Random Thoughts

This year was pretty random for me. It was stressful in parts and most enjoyable in others. I thought I'd make a list of some of the random things that happened  to me over the course of the year. 1. Started running regularly and ran a 5K with my lab-mates. But, also fell down a few times in broad daylight which was embarrassing. I'm blaming my old worn out shoes and the slippery roads. 2. Got stung by a bee and realized scratching the area simultaneously both relieves and worsens the itching. Ouch! 3. Played volleyball in the summer and got better at it. But, I still can't set. 4. Went for two conferences and realized that the bigger the conference, the lesser you learn and the fewer people you meet and actually have a meaningful conversation with. 5. Still don't like the taste of alcohol, but my palate's tolerance ranking goes something like this cider > wine >> beer and all hard liquor. 6. Didn't read as many novels as I would have liked

Mami often asks me if I miss home, if I miss her. I don't know the answer to this question. I have been living away from home for more than 8 years now. I am used to not living with my family, not seeing them on a day to day basis. I am used to learning about their wellbeing by just talking to them on the phone. But then again, I often think of home. Thoughts that come about at unexpected moments and bring a smile and sometimes a craving. I don't know if that means that I miss being at home. I guess everyone has different memories and different things that fit into their definition of home. For me, home means Mama reading the newspaper or doing his writing in the morning and then showing you what he has written, it means him reciting the Jata-kata shiv tandav stotram right after he has taken his shower, it means the roti-sabzi or dosa that Mami or Mummy make for breakfast, it means the lazy Sunday morning for me, but the busy morning for Tan who cleans and dusts the rooms

It had been raining hard in Chennai for the last one month disrupting normal life, causing traffic jams and playing a complete spoilsport to the festival of Diwali. People just dealt with it individually. Every now and then my father would tell me how hard it was raining and send me pictures of his area. It was fine as long as I could call him on his mobile. But, on 2nd December the situation became worse, scenes of a flooded Chennai started to emerge and that's when the mobile network also went down. Now it's not that I call him everyday, but when the network goes down and you can't reach your family whenever you want, is when the worry sets in.  News from various sources showed that Chennai was drowning. Some places had water coming up to the first floors and many ground floor rooms were totally submerged. Some of the well known areas were totally under water. You could barely see the tops of the cars. Chennai had become an isolated island where there was no electri