behind the bindaas attitude of college, we were about to become software professionals. Today, nearly six months later, having successfully completed my training and posted to Pune, I feel a lot more different than I had expected. Experiencing all these new places, meeting new people, making new friends, all this is bound to leave some impression on me. Although the time in Mysore has not been entirely successful in squashing the bindaas attitude, it definitely has played a major part in making me feel more confident and be more careful at the same time.

Various incidents come to my mind as I think of Mysore – funny, tragic, happy, sad. All these handed me a mixed bag of feelings as I left the campus on 29^th January. One moment I was happy to have passed the rigorous training, another moment relieved to get out of Mysore finally, another moment excited with anticipation of staying in Pune where at least the food would be good and another moment sad to leave behind the beautiful campus and all the friends that I had made there.

I remember the day we had loaded our luggage into the cab at the gate of the campus and laid eyes upon our hostel block for the first time. There were two Hyderabadi girls with me in the cab, Pinks and Reddy. We had helped each other lug our bags up the two floors of our block as we were on the same floor. How much we had found the absence of a lift in the building an absolute frustration!

It felt so strange the day I was leaving that the same two girls had helped me lug my bags down now and that I was not going to see them again for a very long time now. I hope I do get to meet them again. Then we will go for the rock climbing that we had missed there.

We IC people (Sammy, Aries-storm, Skullz , Pandu and me)  would hang out together there. Somehow the CE/IT guys also came along with us. We were the proud members of the Papa Pandu Club, created in honour of our prestigious friend, Pandu! Our Club would convene every Friday for an ice cream party. After the CE/IT guys left, the Club gathering did not remain so frequent or regular. But once we are together again, it will rise again to its former glory!

In fact, I met many of my own college mates for the first time here itself. Our paths had never crossed in college but here we became familiar with each other.

In class too, there were some cool people I got to meet. And on meeting some people I felt I should have met them before. Particularly this girl from Bangalore. It was strange how much our tastes matched. Both of us read a lot and read similar kinds of books. We could go on talking about books alone for a long time.

The campus itself is amazing. First of all, it’s huge! Huge as in gigantic! And every bit of its hugeness is felt when one has to run from the hostel to the classroom in GEC I or II with just minutes left before the class starts! Of course cycles are provided but somehow they are never available when you need them most. And only the most desperate will even try the lone cycle standing at the cycle stand. 99% chances are that the cycle is not in a working condition.

When not in a hurry, we do have time to marvel at the grandeur of the campus. Greenery everywhere, the campus is a delight. Every major building is an architectural wonder. The multiplex is like a huge bee hive. It is dome shaped and supported entirely by beams. But then we were more interested in the multiplex because we could watch movies every weekend there for free! What long queues there would be for the tickets… sometimes even as early as 7am! My friends stopped trying to wake me up for these morning shows after the first couple of times!

There was one SDB (Software Development Block) that was inspired from origami. It had strange protruding angles and mirrored walls. The GEC-I had a strong Greek architectural influence. How many times I have heard people curse the long flight of stairs before the building! But the grandest of all buildings was the GEC II. A combination of the Roman Colloseum and colonial architecture created a large and majestic structure. We felt lucky to have our classes in such anedifice! There was a musical fountain in front where we could sit during the evenings after class to refresh ourselves.

Our hostels were also wonderful. It had all facilities of hot water in the mornings, AC, TV, unlimited supply of tea and coffee sachets. And the best of all was the housekeeping services. I would wake up every day, get ready and leave my room a complete mess, not even bothering to make my bed. And everything would be cleaned up and set up properly by the time I came back! It was nothing less than pampering!

But however much I may praise the campus, I won’t be able to manage a single commendable word for the food there. It was not just the adjustment to the south Indian taste. The quality itself was terrible. The first day, all us IC people tried a few varieties of dosas that included the strange “Pizza Dosa”!There was no concept of vegetables and whatever was made had a bucketful of water in each plate. It was hard to decide whether the sabji was made for eating or for drinking! A person could bathe in the amount of water they put in the sabjis! And the rotis! For some reason they believed in not cooking the rotis completely. Just looking at the menu every day would make me lose my appetite. In such a situation, Domino’s pizza became a regular for us. And it was not a problem of just the campus caterers. There were very few restaurants where we could say the food was okay. We felt as though the training was not just for software knowledge but also for developing survival instincts in the absence of good food!

The training was in fact not just for software proficiency. We were also trained to maintain the “brand value” of the company. The dress code policy was very strict and we could be fined a grand amount of Rs. 200 for not following the dress code accurately. I myself had to pay the fine in the first few weeks for not wearing the proper shoes. I had worn open-toed shoes with western formal dress which we are not supposed to. And the lengths we went to just to escape the fine! Sammy had once come to class without wearing any socks at all. Apparently he had washed all his socks the previous night and they hadn’t dried yet. So there he was sitting in class with his shoes removed and in sockless feet because the leather was biting him. He had to run to the super market in the first break to buy socks!

After some time though, we would start getting homesick. Fortunately, we got enough opportunities to go home during the training. The only problem was that the actual journey itself. Going from Mysore to Bangalore took nearly 3 hours or more by bus. And the Bangalore-Ahmedabad flight would be early morning 6 am or so. That meant we had to leave the evening before and find a way to spend the night in Bangalore and then catch the morning flight. For some reason, most of such trips of mine have always been eventful.

On the first trip back to Mysore from Bangalore, I was stuck at the airport with Sud with rain pouring down in heaps! We actually stood for nearly two hours with a handmade board looking for people to share a taxi with us to Mysore!

And the memory of the second trip to Bangalore still resounds in my mind! Reaching there at nearly midnight to catch an early morning flight again with Sud (somehow he always gets stuck into my troubles!), an autowala tried to loot us by using a sleight of hand. Fortunately we caught him and an argument ensued, threatening to turn ugly at any instant. Sud took a hit and gave some. But we were lucky to have escaped so lightly!

But however much we may grumble about our stay in Mysore, we can never forget the hours spent in playing Counter Strike illegally over LAN instead of studying. Or the dozens of birthday parties celebrated every night at the stroke of midnight at Oasis foodcourt. Or the late night hungers that drove us to CCD’s coffees and dry sandwiches.

To all the friends I made in Mysore… And to all those who I may never meet again… Thank you for giving me the experience of my life! Hope we all find ourselves in such awesome places and among such great people ahead in life too!

Good Luck J

A Delightful Diwali at Patna

Every year come Diwali, we quickly pack some stuff and fly across to
Patna. There is something about this city that draws us to it – a
charm that compels us to come to the city on the slightest excuse.
Maybe Patna is incorporated into our DNA because this is where our
family comes from.
Patna is one of the oldest cities alive. Earlier known as Patliputra,
it has been a centre of power for many dynasties – from the Guptas and
Mauryas to the Mughals and even the British. The ancient culture and
traditions are woven into the rich tapestry that makes the city.
Now, as capital of a state that has started striding towards
development, Patna is booming. The city is now eager to join the ‘big
city’ stream and is bustling with energy.
So now we have a vibrant city that is a rich mixture of the old and
the new. While we still have the line of hawkers selling everything
under the sun beside the crowded roads, we can see new buildings,
hotels, malls, multiplexes and showrooms of big brands rising against
the skyline. The people are still the same – going about their affairs
in the same calm, laid-back manner. But now they have a more modern
lifestyle with new cars, houses and places to go. This juxtaposition
of the old and new gives a quaint charm to the city and its people.
During festivals, Patna is the place to be. Starting from Diwali, and
extending upto the Bihari festival of Chhath, the city shows its
traditional charm at its best. It bursts into a colourful celebration
that lasts nearly fifteen days. In this period, we can see people full
of happiness and gusto. Everybody is smiling as they roam around the
markets that spring up on the footpaths or go about decorating their
houses with lights and colours.
This year I spent a week in Patna to celebrate Diwali. And I enjoyed
every moment there. Starting from the first day of Dhanteras, people
took to the streets for the festival shopping.
Diwali is the time when people decorate their homes and prepare it for
the New Year. It is the time when we buy new stuff for ourselves. And
it is also the time for elaborate poojas. Accordingly in response to
the demand, dozens of markets open up by the roadsides. All footpaths
are taken over by hawkers and small shops selling diyas, lamps,
crackers, rangoli colours, Ganesh – Laxmi idols, toys, sweets,
earthenware, and utensils and so on. The widest roads shrink as the
shops and droves of people spill out on the roads.
The Boring Road is one of the most famous places for Diwali shopping.
On this occasion, there is nothing boring about the Boring Road. (The
name was actually given because of the bore well there.) People come
here specially to buy things for the poojas done on Diwali. Stall
after stall is lined with beautiful idols of Ganesh and Laxmi. From
simple to elaborate, from small to large, we had a huge range of
choices for the idols. With the idols come a variety of accessories.
Bunches of small colourful necklaces hang over each stall. There are
also small dresses available at some stalls.
Along with the idols, the shops also sell earthen toys. Money banks
are most popular at this time. There are money banks in all shapes,
sizes and colours. Some are shaped as animals, some as fruits and
vegetables; we could see some shaped as even gas cylinders! Bright
rangoli colours are piled over laris. Decorative items like lanterns,
streamers, flowers fill up the whole place in a riot of colours.
A tradition followed in this part of the country during Diwali is the
decoration of toy houses by children. Children prepare their own
houses and deck them up beautifully. Such toy houses are also seen at
the markets during this time. Made from simple materials like hay,
thermocol, cardboard or wood, they could be as simple as a single room
with windows or as elaborate as three – storey bungalows with
terraces. Storey houses complete with windows, doors and stairs are
most popular with the kids.
For setting up these toy houses, there are a variety of earthen toys.
Stoves, wheat grinders, utensils – all are available in the form of
toys. Potters nowadays make coloured toys and diyas. All of these are
spread out in baskets wherever there is space between or in front of
the shops.

And what is Diwali without crackers? Crackers, sparklers and rockets
of every kind imaginable are displayed on numerous stalls where
children and grownups both crowd over.
With the crowds of people thriving here and the traffic squeezing
past, it looks like the Boring Road has burst into a profusion of
lights and colours.
Pretty much similar is the scenario at the old established markets of
the city. Patna Market is one of the oldest shopping centers here,
famous for jewelry showrooms and garment shops. Sparkling gold
ornaments and traditional saris and dresses of the latest designs
glitter behind windows, luring and tempting people to buy them all.
There are also stalls selling glass bangles and trinkets of all
colours and designs.

Right outside the Patna Market are several stalls where we get amazing
‘littis’, panipuris, chats and such snacks. Speaking of eatables,
opposite the Patna Museum, there are several famous confectionaries
where we get traditional sweets like Silaw ka khaja, lai, Maner ke
laddu, anarsa, gaja, pedakia. Just looking at them stacked up sets
one’s mouth watering.


After this amazing shopping experience, the actual Diwali celebration
was a joyous event. We decorated our home with oil lamps and strands
of electric lights. We ate lots of sweets and burst many crackers with
other children in our apartment. We made many new friends.  We went
upto the terrace and the view was breath taking. The whole city was
decked up in lights and the sky erupted time and again into sparkles
as rockets swished up.
What made this Diwali a real delight was the joy and jollity in all
the people around us. As we lit up the diyas, we could feel the merry
festive mood cover us all. Maybe this is the atmosphere that makes us
feel at home at Patna. Maybe this is why we feel we belong here, even
though we stay here for only a short time. Maybe this is why we come
back here every time.

[PS: I took lots of photos too, but am not able to upload them right now. I will do that later.]

Hello World!

So the thing is that I came back home and started telling everybody with all the stories and experiences I had collected during this two and a half months. Since everybody started getting really bored with me, I decided to choose a less annoying medium... and voila! Welcome to my blog 'Anything But Ordinary'.

Let me first introduce myself, not just for the benefit of the new readers but also for my friends. Using aliases can confuse people!

I am Alpha Don. (I hope that's enough introduction for my friends! :) ) Currently at a 'leading IT company' undergoing training at Mysore ('the place to be'), I will call my company 'Infinity' for anonymity purposes. I did my engineering from Ahmedabad, Gujarat at a leading institute whose name is better known as a detergent! ;) I guess that's enough for identifying myself!

This blog, as I had said earlier, is going to be sort of like my journal. Having spent some time at Mysore has given me enough to start this venture. New people, new friends, new places, new experiences - lots of material available to fill the spaces here!

So read on... you will meet lots of people, old friends and new, who I will refer by aliases again. You will hear lots of incidents - simple, humorous, serious, all kinds. You will see new places - life at 'Infinity' campus, Mysore and also glimpses of my hometown, Patna.

Hope you enjoy my ramblings! See ya later!

Toodle-oo! :)