Fun-car Beats

So I did it again. Here in NH you are required to register your car every year, in your birth month. And with each registration you have an option to change the licence plate number/name. I'm more than happy to use this opportunity every year (at an extra cost, of course). Here is what my car had to put up with so far.

2007: +ALLU (the very first post in this blog explains this).

2008: FANNAN (an Arabic word for the artist; a clever and deceptive way to tell myself that I'm one).

2009: MUSKET (a musketeer is a soldier carrying a musket; a musket is a classic gun that is the predecessor of today's rifle. The other hidden meaning is out of discussion here :-)

2010: ASTRSK (an asterisk, the dubious * in the fine print that tells you  -"conditions apply" - in life too.)






2011: ALMAST (drunk, in a good way :)

The Day I Lost 1, 16, 17 and 32

"Breathe nice-n-deep for me..." Dr. Dunn gently instructed once he had setup the Intravenous sedation equipment on my nose. I followed. The screens in front of me showing blood pressure and heartbeats started to blur.

"...and tighten your fist." I involuntarily complied. The kiss of a syringe was aphrodisiac enough to kick in the hibernation.

"Think of something pleasant and breathe nice-n-deep." Before I could follow, I had already slipped into the dreamland. The only thing I remembered was the slow voices of the doctor and his assistants and the music of the equipments making their way into my mouth.

1, 16, 17 and 32 were gone when I opened my eyes. Although it was for good, I instantly missed them. It's so true - we take many people and things in our lives for granted and don't realize until they are gone. And your wisdom is the last thing you want to lose; I just did, assuming I already had some.

Roshan was the designated driver and caretaker for the first half of the day. He drove me back home and got everything I needed; medicines and ice. Once he was gone, I tried to read the post-surgery instructions Dr. Dunn had given (3 printed pages), but that was too much. The priority was to fill the empty tank (I was not allowed to eat or drink anything before 8 hours of the surgery). But before I could eat anything I had to wait for the bleeding and pain to stop; it never did for an hour and red cotton packs piled up steadily. I took the pain reliever medicine and it was time for some adventure.

I reached up to the bathroom sink to clean the blood in the mouth. Few gargles and it was all clean. Out of bathroom and the world started to marry-go-round. The last thing I heard was a thud. Then silence. When I opened eyes after {don't know how much} time, I found myself lying on the floor just outside the bathroom. Easy, go to the bed and sleep. I did. The sleep was over soon and so was the memory of what happened just an hour ago. Again restless. Again blood. Again bathroom sink. Again the rotating world. Again a thud, louder this time. This time I was aware what was happening. I felt a brief pain on the shoulder and head. But before it could become more pronounced, again silence. Eyes opened again and deja-vu was obvious. I noticed this time I was lying on the right side of the bathroom (last time it was left side). Easy, easy, go to the bed and sleep, and never get up again until someone is around you. I did. After that I did not dare to leave the bed for anything, not even for food. In the evening when Akshay and Snehal were back home, I enjoyed the jelly roll and milk. Snehal prepared the soft dal-rice for dinner and after eating, the bleeding, pain and hunger rested in peace. The second crash would show its effects the next day when I would see a big bruise on back of the left shoulder and I would thank the carpet-ed wooden floor for saving my head despite the head-on landing. Easy, sleep.

Like many other misconceptions about myself, I had always believed that my teeth were in healthy shape until my gums started bleeding occasionally a few months ago. And like in most cases, laziness took precedence over corrective action. It was too late when I with the help of dentist realized that the gingivitis, or, more scary name - periodontal infection, has fallen for my teeth. And they were bold enough to show their affair in public, on the expense of my blood! The events that followed were not too pleasant to go through, some of which you read above. Other than that I had to appear for 4 cleaning sessions and 2 filling sessions to control the bacterial beasts. And not to mention, all this was while I'm in US, so you can imagine the money you have to shell out; even while having insurance. I won't care much about monetary details though (not that I'm very rich or something, just that it doesn't matter.)

In short, I would advise my friends to take good care of their teeth. And even if it looks and feels OK, go for regular professional cleaning every 6 months at least. Be aware of the bacterial infections and be ready to fight it right in the roots. I wasn't planning to scare you, but sometimes it works. Almost.

Love is not...

Kim Grove created a comic strip titled "Love is..." in late 1960s. Today the cartoon with charming little characters and a quick note is favorite of millions. It's amazing how a simple one-liner can convey the deepest feelings. I too decided to do something similar; but as always, differently. A lot has been said on what love is. So here is my take on what love is not.

* Love is not... just any word; but a complete story in one word.

* Love is not... a function of heart; in fact the heart and ultimately your life is a function of love.

* Love is not... a trademarked activity of boyfriends and girlfriends; others in your life and around you deserve the same, maybe more.

* Love is not... costly; its accessories are.

* Love is not... a magic; but a mystery of chemistry.

* Love is not... blind; refusing to be practical is what causes the illusion.

* Love is not... a depleting resource; it's a renewable energy sufficient for you to remain young forever.

* Love is not... measured in kilos or dollars; else I would've been obese or very rich. 

* Love is not... hard to learn or express; a genuine gesture is all it takes.

* Love is not... about falling in; standing by makes more sense.

* Love is not... a game; nobody loses here.

* Love is not... a thing to hide; it shows up.

* Love is not... what you think you are doing; it's what's happening to you.

With so many generous (read free) clues, I'm sure you know what to look for. And for those who are still waiting to unleash their love, here's what Shakespeare observed, "Love sought is good, but given unsought is better." Almost.

Happy New Ear

Our wishes to friends and families have become so routinely boring that it makes me wonder if we really mean what we wish. Even if you consider every wish genuine, you would remember only those that are different from the happy-so-and-so types. So this new year let me lend a special ear (figuratively) to this whole wish thing. It would be a personal touch that would make you smile, or laugh, or freak out, or cry, or whatever expression except the usual one. Some samples follow.

Occasion: It's your birthday (you are a nut).

Boring wish: Ranges from Happy birthday! -to- Many many happy returns of the day!; period.

Scoring wish: Hey you, your birth was a blessing for the scientists. They studied your brain where in left nothing was right and in right nothing was left. I know you said you will work hard to reverse the situation. Now that you have completed 27 years already, I can see you have hardly worked. Now in left nothing is left and in right nothing is right. Wish you many more such reversals.

Occasion: It's your wedding (you got a great deal).

Boring wish: Ranges from Congrats! -to- Have a great married life!; period.

Scoring wish: Hey you, I was just Googling for the (free) greeting cards to wish you and guess what, I found millions of cards with pictures of broken hearts. They were all addressed to your spouse. You lucky @#$%^&*. I will have to wait until I get a better card to wish.

Occasion: You are not well (you are a geek).

Boring wish: Ranges from Get well soon! -to- Wish you a speedy recovery!; period.

Scoring wish: Hey you, last time we talked over phone, I bluetoothed some of my neurons into your brain. Now wait for the magic. They have been programmed to electrify the red blood cells and supply the missing energy to your cytoplasm. That will awaken your lazy lysosomes for clean up. Once done, the absconding mitochondria and ribosomes will have to get back to work and provide you the much needed sanity. Finally, the endoplasmic reticulum will be barred from transporting any of your good health to the outside world. And there you go!

Occasion: It's {festival} time (you are such a goody person).

Boring wish: Ranges from Happy/Merry {festival}! -to- Wishing you a blessed {festival}!; period.

Scoring wish: Hey you, this {festival}, I don't have much to wish for you. Just what you might have forgotten to wish for. That completes my wish.

Occasion: You've become a proud parent (you are beaming).

Boring wish: Ranges from Congrats on arrival of new family member! -to- May God bless him/her with {so-and-so}!; period.

Scoring wish: Hey you, I was wondering why I didn't see any stars last night. Then I remembered you saying you were shooting for stars. Please send me the travel tickets with your savings from electricity so that I can come see the kid.

Occasion: It's new year (today!).

Boring wish: Ranges from Happy new year! -to- Wish you and your family a happy and prosperous new year!; period.

Scoring wish: Hey you, I've sent you two big boxes; one to stuff all the bad things from the last year, and the other for you to keep and store all the little things that made you smile. I will miss being with you this new year but will catch up soon once I'm done destroying the first box so that you'll never have to see it again. I hope by the time the next year ends, you need only one and bigger box!

So my friends and family can expect something similar now on. My wish may not be the best, but will be different from the rest. Almost.

Weapons of Mass Attraction

An interesting question. What do I have to have to be attractive? Being attractive is often equated with being physically beautiful. Other claimants could be money, power, fame... But there have been and are those who are not so but attract masses. What's their weapon?

There is a prayer in Arabic which translates to "O God, you have created me beautiful, so make my character also beautiful." When I was a kid I was taught to remember this prayer while looking into a mirror. I did. But little did I realize its relevance then. As time flew and the world around me unfolded, I knew I have been praying for the right weapon.

Then what is character in this context? Dictionary tells me it is a set of qualities or attributes that defines a person. These attributes include but are not limited to one's physical appearance. What are other more important attributes of one's character then? Well, you know better (or at least find out). I'm relieved that what makes me beautiful is not just my appearance. That prayer has always reminded me that I'm already beautiful; and what I need to beautify more goes beyond what meets the eye. Almost.

Wheels of Glory

Getting a car for yourself in the US is not a big deal but it sure is when I get it, considering all the tantrums that went into deciding and searching for it. That should not surprise you if you know me; if not, read on. It might even help you if you are new to this country and happen to be in the same category as mine.

To begin with, I have no prior driving experience and don't have driving license from India (which is another interesting story, but some other time). Having one would entitle you to drive here (NH) for two months without getting US driving license (varies depending on states); enough time to practice and acquaint with rules of the roads here. So having kicked out of that possibility, as per NH state law, I would go through a 6 to 8-week Driver's Education Certificate course, where I would attend 15 two-and-a-half hour theory classes, 10 one hour driving classes, and 6 one hour observation classes. Ultimately a 13 hour busy day including office. Adding to the fun, my wallet would get lighter by $600. That's one part. Now once you start the course you have to arrange for transportation to and from the driving school since public transport is not always handy here. But thanks to all my friends-having-car here, I was saved from that worry. All the troubles apart, getting again into the classroom was no less fun than original school days, the change being this time my classmates were American kids.

You got the Driver's Ed certificate. You are eligible to apply for US driving license. A great relief. But hello, where is the car? OK I would start searching for one now. Although used cars is a big market here, and all the searching you can do online, getting a right one is not always easy. Particularly when you are too specific about what you want. Indians on H1-B here generally go for Honda/Toyota owing to its good re-saleability. I was no different. I just had few criteria: black color, automatic transmission, power options, 2000s make, around 90K miles and within $7K budget. I was flexible on everything but one - color (you guessed right). So there started the fun - search online everyday, visit dealers, consult friends, contact the sellers, test drive, negotiate the price. But the biggets roadblock, as it turned out, was my color-criterion.

Internet was full of deals offering better features than what I wanted but black color; "No cars found matching your criteria". Dealers were delighted to fetch me a moon(roof) which was not even in my wanted list until I enlightened them with my black obsession; "You are a pain in the ass (smile-n-grunt)". Friends were all there with info on good deals except black cars; "What's in color?". It took everybody a while to understand that no black, no car. Once the belief established, all efforts were diverted to making it happen. Two months later I would write this to thank everybody who endured my tantrums on car search with smiling face and joined me to believe I would get one. Moral? Patience.

So here is my black beauty - 99 Honda Accord Coupe. After savoring it for hours, felt like writing something, mid-night blogging took over me, and what you just read is a story of my sweet struggle. Almost.

Growing Up? What's That?

Imagine it's your birthday today. You (no matter what gender) expect to be asked "so, how old(!) are you?", many times. And here starts the fun. Every time you reply, you feel you are being forced into that creepy sense of being old, and responsible, and mature, and what not. But if you refuse to grow up, your answers would match mine.

Warming up...
Q: So, how old are you?

A: I am 27 years young!


Q: So, you have grown up (!)

A: No, I have grown flat!

Getting to the nerve...
Q: So, how do you feel being 27?

A: Feels like I am still 17!

Q: So, you are the eldest brother, right?

A: Yes, I am the most irresponsible!

Getting serious...
Q: So, you have lot of things to do for your family (!)

A: Really? Their expectations don't indicate so!

Q: So, working hard these days?

A: Yes, hardly working!

Changing direction...
Q: So, lot of girl-friends, huh?

A: Yes, I make all kinds of friends!

Q: So, time to get married?

A: No, I need to practice how to tie knots!

Irritation rising...
Q: So, what are the plans ahead in life?

A: Oops, let me check my calendar!

By this time the questions stop; naturally. And I start appearing more co-operative. But the questions stop anyway. I feel nobody is worried about me. Then I realize why. Now I wait for the next b'day. I plan to be more co-operative then. Almost.

Black Magic

I don't believe in it but over the time I have come to an understanding that I am really taken by some black magic. And guess what, I am not interested in nailing down the sorcerer, for I enjoy these black attacks.

It starts with small pangs of shopping desire, and by the time it is over, my shopping cart wears a black smile. At least one part of my formal outfit has to be black, or nearest shade of black. Ties or shoes, no discrimination in color. Levi's or Newport, jeans and Ts are ritually black. The bag that carries them and other stuff is black too. Think of time and the Titan sports its black outline on the wrist. Call me and the black Sony W810i will spring to life. Work is tolerable because the black Lenovo T60 is pleasant to look at. The latest addition to the black armour is the 4-wheeled beauty Honda Accord Coupe. Any future purchase plan starts with imagining its black beauty. If a girl is beautiful (the 'if' is unnecessary here), she is gorgeous in black. There is much to my black obsession. I certainly am in possession of some black spirit.

Color is almost a natural element in our lives, like the air we breathe. Every now and then we face its importance. Not only for us, it's important for others we care too. Think of pleasing kids and think of their favorite color. Think of a gift for him/her and his/her favorite color comes to the mind. Think of surprising someone and color surely is an option. Your moves center around your choice of color. But when it becomes an obsession, its effect is no less than a magic. In my case, it's black magic. Almost.

Freedom Writers

I liked the movie. The story is about a bunch of teenagers, or rather, gangs, struggling to make sense of their education amidst racial crises, until a new teacher brings about a wave of change. She grows them up from freedom warriors to freedom writers. Not only does the film portray a true story with touching finesse, but also reveals the power of writing. And that's the topic I am going to take liberty to write on.

A human heart is a home of many entangled feelings. Happiness. Sorrow. Love. Enlightenment. Longing. Detachment. Anger. Grudge. Acceptance. Betrayal. Shock. Pain... But we don't always express all of what we feel. While some feelings help us grow stronger and are meant for permanent citizenship in the heart, the others, on tourist visa, have power to weaken us unless we deport them back to the universe, or transform them into harmless residents. How do I do that for the feelings I know will kill the harmony of my heart? Express. How? Speak up. Do I always speak up my heart? No. Any other means to break free? Write. Will writing your heart out on a piece of paper that nobody is going to read change the situation, the people, the world? No. Then what's going to change? You.

Sounds funny, isn't it? Yes, if you have never tried it before. Remember the last time you felt loved, but could not appreciate it in open. Remember when you felt rejected, and could not comprehend why. Remember the relationship gone to pieces, unsure of what went wrong. Remember anything that made you suppress your feelings, or express in the way you won't agree to. All these might have made you weaker. The solution? Express and break free. Writing your heart out can help. The next time you think you will not be able to express yourself the way others can understand, don't attempt to lock the doors. Write down what you feel. Whatever. However. At the end, you are guaranteed to feel lighter, for what goes out, makes a way for the fresh air.

When you write, you express yourself in such detail that no speech can ever do. So when you can't speak, or there's nobody to speak to, write. Other advantages apart, writing is mostly a personal affair. Because the freedom is personal. It's from you, to you. Almost.

H-A-P-P-Y N-E-W Y-E-A-R

Here are my wishes for you for this new year.

For your personal habits (which are almost incorrigible)

May you get up early in the morning, not to thrash the alarm and go back to sleep but to enjoy the beauty of the morning. May you brush your teeth, not just look at them in the mirror and "looks ok; tomorrow." May you take bath, not just a face-wash. May you dress for work, not for the fashion show. May you have proper breakfast, not just the residues of the previous night. May you have time for good lunch-dinner, not just french fries.

For your health (now what's that?)

May your family of bills include health check-ups, gymming and anything else it takes to maintain good health, and not just phone calls, movies and food. May this year bring disappointment to your dentist, optometrist, cardiologist, podiatrist, dermatologist, gastro-enterologist, urologist, and most importantly, your psychiatrist. May you think healthy, not just look healthy. May you find yourself youthful, not just beautifool.

For your relation-ships (don't remember a steady one?)

May you find enough time to spend with your family, not just dry phone calls. May you remember to say "I love you" to your spouse, your children, your parents, and not just to your secretary or nurse. May you make more new friends, and not lose the old ones. May you show gratitude to your girlfriend/boyfriend for bearing with you. May you remember him/her whether you are in Bilimora, Bangalore or Boston. May you get the relatives who are not relative to your success or failure. May you respect your relations, not just use them.

For your career and finance (who cares?)

May you make more money this year, to pay the bills of the last year. May you show up on time for the morning meetings. May you be prepared before attending the meetings. May you know what the meeting is for before preparing for it. Most importantly, may you remember there is a meeting! May you try to understand a day's work before declaring it outrageous. May you take work-breaks in between your coffee sessions. May your boss understand your capacities, and accordingly give you minimum work. May you get promotion, without any motion in work.

There is lot more (good) to wish, but you know I am a bit lazy. So I hope these wishes make your new year rocking and rolling. If not, let me know the missing wishes so that I can include them in the next year's list. Almost.

Change

The change ticks constantly. This time around it has forced me to leave friends and family far behind (actually ahead, by timezone) and made me land in the unknown land, US. It's already two weeks here and here's how this change is hell bent on changing me.

Work. That's what I am here for (don't laugh). Unlike back in Bangalore where I used to work long hours continuously, here it's almost 9 to 5, with the liberty to work from home at will. But I have a problem with that (as usual). According to me, coming back home early from work is justified only if I have a family (or, a girl friend at least) waiting for me. None is the case here. But still I need to change. First step? Find a girl friend, may be.

Food. Ah, my favorite topic. And the most daunting too. I am already careless about my eating patterns since I left home for study and then for work. In India I at least could eat Indian, if not homely, ready food. Here I am deprived of that luxury too. Here frozen food weds microwave and creates a family of quick bytes. But still I need to change. First step? Start learning cooking, may be.

Hobbies. The wind of unwinding takes different route here. I might not have visited a single pub in India but here it's as casual as visiting a grocery store (that too I never visited). Walking used to be my favorite activity over weekends but here moving around without that four-wheeled creature seems to be impossible. But still I need to change. First step? Get a car, may be.

Money. The driver of all earthly desires. Although I needed it very badly, I never gave it a damn while in India. I was happy with whatever little I earned. Here you earn in dollars, convert into rupees while spending, and look at your dreams while saving. I am not sure if I am going to respect this. But still I need to change. First step? Learn to save, may be.

This is just a beginning. The future might have more changes in store for me than I might have imagined I would go through. But as usual, I will respect them. Almost.

Lapping It Up

Thou shalt not fall in love - I had assured myself. But every now-n-then I do. Here is the latest story.

I had started eyeing her a month back when I first spotted her. Since then she has been serenading in my dreams. Although she faced a tough competition from her other friends, she managed to make her way into my heart. I liked her. I wanted her. And finally I got her. So it was a two-way affair and now we are best buddies. Here are some of her candid features.

She has a perfect curvaceous, beautifully maintained profile (can't resist telling this :). But it’s not just the beauty that I like about her. She is smart too. She understands my signals at a speed of 1.6 GHz, pretty fast compared to other girls. I can rest assured she remembers me very well, for she maintains 256 MB of her grey cells for run-time use. Additionally, she has a 40 GB heart-disk to store all our memorable moments. And you are guaranteed to go-fida when she flaunts a 14.1-inch-wide smile. She has a great entertainment-sense too. She has special liking for CDs and DVDs. She can give me a company for 2.5 hrs non-stop without bribe. She is not homely, perfectly as I wanted. She would be happy if I took her places. In fact she will take me places once I introduce her to the world of Internet. All in all, she is a perfect companion.

And cost of this affair? Rs. 31.5 K. But did I tell you what her name is? Well, she is from the town of Acer, where people, strangely, call her Acer TravelMate 2424 NWXCi. Others know her just as a laptop. But for me, she is like a girl-friend (!), and a brand new reason to get back home early. Almost.

Where Are You?

Somebody calls me up and asks, "where are you?"; I am tempted to reply, "in your address book!" or something else, depending on who is asking. Because we have multiple levels of identity. We can be at different places for different people. Certain people would let you intrude up to certain level in their R-space - relationship. Here's my take on kind of people and where they can find you.

Rough contacts. These people will find you somewhere scribbled in their scratchpads. For them you don’t hold much significance other than ‘hi’ and ‘bye’. So more than remembering you, they forget you.

Casual contacts. For them, you hold a few days’ attention. They would oblige you with some space in their daily notes. As soon as they are done with the business, you will be dumped in their brain's dustbin.

Business contacts. You can rest assured these people will keep you at least in their e-mail address book. You enjoy their attention depending on how good (or bad) you perform in the job assigned to you. For them you are an obligation, not a necessity. Once you finish (or farce) your task and part the way, chances are high you don’t want to come back!

Friends. Depending on the level of friendship, you occupy their private space. These liberal group of species keep you in their email address book, in phone address book, in their scrapbook etc. And if you are lucky, you will be privileged to occupy some of their grey cells; they remember you.

Family. They care for you. You are not only in their heads but also in hearts. And you are assured to be there, forever.

Loved ones. This category includes all those who truly love you. A rough contact can go on to become a casual one, and may end up being your friend. And friends often become part of the family. All these people form a very important part of your life. It’s the people who love you care for you. And the one who cares, keeps you in his/her heart-disk. You enjoy a permanent storage there.

Life is too short. The journey is too long. We need the people who can keep us going. Therefore, I want to be, and to be kept, in the last category. Almost.

I-'Day'

Freedom for-all and for-ever is yet to come. That's why I don't think we celebrate the true independence; we celebrate the Independence Day. Almost.

Powerplays

Today is the 11th day me being powerless. No I am not talking about some magical powers (which I already have), but about one of the most powerful powers - electricity. You may think why on earth I would endure the power-cut for so many days. Well, we didn't pay the e-bill on time! And after that we (including my roommates) were not in a hurry to get our fuse back. Hence 11 dark days (nights, to be specific).

But I am not going to list down the miseries one goes through while being in powerless mode. Rather, I would like to throw some light on the advantages of living in dark era, for a change (well, that's +Allu). Morning - no need to wait for hot water; no more admiring myself in front of the mirror, placed strategically on the wall opposite to the tube light; no need to keep changing the radio channels to get to one good song to freshen up the morning; Noon - no fan, no sleep, leading to a good night's sleep; Night - no bedtime stories; no catching up with the world by going through the news; no excuse to get up late the next morning.

Change is the only constant. We have to get back to the bright era. But we are thinking of prolonging the transition for few more days. Reason? Independence Day dawning after few days. And we think that's the perfect time (and spirit) to enter the light from the darkness. So here's the time: 15th August 2006, 00:00 am. Let there be light. Almost.

No! No? No, Please

Ever since I started understanding English, I have been constantly entertained by its local variations. But the one which I don't enjoy, but in fact irritates me is no-ism. Some examples of Hinglish; how expert we (read: mostly female souls) are at making a lingual curry:

Chalo na!

Come no!

Kitna cute bachcha hai na?

What a cute kid, no?

Hum wahan ja rahe hai na?

We are going there, no?

But times are changing. Very soon Indian English is going to be the most widely spoken variety of English throughout the world. So I have no choice but to start enjoying this no-ism. But still, if you ask me, "this still irritates you, no?", Yes. Almost.

k.k..k...Kiran

Kiran, my friend from MCA class, got married on 11th May 2006. He was a cool dude. Loosing him was a great shock.

The celebrations started from my side when I left the office on 10th May eve to catch a flight for Ahmedabad. Once in air, I worked out a strategy on how to best spend the two-days leave from office. Came Ahmedabad and I was joined by two more cool dudes coming from Baroda; Alpesh and Munaf, again from MCA class. We started for Mehsana, where Kiran's sacrifice ceremony was to be held.

It was 12.30 am when we reached the destination. The dandiya-raas was in full swing. But the traveling was so tiring that we decided not to venture into the celebrations and refrain from giving a drunken impression. In anticipation of the fun-filled-day that would follow, we slept.

We were ready to enjoy the day to its fullest. Dance, pranks, food, masti; so much was on the menu. Excited, we got out of the house and oops, the temperature was already near 30 dc at 8 am! Refusing to give up, we set to go with the baraat. It was 10 am and above 30 dc when we reached. The worst was yet to come.

With every passing minute, the Sun shined with full glory, showering approx 40 dc in the middle of the day. And guess what happenned to our plans. Long marriage rituals, sweating heat and gulping down of cold drinks took most out of us. Shikaari khud shikaar ho gaye!

Not to mention that Kiran was not feeling any heat. We wished him a cool life ahead and left for Ahmedabad and then to Anand and then to Bilimora, ah, sweet home. South Gujarat is way cooler than North Gujarat. But still, as I neared home, for the benefit of all, I decided not to get married in summer.  Almost.

Why +Allu?

I like to sign off as +Allu. Here's why.

' Allu ' is too simple. I am not.

' –Allu ' is too less. I am not.

' *Allu ' is too much. I am not.

Hence ' +Allu '. I am. Almost.