Year gone by

As 2006 is knocking on the door and 2005 is running towards the exit, I find myself overwhelmed with a mixed bag of emotions. On one hand it is the usual feeling that time literally flew and the year is coming to an end so soon. I bet you will agree with me that this year got over before we even realized it. And on the other hand is a feeling of guilt, the long list of new year resolutions from the beginning of the year is still uncompleted. Many of the promises made to thyself have been broken. It evokes a certain sadness that one year of life went by and I find myself standing at the same threshold. Makes me think if other than physical aging if I gained any mental maturity. I am left wondering in whose team am I playing in, the one that is destined to win or if I am fighting a war already lost. The consoling part of such thoughts also sink in somewhere to look at the positive aspect of all this. It is a new beginning, a new dawn to awake to. More hopes and more aspirations.
All these thoughts lead me to setting up benchmarks, making my new year resolution and as always promises that this year I will stand by them all.
Life is simply moving in a circle.

Best wishes and greetings as we all Ring out the old and ring in the new.....

Pulled over

Seems my expenses are going to outrun this month. My problems dont seem to end. Havent yet paid the high cell phone and now an additional expense is making my wallet more lighter.
I talk on the phone while driving only when the drive is long otherwise music plays a perfect companion and if the phone rings then I follow selective answering.
This ill fated evening, I was peacefully listening to kyun ki songs while driving back from work. The phone rang. It was Xiangxou Xang, my co-worker from my previous job. I had not spoken to her in a long time and the thought that I will get to hear the latest office gossip, made me answer the phone.
Now without earphones, you have only one hand to steer the car. Driving with one hand is not too hard and only when you have to take a turn, you can balance the phone with your ear and shoulder support and maneuver the car with both your hands.
Her phone had gotten me excited, I missed a turn that I usually take and landed up driving on unfamilar path. At the next light I had to take a right turn to get on track. I took a right turn and got on the lane to take my next left turn when the cop from behind flashed his light.
Hung up the phone on Xiangxou, got back to the exteme right lane and pulled over.
The cop got out of his car and got down to check for me. I rolled down my windows. From far he asked me to raise both my hands, to make sure I wasnt carrying any weapons. He then asked , if I knew why he pulled me over. Before I could say a word, he said that when I took the turn, I didnt turn on my indicator and when I took the turn, I got into the left lane again without giving any indication and this could have confused the cars behind and cause them to hit me from behind. I was too tongue tied to say anything. He tore a ticket. The 3 mile drive that was left to get home, took 15 minutes, drove at 10 mph.
Trust me as I say this, agreed I was on the phone and thus my hand was tied and I could not give an indication but I had made sure when I took all turns and I was very cautious.

I dont know if I should contest this ticket, even if I do win it I still would have to pay court charges.

First the Cell phone bill and now the ticket, it seems it is going to be a cold december.

Ripped off

The problems in my life never seem to end. This morning I decided to pay my credit card, phone and light bills as well as change my address in their record. I logged on to cingular site and lo behold! It showed my current bill as $221.68. It were the charges for this month only, not any previous outstanding charges from last months. My heart came into my mouth. When I interrogated further I realized *the sin* I had commited. I had exceeded my alloted day time minutes(550) and was completely oblivious of the fact. So it is needless to say that I kept on talking thinking that I had enough. The billing cycle ends on 26th of the month and I had outrun my minutes on the 17th itself. Those 9 days accounted for 430 extra minutes and I was charged at 40 cents per minute.
Now the relocation itself had costed me enough from my own pocket and this additional charge by all means is a little too much to bear. I didnt want to pay it quietly, so I decided to seek help from the customer service at Cingular. The queue time was 10 minutes but I didnt crib this time. Luckily I was attended by a patient lady who heard my story that I had relocated in the last 2 weeks and didnt have internet connection to check my day time minutes. She agreed to waive 30% of the extra minutes but that still left me with a large amount to pay. I wasnt too satisfied, so I continued to request her to give me more credit as I have been a customer since 2 years. It did pay off, she extended 10% more and said thats the maximum she can help.
Oh well...I am surely thankful to her for providing some relief. Something is better than nothing.
But nevertheless I have huge expenses to pay off this month...
Please..please....please don't remind me that christmas, my sister's and my best friends birthdays are round the corner!!!

Am back....after a Hiatus....

Oh Man...What a long week it has been for me. Packing, cleaning, moving, cleaning again and then unpacking and then different work hours everyday...Phew!!
Finally got a chance to breathe and do what I love the most....surf the web. I am still in the adjustment mode. The city is new, people around are way so different and believe me as I say this, even though the relocation was only 115 miles but it is a whole new world. I feel just like I felt when I came to US three years ago. Alone!! But the *big* difference now is that I am no more a naive young fellow that I was! Young yes, still and always but I believe I am more equipped and experienced now to quickly adapt to the the new surroundings.
The management at the old apartment gave me a tough time when I went to turn in the keys. It was more like that they wanted to keep the deposit to themselves. They wanted to charge me for the broken drawers that have always been broken before I moved in. They wanted to deduct for cleaning and sanitizing the carpet which was very well vacuumed by me and it was spotless. I understand the sanitizing part, but why rip that money off my deposit. The apartment I moved in, is big and spacious. I am sharing it with another Indian. The guy who moved out didnt have the courtesy to clean the room when he left. Spent most of my thanksgiving weekend in cleaning and unpacking. Have still to open and arrange 2 more box full of stuff. Thats the fun in store for this weekend :(

Well, I am sorry to you all (ROS and Thanu in particular) for the disappearing act...I didnt get time to blog, but I did sporadically check your blogs a couple of times. Thanks for checking...
And yes...now I am going to be more regular :)

Is it worth the space?

Someone has rightly said "we don't remember the days but we remember the moments". We remember those times we enjoyed with friends, the times when we had a good family get together dinner, holding your partners hand and walking on the beach.
These memories are buried in some corner of our hearts. They come onto the surface when one sits and broods of the times gone by. You miss those good times when your present is going through a rough patch. To think of your struggles, the battle you fought when you reach a certain milestone in your life.
Some people take it to the next step. They collect artifacts that remind them of those times.

As I was packing my stuff to relocate, I found my pandoras box. I collect tickets of movies, stage shows, concerts, football tennis games that I had been to and enjoyed. Bills from restaurants I have dined at. Behind it I would write the names of people I went with. Each ticket has its own story, has its own incident and memory attached to it. When I look at the Davenport v/s Sharapova match ticket, it narrates how we were sun burnt watching the game. The ticket for the hindi movie "Taal" from 1999 reminds me how we landed for the wrong show (Read here).

And now as I see this bag, I realize I have only touched it over the years to simply add to the collection. I haven't had a chance to enjoy its worth. Haven't got the time, to sit back and remember those times. It makes me question myself, if it is worth the effort and the space. I am not doing it so that I can get my thrills when I am sixty nor do I want to store them for my grandchildren to learn about the fun times in my life.

But in today's world, do we have time for ourselves? Do we get the time to look back at the days gone by without worrying of the days yet to come.
To quote William Henry Davies from the poem Leisure (learnt this poem in high school)
"What is life if, full of care,We have no time to stand and stare."

I don't...Do you?