Striking Contrast

Yeah..!!!! Finally after almost 1.5 yrs of endless struggle I have some vela time to myself :-)

In normal IT world this time is called "Bench Time" but my organisation has an entirely innovative name for it..."BEACH" ....it took me a while to make peace with this word...the first few times I heard it,thought I'd mistakenly heard it as such ...
So Beach time or "On the Beach" is the time when you are rolled off the responsibilties of a never-ending project (I can blabber endlessly on how outrageous this project was but let's not get into it now).
There's this endless toil & hardwork u've put in for months together & u get so much involved in it that u literally start seeing the biz codes in vehicle number plates...spend sleepless nights & weekends trying to get things together to come outta the "GO-NO GO" phase wen one mrng u r jus kicked off....Gosh it hurts... !!!
Atleast I had my ego bruised a bit ..thn there's more to it..u get nasty reminders & emails...pls log u r time by eod to update ur resume, ppl are after u for documents & last but not the least..."vacate ur place email"
This is wen the word beach makes complete sense as u r literally stripped off ..u have no place, no responsibilties...no work....

But look at the positive side..it took me 10 mins to take the anger & frustration out & it was an amazing feeling..I felt like a free bird...this burden that I carried on my head for so long was just gone...!!!
I had so many things to think about..the first thing I did was book my tkts...break time..time to go home...
(Home is word IT ppl use for their hometown...no wonder where we live "ghar/home" is where ur parents stay & u visit ..best destination to get recharged)

So I had this fun filled trip home ,caught up the dandiya fever & came back a refreshed person ...
The past few weeks have been good given the rigorous routine I have had from past 1 yr..was 200% occupied with setting up both home & data ...;-)
This is something that goes more with the word beach...now that the picnic's gonna be over,
         "I'm gonna miss this beach!!"

Project MA(y)HE(o)M(e)

"For good plans, you pay now.  For bad plans, you may pay now and will pay later."

Apt word of caution for any one who's pipe-dreamin of  building a space of his own..!!
Well we fell into that pipe too ... :)

Vani & Chin were two happy souls- Good old pals who decided to be friends for life...
Their life was relaxed, chilled, laid back...like any other IT couple who spend 5 days cannonballing through traffic; deadlines & defects & the weekend whiling time ,shopping for unnecessary stuff; worrying abt the peanutty salary & miniscule, receding account balance -thinking...(mind it only thinking)..about achieving smthng big some day !!

And then, on a not so "dark & stormy day" (rather...a very bright & sunny day as summer was around), the brilliant idea of possessing a house of their own banged in their heads...tht's where the fun began...

Survey, going thru numerous ads, visiting places in the scorching sun, collecting brochures, brainstorming, evaluating affordability went on for months ....all they did for a couple of weekends was call up agents, set time, visit sites, brainstorm agn...
Poor souls...by EOW(End of Weekend) they were exhausted, irritated,mortified & petrified...so much so that thy longed for the weekdays & hated weekends... :-)

After 3 months of hunting they decided to call it quits & be contended with the rented place..but the sorry traffic only added to their woes...& they started looking out agn...but a rented spot this time ...well that was not meant to be..3 years in a comfortable house only spoils ppl & thy don't want to settle for less..

This lead to the revival of HouseHunt..they went over few options & finally narrowed down on the same apartment they liked 3 months back....but Vani was admant as it wasn't a comfortable travel given the distance & the lonely stretch(that was the only excuse she had..the place was jus awesome..but she was used to getting down the apartment n stepping into an auto, she thought it wasn't worth the pain.."SpoilSport !!!")
So this kind of went into a pending state....for as long as 2 months..it took considerable amt of cajoling, visiting the place n times & reflecting back for her to agree..(Pity Chin...din't take him this much time & effort to get her to say "Yes" the first time...Aah...!! ...<no more comments> !!)

Finally the house was purchased, formalities done...how u wish it was that easy..now u need to turn the house into your home..nothin emotional here..builders are smart ppl..they sell u a ready to move-in house..which is not really ready to move-in....that's where the designers debut....builders might be smart but these guys...thy surpass everyone....u gain PhD in Mortification...

So the bubbling enthusiasm of designing a space of their own -which was clutter-free, super-contemporary,out of the ordinary(a smart home to be short) was curbed down by the struggle that went in planning & getting the basics right.

I read this amazing quote smwhere :
"Do you think that the devil's in the house plan details?   The only devil in the house plan details of whom we know is the devil serving lazy, lousy home designers and home builders."

True..Devils they are...devils you cannot curse, scream, yell at, thy make u drink from your nose & make u feel happy abt it...u got to turn ur grimaces into grins..snarls into sweet talks...scowl into smiles....u gotta master the art of patience...!!

Phew...!! Vani & Chin -here they were caught into an infinite loop of travelling b/w work, new house & old house..(and our dear spoilsport was also working on a prjct with so calld strict deadlines...she found it easy to skip the new home class..Chin was all by himself..into the deep dust (..of wood accumulated in the house...) it was like a 30 km ride each day....problems din't see an end, there were absolutely no solutions...none..just a lousy bunch of people(the devils) who thought they were too good with their work no matter how mch thy spoiled it...
                      
                      Project My Home turned into Project Mayhem..

On & on it went...thanks to the devils...the notice to the landlord was revised twice..and then the deadline came in..thy had to move...!!! Yes move to the new house..but guess what...timelines were not met..it was still not ready to move-in..but thy did move-in..hoping one day..yes one day thy'll have the chance to unpack..

This gets me to another tailored to perfection set I read :
"Whatever you know about designing a home isn't likely much.  Really.  Whatever you know about building a home isn't likely much, either.  For sure.   So where you are is in-between folks who know way more than you do about the home you're paying out the nose to get home-designed and built, live in for maybe a major chunk of your time on this earth, sell someday to cash-in.  You know more about groceries than about home design and home building.  That can change, but only if it's in you to get from here to there"

We will get from here to there..."We shall overcome...we shall overcome..Someday...!!"

Reminiscence of Driftwood

I have known Ms Driftwood for close to a year now...

There are times wen u come across this person with whom u share many common traits..
From our love for kohl-rimmed eyes to Hugh Jackman.. kairi pana to mojito..
to being in red house..sporting the same watch n cellphone (with a broken camera) ...to our childhood dream of becoming an english teacher I couldn't blv how  we have so many things in common..ppl also nicknamed us as sisters as we shared sm common features in addition to like tastes :D
We went for a shocker a cpl of times wen we struck the same idea-  you know it's like u kind of Cough, Sneeze & Grunt together as one wd Hop, Skip & Jump..

Our alchemy started from hatred for a certain kind & has faired over time.
We also have creative exchanges of thoughts not only on mutual interests but also on varied ones-she keeps telling me abt books & poetry & all things rational & I goad her on Bollywood...

But I have to admit she has inspired me big time - I finally got to dropping a line coz of her.
Though it'll take me ages to get to the quality of her compositions-
  Ahoy !! the day I ushered into her musings ...2 blogs down & I was already a fan.
And I could not think of a better way to end this section -talk abt inspiration :
 "Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm,
 but to add color to my sunset sky"
  ~Rabindranath Tagore

And now that time has come to bid adieu, I do not want to share clichéd farwell remarks but an all time fav punch:
"All I know is...I'm gonna miss u Ms.Driftwood...!!"

P.S. -Wanted to post this on Jul 1st, but couldn't wait to see her reaction to it....you gotta get selfish at times.. ;-)

Down on the Road..!!

Okay so I have lazed enough & it's time to pen thoughts again.. :-)

The title of this blog is inspired from the famous George Clooney movie-"Up in the Air"
Considering the fact that I travel milessssssssssssss back n forth to office it's only legit to blog about it :)
But Mr. Clooney is better off..he gets miles each time he flies which could be encashed & then there's me..on the road in the car befuddling traffic which gets worse by the day & sorrier by the season !!

Look at the brighter side, Hyd is a city of shopping arcades..you are on top of all offers going on in any showroom on the way, you know how regularly they update their stock & if any new outlet springs up, you sure know if it is worth it.If I go by stats, billboards only second these outlets..no wonder why Hyd is termed as City of Billboards ; Funny ain't it..you see the road dug up & a sign saying..."No space, please take diversion" & a billboard right on top "Finding office spaces was never easier"; then there are some pathetic ones -spooky faces for some movie promo; CCL -with Heroes;bulldozers; rhinos & wat not - **super**stars endorsing cements to chicken...little did I know "Nandi is Nice" is the catchphrase for Nandi Cement...and one fine day..there are numerous birthday wishes put up for Superstars, Megastars, Stylish Stars, young stars (pun intended-no celeb cd b a plain simple star here..they are glorified to the superlative) each personifying their screen-avtars ..Lions, Tigers, Fighters, Ninjas wat not ...

Guess I too got carried away talkin abt Hyd's skyline... ;-)

My transit time also accounts for venting out office grievance, chalking out plans for weekends, catching up with friends(on phone-the advantage of not being on the driver's seat), listening to music-(with great freedom comes great responsibilty-I have to keep the playlist refreshed & updated-thanks to my fellow rider);I have at times gone crazy n utilized this time for having breakfast, reading newspaper & attending meetings too !!

But as each day passes by,how I wish I was a teleporter who would go places with the wink of an eye,owned a flying carpet that could break the traffic n fly home or to say the least earn some miles & encash them too...any takers ???

Mixed Bag....

Well Well..the weekend's here already..finally a weekend that promises entertainment to the fullest with Mr. Awesomeness and Hangover II.

Coming back to the week that was-Happening it was ..
-Resurrected my reading habit, kickstarted my blogging career while Year Ends kept off ppl..and "crappy" data kept off work ..before I knoew it was Wed & I was still alive and fresh n not mid-week-dead !!
My head kept churning ideas & went into this hyperactive mode where I derived inspiration from anything to everything to blog about.And in the background there was this novel "100 years of Solitude" which was like the endless saas bahu saga...from every guy in the family christened to Jose Arcadio to magical tricks to spirits..this one was a rollercoaster ride & it'll still take me a while to figure out which Jose Arcadio is right.

Then came the contrast...I had this impulse to go shop..
Shop for .... ????
Like any shopoholic, I also have this habit of creating PO(purchase orders) on the go ...how I realized I was short of everything..Tees, Bags, Bling, Shoes..how dull is my wardrobe ..
So here I was @shoppin once again....it was not long before I was let down by the hopeless assembles of amorphous togs called "Tee/Tops" when my quest for "the perfect handbag" commenced.
How I thought there would be this one perfect bag vying my attention..how it would open its arms and stand out of the dock..it would have just the right amount of space..the apt color..the trendy yet classy look ...
"my perfect handbag"
Leather, Feather, helter-skelter...too much bling..not my thing...
How I forgot that some days are just not meant for shopping .......those are the days when everything's on SALE & then there is you frustrated, foiled & soiled by gauging outlets, endless trials with n items in your shopping bag of which none made it to the billing counter..when everyone else had a gala time and shopped to the core...yes it was one such day...!!
Yes I had to forgo...I had to let it go..
And here I come back...without any backpack ...the void still open for my perrrrrfect handbag..!!

Break the Ice.......

"It was a dark and stormy night................."
.......there goes the hackneyed beginning for a story !!
It has such a magnetic feel to it..snaps your attention in the first go..

I thought nothing could be more catchy to start my first ever blog :-)
This was a thought ticking in my head for quite some time now..but it took "Ms. Driftwood" to convert it into reality.
Kudos to her to get this work-shy person to work !!

Never thought putting together thoughts could be more difficult..(specially for a person who is chatty, gabby & has such fondness for talking)
How you think you are organized but there is no apt start or finish to ur write-up...how u feel u have so many things to pen down if you ever wrote a blog but the ideas seem to be dead ..!!!

I feel it all...but I have realized it just takes a little more effort to break the ice :-)