Monday, December 31, 2007

08 Dates & Incidents - that I carry into '08

24th January: H got married. Unforgettable day :)

26th February: Ramesh Chitappa's (Uncle's) Demise - Truly a 'larger than life' moment. Probably the most denied and emotional day of 2007. Ramesh chitappa was surely the richest person in the family. He did not have a lot of money, or education. But he had lots of love and affection, and more so to give to everyone. The first thing that comes to my mind when I think of him, is that he always greeted you with a smile. Always. And it is because of those countless smiles, that I felt as if the entire world cried on that day.
To quote Raja Periappa(Uncle): "After we all go through our struggles, enjoy our pleasures, after we laugh our laughs, cry our cries, fight our fights, what matters finally is whether we were affectionate and kind while doing whatever we are all doing. I wish one day I can rise upto his level of expressing affection and love."
If I rise to half that level, I know I would have made this world a better place.

16th April: Registered the apartment on this day. The biggest commitment I have made so far. This move has eventually made me realize that the world's greatest art, is managing money. And that too when you dont have it! And hence, the world's greatest artists, yours truly - the middle class.

27th May: Gruhapravesam - The day I called the Gods to bless my new place. I was fortunate , for the day was blessed by the presence of many friends and well wishers too. And I could see the pride in my parent's face - the biggest blessing of all.
This day is special for more reasons. I have seen and still see my grandparents suffer everyday because they do not have a place of their own to stay. And they have a son and two daughters, all living in the same city as them. They are spending their days physically and emotionally challenging and consoling themselves, when they should be spending it peacefully resting, relaxing, probably revelling in the memories of past days.
With God's grace, I have done my part to ensure my parents will never be in that situation. The Chennai house will be theirs and theirs only. This day sealed that :)

30th August: Sarangan's wedding. The first of the three to tie the knot. One of my best friends and oldest (only by the amount of time we know each other, not because of age!) friend. My first roommate in Bangalore. I took my first "hot water" bath in his hotel room, after I joined training. That was after 10 days of coming to Bangalore.
I can still remember all those night out sessions, Yoga classes, Cricket games, music sessions, bicycle trips to the nearby mountians, Visits to the shallow shores of 'Akkarai'. Now he is married, me and Bala have a friend-in-law!!
The noose on my neck is not far!!

10th September: Finally I move out of the Regional Bangalore Operations team, after a stint that lasted a little more than 3 and a half years. Finally I become a Capacity Planner for our Partner sites. Though technically it is not a vertical promotion (yet ;-) ), I am now doing a job that is at least a level above my designation.
And I got a laptop!!!

15th September: Anirudh was born. First Sarangan's wedding, now Gayathri is a mom! G and me have been through a lot - classmates, studymates, colleagues, best friends. We have fought all the fights, have laughed so many times together. From the time I have known G, the atmosphere around our conversations has never changed. All these years, I have only seen her as the girl in the 4th bench who was scared of Engineering Drawing!! For the first time that day, I truly realized we were no longer in college.
We were growing up!

25th November: I move into my new place. Longest move of my life, considering the distance is about 10 kms from my old place. How ignorant I was till now: Thinking, the toughest part of buying a house is over, now that I had registered the apartment, and the bank is going to be taking my salary for the next 20 years. True, I purchased a house. But converting that house into a home, is a step that is going to take all my life!

Overall, 2007 ends on a high note. Hopefully 2008 will have much more to offer, with more happy moments than the other kinds :)

6 comments:

Giri said...

Haha, dei innum hotel room bathtub-la kulichadhellam nyabagam vechirukkiyaa..
Annikki unnoda dialogue:"Enna irundhaalum bucket thanni-oda last mug satisfaction varaadu" :-)

Mad said...

@ Giri: Happy New Year buddy. Naan-aavadhu parava ille, anda incident daan nyabagam vechirukken. Nee dialouge ellaam nyabagam vechirukke!! And incidentally, that was on 3rd July, so I cannot forget it that easily!!

Anonymous said...

:)
Always makes for a good read.
I am guessing that you are the only “number” guy with a better perspective of “verbal” dexterity.
Rgrds
Raj

And here’s to your good health and cheer, once again, for the new year.

Anonymous said...

So my brother remembers everything and anything apart from his sister :( Parvala, pozhachu po :)

Mad said...

@kulli: I expected this comment to come way before :)
You are a part of my every day life, and a few dates or incidents cannot take that away from us. So, no emotional blackmailing!

Anonymous said...

I just love the way you write...sentimental overload non withstanding! (that's a compliment btw)

-rj