THINGS IN LIFE: THAT ARE PRICELESS

I seem to be in a very retrospective mood. So here goes...I have done a lot things in life that have been given adjectives such as "stupid", "crazy", "loser" and so on ... you get the idea. Now when I look back at them I regret a few, I laugh at a few, and for some I laugh... then smile and ask myself " WTF was I thinking ". But in some stupid way I am glad because I can say " yeah man I have been there done that " sounds cool right??... but my friends and Jayan and Nitin will tell you with me its more a case of "hey... I was also there re..."

My top moments in no specific order are:

The final of the cricket tournament during my first year of college, played a perfect tourney till the last ball of the final. Opening batsmen... Opening bowler... crucial runs, crucial wickets, good catches I had done it all but... then it all changed within the space of one ball.. the last ball. 1 ball 3 runs to win the batsmen hits the ball in the air straight in to my hands I still remember like it was yesterday ... that too in slow motion. The ball went in and then right out.

During my undergrad days I was in the bad habit of getting a kick ridiculing the so called "popular" girls of the college. This habit of mine came back to bite me in my 2nd year when my really close friends started dating the very girls I made fun of ....( for the record they all found what I said funny... and added to it). And then all of them conveniently dumped the whole thing on me and yours truly was vilified for the remaining years of college.

I also seem to suffer from a disease called “foot in your mouth". Symptoms include saying in the wrong things at the wrong time, not being able to keep your mouth shut on issues that might strike an emotional chord ... you get the picture. When I was in school I had this teacher who a very heavy accent. So once she asked us study for an upcoming exam while she was sitting in class. I was preparing for the exams with my friends and suddenly felt this urge to ridicule her pronunciation, which I did. Only problem being I was sitting on the table on the 1st row with back facing the teacher totally oblivious to her presence at decibel level which give Pavarotti a complex.

I guess I never learnt my lesson. In college I was in the room of one my friends and everyone was looking at snaps of the "popular" girls and again I could not control my urge to say something. So I went on and on about how that girl was over rated. All the time I was oblivious to my roomie kicking me to hint for me to stop, as one of the people present there was her boyfriend. (Thankfully he was a smaller guy so ... i dint get beaten up...)

I once travelled to Bangalore to drop a friend of mine ( the point is the friend was a she... ) I had reservations for my journey to Bangalore but had none for the journey back. Being in college just having been bitten by the travel bug I decided to take general ticket for my return journey, I had travelled general many a time to chennai so how bad could this be?? Oh did I mention that this return journey would happen only after 10 in the night!! Something I forgot even then, to the extent I did not check the name of the train that I would have to take back. So I reached Bangalore at 9 PM dropped my friend back at the station by 9.30. After which my ordeal began first, I asked chaiwalla when the next train was to Vellore was he told me there was one 12.00am and another at 1.30am. Now the problem was what do I do till then?? So I decided to kill time I shall shuttle between Bangalore Cant station and Bangalore city by hoping on to trains that come ( I assumed that all trains will pass through both... thankfully my choices did).

It was time for the 1st train, I walked myself to the backend of the platform to board the general compartment. As the train passed me I felt it was overly packed, that was till I saw the general compartment. It was so packed that the door could not be opened or rather the people in it were not willing to open it. I quickly told myself "let’s just take the other one". As I was waiting for the next train I began to panic what if the next train had similar situation?? My panic was made worse when the cop working the platform told me that I need to get on to this train or leave the station. I had only 150 RS in my pocket so a lodge was out of the question the other station Bangalore city was too far. I prayed to god to somehow get me on the next train. The train pulled in to the station it was pretty crowded but somehow I managed to get myself in to the general compartment rather I was forced in to it by the crowd which had gathered to board the train behind me which I had not realized was quite large. Thus my ordeal began.... The only place that I could find to put my butt down was close to the loo. It seemed to be vacant for a long time so I though damn people are stupid ... quickly rushed over there and sat down. But after 15 minutes or so I realized why it was not taken the smell emanating fro m the loo was just awful. The guy on the opposite had in my opinion not been introduced to the concept of bathing. So I sat there for 5 1/2 hours not being able to move to another place as the only other place was next to the door which was suicidal for me due to a lack of warm clothing (it was late November and yes I feel cold very easily). That was last time Idecided to travel general on a night train.

Bottom line even though these things did not turn out too well for me ... I am glad they happened and I actually find them to be priceless.
And yes there are a lot more of them!!! but for now these will do.