A new leaf turned over??? Not exactly :)

Migrations from a comfort zone(or rather an accustomed zone) had been always been scary. But this one, from student life to corporate life is not as scary as i expected it to be!!!

All the events pertaining to this job - right from the interview to the first day induction saw a reluctant attendee in me being in a stew. My campus interview attendance would not have been actualized if it was not for Viji's motivation. And here i am, working with one of the prestigious IT companies in India.

I have to admit that till the third day of training, "Have i taken the correct decision???" feeling was strangulating my brain. Thank God, i have a wonderful, sweet set of people around me both at hostel and office.

My hostel friends - In spite of having studied in the same institution for two years, i did not strike rapport with these sweet people. They are very warm and friendly with a place for anyone who wishes to join them. After two of my "recluse" years, their company comes as a whiff of fresh air!!!  Being a group of eleven, we enjoy the travel to office every morning. Giggling for no reason, teasing each other, taking liberty, singing, acts of stealth during sessions - wow, i'm being a little of the mischievous and bubbly one i was during my UG days.

At office, its kind of a packed schedule always. But it is great to be with my energetic, fun loving colleagues. The batch in which i have been put in is a dynamic one. Learning and enjoyment take place in parallel. Though i don't participate too much in the fun part, it has a very good effect on my mind. A birthday celebration and a family day function at office saw an electrified M21(our batch id)!!! I don't know what i am technically learning in this training. But team spirit and personality development are inculcated implicitly. Happy to be a part of  this effervescent batch!!

A special mention about Sathya, fondly beckoned "thala", "tl" etc who, being in the same batch as me, bears my company and helps me out with so many day-to-day activities like crossing the wide road, boarding the correct bus etc.. We happened to have an interesting confrontation two years back at Anna University, Coimbatore during ME counselling. While 4 of us(me and my UG friends) were creating a mini fuss giggling there - This girl gave a terror look asking me for my name. I answered her and thought, "a padips maybe!!!" and had the same feeling every time i saw her at CEG. But now, i know that i was totally wrong!!! 

Till now, my life has always been populated with turns towards unexpected and unplanned paths. Thanks to all my dear friends who have been with me throughout this journey of twists and turns!!! Its you who add spice to life!!!

Prodigious commoners

          Inspiration - what's that??? That which emanates from men who made it very big in life??? Does it take a persona in the lines of Dr.Kalam, The Mahathma, Ms.Kiran Bedi to inspire us??? Hmm... Not necessary!!!

         These Chennai days are teaching me so much than did the insulated, secure days at Trichy and the fun-filled yet shielded days at Tanjore. Each day dawns with the list of regular ordeals which confront me without fail - crossing the road (thanks to the signals @ anna univ entrance and santhome church!!!), the backpack which makes 50% of my weight only to pull me back during walk, squeezy travel in mtc etc.,  In this process, i encounter men, as common as you and me (or rather me alone!!!), who make impressions, which do not get eroded that easily!!!

         The first person i am going to mention is one who does one of the difficult jobs - being a bus conductor. Most of these men, as per my observation, are very short tempered and shout to the top of their voices to keep the situation under control. Can’t blame them though!!! But, this person was very cool despite the moderate crowd. The ladies, who were standing, were made to sit after he made some men sitting in the ladies side to stand. He apologized for having dashed by mistake, someone who was standing near me. Unlike others doing his job, he was very polite and called everyone "நீங்க", "sir", "அம்மா". Usually, the passengers would be called "நீ", "அது" etc as if they were inanimate!!!

       As you may know, Kamarajar Salai leads to the Tamil Nadu legislature from Santhome via Rajaji Salai. From 9:30am, the traffic in this road would be flooded with VIPs' and their escorts' cars. Unfortunately, one day, i got held up at the signal where 3 roads converge in front of the Church. There were two traffic policemen managing the traffic for a VIP's car to pass. I had to cross the road and was waiting there for more than 15 minutes. At last, the VIP's car passed and we were signalled to cross the road. When i crossed, one of the policemen said, "சாரிம்மா... ரொம்ப நேரம் நிக்க வெச்சிட்டோம்..."(meaning "Sorry, we made you wait for a long time"). I was really surprised and gave him a smile and sped.  Despite the fact that it wasnt a part of his duty to apologize to a puny creature for something he wasnt responsible for, he did!!!

         The final one is somewhat funny. That was the day of my "Data Mining" semester examination which dawned in a less rainy and cloudy manner than the previous day. I was speeding to the bus stop with the book in my hand. After five minutes or so, when i had crossed less than half the distance, it started raining!!! That too very heavily!!! The function i ran to search for the umbrella in my bag, returned "void"!!! Adding to the downpour, the vehicles which passed by did a great job splashing water and drenching me and my book fully. Fortunately, i got a seat in a bus. But the worst part was that, my book was fully damp with one page missing and the other pages sticking with each other. I could do nothing but to curse my absent mindedness which was worsened by the exam tension. There was a lady, who seemed like a construction worker sitting behind me. On seeing my pitiable plight, she offered a plastic cover to have my book inside it. Needless to say, it was the need of that hour and i thanked her from the bottom of my heart. She gave me a kind smile and got off the bus. 

          So, to conclude, please go to the first paragraph!!!

Exam blues:( plus Random memories of UG life :)

     Now that i am done with all the examinations in my life (hope so :-/...), a rewind of those i have taken in my life becomes quite obvious for a nostalgic. 

      

     Right from my school days, these wretched events called exams used to tire and frustrate me. In-spite of being a very keen listener (only during school, as a matter of fact!!!), would not score high grades in the examinations due to minimal study at home. Maybe, that made me susceptible to all the worst grades earned during college :) 

      Came the tenth standard examinations which were played spoilsport with by the Cricket World Cup 2003. Most people of our batch prepared for the first "big" examination of our lives with eyes meandering between the books and the television!!!  Anyway, by God's grace most of us put up a decent score!!!

       Fortunately, or unfortunately, my entry into an Engineering College happened unplanned. I eliminated electronics and electricals since they were bitter lessons in Physics for me. Dad eliminated Civil, Mechanical etc for he thought that they were not "girlish" enough and would make his daughter weary. We zeroed in on "Computer Science" as somebody told me that it is "the student friendly" course which would never require hard core hard work as other courses do.

         First semester saw me being a "padips, aako" or however you call it. Constant visits to the computer lab (for i was a bio student @ school), early rising and regular studying, new tasks of getting my laundry done, cleaning utensils etc - believe me, i was this good girl during the first semester. Coming to the exam episode, scored fairly well. But i was very happy about my performance in the C programming lab exam!!! I think that was the first and last lab exam that i did very well!!!

        Then came the other semesters, with unforgettable relationships blossoming and me getting to be my "real irresponsible, lazy self". Studying was confined to the nights before the examinations with me, Ilakki and Sangee literally trying to get our heads into the books. We called those sessions "study sessions", but studies would take place only as a diversion from pulling each others' leg, my singing, sangee’s stories and ilaki's funny encounters with the seniors. To add fuel to the fire, students would be provided tea the night before the examination. We would happily waste half an hour or so just for getting it from the mess and drinking it. Once, ilak kicked me by mistake and made me limp for a day or two during a semester examination. That was very funny indeed!!! And for those exams which we studied alone, i would be dozing off often with Viji motivating me to study. She was a very patient creature trying to make me and Mahesh study. Alas!!! All her efforts would go in vain. She would even call us for snacks to refresh our "tired" minds. We go with her, eat them and be back to sleep!!!  Ah!!! Those beautiful days are being treasured in my heart!!!

         NCC was a different experience altogether exposing the unexplored side of our personae. NCC 'B' and 'C' certificate exams also had theory elements in them. Here too i had very good company in the form of Viji and Ilakki. Donno how i cleared those examinations with 'A' grading!!! God's grace again!!! They were one of the most important exams i attended since my morale had a great boost after the results were declared!!!

      For the past three semesters of my M.E., my semester exam preparations would find me sitting in a room all alone, with books in my hand, yawning, dozing etc... Exam preparations in solitude casted an abominable lull over my tormented mind...  I really missed you Viji, Ilakki, Sangi, Mahesh... :'(     

Futile laments :(

This is one more of my "delayed", sorry, "very much delayed" posts... 

Some incidents in the recent past have left me skeptical. "Do we live in a democratic country???"... "What on earth is this caste system for???"... etc etc

INCIDENT 1: My fragile physique gave me another opportunity to be at home for 10 odd days last month when i was taken ill. The medic at the hospital wanted me to come again the same day with my blood test results. With great difficulty and pain i got ready for the hospital visit that evening only to find out that the transport flow was solidified owing to a politician's "mega" meeting at the other end of Trichy. (I clarify that im not a supporter of any political party!!!). How many others would have had their daily life affected due to extravagant meetings as these??? At times, i do doubt whether ours is a democracy in the real sense. Anyway, I, one among the commoners of this republic, i think, can do nothing but to lament.

INCIDENT 2: Me and my room-mate Athira were beckoned by the Warden sister at hostel to interact with some girls who have joined CEG and their parents to clear their doubts about the hostel. They threw us sooooooo many questions about  mess timings, everyday menu, bus routes, frequency of buses etc etc. We were patiently answering their queries when one of the girl's mother, who looked well educated asked us, "நீங்க christian ah???" (meaning "Are you a christian?"). I was a bit perturbed by this odd interrogation and politely answered "இல்லை aunty" (no) and tried to divert the topic. She reverted back with another "INTELLIGENT" question which was, "நீங்க எந்த சாமி கும்புடுவீங்க??" (meaning "which god do you worship???"). She had asked me which caste i belong to in an indirect tone but poor me... I could not catch up the implication... Adding one more to my "astute answers", i innocently replied, "சிவன், விஷ்ணு, இந்த மாதிரி தான் கும்பிடுவோம்" ("as all hindus do, we worship sivan, vishnu only"). My goodness, i realized her intention only after some time and felt very bad on how i have made a fool of myself. Never before was i put forth an awkward question as this. She seemed well educated and talked about whether NIT is better than CEG...  Compared GATE and TANCET... blah blah blah... but  not ready to see a human as a human...  Dont know when this virulent caste system, plaguing the society will come to an end.

INCIDENT 3: This shoots back to my stint at home due to my battered physique. This one is kind of humorous. I got on a bus from the hospital to my place and found all the seats occupied. Inspite of many ladies standing, almost all the seats were occupied by valiant menfolk. I bet, i looked very ill and weak. Not even one noble soul was magnanimous enough to offer me a seat. A man, may be in his early 30s was ogling the girls who were standing when i was glancing whether anyone is willing to make me sit. The icing over the cake was that he was sitting in the Ladies' seat. Here i would like to express my appreciation to Chennai men who stand up instantly when seated on a ladies' seat, on seeing a lady stand.

Social changes, with all their noble intentions, fail to percolate down our rigid minds. 

So when are we gonna change???

A rendezvous with our ancestors...

    Today, myself and my friend Shobana had a very comic and thrilling experience with our tailed ancestors.  

    We had come to the university for our project work and were out for lunch. We had our lunches packed  in our tiffin boxes and decided to settle down @ the corridor near the Chemistry laboratory. A lady working in our department who went that way, cautioned us about the monkeys which frequented that place and asked us to finish eating as soon as possible. But, having not seen any monkey for a week in the campus, we were sloppy. We were simply chatting for a long time and finally made up our mind to eat. We would not have had even four gulps, 3 monkeys - 2 adults and 1 juvenile, flanked us. 

    The biggest one took control of my tiffin box and Shobana just jumped off the place to a nearby tree. Being an alert person(???!!!), i grasped Shobana's tiffin box in my hand and ran towards her. Both of us gained some courage and were shooing them away. Those tailed menaces did not heed us.  Instead, they were eating heartily from the tiffin box. The juvenile one started inspecting our bags and on seeing that, brave Shobana went near it and just pretended as if she was to beat it. But that courageous vagabond made a fierce cry and came towards her as if it was going to attack her. I shrieked, "Shobana!!!" and she started running.

  A staff @ the Chemistry lab tried to threaten them but was threatened by our tailed friends. He shut himself inside the lab. Many people were watching this from the first and second floors and were enjoying the scene. The lady who warned us was on her way back. At last, it was her and the other workers, who got us the tiffin box back from the monkeys, driving them away with a pole. We thanked her and the others from the bottom of our hearts and sped to the canteen.

   The most funny thing is that a student who was sitting just 2 or 3 feet away from us did not even bat an eyelid in spite of the hue and cry we raised and was busily engaged with his mobile and lap top. Some people reside in their own world, whatever happens around!!!

    After some time, we burst out of laughter thinking about this funny rendezvous.  Those monkeys made monkeys out of me and Shobana!!!

An year @ CEG...

     I dint even think of entering Anna University or doing PG when i was @ UG... But destiny had other plans and now i am a CEGian. 

     Soon after the counselling, the following thought engulfed my mind. "Hmmm, great that I have landed in one of the prestigious institutions of the country!!! But, will i be able to cope up with the environment here??? The fellow students would be very intelligent and i am going to be the odd man out in the class. Great professors are going to handle classes and i am going to sit blinking throughout... Only God gotta save me..."

     But i am happy that i was proved wrong by God.  Most of my classmates are very unassuming and amiable  in spite of their deep academic acumen. We discuss the difficult concepts taught in the class and learn together. We dont hesitate to help each other. 

     And the teachers... They are fantabulous... Really havent come across teachers with such deep subject knowledge. They are very friendly and down to earth too... However trivial are the questions put forth , they answer with a smile. I was taken aback by the spontaneity and flair with which Dr.K.S.Easwara Kumar used to handle data structures classes for us. Though i failed in all the Data Structure internals, used to really enjoy the lectures.

    There are some unforgettable things which happened. One was, INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY with the girls wearing saree. I dared not to think that something like that would happen in a PG class. I think ours is the only PG set which had stood apart from others. That was the brainchild of Swetha and  kudos to her!!! Another was our class meet up with the Karkys @ Elliots Beach. It was my first time to meet one of the teachers with his family and our classmates. The meeting was followed by our playing heartily and getting drenched in the salty waters of the sea . I interacted with some of my classmates for the first time there!!! Had great time with you folks!!!   Nd personally, i had watched a couple of films @ theatres with my classmates , which were unforgettable.

    My friends in the class are very caring and concerned. While most of my classmates have an unquenchable craving to LEARN, there are few people for whom SCORING is the primary concern. They go to the extent of even comparing their marks with others' and behave like KG kids. And there are a few others who think so astute of themselves for having got done a work from others and dont realize the benevolence of the person who helped them. 

    There is a person, whom i would like to mention in this post to make it complete. Its Meena Akka., my  classmate sitting right behind our bench and sharing a good rapport with almost everyone in the class. A few days before the first semester examinations, i met her in the campus and was lamenting to her about my poor performance in the internals and my fear of getting an arrear. She induced confidence and courage in me with her words. Thank you ka... 

    I thank all my classmates and the teachers who had made my life @ CEG, a great time... Thank you...

malarial dayz :-(

my goodness...

27th march to 7th april... malaria episode - II... hellish dayz... 

i would like to thank all the good souls who helped me go to trichy and took good care of me, esp suresh anna and shobi... 

i  was admitted in the hospital for more than a week at trichy...

just imagine... no sleepin, no msgin, no chattin, no buzzin etc etc. but only vomitin, cryin, nd starin d ceiling...

my aunt stayed wid me at the hospital and took gooooood care of me... my mom, dad, granny nd grampa would visit me everyday with loads of advices on how to take care of my health...

the tablet for malaria, chloroquine evokes vomiting... i need to eat some solid food to take tablets... but cant eat due to the former reason... feelin like laughin now wen i remember me running to the bathroom to vomit after every meal... the whole ward would look at me with pity...

though i was feelin very uncomfortable stayin in the ward, had some pleasant experiences too... 

a muslim granny was in the bed next to me... her son saw me running to vomit and his heart melted... he voluntarily got a bottle of water from my aunt and prayed with it, chanting some verses... he asked me to drink it as it had been blessed by god... was really moved on his benevolent gesture... in these days of religious intolerance, we do have such noble hearts...

a doctor would visit the ward everyday... one day, she asked me "குட்டிக்கு எப்படி இருக்கு இப்போ???", thinking that im a school-goer and was surprised to know tat im a pg student... she used to be strict yet kind... I went to the hospital a few days after my stay at the ward for a check up and she had come in front... but, me, an idiotic person, did not notice her in spite of her smiling at me... tis too, i came to know from my mom who was coming behind me... 

i donno y i do this often... physically present, but mentally roamin elsewhere... really feelin bad about it... gotta visit her sometime later and thank her...

nd gotta thank the most important person, GOD, the almighty, who had blessed me... there weren't many classes due to the department symposium  and the submission of all the assignments got postponed... i thank beulah for helping me contact the teachers during my absence... the teachers were also kind enough to permit me to handle seminars and submit assignments a bit later... they ll be in my prayers...

nd last, but not the least, used to get some random thoughts during my stay at the ward and jotted them down... though i cant call them poems, relived the days where i used to get prizes for penning some poems during schooldays...

ll share that too wid you....:-D

Letters to the almighty...

Almost six months have passed since my entering this wretched city, Chennai...

During the first few months here, i used to get ill often and feel very lonely... Used to get confused and would worry about my health, academics, career etc... I would be around with a sombre expression on my face... as i am the first girl in my family to a PG in engineering, i have to fulfill the expectations of my family na... that thought used to increase the pressure on me...

Those days, i did not have anyone to confide with as i had not got close to anyone here (thank god, now its not so....!)... And to vent out my sorrows, i used to write letters to god, sharing with him all that which bothered me at that moment... and had not forgotten to thank him too when something good had happened :-)... The letters used to be in தமிழ் + English. It would be like me talking to god...

and now, when i see those letters which are being treasured and preserved by me, i tend to relive those moments, thanking him for the blessings he had showered on me helping me to overcome my worries...

Believe me, it is the best stress buster...

A funny encounter

A few days back, i went to a lab with internet facility in the college. As in all the colleges, footwear has to be left outside. I was engrossed in a work for about 4 or 5 hours and when i came outside, found my footwear missing. The people working there helped me to search it, but our search was in vain. "Somebody has stolen it", they said. 

There werent any shops nearby .  I was startled as to what to do. 

I thought, "What would have been  the situation if the footwears werent invented????".... Then i started walking towards the bus stop bare footed with people on the way giving me odd glances.... Reached hostel bare footed only...

Just imagine how much importance we give to our appearance and attire... 

I was relating this incident to a classmate and she said,"Youre great da... Had it been me, i would have called my father up and would have made a big fuss"...  And then only did i realize that i have managed the situation in the way it had to be...  I think this is one among the rare situations which i have handled thoughtfully...

Though i had missed my favorite pair of footwear ( which was stitched by the cobbler whom i had described in my second post in this blog  ), this incident made me realize my tendency of not caring too much about what others would think about my attire...  and a little happy about it...

ஒரு நல்ல பாடம்

i went to the cobbler at anna university with my friend to get my torn footwear stitched.

i have got it stitched many times before by other cobblers but the footwear got torn again and again.

this man, the anna univ cobbler, was deaf and dumb. he did his work so well that we were just taken aback by his workmanship.after stitching it, he polished it and made it just like a new one.

inspite of the room having so many footwear strewn around, his slippers were lying outside the room only (this was noticed by my friend). WORK IS WORSHIP!

we, the educated, sophisticated people, have to learn from men like this one. we have something to learn from everyone no matter how this society ranks them. watever may be the work that we undertake, we gotta do it with utmost sincerity and dedication.

nice to see people like him.