Every rose...has its thorns
Rains always fascinate me. Maybe everyone. It's been raining cats and dogs in this part of the world, just as everyone was about to give up any hopes from whatever remains of the so-called monsoons. Pleasant surprise I must say. And a lot of it! Maybe we don't even need a meteorological department. All they do is confuse people. Adds to the surprise factor though. :)
I've not updated the journal in some time. But then again, shouldn't attribute it to the lack of time. Had ample of it to spare. I guess, I wanted the things to be in order, before I'd jot something down. Had an adventurous June involving many vital decisions -- changed the job, changed the city. Finding a house in the new place was a daunting task on it's own. Guess that'd qualify for a separate post altogether.
I moved out from the 'city of blinding lights' to a place, which could as well be considered a 'city with light (power) crises'(Pune). :) But, I'm not complaining. There are other factors: I've loved the weather thus far, and hopefully, I'd love it even more in the time to come. I guess it's always a big decision, leaving a well-settled, and comfortable life, and taking a leap of faith. I wouldn't say I was dissatisfied with my last job. But, over time, I'd stopped feeling that I'm being able to give my hundred percent to it. There was a slight mismatch between the required skill-set, and what I could offer. I'm indebted to the people of my last company that they could understand what I meant. So that's that.
Anyways, one good thing about the new company is that they've TT tables, and there's no restriction on timings. So that has become my favourite hangout. That is great because I have not had played TT in years (last I played in NCST, in 2002-03, and a little bit on '04). And given that my monetary situation has improved (a tad bit) from that time, I finally got my hands on a MarkV racquet (as in MarkV on a Butterfly blade) Woohoo! (I'm still unable to win the matches though ;)). But it's a great feeling. I remember, my last association with MarkV was when I was little, and went to practice TT in AMU's Strachey Hall. I guess I was eight or nine. I and dad had gone to Delhi to get it. But we just got the rubber for one side of the racquet -- that served the purpose.
[Flashback: An interesting aspect (read: charm) of my and dad's visit to Delhi used to be having a masala dosa at the Railway Canteen on the first platform of New Delhi railway station. I was crazy for it. It was, iirc, for Rs.6/-. I discreetly remember that was a must thing for us, as soon as we landed in Delhi, for whatever work. Later on, when I used to go to Delhi with friends, Keventer's, Nirula's (and later-on the great McD) started getting preference over the good ol' dosa. I had to go with the flow. But I guess, the longing always remained. In April this year I was in New Delhi, my train was delayed, so I decided to invest my time to pamper my taste buds again. I visited the Railway Canteen. And there it was, the same dosa, the same mess (pun intended), and the same taste. Inflation, though, had played its part -- it was for Rs.12/-.]
Till now, I've been trying to adjust with the laid-back lifestyle here. For that matter, they say any place would seem laid-back after having stayed in Mumbai for some time (six odd years, in my case). Since I don't have a vehicle, I have to frequently entrust the plying to autos -- which, it seems, are mostly run by robbers, dacoits, and crooks after a rehab programme. I mean, one look at them and you seriously doubt their need to be doing this job. Most of them, it seems, can very well qualify to be wrestlers. It's easy to imagine, therefore, that it's not difficult for them to extort whatever they feel like from unsuspecting (and thoroughly scared) passengers. Moreover, if they realize that the 'victim' is from any place to the North of this state, it gets worse. Whatever follows then could very well be associated with a imaginary situation where Coyote has finally got hold of Road Runner.
But this Road Runner lives on, albeit with some ruffled feathers. :)