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No one knows Chennai the way I do :)

My knowledge of the city has been proved more than once :

- One of the first times I went to college by bus (after realizing that the station was a long walk away!) , I had to change buses halfway through. My aunt drew a map for me, and explained that I had to cross the road, and take the buses coming from the other side, I just nodded and said yes. And next day, when I got down, I couldn't figure out which way to go. And then I came across this group of guys , and from their backpacks, I assumed that they were college students, and would probably be going to my university, and so I followed them. My hunch proved right, and I reached the university safely and on time. I did get some weird looks when I told people I'd followed some random guys just because they had backpacks!

- I boarded a train from Guindy to Pazhavanthangal, which is two stations away (Guindy - St. Thomas Mount - Pazhavanthangal). I got in at Guindy, and got down at St. Thomas Mount, and was wondering how in such a short while (I'd been there only that morning), things had changed so drastically - the staircase leading out from the platform, was suddenly so much closer. It was only then that I looked up to see the station's name. I boarded the next train, and earned the distinction of being probably the only person in the history of the world to have changed trains to go two stations!

- I'd gone to meet my friend at Spencer's, and called my brother while leaving. He told me to come to Ananda Hotel for a cup of coffee. I boarded a bus, bought my ticket, and I just got down when the bus stopped at a signal. I knew that Ananda Hotel was close to a signal, and I'd have to walk back if I got down at the stop, and so was praying that the bus would stop at the signal. So get down I did, only to realize that it was another signal, and I was not even halfway there. I took the next bus, and got down at the right place this time. It isn't my fault if all traffic signals are alike!

- I once went to my aunt's office. I'd been there many times, but usually by another route, and often by auto. This was the first time I was taking a bus from near my university. I got down at a stop, called my brother and asked, "Where is the office? It isn't here". To which my brother replied, "Look properly, it'll be somewhere there" . Like I'd misplaced something. It took me a few minutes to realize I'd gotten down at the wrong stop (yet again!!!), and I (again) took another bus and arrived at the right place. To this day, whenever we go anywhere near that area, my brother makes it a point of asking me if I'd located our aunt's office.

Thankfully, I've never been completely lost (my phones and purses may have been lost, but never me!).

Believe me, I know my geography very well ;)

No one knows Chennai the way I do.

(Ask me. Not my brother!)

An evening to remember

Where do weekends go? This question always comes to haunt me every Sunday evening and Monday morning. Each week I tell myself that I will work really hard and study over the weekend, but the results are always the same - weekends just melt away... My mornings - sleep for just one minute more, just twooooooo minutes more, round time 6:30, yes,i know, just getting up.... and now, my weekends seem to be going the same way

Anyway, Monday's almost over, so I'm putting the Mystery of the Vanishing Weekends on hold.... It's almost sure of being taken up again a week from now :)

So, what is the point of all this rigmarole, you may ask. I just wanted to write down about my day today, more specifically the evening. And as usual, I ended up rambling. (I'm glad to be able to justify my blog's title by invariably rambling along every single time :) )

Ah, so where was I? Oh yes, the point. Lets come to it.

This evening, I finally managed two things I'd been planning for quite a while - meeting my friend and enquiring about guitar classes. And it was a case of "one stone, two mangoes"*

I invited PM for coffee, and thought that since I was anyway going there, I'd check out the music classes as well...

Now, my friend PM, has been playing the guitar for quite a long time, so I thought it'd be a good idea if I could get his opinion of the place too.

And so, I arrived punctually at 6:30 , after some desperate cycling (made all the more dangerous as I wasn't sure whether to look at the road and try not to hit anyone (after all, I'm accident-prone even on a bicycle!!!) or to stop and watch the football match in progress); and cursing the sudden lack of buses and autos. Only to find that he was already there. I was feeling bad for having made him wait, but he told me he'd come early. :)

A cup of coffee and an hour of conversation - that is something, if you ask me.

Well, I'd tell you more about him, but then, I don't ever want to sound like I'm putting someone on a pedestal and worshipping them - I realized I end up sounding that way when I really let myself go. Not that he wouldn't justify my description, but I do end up getting carried away. And losing one friend that way is enough for a lifetime.

But, to be fair to him, I'll mention the one thing that I always associate him with - travel. I remember the first time we chatted - it'd been ages since we'd last met, and I'd spoken hardly ten lines to him. It was by chance that we were both online at the same time, and it was his status message that got the conversation going. He'd mentioned a backpacking trip to Chile, I told him Peru should also be on the list.

And that was it - since then, I've gotten to know him better, and his friendliness is something I really like. With travel and languages to discuss, conversations flowed. And then there was music, yet another topic of discussion.

To cut a long story short, I really enjoyed the evening. Except for his refusal to let me pay. :( Maybe next time, he'll let me...

Coming back to dinner-and-chai with friends just extended the pleasantness of the evening.

And now, with peace in my heart and a song on my lips (hopefully, soon I should be able to say, song on my fingertips!!!), I now go to attack my work.

Peace!

*- a literal translation of a Tamil phrase, which is roughly the same as hitting two birds with one stone.


(Apologies yet again for such a soppy title - I think I should seriously post a disclaimer that good titles are not to be expected, and any that happened to be good were purely due to sheer good luck...)

A million thank you's

Thank you, my dear horn-happy drivers. As if it isn't hard enough trying to follow the lyrics of songs (what else  can one do on long journeys?), your constant honking makes my journeys so much more pleasant.

Thank you, owners of vehicles-with-emissions-clouding-the-air, I'm pretty sure the city (and all its citizens) appreciate and welcome your invaluable contribution to the already-polluted air everywhere. Keep up the good work!

And thank you, dear people who come on the wrong side of the way. We feel we're on cloud nine each time you look at us so lovingly because we're blocking your path.Your pleasantries when we block your path (unwittingly, as we continue to believe we're going the right way!) are like music to the ears. If you had been going the right way, we'd have given you the right of way for sure.

To those who think all the world's their spittoon, where would we be without you? What would happen to the Earth who's just waiting with a tar-lined bowl to receive your spit? How monochromatic the roads would be, without your red and yellow tobacco and mucus-filled spit adding colour to them... You deserve our heartfelt gratitude!

And before I forget, my sincerest thanks to all you wonderful selfless souls who wish to share your music with everyone in the bus (the one you are in, and the ones far behind)... If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have enjoyed high-pitched screaming at even higher volumes. We might not have even gotten those migraines and headaches... Thanks for saving us from such disaster.

Thanks to all these splendid people, for helping us live life to the maximum (a maximum reduced by thier consistent efforts). We are indeed eternally grateful to you (though eternity just got shorter, thanks to you!)