'Tis gonna be a good year!

Okay, so I changed my mind. I decided that I will, in fact, make resolutions for the year that's just round the corner. Why? Well, I am bored out of my mind right now. I figured that as the end of the year is the least productive time at work, I might as well make it (as much as I can) productive for me! Most of these resolutions won't last anything more than a month. But, hey, at least I can claim I tried. Right? So here goes nothing. My list of resolutions for 2012! (of course, all this is considering the world is ending. If it doesn't, 2013 sees the old me again. *evil grin*) (Also, if you're a Pearls Before Swine fan, you're in for a treat!)

1. (Numbering makes this whole ordeal shorter. I won't ramble on and on like I did last time. Oh, maybe I will. My sympathies!) So, to kick off this list is the resolution I mentioned in the last post. I cannot, will not and shall not use the "hackneyed" acronym LOL when I feel like laughing (in text). I agree with the view that it is extremely hackneyed (now, my rant about it being hackneyed is getting hackneyed. Ah, the irony!) It makes for poor conversation fillers, mostly when there is nothing else to say in response. Instead I shall use HMOG (devised by my good friend, Prasad. It stands for holy mother of god. If used, please accept it as a pat on your back. You have made me laugh), or 'Hehehehe' (here, the number of syllables is directly proportional to the appreciation you deserve), or an adjective (which would be self-explanatory), or perhaps merely a simpler 'HaHa'. Do not be fooled. I am simply being kind. If I do not say anything in response, get the hint.

2. I WILL tolerate people using the acronym 'LOL'. Below is an image (again) that represents what I really want to do. (It merely serves as a 'gentle' reminder).

3. I will not correct people's grammar. I have realized it doesn't go down too well with most people. Really. Give it a try. Especially if the person in question is giving a speech. During the question & answer session, point out grammatical errors. Do not ask me how it will end. I never had the balls to do THAT. (Watching some one else do it might give me a kick, though!) Oh, better yet, point out pronunciation errors. That doesn't go down too well with people either. (Not everyone thinks of it as community service. I wonder why!)

4. In conjunction with above resolution, I will not grimace when people mispronounce certain words. I have come to realise over the years that it's a dead giveaway that I am irritated. (Also, I have come to realise, I cannot act. For nuts.) My question at this point is, is it really THAT difficult to pronounce "opportunity". Why must people behave like it is hyphenated and is actually two words, 'oppor' and 'tunity' and insert a pause in between? I have a whole collection of 'grimace-able' words: environment (yes, the -vi- is pronounced rhyming with 'why', the -viron- is NOT pronounced rhyming with heron), Kansas (really, anyone who pronounces it Kahn-Saas deserves to be slapped), etcetera (for etc), not EX-cetra and so on and so forth. You get the basic picture. Now, I don't claim to be a master of the English language, but I think I do pass muster.So, there!

5. Again, almost, in conjunction with the above two is that I will not get irritated when people misspell common words. (I know, I know, I am picky about what people say. If only I could control their tongues. Sigh!) But, really, you got to give me this one. How, pray tell me, how can you be in your 20's and not know the difference between lose and loose.(I really don't mind mistakes while typing and/or writing, but this is deliberate!) No, India did not loose the match. Does that even make sense? (merely thinking about it frustrates me, if that is possible!) Along the same lines, but slightly less irritating are effect and affect. Worse yet, when people misspell 'Hi'. Two measly letters. How can you possible misspell it? How? (I think the more important question here is how do I know these people? Hmm, that might be jumping the gun, but well, that is how irritated I am!)(Oh, also if any of you fall into this category, accept this as a small but exciting learning opportunity) *smiling graciously*

6. That does it with my language woes. Oh, I will stick to my gym schedule. Laziness is my biggest enemy. I will fight it. My incentive? I get fitter, stronger and can punch people who fall into above four categories. *evil smile*

7. Oh, thought of one more language woe. I will not use Hinglish. I will try (to the best of my ability) to talk unadulterated English. By "unadulterated" I mean the elimination of words that belong in Hindi, for example, Na, Re and other such syllables that sound like musical notes. Kind of like this strip below...

8. Even though I turn 25 this year, I will not fall prey to the 'quarter-life-crisis'. Someone did point out that 'quarter-life-crisis' at 25 basically assumes you will live to be a hundred years old. Hmm...fair point, but nevertheless, let's be positive and ASSUME i will live to be a hundred *touchwood*! I will not "re-examine" my priorities, count how many of my friends are getting married, think about how much money I am making (and/or spending), worry about my ticking body clock, and how I'm becoming ... old (there, I said it!), and wonder about where I want to be five years from now. I will do all of the above in 2013! (Well, I can't put it off forever, now, can I?) In 2012 I will, however, play with my Lego blocks, watch a ton of movies (which strangely I haven't done this year), read dozens of new comics (Yes, you heard me, comics), travel, eat and be merry and basically pamper my inner child. You only get to be 25 once!

9. Travel. I want to travel. A lot. (hmm, I will need to think about how much money I'm making, after all) What works for me is that my parents are coming! (*fingers crossed*) So i can fulfill some part of those travelling wishes with them.

10. Learn a new skill/ Pick up a new hobby. I am leaning heavily towards photography. But, it has become so cliched, it isn't even funny. But, what I really want to do, is learn the technical details. Learn what the different functions are, learn how different parameters affect the image and so on. I cross my heart, I will NOT show off my photos on facebook! *grin*

11. Using asterisks to portray emotions. This has all the makings of becoming very hackneyed, very soon. Maybe no one has picked up the nuances yet. Or maybe it belongs to an era gone by. But, I will milk it for all it's worth. None of that hashtag and alpha (@) nonsense. #MeTryingTooHard? Maybe! *Shrug! Like I Care*

12. Facebook. Aah, I have multiple resolutions with respect to that. First off, I will post issues that are relevant. Yes, soon we shall see posts on global warming, the sinking economy and more such crap on my facebook page. (Forgive my use of the word crap. The economy is most definitely not crap. Neither is global warming for that matter.) Point being, who really wants to read comic strips that have been posted and re-posted countless times? (Well, I do...but, anyway!)

13. The stronger resolution of course, is to be less active on Facebook. Deactivating my account would be pushing it, but well, I most definitely can try being less active. Apparently excess facebooking is a sign of being a #Loser. (haha, i didn't even use that right, did I?!) So I shall Facebook less. Anonymous stalking continues as before. *evil glint in eye*

14. I will make good on my "Books-to-read" list. It is growing faster than I thought it would. Mostly, because I am reading a lot lesser than I thought I would. Stripping Borders as it closed was amazing, but now to actually read all those books I bought. Also on the list, a larger bookcase! The books are overflowing onto the carpet now. I'm not complaining, believe me. (My one life-long dream for when I have my own house; a ceiling-to-floor bookcase that spans an entire wall! Though, I have always wondered

about how to get to the ones close to the ceiling. Yes, yes a ladder, I presume. I would love a mechanical/hydraulic two axis lift though. *eyes open in shiny wonder*

A rather crude drawing is herewith attached! (Yes, I was extremely jobless today)

(Also, if any of you are on Goodreads, add me!)

15. Friends. No, no, not the TV show. I have almost OD'ed on that. I have realised I haven't been the best friend. I am out of touch with most people I grew up with, and went to school and college with. (Being Facebook friends doesn't count as being in touch. At least, for me it doesn't.) And I don't like that. So come 2012, I am going to try and get back in touch with all my close friends, and stay in touch with them.

16. I WANT to follow Rat's philosophy (oh, wait, who rat? Rat from Pearls before Swine) of not ending sentences with smileys. If you notice, not one smiley in the entire post! Ref: below!

17. Quoting comic strips. Okay, so somehow I feel, Calvin and Rat put everything in better perspective. So next time, I am going to quote Pastis and Watterson. C'mon face it, when else do you get to quote comic characters? Also, they deliver punchlines with such panache (it's really all in the wording) and in fewer words than I ever could manage. Plagiarism? No! I rather we call it 'inspiration' ala Bollywood plagiarists!

18. Get over my fear of heights and dogs. Who is afraid of dogs, you must be wondering. Well, I am. (And of cats too!) I love dogs. But they scare me. I want to get a dog to get over the fear but that might be stretching it a little. Also, get over my fear of cockroaches, lizards, mice...umm, basically anything that moves and is not human!

Hmmm, as far as I can think of it, I'm done! Okay, so maybe they weren't exactly the best resolutions...but, I AM trying. And c'mon, admit it, some were genuine. (Oh, also with reference to point 2 through 5, "come on" is most definitely not "common". That's common, as in ordinary or found everywhere!) They really were. I'll try to stick to the genuine ones as far as possible. What are your resolutions for the new year? Got any good ones to, umm, steal? (Oh, inspire, I mean!)

Cheers!

PS: Happy New Year

PS2: Oh, of course I have the usual resolutions of giving my work 100%, being a good role model, community service etc etc, but calling them resolutions for the next year would imply I didn't do

any of it this year, wouldn't it? Till next year...

PS3: Last one, I promise. I probably have a ton of grammatical errors, which basically points to the fact that I'm a hypocrite. I will read and re-read and weed them out. Soon. In the meantime, you HAVE to see this: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/misspelling

Retrospective rumination...

Well, I keep promising myself that I will write more regularly, but I just don't. For the most part, it's sheer laziness, accompanied by the total dearth of good ideas. Not to mention, every time I form a sentence, I read it, re-read it, and re-read it and then scrap it. And so the vicious cycle of nothingness continues. I need to get my groove back, my writing groove that is. Oh, on a positive note, I decided (well, almost!) on a title for my blog. (It's up there, if you haven't noticed). That took me a long time too. I had initially decided on 'Idiosyncratic musings'. Then, out of curiosity, I Googled it, and found more than ten similarly named blogs. Sigh. (I also thought of Idiosyncratic brooding, idiosyncratic pondering, and some more, but I personally liked the alliteration of 'Idiosyncratic Introspection'. The alliteration fad continues with the title of this post as well.)

So, the end of the year is nearing. I haven't decided on resolutions for the next yet. I know I will not fulfil them. (My conviction scares me. Talk about losing before even starting!) So, instead of writing a post on resolutions for 2012, i decided I'd rather retrospect and think about how 2011 fared! Mostly because it will probably go down in history as one of the most important years of my life. I may be getting ahead of myself, but all the signs say so. Overall, the year was good; personally, more good things happened than bad. *knocking on wood*

It started out like any other year. (Oh yes, one resolution I most definitely am making is not to use the acronym LOL. My friend, Prasad and I resolved this a month or so in advance. We have a game plan too! Ref: below!)

A few good carry forwards from the previous year, 2010, were that I met a lot of nice people (if you are reading, do not gloat. If you don't, brownie points for you!). I normally do not warm up too quickly to strangers, but I am glad I did. It helped me make some really good friends. (I know they will read this, sooner rather than later, and my fingers itch to type something mean, just because I CAN. *bitchy me* :D) But, in all honesty, with all their idiosyncrasies (yes, it is my new favorite word) and different personalities, they proved to be very, very good friends. A big shout out to my amigos, Juan and Carlos (or, wait, was I Juan?)...oh I forget my other amigo's name...but, nevertheless, Vivek and Prasad. There is never a dull moment with them around. If I was still using Orkut, I'd write them testimonials! (That, believe me, says a lot!) I'm glad to have met Phalgun, with his 'Science-Boy super-power' ;), G, with his irrepressible smile, and P and Varun and all the rest. (Repeat special mention to Smaran, who inspired me to restart blogging. Thank you, Smaran). I could write stories of epic proportions on these guys but there's a lot of ground to cover. It has been a long, long year.

School ended. I didn't expect to miss it as much as I do. I miss being a student, more than attending the classes. Obviously. I knew the semester of Spring '11 was going to be a tough one, and oh boy, it was. I had my first conference at UI-Urbana-Champaign, I managed to finish all my work for my thesis and successfully defended it too. In the midst of all that was the horrible period of job hunting. A hundred job applications and 3 interviews. The numbers left me dumbstruck. The anxiety, the tension, the interviews, the wait after the interviews made me vow that once I get a job, I am not leaving it for nothing! I do not understand people who enjoy their interviews; there is most definitely something for to learn from them. My interviews were nerve-racking, more so was the wait post-interview. I waited for that one life changing phone call that people talk and write about. I wish I could say my life was as dramatic. It wasn't. Mine followed the path of numerous emails back and forth with the company, dozens of phone calls and lots and lots of waiting, because their budget was still on hold. I think I was more relieved than I was happy when I learnt that I had got the job. Yes, I am impatient and do not like waiting. :)

Professionally, (and academically) the first half of the year was a roaring success. Everything fell into place. I bought my first car. I love her. Do not ask me why it's a 'her'. She just is. My best friend Rohini names my vehicles; she named both my two wheelers back home. I am waiting on her for a suitable name. Oh, Vivek did christen her the Stormtrooper though. Let's see how that name holds when she has to bear the brunt of the storms I am bound to face soon. My stint as the vice-president for the International Students' Club was fairly successful and we pulled off our biggest event with aplomb. I miss being a part of these events. Going back to school and being just a spectator saddens me (which was why I was more than eager to help this Diwali!)

Personally, it was a mixed bag. I knew moving was going to be difficult. Sharing your life and your space with certain people for two years connects you to them to an extent I didn't know possible until I actually moved. You either love or hate them to bits. There is hardly ever any middle ground. Coming home to my empty hotel room after my first day at work saddened me more than I thought it could. I missed the noise, the laughter, the jokes that inevitably waited when I got home from a long day at the lab at school. I missed the concern, the care, the joy, the laughter, the food, the parties, the booze, the after effects of the booze...the people. It's especially disheartening to see how quickly we grow out of our need for each other.

The month of May especially filled me with sorrow and I was depressed for the greater part of the month. Four students from school lost their lives in a car accident. I didn't know any of them personally, but I knew the grief of losing someone loved. These boys were young, energetic, and eager. Why? As always, the only question in my mind was why. It questioned the basis of my faith, as it did eight years ago when my brother passed away in a train accident. I knew what their families would be going through, I knew what that loss felt like and I knew that nothing anyone said would ever help. It never did and it never will. The void that is created inside of you can only be filled by you. Everything other people say just falls on deaf ears. There is this myth that time is the greatest healer. It isn't. Even after eight years, there is an unfillable void in me. Maybe enough time hasn't passed, or maybe I haven't found the right method to heal. (Not many people know this side of me. I don't mention this to people, because it just makes them uncomfortable. No one knows the right thing to say or the right way to act. I understand that.) I wandered aimlessly, pondering and questioning, knowing that these are unanswerable questions.

My one pillar of strength through this; Vinay. I know how difficult I can be when I am at my worst. I was at my worst more than once this year and that he handled it all, without complaining, blew me away. Okay, I am not going to get all mushy here, but I thought it would be unfair to not mention it. (If you are reading this, you are the best thing that could have happened to me :))
Whew! That was long, and that was only half the year. It's a relief that the second half was quite eventless, isn't it? I moved to Rockford, IL in July and started my first real job at Danfoss. It was exciting, a little scary but mostly felt good to be out there in the professional world. Work has been pretty slow, with me being new, with a few tough nuts to crack, but on the whole a good experience so far. I wish I could say the same about moving. As I mentioned earlier, I missed being with people. So September was a bright spark when we decided to meet in Colorado. The trip was wonderful. A few hiccups, but all in all, I had a great time. (oh, not to forget, it was especially sweet of the aforementioned boys to make a trip to see me :)) Things improved when Vinay graduated and decided to continue his job hunt here at Rockford. Even better was him actually getting a job close to Rockford. And Praveen and Vijay moved to Peoria and one of my closest friends, Prajakta got a job in Morris, IL. So we formed quite the happy group in Illinois. Different thing we don't meet often, but it's good to know that some one's nearby if we need them.

The second half the year was more of getting into the routine of work, with a few inter-spaced trips to Rolla for Celebration of nations, Diwali and the graduation last week. Thanksgiving involved Rolla-ites coming to Rockford and three days of crazy PS3 gaming. Oh, one thing I really enjoyed about moving was setting up house. I loved shopping and scouring for different items. I can't wait to move into a bigger place and get more stuff! :) The year is going to end on a fun note, hopefully, with a new year's trip to Austin for a reunion of sorts. I like that we meet once every 3-4 months and hope that continues. The three days of togetherness almost makes up for the 3 months that we are not together. Almost. (I wrote separation, and then deleted it. It sounded, well, gay :P) So, I am looking forward to that.

2011 was a mixed bag all in all, but as I said mostly positive and will most definitely be one to remember, for a variety of reasons. 2012 is round the corner. If the world doesn't end, I hope to accomplish more than a few things. I can't wait to see my parents and am willing the first half of 2012 to zoom by.
Resolutions? Hmmm... Maybe this year I will try. Just, Maybe.

Happy holidays! And best wishes for a very happy new year to all! (Eat, be merry, be fat :D)

PS: (Did you think I'd end without a PS? :D) What did you think about the name of the blog. Too corny? suggestions are always welcome :)

Finding your inner rhythm...

Well, I realised recently, that I was supposed to be blogging more regularly. So, I thought, I might as well try giving it some time today. I have been fiddling with a variety of topics for a few days now and tried to discern which one would be a stimulating enough topic to make me want to write, but I kept drawing a complete blank! (Not much has changed, but I came to the conclusion that to be stimulated enough to write a lot, I need to start by writing at least a little...to get the juices flowing and all that!)

So, yesterday, I finally overcame my extreme laziness, shot down all my excuses for the aforementioned laziness, and joined a gym! Now, I am not exactly the best example of dedication and determination! I literally needed an excuse, and a strong one at that, to make me start exercising. Obviously the obvious ones, like health, fitness et al was not going to work. That's when I saw the gym offered Zumba classes! That is what inspired me to go check it out, after hearing some pretty good things about it from one of my best friends, Ritu.

Verdict? It didn't disappoint. Maybe, that is because I love dancing. (I am not going into details here, but Google it! Zumba is basically a mix of dance and aerobics, in its simplest form) I have been dancing ever since I can remember. I started when I was all of three! I admit, I am not the best dancer I know. I know a truckload of people who dance a lot better than I do. But still, I keep at it. Not because practice makes perfect (oh, admittedly, it will help, but I am never going to be at the level I want to be at...Yes, I have extremely high expectations!) but because it makes me happy. I dance anywhere, almost; mostly when I am by myself. But even when I am surrounded by scores of people, my head can't help bobbing; my foot can't help tapping, when I hear a good song. The rhythm is a part of me, or so I like to believe.

Okay, non-dancers, don't stop reading. The blog isn't about dancing, I promise. It is more about this "rhythm" that I talk about. So, as I was saying, all this dancing I did yesterday got me thinking. Strange, but true. It got me thinking about what was it about dancing that made me so happy. I concluded, that when I danced I was at peace with myself. I didn't care if people were watching, what those people were thinking, or what I looked like while I danced. I was at peace with myself. Sound familiar? It probably does. Everyone has that ONE thing that puts them at peace with themselves. That one thing that makes you happy, makes you complete, makes you think you can do it for the rest of your life, makes all the other crap worthwhile. If you're lucky, you have more than just ONE thing. (For me, reading gives me the same feeling. I can, and will, read for the rest of my life.) And I realised how important it is to have that one activity in your life, just for the sheer joy it brings to you.

What is fascinating is how it differs from person to person...I know people who are happiest when they play a certain instrument, when they code (yes, believe it), when they cook, when they paint, when they play a certain sport...one of my best friends is happiest when she talks! (No, although that sounds familiar, I am not talking about myself, do not be deceived!) Anyway, the point I was trying to make was that it is so important to find this "inner rhythm", as I like to all it, and once found to never let it go. Crazy as it seems, all of us know it to be true. It is what gets us through the toughest times and the darkest nights. Each string strummed, each page turned, each tune hummed ignites a small tiny flame in us to shield us from the cold. Which is why we should never forget what makes us happy. Although we don't realise it, it's possible to forget. (Okay, this is taking a philosophical turn that I never intended!)

On another similar note, it is also important to do what you love. Realists I know have argued about this with me, and I agree. As much as I wish it, I cannot just abandon what I am doing and what I have worked hard to achieve on a whim. If I had it my way, I'd be travelling the world right now...or would have been a journalist...(oh, or better yet, a travel journalist); not designing electrical circuits. But, I digress; that is a whole other can of worms! That said, it is also important to remember what you wish you could be doing and try and integrate at least a small part of it into your daily, mundane life. Opportunity to meander when you are on your career path will arise, whether you can or will take it, well, that is your call. (And, if you already are doing what you have always wanted to, Kudos! Tell me how to too, unless of course it is engineering...I know how to do THAT!)
But, regardless of all else, keep that spark alive! Tune yourself to that inner rhythm, and don't ever let it fade away...

PS: I STILL don't have a name for my blog
PPS: Yes, i DO love PS's. :-) (Oh, Also, thank you Prasad for being my only follower :-))

Baby Steps...

Reading a friend's...hmmm, I should probably give credit where it is due...so, let me start again...
Reading Smaran's (a friend) blog, and smiling at it made me realise how much I miss writing. I was shocked at how I couldn't string five words together in a sensible sounding sentence, without it becoming Hinglish, a colloquial mix of Hindi and English, a language (if you can call it that!) I once used to despise. One thing I haven't forgotten is the excessive use of exclamation marks. (Yes, I struggled with my urge to end that previous sentence with an exclamation mark! Ah, well...) The irony is that I once thought I would take up writing as a career choice; journalism was my first choice, before I fell prey to the Indian parents' stereotypical choice of pursuring engineering (No offense to ANYBODY). In all fairness, it WAS my second choice!

I digress. This new aforementioned language I talk made me the victim of a close friend's constant teasing. More so due to the degradation of my spoken English. Yes, Mikhil, although I never admitted it, of course I knew I had started using and pronouncing words that would make the Queen want to commit suicide! And even as I re-read what I have just written, I realise how my writing skills have degraded. I admit, I was never the best writer I knew, but the words always flowed relentlessly. Words; once my best friend, are soon becoming alien to me. Today was when I realised just how much I missed writing. And how I should start writing again, if I wanted to maintain that cherished bond with the words that were once so familiar to me. As with everything new, baby steps are the perfect way to start. So, this is my first baby step. I blog after over two years since my last (and first) blog entry! It is a start nevertheless. Maybe what I lack is inspiration. Hmm, there's a thought.

I also realise how I have all but given up on my voracious reading habit. I was never found without a book. In school, my girlfriends used to gossip in the lunch break, and I'd have my head buried in a book. And now, I can't remember when I last read a book that inspired me. This entry was a lot shorter than I thought it would be, but I am overwhelmed, and words fail me. But, as I said, baby steps. In due course of time, I hope to have overcome this writer's block (that has lasted an awfully long time) and be able to blog regularly. Till, then I need to find a meaningful source of inspiration. Oh, Calvin and Hobbes sounts, right? ;)

P.S: Also, I have the most boringly dull name for my blog. Hmm, maybe THAT should be my first baby step. An imaginative name!