Yesterday was Krishnav’s first day at pre-pre nursery school…

Yesterday was also the most nervous I have felt in the past few years; I guess the last time I felt really nervous was during my 12th standard exams; and that is like more than two decades ago!

Well as far as I can remember, I never enjoyed school while I was young – I felt bound, and tied down; felt much more comfortable on my own at home or in a play ground. As a result, when I look back, I realize that I must have missed out on so much fun that I see kids having at schools these days. I must confess that I really secretly wished that Krishnav does not take after me on that one aspect; and rather takes after my wife Shubhra, who is much more bubbly, open to newer experiences, and full of life.

So yesterday, when Krishnav was to go to a local toddler-school (a pre-pre nursery school; accompanied by Shubhra) for the first time, I was really nervous. I imagined my phone to ring anytime with a panic message from my wife conveying anything from – “please come to the school cause Krishnav just refuses to go in (like he does when we visit his doctor),” to “he is crying inconsolably and wants to get out of the school,” or “he refuses to get off the car at the school gate,” etc. So when I did not get a call from my wife even several hours after his first day at school was supposed to end, I did not know what to expect.

When I called my wife later during the day, I was wishing for the best! And, I am glad that I heard that – Krishnav REALLY loved his day-one at school. He was high on energy, interacted with other kids, charmed their moms (wink!), and impressed the instructors. He danced when the music was played, was the first one to participate in group activities, had no qualms about asking for toys or stuff that he wanted, and was on the move for the full two hours that he was there.

Yaay, that made my day; and Thank You God for getting your genetic engineering right on this one!!

Sitting by the window on a fast train…

Do you ever feel that you are sitting on a fast train and the world is just whizzing past as you gaze out of the window. And scarier still, does it ever seem that this train is headed in the wrong direction! I have been feeling this way for the past few weeks. First I thought it was one of those “downs” in the rollercoaster called “life,” but lately I have been thinking if someone (or something) is urging me to take control of the “train.” I don’t know…

I was trying to Google for some gyan on this during lunch-hour today, and here is a summary of the guru-speak I gathered; says nothing new, but is an interesting read. So here goes the seven step process to take control of the “train”…
- Get in touch with your values: Maybe your priorities are not aligned with your values, so you are not focusing on the right things.
- Decide what motivates you: If tomorrow you knew you could do anything and not fail what would you do? Is there something you are passionate about but are afraid of trying?
- Set goals: Goals fuel your intent and make your desires concrete.
- Take action: If you have written long-term and short-term goals and prioritized them, you have a plan of action. Just take it one step at a time and do something everyday that takes you closer to where you want to be.
- Manage your time: Plan your days and prioritize your time to get the most out of the time you have.
- Do what needs to be done: Whether it is a mundane task or internal work, putting it off gets us nowhere.
- Self-discipline: This final step takes all that we have learned and puts it into action.

When Shekhu met Nagu….

No, I am not nuts… and I am not writing about the reunion of two pets here…

Today I met a friend after eight years. We graduated from the same engg-school 15 years ago, and had met only once in the interim. I used to call him Nagu (or Snakey!) at e-school (a dig at his name!), and he used to call me Shekhu (I do not remember why, somehow :-). We were (almost) room-mates in the third and the final year at college; well though we had our own individual rooms, we spent more time in each other’s company than in our own rooms.

I was eagerly waiting to meet Nagu ever since I had planned a Bangalore trip a few days ago. Though we had initially planned to meet at a local pub (to relive a few high-spirited moments), and you bet that would have been much more fun, my travel logistics did not allow me an evening to myself (we are all slaves of the corporate world, aren’t we..). Not willing to forego an opportunity to meet Nagu, I quickly lapped up his offer to have breakfast at his house.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Nagu just the way he looked 15 years ago; the man had obviously done some hard work on the treadmill in the last few years. In fact, as we exchanged pleasantries and compared notes on who all among our batch were we still in touch with, I was amused to note that Nagu had not changed at all. He is still a very pleasing personality, extra generous with his laughter, and a bit extra modest about his achievements. I remember, at e-school, Nagu was easily one of the brightest people around. But unlike most other I-know-I-am-smart elites, Nagu was always too willing to mingle with the lesser mortals (like me) and ever too eager to share his academic gyan so that folks like me could also practice our writing skills at the annual examinations! He always went the extra mile to identify with folks around him, though he was clearly very different (read smart!).

Really enjoyed the one hour Shekhu spent with Nagu… and they do plan to meet more often in the future.

Lost count after 30…..

Yesterday I turned …oops lost count….

Though I hate the concept of “birthday,” the day was enjoyable – got up early, went to temple with my wife and son (it does not hurt to have god on your side…), went out shopping with my wife, and had a small family dinner in the evening. I also came to terms with the fact that it is alright to be on the (very) wrong side of thirties – age is just another statistic anyways (sour grapes?...nah!)

Now when I look back at the last one year, 2009 was a mixed bag for me. I re-started my career after a one year sabbatical, re-settled in Gurgaon, connected with some old friends, really loved seeing my son do his “firsts” (first crawl, first step, first word, first gesture…), invested in some assets, sorted out some long pending issues. I however failed to move forward on one goal that I had set for myself on my last birthday – that of beginning to pen my first novel. Though I do have the plot in mind, I guess I could not find enough “literary momentum” to pen my plot.

I however am determined to get cracking on that in January 2010…

As I close possibly my last blog entry this year, let me take a moment to wish all the citizens of blogosphere a rocking 2010. I hope the year brings peace and happiness all over…

Holy cow, we have only 3 more years to live…

….well if you were to believe the twisted logic of some historians around the theory that since Mayan calendar is till 21 December 2012, that is when the world comes to an end. While some part of me may be anxious around the suggested doomsday, at this point I feel it is just a group of conspiracy theorists trying to get cheap publicity and some cult groups trying to increase their follower base. The movie 2012’s director certainly is laughing his way to the bank, and if nothing else, he is sure to have wealthy next three years!

Yesterday, as I saw on TV for the zillionth time one of these “twisted-logic” theorists talk about doomsday prediction, for a few minutes I started to think about what I would do if really had only three years to live and if I knew (for sure) that the world would indeed end on Dec 21, 2012. Here are some of the to-dos that came to my mind….

- Stop repaying the loan EMIs!… and let the bank start off a legal battle to get possession of the property. I am sure, by the time the court comes to some conclusion three years would have passed by and I would have an extra X,00,000 rupees at my disposal in the interim.

- Plan out a world tour (may be putting the money saved above to good use!)…. If the world were to come to an end, this may me be my last chance to go to all the beautiful places I fancy. My itinerary would surely include Switzerland, South Africa, Australia, and Western Europe.

- Buy a good fancy top-of-the line car such as a Porsche, Ferrari, etc…. This may be a good time to buy my dream vehicle; needless to say, on a 15 year EMI plan!

- Stop exercising (not that I do a lot now!) completely…. Why worry about your body when there is not much time to live anyways!

- Start writing my dream book immediately….eureka!! I now have a hot selling plot around what a guy-next-door may do if he knew that he has a finite time to live! Though I now know for sure I have found a plot that is sure to work with fear-psychotic public, I may not have enough time to collect all the royalty from book sales

…. The above few thoughts (any many more) whizzed past my mind in a few seconds before I realized that most of this may be just hype. The skeptics believe (and I agree to that view) that the Mayans Long Count calendar ends in 2012 since their calendar follows long set of periods unlike every year. Some skeptics also believe their culture vanished before they could get out another long count calendar.

Despite my skepticism around the 2012 theory, I must admit that I have seen no prophecy gain as much hype before. While the rational-me believes that 21 Dec 2012 will go by like any other day, I cannot help wondering what if I am wrong…