blink and you miss

1st semester over. Before I even knew it. Time sure is relative. In the midst of the chaos that was the finals.. everything seemed to stretch till infinity, and now that I look back at it, it was all over in an instant. So many things happened but many remained the same. I learned to cook (yay!!) learned to manage finances (?) survive away from home, study and not drown in the coursework and make new friends. but I am still the same.. have not yet spouted an american accent, not embraced the pizza-soda culture, still lazy as ever (there is no mum to crack the whip) and I still take time to make new friends. Its the vacations that make you realize how much time you actually have at hand. 5 months without a TV set.. without cricket and tennis matches, without the ultra serious english news or the hindi circus, MTV and off course Animax... heck 5 months without a decent newspaper to read!! The first semester was certainly way different from anything that I had thought but I guess that's what made it so interesting. I came here vaguely aware of the winter; not knowing anything about the city, the students, how to go about living.. the courses I would eventually take up.. I still feel as if I am a prolonged guest staying here but while I'm here I intend to enjoy every bit of it :) I still have 3 more semesters for it.

Shadow of the day - Linkin Park

I close both locks below the window.
I close both blinds and turn away.
Sometimes solutions aren’t so simple.
Sometimes goodbye’s the only way.


And the sun will set for you,
And the sun will set for you.
And the shadow of the day,
Will embrace the world in grey,
And the sun will set for you...


In cards and flowers on your window,
Your friends all plead for you to stay.
Sometimes beginnings aren’t so simple.
Sometimes goodbye’s the only way.


And the sun will set for you,
And the sun will set for you.
And the shadow of the day,
Will embrace the world in gray,
And the sun will set for you..


And the shadow of the day,
Will embrace the world in gray,
And the sun will set for you..


And the shadow of the day,
Will embrace the world in gray,
And the sun will set for you.

First snowfall

There are very few things you get to experience for the first time in your life.. so much so that you almost forget the feeling of wonder and excitement that comes with it.
The other day, it snowed.Not much, in fact not even enough to capture on camera. But i will remember it for a long long long time. The only place where I had seen frozen water before this was in the freezer. To see it falling from the sky was something totally new even though I had seen it countless number of times on TV.

Soft white cotton falling from the sky.. melting in your hand...white little flurries contrasted against the black snow coat... the world in black and white... my world in black and white for the next 6 months. I'll love it, if I manage to survive through it!!!

Happiness in small things

Appreciate life as it is... you will find happiness in many small and insignificant things... such as the color of your umbrella against the gray sky, foggy windows, goosebumps from the blast of cold air on your face, red maple trees standing out against the lush green grass, the person who didnt maind waiting in d line while you went hunting for change, drinking iced coke in shivering cold, batata bhajji hot from the frying pan, macaroni and cheese, making acquaintances at work, teaching people the correct way to say your name, staying late in college trying to beat the 'deadline', the bus ride home (its my "home" now.. not just an apartment), ...

Life is beautiful, you just need to to see it

Culture Shock

Culture Shock

Ganpati Bappa Morya

Today Ganesh Chaturthi. A day of festivities.. Back home, the loudspeaker of the saarvajanik ganpati must be blaring all marathi songs n aartis. People eating modak... all lights n show n majestic murtis. Here I spend the morning in the dishroom to fill in for some1 who skipped work. Lunch consists of sandwich n salad n a banana. Which is after those whom I was serving ate chocolate brownies n potato nuggets. Afternoon siesta is a dream. Go to college to slog on the assignment which cannot be done in the comfort of your home. All this coz u r worried of the impending work load (combined with the living duties) and made worse by the cold. Before you realize its night time n chill time. Come home to realise that the bedroom is a mess which has to be cleaned by today (weekend deadline). So off you go to unpack the remnants of your luggage and store away the bags (till when? I wonder when they will be used again)

The best part of the day is tomato rice n the night break (forced) from assg work.

Where do you fit in the time for ganpati darshan? Even if you been invited for it.

Welcome to US of A
Yo man!

Happy b'day to me

hmm... first b'day outside India.. surrounded by people but still never felt more alone. Got first SMS at 1:45pm, that's about 12am IST, couldn't believe it... Spent the day with people not related to university.. good probably or else it would have got more difficult. Desperately waited for the night so that I could call home. Saw the clock ticking.. 5pm.. 5:30..6:30... finally at 8pm i called n no-one picked up. Consoled myself saying they might probably be still asleep n I still have time to call them later. Came ol to realise i missed a friend by 5 mins :(
I've lost all sense of a b'day day.. its already started back home, n here its still the previous day...all mixed up. I must to talk to someone

The russian and the american

2 different people... 2 different experiences


Met the Russian in a bus. There is a bad American habit of telling your life story to whoever is seated next to you. If there is nobody, then catch the driver. Well, this Russian had caught that habit and I happened to be the unfortunate co-passenger by virtue of lifting my groceries off the adjacent seat. Didn't notice his overused clothes in the beginning...

"R u from India?"
"hmm"
"I am from Russia."
"hmm"
"You know.. Russia, India.. best friends"
"hmm"(soo...)
(pause)
"I always wonder why Russia never introduced communism in India"
"hmm? it would not work in India" (im not a very big fan of communism)
"Why not? It has worked in China! See, China is so successful"
"That doesn't mean it'll work for india too" (Why am I arguing with this guy?)
"Why not?"
"India is different."(end of topic hopefully)
(pause)
"R u a student at the university?"
"hmm"
"Even I work at the university!!"
"hmm" (ok. so?)
"What is your field?"
"engineering"
"So you work in those _____" ( something in civil or electrical.. i couldn't figure out with his accent)
"no" (Just stop asking questions)
"Oh so you dont work in those big companies."
"no"
"So you just take care of the wiring in the building.. its not mainly electronics"
"hmm?" (he thinks im studying here to be an electrician!!)
"Actually I'm working on a project here..on reversible fuel."
"hmm"(ok he just spoke something in Russian probably which I didn't understand)
"You know.. gear box? The gears when they move.."
"No, I dont know"
"combustion? You know combustion? Hydrogen oxygen come together... and then I separate it! I get hydrogen oxygen back and they come together again..."
"hmm" (why isn't my stop coming???)
"ah I dont think you must have studied all that"
"hmm"( finally he gets the point! im not interested!)


the american
Lady(Land-lady) named Lucy whom we had approached in desperation for a house.
"Hiiii"
"Hiiiii"
"So you girls from India?"
"Yes"
"Great to meet you!I'd really like to have some nice people in my apartment after the current ones"
"Come on in.. i'll show you the house... i'm sorry im in a hurry.. i left Zoe in the car (r heads turn towards the car)... Thats my dog zoe" (right...americans love their dogs)
After knocking a few times she opens the door(landlords apparently have that right here during apartment showings)
"Anybody home?"
some guy comes forward.. even he speaks broken english
"who r u?"
that guy: "Im ____'s friend"
"Girls, this apartment looks really dirty right now (we can see that), but I promise you all this will go ( with special hand effects)... (to that guy) Tell ____ this apartment is DIRTY, this apartment has to be CLEAN, I want it CLEANED, this is not GOOD. Girls, I know it doesnt look really good, but this is a great house and you just need to use your imagination.. do you know what that word means?"
(Dumbstruck)"Offcourse!"(where does she think we r from?) Come on girls, I'll show you round the apartment.. blah blah"

Later outside..
"So what do you think? The apartment is really beautiful and you just need to use a bit of your creativity.. ah i guess you know what that word means..let me get zoe out of the car" (right.. priority no 1 is zoe)
"So now.. how do we go about the rent? (To me) Can you hold the leash for a minute?..I never had ne tenants from India, I dont even know what language you speak at home.. is it hindi...no? See I dont even know that much! Zoe come back!...You must be thinking I'm the biggest fool in the world..Here so i have the forms.. I know you are all nice girls... Zoe!!wats ur name? Im sorry I didnt get it first time... blah blah (all this while Im holding zoe by the leash)

Let me get my blackberry (she loved to flaunt it) and then we can fix out next appointment. Here, is this time ok? So im going to write both your names there, can you spell it out for me? Im the biggest idiot, I dont even know spellings you'll think."
"Pranjali"
"Branjali?"
"P"
"B?"
"P as in pen"
"Ben?"
"P as in parrot"
"Ohh P!"

At the end.. "ohh you r still holding on to zoe, I forgot bout it, see im so stupid!"

We didnt take that apartment.

Re- learning to live

Life is changing gradually, in bits and pieces as I get used to living here. I'm still seeing life through rose tinted glasses , don't know when they will break. Back home, I never imagined saying thank you to the bus driver (I should have probably), forget about thinking that he will greet me. Pedestrians do have the right to walk on the road here without being run over by a car. People are so very eager to help, dunno y though. It helps me a lot, thats what matters :)

A few things I re-learnt
1. To wake up at 5am not 9 am
2. To wake up at the first ring of alarm without putting it on snooze everytime
3. To share the restroom with 4 other ppl who have to get ready at the same time as you.
4. To make my own breakfast without it being served to me
5. To pack tiffin for college even though the burger looks veryyy tempting
6. To try not to think of the dal which you will be having for the 4th time now for lunch/dinner.
7. To look after yourself coz everybody will look after themselves before they look after others.
8. To not to skip meals even if you are too lazy to cook.
9. To ask, even if you will feel like the greatest idiot in the world by asking that question.
10. To realise that most american people wouldn't even have the faintest idea bout india other than hindu and vegetarian

Journey to a new world

Finally... take off time. Flight on time.. mind zapped.. kept it busy thinking bout security checks n procedures... 1 step at a time, coz if I let myself get emotional i'd be overwhelmed..
Journey was good, comfortable in the beginning, uncomfortable in the end :)

Food sucked...big time! If that was what I was supposed to survive on, I'd catch the next flight back surely. HP reading took very little of my time, there is always time to read it later. The GPS kept on showing the current location.. still didn't feel real. It sank in first when I saw Amsterdam from top... too beautiful for words! Im not going to try to describe it here, I just wished that i had a digicam. Getting down I realised.. this is it! No turning back... Not for 2 yrs at least (or if I get a KT... I kno I have self confidence issues)

Amsterdam-Minneapolis.. the food got worse. Got down, got a taste of expenses in US when the baggage cart cost 3$. Breezed through Customs. Switched the cell ON and got SMSes from the people who mattered. Realized distance doesn't really make a difference at all.

So here I am.. in a new world, making a new start
Lets see how it goes :)

Today

I look out my window,
a new day I see,
and only I can determine
what kind of a day it will be.
watch as this picture changes

It can be busy and sunny,
laughing and gay,
or boring and cold,
unhappy and grey.
My own state of mind
is the determining key,
for I am only the person
I let myself be.

I can be thoughtful,
and do what I can to help,
or I can be selfish
and think just of myself.

I can enjoy what I do
and make it seem fun,
or gripe and complain
and make it hard on someone.

I can be patient with those
who may not understand,
or belittle and hurt them
as much as I can.

But I have faith in myself,
and believe what I say,
and I personally intend
to make the best of Today.

A new world.. a new start

Here I am - this is me
There's no where else on earth I'd rather be
Here I am - it's just me and you
And tonight we make our dreams come true

It's a new world - it's a new start
It's alive with the beating of young hearts
It's a new day - it's a new plan
I've been waiting for you
Here I am

Here we are - we've just begun
And after all this time - our time has come
Ya here we are - still goin' strong
Right here in the place where we belong

Here I am - this is me
There's no where else on earth I'd rather be
Here I am - it's just me and you
And tonight we make our dreams come true

Here I am - next to you
And suddenly the world is all brand new
Here I am - where I'm gonna stay
Now there's nothin standin in our way
Here I am - this is me