Yet Another Software Junk | മറ്റൊരു പാഴ്‌ജന്മം

ഇതു വെറും ഒരു പഴഞ്ചൊല്ലല്ല… (It is not just a proverb...) it is the truth.

I had a lot of chance to 'stitch'… but I didn't.

Result: Samson’s break down in the middle of Inner ring road. A payback for neglecting Samson's thirst for petrol. In another way, a miscalculation of his mileage in this heavy traffic. Now what to do? Need to find a petrol pump. nammakku chodichu chodiuchu pokaam (let us ask somebody)

One auto driver told there is a petrol pump in a KM.

Though I was a little suspicious of his advice, decided to follow a veteran. Anyway I am new to this place, may be one is there near to those software companies that can be seen at that place.

1st stitch >> Push Samson (A heavy, long cruiser called Avenger) for around 1 KM.

After dragging him around 400m I was tired. 'Colorful birds' crossing the roads every now and then, were throwing pathetic glance, caused more hurt. Poya maanam thirichu kittumo :-( Enquired again about the petrol pump... somebody said I need to travel till Koramangala signal!!! Seems logical (matching with my knowledge base)

So took an auto.

2nd stitch >> Rs. 30/- for auto to reach nearest pump and got 1/2 ltr

Problems didn't stop here.

Even after drinking enough petrol, Samson was refused to start. ohh I got it. Residue dust particle in the filter (or even a chance for an air-gap). The engineer in me arose!! ( Vendatha panikku pokandannu appachan paranja kelkoollillo)

3rd stitch >> Suck the petrol from the tube connect to the engine.

Phew... a mouthful of petrol. What a dirty feeling. He refused to start again. Oru kullukkavum illa.

4th stitch >> Call-a-friend for help (Maanam aa vazhikku kappallu kayari). After a 'non-stop' laugh, he suggested the same. And to get a mechanic.

5th stitch >> Search for a bike mechanic

As per auto vaalas, street sellers direction I successfully located a Bike garage. aaha..it was just in front of where Samson broke down. Senior Bike mechanic ordered me to bring the bike there :-(

6th stitch >> Drag my dear Samson back to the first position.

Another problem, Garage is on the other side and there is no gap in the median (though there is a sign board says a gap-in-the-median). So I have to either go and take U turn down the flyover or cut through the median.

7th stitch >> Cross through the median.

It is very heavy buddy (180KG; his manual says). However I managed to lift him up to the median and cross the road. and handed the 'patient' over to the 'doctor'.

As I said the problem was with his air-filter, he sucked the petrol from the tube that too without his mouth. (He made use of engine itself to suck it) Just matter of 1 minute. Everything back to normal. It hurt a lot. An engineer from GECT, don’t know the very basics of a motor bike (8th stitch >> on my ego, false self pride ...)

"10 Rs."- he billed. Oh… just 10 Rs...I was ready to give 50 Rs. atleast. I wasted around 2 hours just for a 10 Rs. problem!!!

"Bhayya petrol bahuth kammy hain... fill it ASAP", his advice.

9th stitch >> immerse Samson in petrol

This could have been done while I take the same route in the morning and save these many stitches

Tail:This is the first time I have been trapped in the road… after around 12,000 Kms of riding experience with David and Samson!!

Yup… first experience cherishes for long time.

similar topic: I Forgive

9 or 10 years back. Two weeks to go to the entrance exam.

"I won’t let you play football in this tournament", Appachan (Dad) showed a Red card to George before the kick-off of the Parish-football-tournament itself!!! He didn’t want George to get injured before the exam. We were in short of players. But he was not convinced with any of George’s arguments. His Dad was very strict.

So George was so sad and was forced to wear the dress of assistant coach and it was very easy to handle the team because half of the team was his own family members. Anthony elleppan
(George’s Uncle: Coach/Mid-fielder, Gincettean (elder cousin: Defender), Georgettan (elder cousin who grabbed that name before ‘George’ the author: Fast Forward), Raju (his brother) (Does he know the game?!! ;-): Defender. Joseph (George’s childhood friend also an awesome Goalkeeper in the parish itself)

On the tournament Day morning: George also followed the team to the ground for giving moral support. Slowly ground filled up with supporters of both the teams and other parish people which included his father's friends who knows him very well, though he doesn’t know many of them.

Match started. Since Goal keeper was strong enough so that he managed to save five sure goals in the first 10 minutes itself. The opponents were the runner's up in the last tournament. And they have three excellent players. So, we didn’t put much effort to get the first goal on 12th min. 15th min there came the second goal. So tension mounted on our side and Coach-cum-midfielder-cum-Uncle gave an action to George to play and he will take care his father. Though confused on the first moment, the pressure and the energetic atmosphere made George to replace his brother.

"ente st.thomas punnivaalaaa...kappathu (grace to St. Thomas)”.Somehow we managed not to get any more goals till the half time.

Before the beginning of second half, we’d put up a game plan. The whole plan depended on Georgetten our fastest forward and shaju, the midfielder. But the game plan was interrupted. The opponents know Georgettan very well and their game plan was to mark him with an extra defender. And Shaju was misplaced himself in between the game. So Anthony mappila himself became young at the age of 35 and took control over the ball. He gave a short pass to George who was the only unmarked person at that time.

George received the ball and moved up through the left side. And he managed to dribble the mid fielder and gave pass back to Anthony Mappila. Quickly he returned back to George where he was in position to shoot the Goal for 100% sure.

Only Goal Keeper and Goal post…. He kicked the ball a little bit forward to get the enough momentum to shoot. Suddenly the angry face of his father came to his mind. If he scored a Goal definitely his father would know somehow. He got confused. So he moved a step forward towards right.
"adi eda (shooooot)", Command from Anthony Mappila...

But George was still confused and moved further right and realized that it was a foolish move. Now, Goal keeper has a half chance to block the shot from that angle. Their defenders were flying towards George and one just reached to George. Tension mounted upon both sides. Quickly he came back to the game spirit and He didn't wait further… turned to left and an extremely low ground shot to the left corner of the post.

Goal !!! George wide spreaded his hands on the triumph but immediately closed his face and sat down. He knew that the punishments were waiting for disobeying his dad.

"Kallakeeda kutta (Well done my boy)", appreciation from the coach and he could easily read George's mind. "I'll take care of your father", he gave guarantee. At last we received two more goals happily from the Champions of the tournament and packed back to home.

George was not interested to go home immediately. He was searching for a lie to convince his dad. He realized that punishment for a lie would be severe than disobey. So he went home and planned to hide all broomsticks. Yet he didn’t. If his father failed to find any broomstick and he will take a patta-vadi (heavy stick) from somewhere nearby. It would be much worse.

As soon as he reached home he lied down on the bed and pretended to be fast asleep.

"njan venda ennu paranjittum nee kalichu alle (Did you play without my permission ?!!)", His father was a bit angry. But his voice was in a low tone only, which surprised George. Anger was only in words; not in the tone. Did Anthony mappila was able to convince him ?!!!

"Actually..." George searched for words and avoided a chance for lie. He perfectly knew that his father respect the honest reply.
"Umm...", surprised reply.
His tone can be read as this.

"Neeyathu purathu adichu kalanjirunnekil ninte katha njan kazhichenne". If you didn't score that one... you might be 'killed' by my hand now.

----Footnote----
My unit again appeared for this tournament for the second time. And they didn’t even remember the legend who scored one and only one goal for the team. May be they thought about avoiding my travel from Chennai to Thrissur and back. They might not be aware of how much I was interested in playing against the same team now.
This time too, we lost against them for 2-1. The goal was scored by Githin, a 15 year old boy, son of Anthony elleppan. Surprisingly Anthony mappila also played for the team, second time. He is in his mid 40s.

---------
Do you think this one was a long post? ha ha …actullay I cut to half after my editor’s expert advice. Still, if you have no other way to kill time, read the first comment, The original post.

I am already declared that I am a (born) Argentinean fan. One reason might be Maradona and his magic performance stuck right in the heart. Other reason is their fair play and the beauty of their pass. Is that Burden?

Not exactly, but I hate to see Brazil winning. I hate to see they playing well (ok leave this WC). I hate to see all other good teams. I always wanted to see Argentina on the winning side!!! Is it not a burden?

Yes. I failed to see the good game by others. I always tried to find mistakes of Rolando (I hate him from the very beginning of his career since he is scoring (just) goals. Though Ronaldinho was my favourite player, I am trying to compare him with the cool minded Argentinean play maker Riquelme. I like to watch only Messi, not interested in Rooney. I like Maxi Rodríguez not C. Ronaldo of Portugal. I don’t even bother about Totti and tony of Itali. I like Argentiean defender Ayala not Cafu; just because he is playing well!!! It is a question mark against my sportsman spirit. Is that not a burden?

I like to call Brazil as a gang of Old men. See this mimicked poetic line to explain above said. Vayasanmar oru koottam niranju brazilil.(they proved it in this WC too). I spend enough time to demotivate Brazil fans trying to find out the mistakes of Brazilian waves.

In the first QF, Argentina lost against Germany. Though I was afraid of it before, the match result pushed me into absented mind of next day morning. Is it not a burden of fan? I have no idea How to defend Rave, a blind Brazil fan. Many time I argued with him in a single point.
“Brazil might be a group of Great Players, but that is not a big thing until they played well”
“Yaar Brazil is like that only. They will play well only against good teams”
“Why can’t they play well against other teams?”
“Even without it Brazil can win”
…it goes on like anything… as face to face debate …as long mails… as forwards … as chat box..
Is it not a burden of fan?

Even sometimes I afraid that this fight might affect our friendship badly. Somebody… somewhere is playing and we are scarifying our friendship !!!. Just for no reason. Ohh Man.

Ok see the other side.
After Argentina lost I thought that it was end of my WC!!! But it was not. Actually my WC starts from that. I didn’t feel bad about Germany. Argentina played well, but not good in Penalty. German goalkeeper, Lehman was good enough to beat two Argentinean players.

I was not interested in Italy since they narrowly escaped from Australia. But even without that penalty Italy could have defeated them in extra time. They played well against Ukraine.

I was able to enjoy Portugal’s fight against England. I hate England’s irritating defensive play. So for a moment I supported Portugal. Ricardo’s 3 saves in Penalty was marvelous.

Before Brazil VS France match, let me introduce my family. My brother, Raju, is a Fan of small small teams. In his words he took enough pain to make Ukraine upto QFs. Now he is on France side since they are small compared to Brazil? My father, A Brazilian fan.
My mother supports India ?!!!
“Mom, India is not playing in WC”, I tried to convince her that we were not even qualified to play in WC.
“So what ? it is not my fault. It is yours, youngster’s, fault not to make India in WC”, she became ‘philosophical’.
Entammo Pidichathinum valiyatha Alayil (1),Hence I step backwards.

I am a neutral viewer. To Support my brother I reminded my father about 98 Finals. I reminded him that France played well against Spain (Raju ‘support’ed Spain a lot at that game ;-). And to support my father I reminded my brother, “Brazil play well just in time” (Copied this words from Rave).

After first 30 minutes of that match, I watched Zizsu’s magic performance and gave a warning signal to my father.

“ingane poya Brazil tholkkum” ( There is a fair chance for Brazil to loose this game). I tried to provoke him.

He seems cool, “Yeah, I too doubt about Brazil now.. but Brazil… they can’t…hope so..let us see..”
Look at his reply… he was in a bit tension while I was cool. See this is the burden of a fan.
Even I feel a bit sad to see the last Latina American country’s exit from the tournament. But I enjoyed France’ game well. See I am free from the burden of a fan.

Germany Vs Italy: My mind was with Germany since they played almost all game well compare to Italy. But I didn’t surprise to see Italy’s victory. Aaru jayichalum thottalum enikkentha (I don’t mind who or who lost). It is none of my Business.

France Vs Portugal: I was confused to whom to support. Both are playing well. But my mind was with Portugal. They played well. Yet lost. What is it to me?

Now waiting to watch The Final: Italy Vs France
I doubt about France’s capability to penetrate the Italian defense.
If Zidane misses the ball … Italy will kiss the WC.

Footnote (1):
Pidichathilum valiyatha alayil:
It is a mallu phrase to indicate that more troubles ahead.
Background: we killed a snake and found a snake hole nearby.
We are expecting a snake of same size inside that hole.
Unexpectedly it might be a bigger one.

Another surprising event was in 10th standard. Here also the central attraction was a Christmas card. Unfortunately my aunt was there and she happened to receive the Christmas card. She got stunned to see the address.

Nikhitha 'George',
D/o 'George' John C,
xxxx house,
xyz street,
abc P.O.
Thrissur.

... She almost fainted. She wondered; how could I have a daughter at that age of 15?

She put me into the 'court' and started cross-vistharam (trails). Even I couldn't believe myself. What I have done? Adultery!!! at that tender age?? Frankly, I was not even sure about the complicated process to become a father. I thought that just sleeping with wife was enough (PS: only with wife). What an innocent boy I 'was' !!!

"I don't have any wife yet. Then it is impossible to become a father!!!" I argued with my aunt.

"Ayyeda... ellam oppichu vannittu ...njan onnum arinjilla (are you acting as innocent after doing all wrong things?) ", she had no plans to leave me.

"enthonnu oppikkan ..(I didn't do anything...)", I was searching for some logic to defend.
"... I didn't slept with anybody", I tried to convince her.

"That was the problem...if you just 'slept' , this will not happen", She confused me.

I was totally lost. I couldn't understand what she was talking about. Her last sentence was contradicting with my beliefs. So I suggested her to read that address again.

Everything in the address was ditto same with my address except my house name. But that too where similar. Both were starting with "Ch..."

Yeah he was staying in the same lane and he had a daughter studying at 8th. Hence I became a father of 8th std girl at the age of 15!!!

However, at the end of that event I got a chance to meet a beautiful girl and her beautiful elder sister. Still both of them exchange smiles remembering all these things.

---footnote---
My name is unique in company's people finder and client's large employee database as well. Yet, we (four of us) share the same name there in my locality. and Nikitha's (that name is fake) father and I share same father's name + initials and was living in same street for some time.

To the person who usually sat next to me on Sunday classes for 12 years, from the first standard onwards.

To the person whom we usually call white-devil. He was unusually fair in our childhood and his thoughts were extremely violent (both positive and negative side)

To the person with whom I’ve started combined-study for the first time.

To the person with whom I’ve started Library Administration and its renewal.

To the person with whom I have watched around 20 movies in theater.(counting only in the academic year 1996-97). We don't have any count for rented CDs on the same year, say nearly 50.

To the person to whom I wish to meet at least once every day. 6*340*2 is our count from 1996 to 2001.

To the person whose reply was always "nokkam"(let me try) means 'done'; after that you may forget what you have asked him to do.

To the person to whom I was forced to teach “Rajavinekkalum Raja bhakthi venda” ( Do not be more patriotic than a king). His over commitment made me to say so… several times.

To the person who always discuss about his one and only crush with a single person in the world.

To the person who is always happier than me on my achievements.

To the person who always advised me "wait for your time, relax!!" after each interview.

To the person with whom I can tell… whatever !

To the person who is ready to listen for whatever I tell. May be he might have heard the same thing at least 5 times already.

To the person with whom I’ve eaten Bajji and Milkshake the many times.

To the person with whom I’ve watched Thrissur Pooram at night for the first time.

To the person whom I usually call at 12.30 AM for the last two years to just enquire in pure Thrissur accent “Enthekindra ghedy” ( Dude, how do you do !)

One day he got married. Two busy days before his marriage; handling the crowd and say hi, ‘F5’-ing the friendship with the relatives, friends, colleagues and boarded the train back to Chennai on the same night. Suddenly, it seemed everything got blurred. From the people I know in the house to the strangers in the train. From the busy schedule to the killing silence of traveling alone.

For a second I felt…
I’ve missed him a lot. He’s become an integral part of someone. I can not call him at mid-night. Now, it is someone else’ right to get his time.

For a second I felt…
envy, a bit anger, a bit sadness and a feeling of being complete lost :-( …all in a second!!

What a devil am I? And deserve a name ‘Brown-devil’ like my childhood buddy ‘White-devil’.And one and only one who deserved to call me so.

He is Ranjit John, better known as ‘Johnettan’ by his B.Tech classmates.

a.k.a Birth of an Argentinean Fan


20 years back. I was a 2nd(or 3rd?) standard kid.

"Common wake up", my 'father khan'(*) screamed at around 2AM (or 3AM?).
"Hey, what are you doing in this night?"
"I told you yesterday that today you will have to wake up early"
"Really I don't remember. what’s so special ?"
"Today Argentina is playing against England"
"Let them play… what is to me?"
"You forgot! Need I rewind everything? I told you about Maradona right? If you are going to miss this match, it would be a great loss. Maradona is a great footballer like Pele. And he is in great form…"
"…Common… Gincettan, Joemonchettan everybody is there… Wake up"

I was not interested to disturb my cool slumber with sweet dreams of playing with Boris Becker and Stephi Graph. We were playing against Becker and almost on the verge of victory. Graph is a good supporting player …you know ;-) Dad disturbed that dream. Umm… However, I accompanied my father to Valiya-thalam, biggest room in the home where we kept our TV.

My uncles, cousins… everybody was already there. But a few were near to TV doing something there. A few were sitting in the sofa and giving ‘instructions’. One guy was standing outside; visible from the room. He was screaming something looking upward. I wondered what my cousin was doing out there. Everybody was making comfortable noise.

"John ...",A weak but clear voice from the corner.
Pin drop silence...
"...why are you late. I was waiting for you. This TV is not working", ohh my Grand father was also there in his easy chair.
"Appa(in uttermost respect), I did a round of check yesterday. it was working fine. May be wind is making problem...I'll check it.", my father (*)
He went outside and screamed "Who is there!! ohh pauly !!.. eda... do not put that antenna straight to that mango tree .. a bit up and move left of that tree. it should point to between that mango tree and coconut tree.. did you put ?... nge?(what?)...nga(ok)... Gince (my cousin sitting near the TV) ..is that working...better ??? ..ok..Pauly ... move that a bit up... Gince..is that Ok now?". Though the picture and sound is not so clear we were ok with that.

The game had already started. A few of us were Argentina fans, a few were Brazil fans (my father belongs to this league), a few were Germany fans and a few were on Spain’s side too. But I couldn't see any England fans. So, all eyes were set on Maradona. For the argument sake one of my Spain fan uncle turned to English side. I was surprised that … was this shortest guy Maradona (the great)!! But I astonished by watching his thighs. hammo!! it was as big as little 'george'. His speed has impressed me a lot.

A few minutes later I saw side-referee was waving a plate with a number and one guy with that number ran towards him. What happened to him? "Will referee give him any punishment? What wrong he did?” little George enquired his father. He told “Coach is replacing that player, he might have felt that that player was not playing well”.. Yeah, he was correct that referee changed the plate with another number and that player got into the ground.

The first goal itself made all of us cheer like we being Argentineans. They screamed "Goal...goal", I couldn’t see that goal very well. But I also joined the party. "Kathayariyathe Aattam kanuka" (watching Kathakali without knowing the story).Other players were running towards Maradona spreading their hands to celebrate the goal.

"Shut up...". My grandmother, "...why are you making so much noise in the night. if you want to watch the game..keep quiet..otherwise leave the place." My grandmother woke up.
"Amma, Maradona scored a Goal". For a moment she might have got angry for Maradona. She became cool, however. She was a woman with sports (wo) man spirit.
A winner of 100 meter race, in high-school-district-level. But she didn't know Maradona though she was indeed happy to see all her 'aan tharikal' (male offsprings) were assembled to watch this game. While she entered the room, my uncle exempted himself from sofa to thara (floor) and she comfortably occupied the place. Suddenly somebody jumped into her lap calling "Ammamma (grandmother)"; her grand-daughter, my cousin. "ohh you too Meril" grandmom was surprised to see her enthusiasm.

Discussion about the first goal went on for a while. Why England players had appealed against the goal? What was the wrong in it. "Did Maradona play offside?" My uncle expressed his doubt. (14 hours later TV news declared that was a Goal by the Hand of GOD!!!)

Game went on and was interrupted for a few minutes by an Argentinean player-change. A new young player, No:28, jumped into the field. He looked too small. Camera focused on him. Oh man… it is me. George +10 Argentinean players that includes Maradona the football magician. wow !!! I was running towards Maradona spreading my hands and jumped into his waist.
"Goal ..what a goal ..", Dad shook my head and I woke up. Maradona scored a second goal. I had missed that goal too.

I had not realized that I failed to witness the Goal of the Century!!!

Did you miss it? Watch the last goal of this clip.


Surprised to see my post title? Here is the Adidas TV commercial; Jose +10, worth watching.


side-notes
* - It’s my freedom to call my father by any name (even in front of him and his brothers). But...

Do you know why I am sticking on to the present company where I work?

It’s nothing but the ’Exit interview’ phobia. By any Chance, If I failed in the exit interview, I won’t be able to attend the same for the next 6 months ;-) Only God and myself knew how I got into this company. I had appeared for 18 unsuccessful interviews to get a good company to work for. Faced interview board from 12 major IT companies and 6 not-so-major companies. I had tried all the 18 tricks (pathinettadavum) and finally I heard "you got through; we would like you to offer..." Sorry I don't remember what he said after that.

Due to the busy schedule, most likely in the Library (only in administration not as a reader), Cricket, CLC etc, I had never imagined about sitting lonely. Once I had to face a ‘suppli’ (acronym for supplementary exam) in my life for the first time. Surprisingly that was my favorite lab- DS lab- I worked a lot for this. Do you know that I still keep its rough record. I loved that lab and I failed in that lab for getting some garbage values on the output in addition to the actual output. It was a ‘forgivable’ mistake, I would say. But that young lecturer didn’t consider that fact. Still, it didn't push myself into sad or lonely mood. Problems have piled up after the campus placements had begun.

I had nothing to put in the resume; no strong academic background; my marks had always swung between 68 -72%. The only asset was a consistent interest in C. Only plus point was a small C++ game. I couldn't even appear for around first 8 walk-ins since their expectation was very high. More than 75 % or 80%. pusthakapuzhu companikal ; just working in Java, DBMS, main frame etc. My dream was to get into a Unix/C oriented firm. I laughed at those giants. They just didn't deserve a 'brilliant' employee like me. I said in my mind. Ahankaaram; athente koodepirappanu.
But it grew up faster up to 6 feet 5inches while I had joined to GECT, itself. But I was just 5'5". Even though I failed to make the first few interviews, he was taller than me.

At that time prestigious companies arranged interviews at Abad plaza, Cochin. I wished if I could have been there for at least one interview (most of my classmates had appeared for interviews there. At last my turn came up. But I never expected it before. 3 interviews in two days. Entha sambhavichathu; entha nadannathu; oru pidiyumilla (I couldn’t remember what happened and what I did). Now, only thing I remember is that they (Abad) were playing Yaani’s live at acropolis in the background (in the reception, in corridors). I love those songs, especially “rain must fall”.

After my first interview(s) I couldn’t look back; I was sure that I’ll pass the written exam and I’ll reach up to the interview. I was sure that she (Abad Plaza) was waiting for me. Probably my technical talent and/or analytical skills were improved. Or all better guys might have got placed by that time. Anyway I became a regular visitor to Abad. Sometimes, I had to wait for longer time for my turn. Tension, tension, tension…; dhoodh peena mein tension; Sometimes I felt to scream at those ‘junk’ Yaani songs. ”rain must fall” appeared like “fire must fall”.

In a few occasion I was the topper in the test. Imagine how much I would have struggled - NOT to pass those interviews :-( Most of the time I was alone. Most of my friends, classmates were placed at that time. Take my ‘T(ea)’-mates; everyone got placed, except me. Take my cricket team; everyone got placed, except me. Take this; take that; everyone got placed, except me. But I was glad to represent my college all the time in interviews. My mind went blank after each interview; once I had even walked around 2 or 3 KM from Abad plaza to Mathrubhoomi Junction. (it could be even 4 or 5 KMs) . I didn’t know the exact distance.

On the way, I saw St.Antony’s church. Ini ippo ivide namichillennu venda. Many times I had walked in front of the church, never bother to get inside. Once I get inside, it was around 9 or 9.30PM. Nobody where there except a family. Very clam atmosphere. I could feel the gentle breeze on my face and my mind became cool.

What could be wrong?

Yeah, I did a few mistakes in technical side. My communication skills were poor. (junks !! they know only Queen’s and Clinton’s English. Poor guys they don’t know the stylish Thrissur accent; I am not blaming them since it was even not understandable by the people from the other part of Kerala)

And I analyzed more; it was not a problem of Communication skills only; they were ready to adjust. They were happy to see that I was answering most of the brilliant questions. Hence they were ready to forgive my mistakes. I remember one lady interviewer, Pooja, she did her maximum to motivate me, to bring best out me. But I resisted (njan vittukoduthilaa).

Yeah, problem was with my attitude.

My mind was much closed in interviews. Never picked up the clues; always kept boundary to the answers ( I knew what they are going to ask next; so I protested them not to ask further). I had miserably failed to understand their expectations. I failed to keep my head cool; I misunderstood that they were trying to find only my negative sides. Never bothered to give a reasonable explanation. One important thing is that I was not a fighting guy in interviews. I never tried to argue them technically. Somany times I couldn’t get what this junk guys were talking about? (may be they were trying to provoke me).

You need to feel the necessity of a job from your heart. Else whatever you do, it will not reach anywhere. Most of the time I wished like “God don’t give me this job if it doesn’t suit me”. Tell me, how will I get a job? So I changed my mind; “Ammini enkil ammini” (*).

Though my (present) company is a well-known IT giant in India, I didn’t know much about their work. I was not aware that this company’s client is a giant in internet and I didn’t know that they have a huge OS (5lakhs line of C code; spread across 30000 C files). And I was completely unaware that my job will be sustaining this code as a part of a prestigious team in the company.

One and only once I prayed like
“Oh GOD, rain must fall at this time.”; yes and it was an unexpected heavy rain!!!

side-notes:
(*) "Ammini enkil Ammini" is mallu local phrase : in fact,it is a 'state of mind' ;-)
backgroud:- One guy searches for a Aishwarya Roy kind of girl as Wife and failed. then finally he reached this state that he had to set his mind to marry any girl. Ammini is a local/common mallu name.

Simillar phrse: "inchi enkil inchi"

to be continued...
---------------------------------------------------------
Part I :Touching 5 years after we split
Part II : Once WE lived there
Part III : Changes
Part IV : Hostel Life

When I got a fairly good rank in Kerala Entrance, my Father was sure about getting an admission in GEC, Thrissur. He was not at all bothered about the stream . But only thing he insisted was about the College ie., GEC, Thrissur. I was sure about getting a seat in Electrical branch. All my cousins were in that stream in same College( 'admitted' to CSE a couple of days before the first class). He didn't allow me to opt any other College and hence I missed a Hostel life.

You could see a Businessman's eye to cut down the hostel expenses and a usual parent's mind to get a full control over a teenager, his Kadinjool (first born) and a loving father's heart to spend more time with his son.

So I became a day-scholar. Did I Miss anything?
Yes, I lost
A wide opportunity to see the outer world.
A chance to live with a crowd to know the meaning of Adjustment and sharing.
A good chance to know others feelings and pulse.
A fair chance to know the self-money-management.

I lost a chance to run a BIG Mess, the pleasure of bargaining for the massive amount of groceries for the mess and save money (pacha malayalathil moshanam) to face the discrepancies in the final account settling.

I lost a chance to fully involved in drama rehearsals, dance practices etc. I am still sad about not being able to act in Dhanush' Skit in 6th semester on the theme of Malayalam Movie- Niram. All characters in this skit were my old classmates with minor changes in their names to make it funny, vangana rames aka Anjana, pikkas (Mallu tone for pickaxe) aka Vikas , vaneesh aka Suneesh are just a few example . He was succeeded in stitching most of the events happened very often in the college. I strongly suspected that the hostellers purposefully avoided us (day-scholars).

But I was happy to say that they were kind enough to make me main dancer in the cultural program. Couldn't they find a shorter guy than me?

I lost a chance to go out in the middle of the night and eat Mutta-Porotta, Dosa or whatever available that time from a thattukada

I lost a chance to lay down on the College Cricket Ground in night and watch the stars.
I lost a chance to visit tharavaadu at least once. (my father has 36 eyes in the town)
I lost a chance to become a Raja Ravi Varma by putting my hands in drawing on the walls.
I lost a chance to be nostalgic by visiting my hostel room after 5 or 10 or 20 years.

Anyhow we decided to live in the College Hostel for a week. Mel, Vikas, Bijoy- do you remember?

"Father, I want to complete my final year project."
"Good..at least you started thinking about the project in the last month"
"That is the Engg. College Style, you may not know"
"eda I also passed through your age..."
"...Ok what do you want from me to complete your project"
"I just want your permission to stay in the hostel for a week; so that we can work together to finish the project..."
"...Mel, vikas and Bijoy .. all are staying with me"
" Is Bijoy also coming..."
"...then you may go"

Bijoy was a star in my home. What an innocent fellow!!!
"you must watch and follow Bijoy...", Mom reminds me once in a month.
"...I afraid that he might ruin himselfif you walk along with him" she added.
"Of course, I'll try to", I promissed. (happy to announce that I kept my words ;-)

May be April 21st is one of the unforgettable day in the hostel, Chit-chat till mid-night !!!
We shared our old crushes, just crushes !! Hours flew like a second.
It was 4AM when we decided to stop and sleep. We were supposed to touch our final yearproject at least on the last day :-(

Other highlighted thing was eating Mutta-kolli from thattukada at Mid-night.

But I am so glad to realize that
I still keep a good relationship wuth my local friends; Still, whenever I go home, I meet a couple of friends every time; they are still keeping the local Thrissur accent and I am loosing my trademark tone :-( even it become tougher for me to understand the current Thrissur slangs !!!
"ippo evide kidanna thiriyanne ?" my local football team-player asked once.
I took a few seconds to realize that he is asking where I am working now !!!

I am blessed to enjoy ammachi's exotic dishes for all of my life except these 2 years. Sometimes it is horrible even to hear about the junk hostel food.

Needn't worry about food; everything is ready on time; I can show my anger for a minor mistake in meals or curries;"enthoram uppa ithu!!! oru kottakkundalo"( a lot of salt !!!)
Mom always complains to father "athai ee chekkane kondu hostelil nirthu ; ennale ivan padikku". (send him to Hostel to teach a lesson)

Needn't wash my clothes !!! what a Lucky I was !!!

Needn't worry about Money, "appacha oru 20 roopa"; ha ha.
"appacha oru 250 roopa; oru textbook vangikkana"; that was my main resource to eat out ;-)
Occasionally he is ready to give money for that; but no thrill in it ;-)

Day-scholar-ship allowed me to work in CLC and was a librarian for 5 years. Could see a lot of people throughout. Activities like arranging tournaments, book fairs, competitions, fights duing meetings ..I will never get such things in a Hostel.

"might" be continued...

Part I :Touching 5 years after we split
Part II : Once WE lived there
Part III : Changes

I came to know the meaning of Avenger Advt. after a 764KM long ride on it from Chennai to Bangalore and back.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

I forgive Raveesh for the delayed start.
4.45PM -- 4KM -- Guindy
(later I understood that that was the right time to start the trip)

I forgive Jai-motor-service for not screwing the silencer guard properly
6.10PM -- 79KM -- Repair

I forgive the zipper-marker of Anoop's bag; Bijoy's NOKIA Mobile charger was lost through it.
7.00PM -- 131KM -- Vellore (Tea break-hotel Aarya- 20 min)

I forgive the persons who are responsible for NOT providing a ROAD-CLOSED signal and for NOT removing the sand near to the diversion that made me skid down result in a very minor injury on my right knee.
7.45PM -- 147 KM -- minor accident
(anyway I have learned the proper usage of power break.)

I forgive the people who have crossed the road randomly so that I missed a chance to chase the train on the parallel track like in Dil Chahtha Hain; I guess the train was @120KMPH and I couldn't accelarate more than 105 due to those people.
8.15PM -- 184 KM --Ambur (Tea Break)

I forgive the party workers who was almost blocked the road for a politician with the flag of rising sun.
9.30PM -- 251KM -- Krishnagiri

I forgive the state govt. for poor condition of their state. Failed to find a hotel near-by though high-way is great.
10.25PM -- 302KM -- hotel Shah inter (near Hosur)
(I felt that Kerala is great and it is a big single city)

I forgive Dhanush for keep me waiting at Silk board Junction.
11.30PM -- 333KM -- silk board junction
he is so caring; he was afraid that we might miss the road to his flat.

I forgive Ranjit for his miscommunication; I missed a chance to see him in blr

I forgive Melvin for not making himself available in the city at least by Sunday evening as he promised before.


I forgive Kairali restaurant at Madivala main road for not giving a meals on my expectation.
3.10PM -- 430KM -- Kairali Mess ; Start of our return Journey

I forgive the truck drivers who was moving very slowly at fast track.
4.20PM -- 475KM -- photo

I forgive Raveesh for confusing the turn at Krishnagiri. 2KM unnecessary ride to take a U-turn
5.10PM -- 517KM -- Krishnagiri
(without him I may not complete the whole trip ;-) and would have gone directly to AP ;-)

I forgive the shop-lady for not keeping the cold-water at her fridge.
5.40PM -- 544KM -- Tea( vellakkalnatham)

I forgive the service station who was done the service for Raveesh's Bike for not checking the odometer cable
6.30PM -- 591KM -- Pulsar Repair

I forgive John, my teammate, for sending an work related SMS with a warning that a hrash mail is waiting for me.
7.30PM -- 637KM -- Vellore (20 min tea break)

I forgive Raveesh for dragging a 15KM more after declaring a break; My buttocks were burning ; imagine a 95KM single stretch for a beginner
9.20 -- 732KM -- irigattukottai( near Sriperumbathur)

I forgive my father for NOT letting me for a Bike ride even to my Mom's house; just 22 KM away
10.20PM -- 764KM -- (D-16 KP towers)
All good fathers are so much concerned about their children.

Ride summary:

Chennai to Bangalore:
Route : Chennai , Vellore, Krishnagiri, Bangalore.

Top speed registered : 120 KMPH
Start time : 4.45 PM Friday
Stop Time : 11.30PM Friday

Speed composition
80 KMPH : 40%
100 KMPH : 25%
120 KMPH : 5%
Struggles :
Skid down on 147KM from the start (after Vellore)
Wrong side trucks/bikes
People on the road on a few places

Felt thrilling.

Bangalore to Chennai:
Route : Bangalore, Krishnagiri, Vellore, Chennai.

Top speed registered : 105 KMPH
Start time : 3.10 PM Monday
Stop Time : 10.20PM Monday

Speed composition
80 KMPH : 60%
60 KMPH : 20%
100 KMPH : 5%

Struggles :
3 sudden brakes
Wrong sided trucks/bikes
People on the road on a few places

Felt boring towards end;better choose an alternate route if any.
we had a alternative route through Chittor (AP).


I thank to God to give me a chance to forgive my father by a safe return
also I would like to extend my thanks
to Dhanush for his hospitality
to Bijoy for controlling my speed while I was going wild
Last but not the least
to Raveesh for inspiring me for a bike ride and guiding (covering) me on the road.

might be in my childhood :-? Not with my real sense.

Since I am interested in mangos a lot my father influenced me to plant some buds. Also he forced me to plant some coconut tree since it 'was' integral part of Kerala ( also it was a money earning tree). A Mallu proverb is strengthening the concept. "sambathu kalathu thai pathu nattal , Aapathu kalathu Ka pathu thinnam" ; If you plant a tree while you are rich, you may eat its fruit while you bankrupt/

May be one of the thought keep wandering on in my mind these days is "What I have done for my society ?"

I am not sure whether planting a tree is something worth for our Nation or not. Still I am going to do that.but where ? In Chennai ? Can I plant a tree inside my rented flat ?!!!! I didn't own any single inch in Chennai . neither in Thrissur.

But my father owns a land(may be around 1/4th of an acre) and belongs to a middle class family. He married a village girl before 30 years and has 3 descendants by now. Still She is a typical village woman with a great generosity towards nature and plants.No doubt that she inherited those qualities from her father who was a Head Master of a High School by profession and a farmer by birth.

Whenever she found a space in her small 'estate' she plants something. it was a kind of mini-forest. Believe me, the sun rays couldn't even touch a lion part of her territory. And was very cool to walk in between tree and most of the time with a bent head (not to hit the lower part of trees) .But later that forest was cropped down to build a home. You may guess her sorrow. Was grown up in Acres of land;then replanted to the heart of 'business' centre of Kerala; yet happily designed and maintained her own small land in the City. Now she is struggling to get a significant land to plant a big tree. :-(

What do you think ? How long she sits idle ? now she found that our terrace is enough strong to carry at least 1 banana tree + 10 Kolli kada + 5 'instance of' chembu etc. Also she planted green chili in between. Now she extended her territory to the roof too !!!

If I ask her "Mother, I wish to plant something, Advice me what to plant and where to?".She might faint down !!!or at least she will look at me with open eyes for long time. Whatever, at the end of it, she might Roll on floor laughing :-) and Say with a laugh "You ..you my son...". she has no expectation that I will follow her legacy on these matter compare to my bro or sis (they clearly shown their interest to help her before I though about it)

Or there is a chance for a serious comment too
"What happened my child, are you OK?".

Exactly 75 year by now. Three youngsters sacrificed their life for our nation. They have a vision ... they have an expectation... Do you value it?

Yesterday Morning I saw their faces on news paper and decided (with in no time) to watch Rang de basanti. Bhagat Singh was my childhood hero (still not much change) . I still remember the scene I was listening my father with wide open eyes while he was narrating his brave stories. I don' think that my eyes were wet while hearing that Bhagat faced his death with a smile. It was further open with pride.

Bhagat... We Salute your courageousness !

The first scene of the movie itself was impressive. Smiling face of Bhagat just before death with a special AR Rahman's music!. Though last scenes are unrealistic, the movie as total with its great theme is marvelous. Aamir Khan as DJ and Atul Kulkarni as Laxman Pandey were excellent though I like the Siddharth’s Bhagath Singh. Because that character is my all time hero :-)

I do remember the day I first sipped Coke. It was on 1996-world-cup; Ind-SL semi-final. Paid around 60 Rs for 2 bottles and planned to drink after India won. My brother had told me not to wait till end :-( . But I resisted with a comment "Coke will taste more ;-) while India win". unfortunately India lost the match :-(

After a few months I changed my mind to Pepsi and finally stuck in sprite since it is colurless and felt more taste. And I was happy to see that Sprite contains less harmful ingredients (still more enough to trouble humans). Anyway thanks to Plachimada strike against Coke which atleast brought out some naked truths.

On ‘my’ latest new year I had thought about a new resolution and decided to quit Cola.

it is tough to ignore Sprite on each train journey.
I can not add Pepsi to Rum to deduce its intense smell and taste.
What I will drink after a trip or a ‘cricket’ match ;-)

A lot of hurdles!!!

Now I started carrying water along with me in train journeys. (I am used to it nowadays)

Only Soda (or chilled water) to Rum. (it is horrible; so eventually reduced to 1 peg and now not much interested ;-) . But sure I will go back to fulfill my fifth wish

Drinking Soda or tea or even lime juice after a trip. And quit playing Cricket ;-) “eliye pedichu illam chuduka” –its a mallu proverb to narrate the foolishness of burning your house in the fear of rats inside it. People have feeling that they must drink Coke after a cricket match. Or Ad guys think that people must do it. “Piyo siar udakke” ;F*** .

Now I would like to follow Mahatma Gandhi's path of 'The non-cooperation movement'.

"Quit-Cola save water"

Happy world water day!!!

...I need to plan what to do. Do you have any suggestions?

Here is my plan in draft !!
1) Buy a new bike, most likely cruiser type; and majority vote for Bajaj Avenger ( sooner) (Done)
2) A trip to Pondy in the Bike, likely in End of March 06 (Done)
3) Drive my Car from Thrissur to Chennai.(End of June 06) (Done)
4) A fly to Goa with Melvin and all (3rd week of Oct 06)(Done)
5) Drunk until vomit. (Any time ;-)

6) talk to my crush ( Never ; I Afraid )
7) Himalayan Treck (December 06)

8) My primary wish : (I want to get married next year.) (Done)
9) plough a field with a tractor !!! ( if wishes die ..you dead)

George didn't give any permission to somebody to do this. look at his lips; how dare she was !!!

People have been told first experience will cherish for ever. Yes, it is his first experience. First time ever somebody is kissing him. Got a chance to know her curves a bit. Do not misunderstand George. He is a decent fellow and didn't like this at all ;-) intentionally or not ..it happened.

He was driving his brand new Ikon from mission hospital to back home. His little cousin was admitted there for a minor head injury. He stopped the car at the signal near to Sakthan thamburan market. His intension was to drive straight to market as it is the short cut to home. As soon as the signal was cleared he slowly took his car a couple of meter forward, a splendor hit on his left side, and flew into the market!

How dare he was !!! to overtake a vehicle from left side. He was just behind George, coming from the same hospital,(His daughter was admitted there) and going to Thrissur Round. he *must* stop at the right side of the car, if his intension was to go to right side of the signal. It seems that it is all planned by somebody!!! both the parties were busy to return back from hospital as it is 2.30 noon and not taken the lunch. it is just like George went there from Chennai on that morning and gave his car to kissed by a splendor :-(
Not much injury to the splendor guy; just shaken his paint from the knee and the foot rest bent a little.
George didn't notice even a single scratch on the car, but later his mother showed a small pit near to headlight. a 1 cm miss ;-). On her word she can make a "kuzhi-appam" on that pit.

A second kiss happened on next day itself. but in a different way. On the way to ‘Cherthalla’, his sis is studying there, 115 Km away from Thrissur. George had driven around 160KM,himself. The road was very good and dividers made driving easy. And the car is so stable to drive in a 90KM/hr. The surprising thing is that his father, who didn't like to see his son driving above 60KM/hr, didn't noticed this !!! So he steadily raised the speed to touch 98KM/hr.
"Father, did you ever sat on a car which is flying in a speed of 100 ? "
"What ?"
"Nothing, you are going to experience it."
"Da da daa"
:-)
Dashboard speedometer safely kissed 100KM/hr. He had tried upto 105. The car was stable!!!

you *must* read it like the way Tom Hanks said in Cast Away while he made FIRE.

"look what I have created ....I ve made fire... I ...have ....made fire".

what is in driving our own car ourselves ..alone !!! may be nothing for you. But for me it is somewhat similar to above expression.

I had started driving while I was about to join Engg. college !!!! after 9 years I am driving alone !!!! "what happened ?" you might have asked !!!. My father had a car ; 'Ambassador Classic'; black in color. KLC 2479. if you are trying to learn shooting ..you must start aiming at thookanan kuruvi (the Weaver Birds). start with the toughest one ;-) This big car is a bit heavy for a lean teenager, don't you think so. But I thought about my school-classmate, Arun, who drove a brand ambassador right from his 13.

"Father, Don't you think that I am enough old to learn driving ?"
"Is it, do you think so ?"
"yes I am. Look ..Arun is driving since we were in 8th. and I am 18 now".
"ok as you wish !!! "
I was so happy ..running back to room to take the Key.
"Did you see that bucket and the cloth ?"
"yes I do"
"Good !!! bring some water near to car"
"Is that water necessary to learn driving...oh I got ... I had seen that you are filling water after open the bonnet.. but why cloth"
"yeah you got it son. but we had enough water to cool down the engine."
"Then !!!" I exclaimed.
"Those people who want to learn driving must clean the car first !!!!", he made his stance clear
"What ????... if I didn't clean.. then... "
"...you will not touch this car in your life"
I ...just ...shocked. its a determined voice.
"I'll clean only top and side; never wheels "
"Fine. but next day wheels only "- He defined.
---
Finally he showed how that car is working and all(luckly he didn't went to polytechnic; Thalayina mantram). First day he didn't even allowed me to start the car. Just gear changing to all positions !!! A couple of time I forgot to apply clutch; and the punishment was on the fly.

Next day, I had started my Car !!! (of course only after cleaning the wheel :-) , changed the gear to first. slowly applied the accelerator. chuck...chuck...chuck !!! three jumps like a horse and engine off !!! :-))

First assignment was is just to go straight forward and reverse back. After he himself comfortable with my ability to go and forth, he picked me to a road near to pookunnam with fields in both sides.

And he set a few rules too
Rule one : if any child come across, take your leg off from the accelerator and make a slight horn. Either they will give you side or they stay where they are !!!

Rule two :if you see some ladies around the road, just stop the car and 'shutdown'; don't make any noices.

"why ?"

"otherwise either they jump right infornt of you, or jump into the field".Eventhough he exaggerated things, I have a few experiences that shows children are better than women in the road.

Training was progressed pretty comfortable for three month until I had an injury on the collar bone(its broken while playing cricket). Doctor prescribed one month bed rest and hence stopped the driving. anyway I came to know that there is a bone called 'collar bone' in the shoulder.
Then I joined the Engg. college and forgot about driving at all.

And once I thought about driving again, it was too late !!! Father already decided to give retirement to the our 30 years old 'dude'. "muppathu kollam njangale ulakam chutticha... oru dozen unclemareyenkilum driving padipicha ...."(read it like the way Jagathi said in mazha peyunnu madalam kottunnu)

After 5 years from the first attempt to drive, I had taken the driving license for the four wheeler (and the two wheeler as well). at the time we owned no car( no bike as well). even though I got driving license, my father didn't allowed me to drive a car(uncle's car), eventhough they are ok. In their words this is how somebody is learning to drive. but my father alone seems to unaware about it. He has his own principles and policies.

A month back, father had decided to purchase a car. I had suggest Hyundai Santro. IHMO it is very simple car and easy to drive too. If he buy a long car, I am sure he will not give it to me for a drive. I know I might need to fight. Finally the same thing happened. As per my Aliyan's (Husband of my cousin) , he is supposed to be good in Automobiles, My father went for a Ford Ikon.

As expected, he didn't allowed me to drive it alone. He doesn't want to see some scratches in a newly bought car. I too have some fear of scratches. (Appane paranjittu enthu karyam, Aadhyam njan nannavanam ;-) wherever I go he follows just like hutch network (More precisely Gaadha Jam in Vandanam:-)) He was ready to spent all of his time to ensure no scratches.

The most irritating to me was his running commentary to give horn, apply brake for each and evrey corner. most of the time I am going to do all these :-( I got a few days in Christmas holidays to prove my driving skils. he seemed not satisfied. Next weekend I again went to home for out great Aranattukara St.Thomas church palli perunnal(enna vyajena ) Thought to drive car alone this time. No way !!! he was still with me. Again I have to prove that I applying horn in all turning; breakes every 'necessary' movements. But time up; time to come back while I almost made an impression that I can handle situations. Next time went to home town for Ranjit's Marriage. Got a few time to drive !!! Still I have to start building his confidence from ONE.

This Sunday, I have driven my car. Alone... to my aunt's home. Just 2KM. a sample drive to prove myself. then gave a lift to Bijoy to his home . A 12 KM drive. Then went to a marriage function 36KM. Even though my father was there along with me on last occasion, he didn't said a word eventhough I made a few mistakes.

Do you think that he changed his mind on this Sunday ;-) I had told that if he didn't allow me to drive alone, I will not drive this dream machine anymore :-) Simple isn't it ?

Do you think that he was frightenend of my words. !!! Never.
it might be because he thought like "enthenkilum chaiyyu"
or even... might be... he had built confidence on me :-?

Category : Favourite

After the trip to kanjirapuzha Dam with Hiran, Ali, Shery, I felt too tiered. Had some kanji (rice soup) from Hiran's home and packed back to Chennai. Couldn't sleep well in the train. Morning I reached back home with a perished body.
"How was trip" - Bijoy along with opening the door.
"It was good" - a weak reply.
"What happened?... "
---
"... not feeling well ? why are you looking so dull ? " - Father
"Nothing" - A weak voice
"Do you have fever ?" He touched the neck and verified.
"I told you 1000 times not to bathe for long time."
"I did not"
"then how did you got this !!!"
"Ahh I don't know"
"Did you played football Y'day?...while raining"
"Yeah.. Thats only for a while".
"one hour is not a for a while. I told you 1000 times not to play football in rain".

Everything is 1000 times. All his counters are always shows same value.is it a bug!!! appacha.. Increment this counter at least for the next time.
Doesn't he knows that I love to play football especially while raining !!!heard that he is also a good player. Still he don't know the joy of playing in rain !!!!

"Have a Crocin and stay clam."
That is ! athannu! one day leave. It brought some happiness. escaped from chemistry teacher today.
---
"Tell Anish ... I will be late to office today.."
This time I didn't feel much happy to think about a leave. Unsatisfied face of Client manager came into mind :-(

Slept for a while and decided to go office. was not feeling well to take a bath. but took a bath.By Newton's theory, every actions must have an equal reaction. yes, correct. simply vomitted.
---
"Wear that woolen sweater."- Mother
"ok will do".
"not will do. Do... it... now. A simple chilled breeze enough for you to vomit at the time of fever"
---
It is my luck to have a room near to office. Quite a lot junk mails as usual. only a few to me. replied to urgent things and started reading online docs for the new development project.
---
"I told you 1000 times not to watch TV while you are sick. your leave is not to enjoy the TV. It is more than enough to damage your eye.go to bed"
---
I switched off the monitor and informed Anish that I may not return to office today. and will apply for the leave next day.

[Mobile rings]
"Hello is Joju there ?"
"Yeah it is Joju."
"Could you please give phone to Joju"
"amma ...this ...is ...Me ... J..O...J...U"
"What happened !!!! your voice changed ??? why didn't you call me after reached there !!!"
"amma I am not feeling well"
"What .. Do you have fever? Did you already had Crocin ?
Will your manager approve for the leave...." here goes 100 questions...

I felt a bit shivering. took Bijoy's woolen stuff, brought while he was in Delhi.it is a cool one.ohh sorry...it is too hot inside ;-) and don't remember when I fell ino sleep.
---
"Wake up" -Mother.
"take this hot black coffee, and have this loaf"
---
Where I am !!! ohh S**t I am in room. feels hungry.
NO bread. ok at least will make a black coffee.
Ohh No where is coffee powder. searched here and there.nope.
finally made a 'black' tea.
---
"have this Crocin too."
"And sleep baby, I 'll call you for lunch"
---
Connected Vikas's Creative MP3 stick to PC speaker.
listened a good collection of Mallu songs. But most touched is this one at this state.
"Aayiram kannumayi kathirunnu ninne njan..."
---
"kanji ready. wake up son."
---
I went to kitchen, put some rice to water and boiled it- made some kanji.
---
"How is pulichamanthi"
Pulichamanthi is a special item for kanji. instantly made pickle. she makes this only while somebody is sick. otherwise if somebody wants, they have to make it. If we had a competition on making pulichamanthi, my brother will win.
---
took some pickle, felt missing of pulichamanthi, though I love pickles.
Anything else to eat ???
yeah here is some Chennai-best Curd.
---
"Don't take it. it is not easily digestible."
"No .. I like it."
"it is not a matter of your like or dislike. do you want recover fast?"
---
[Mobile rings]
"Do you have anything there to make Kanji ? ".
"yeah, I had a bit".
"Cool ... how is your fever now"
---
"Not much change".
She touched in the neck.and screamed.
"it is burning"
---
"It is better to take some anti-biotic".
"Which one"
"it seems MOX500 is most effective for you".
"yeah, I remember a yellow capsules, right"
"Is any medical shop near by ? Ask Bijoy to buy it"
"Yeah, Medical shop is nearby, But Bijoy is in the company."
"Buy 15, remember it is course for 5 days, 1-1-1 each day."
"ok"
---
"Eda where are you going .."
"can't I go even to latrine, ahh"
"Ohh I thought you started walking around again"
"I think ..situation in Jail might be better than this."
"it is good for you ..only for you... if you stay clam in the room."
---
I went out and bought MOX and some more Crocin. Again depend on MP3 stick. then slowly into sleep.
"ke ke ....ke ke". ohh somebody's SMS !!!
"SA won the toss and elected to swim!!! " - Syam.
indirectly saying that todays South Africa Vs India match in chennai is cancelled due to rain :-)
"ke ke ....ke ke" ..Umm Again ?
"SA won the toss and elected to swim!!! " - Bijoy.
SMS is so cheap. people are just playing around.
Anyway they woke me up. then cook some kanji for dinner.

"ke ke ke ke ....ke ke ke ke", ohh reminder this time.
"MOX 500 : 9.00 PM".
This reminder section is very good mechanism for me.
"chilakathadai (don't make noice, buddy) ". pressed snooze.
"currently am cooking something only. Need to have mox only after dinner".
Reminders are not so intelligent ;-)
---
"Eda ..ezhunelkkan [wake up] ...what kind of sleep is this ?...Have some kanji "
---
"ke ke ke ke ....ke ke ke ke", ohh reminder again
"MOX 500 : 9.11 PM".
---
"Take one Mox too."
---
[Mobile rings]
"Did you had Mox ?"
"Yeah"- a happy winning sound.
"Don't forget to take one on tomorrow after break bast also"
"sure" ; set Reminder for 8.30 AM and smiles.
"Ok take care good night".
.............................................................................
Somebody touched my neck.
"still it is hot, it seems that he need to take rest tomorrow also" - one
"See how cool he sleeps, felt envy to that. "-another one.
"Did he ate something."
"Can't you see. how can he able to sleep with empty stomach !!!".

;-) my roommates or whoelse !!!

George is not a Sanjay Ramasami in Gajini or a Leonard in Memento !!!

But he is famous for his short term memory in his BIG family. He always forgets to buy a needle for his grand mother or vegetables for his aunt while returns from school. His mother is fed up with him. In her words, "whenever I asked him to buy three things, he might forget two things. while told him to do 4, he will do only 3."

She always has complaints that "Why can't you make notes not to forget things ???".For George, his father-who always make notes and regularly doing everything without fail- is the first "Leonard" in his life. Little George is also started making notes, But the result is different!!! because he always fail to check it before proceeding from/to somewhere :-(

Here is an Event tried to explain in Memento style.

Scene 9

“Where is my Lunch ?".
I am not sure whether George either dropped the receiver or fell down first, after hearing the complaint from his father. But I still remember he was laughing without stopping for the whole day.

Scene 8

“Ring Ring .. Ring Ring ..”
"ohh no... who is disturbing at this time. It is 1.30 now. can't he sleep in the noon !!!"
"Hello" - A familiar sound.
"Ohh Father", George recognized," Anything special ?".
"Nothing special Son... where is my Lunch ?".

Scene 7
He saw that everything was ready for a lunch.
“Ohh cutlet. great”. It is his mother’s expertise-item. thought of it itself turns his mouth watery...! (See my lips.)
he himself served with out disturbing his mother, who is doing something in her terrace-vegetable-garden . tick tick tick. finished his lunch. “why only work to mouth? “ he fired his belly. “Why can’t you share the load of mouth and teeth?”
He fell into bed for a short sleep.

Scene 6
He got up and collected the bill on the way to cash counter.
He paid the bill and was about to leave, supplier called him.
“Sir.. is this your umbrella... and key ?”
“Yeah …of course. Thanks”, you can see a relief in his face.
Or this might be a yet another umbrella he forgot and lost somewhere.
He purchased some more items and reached back home.

Scene 5
“Lime juice please”, He ordered to the supplier.
He just watched people who are busy with their work, “food-ing “. “Are everybody going to die after this”, he thought in mind.
He put down his umbrella and Key in a corner of the table.
“Sir here is the lime juice , anything else” .
“Yes sure, bill ;-)”.
George is a kind of person who hates to stay long in the dinning table. So he finished it quickly, as if it was his last thing to do in the life. And got up.


Scene 4
Sharp 12 noon. He took his favourite BSA SLR and started the 'journey'. He went to City Centre to buy just a refill for pen!!! then went to Elite Super Market to buy a note book ;-) and proceeds to Immatties book shop to buy 'best in the market' low quality rough papers , then to Radhakrishna hotel.

Scene 3

This is the time to do the memory test, He thought in mind.
He listed down the number of item to buy. Seven items; all were tiny needy things like refill for pen, note book, low quality rough paper like so and so. And made rule that not to buy more than one item from a shop. He made a map from items to buy to relevant shops around Thrissur Swaraj Round (it's diameter is around 1.5 KM) He kept the list in his table and wait for 12 O’clock.

Scene 2

“So You must have to go Shop today”. His Mother insisted him.
“Ohh Mom … you know right… I am a busy person. Just now only I came back from library. Need to meet couple of people for donation to buy some more books.” George continued, “Further more I have a lot to study”.
“Study? What to study ?”, this time his mom surprised , “Never see you in front of book after joined in Engg college. Don’t tell any more excuses”.
“Ok fine I will go then”.
This is the time to do the memory test, He thought in mind.

Scene 1

“Now it is your turn”, Mom said on the Saturday morning.
“Turn for what!!!”, Surprised George !!!
“Last Saturday Raju carried lunch for your father.” She explained.
“You are the one to do it today”. She insisted.

Tail:
Saved the same story in the normal way as comment "Old blog Said...".

"What is the meaning of your name ?". Asked one interviewer.
"Joju doesn't mean anything. it is just a name". What a fool I am to reply like this.Doesn't that clearly mean that I am a meaningless guy!!! No wonder why I was not placed anywhere in early stages.

But after that interview, I had tried to find the meaning of name. Yeah, I was literally correct. Joju is a just name. I was very sad that my father gave me a name without any meaning :-( May be he has an expectation that I'll make a meaning to my name.that is a really good motivation, isn't it?

Anyway I continued the search for why my name is Joju? Joju is a short call for George, my baptism name; received from the name of my grandfather. if you just remove the sound 'r' from George, it is my name !!!George means "Geo worker", a farmer. must be a hardworker. Am I a George ?

Until unless I found something core, I'll not hardwork. May be farmers are also work for a 'core' , funda product, food!!! Whatever, "I" will appear as "George" in this blog hereafter.

Why people eat so much!!! I really don't care how much they are eating. But what frustrating me is Why they are wasting those much. it is very sad to see a lot of eatables are swiped away to waste basket. a lot of people are dying in hungry. Lot of people are begging for a meal everyday but people kept themselves busy not to mind them. me too, sadly. it is not their fault born in a poor family and it is not my credit born in a better one.

What I can do !!! to stop poverty !!! man .. a lot of people worked , still working for that. They couldn't !!! hopelessly nobody can :-(

Simple thing possibly I can do is eat less :-( waste none :-)