goodbye america

Hey...

I came to the promised land with loads of dreams. I enjoyed almost every minute of being and working here. I have roamed in more than 47 states here. My 'been there - seen that' list can run into pages and pages. Took the haj to Orlando, Niagara, Grand Canyon, Yosemite and every other spot that is so sacrosanct for tourists here. Somewhere in this journey I did decent work, got my parents out of inertia to visit here, got married .... I never gave a serious thought of ending this cool ride inside the US of A.

But finally we all have to chase our passions. And so I am going back. Back to India, back to school. And am excited to leave.

Looking back, though the incidents of visiting police station or racial insults and similar ones have left deep scars in my heart, they are masked by the wonderful time I have had all these years in this nation.

I don't know if and when I will be back here. But one thing is for sure. I have had loads of learning that I steal away and will definitely capitalize on this.

Goodbye America. Will miss you, most certainly.

Ciao...

cupid's victim...

Hey..

It has been a year since I sat down at Borders bookstore for 4 hours on a Saturday afternoon. It has been a year since I had a movie marathon of Francis Ford Coppola. It has been a year since I spent 20, 18 or at least 12 continuous hours at work. It has been a year since I frequented libraries; and been to a party just for the free food; and touched my bike; and called my West Coast friends after 9:00 PM their time, every other day; and had a Dunkin Donut breakfast, Chipotle lunch, Pizza Hut dinner with a popcorn/coke late night snack - all on the same day...

Of course, yeah, it has been a year since I got married.

Do I miss any of the above ? The answer is NO. I really don't. People did scare me that I will not be able to do many of the cherished things after marriage, like the ones above. Maybe it is true that I haven't done any of those like how it was said, but there is nothing that actually prevented me from doing one of 'em. The reality is that I have voluntarily given up the pleasures of the bachelorhood and sunk myself into my new love life. I guess I matured into a grown up man !



For the past one year I have been taken care of like a King. For the past one year I have enjoyed talking lot of things, the sweet nothings to the same person over and over again. For the past one year someone else in the world knows me much better than I know myself and much more than even what my mom knew of me. For the past one year I have confided everything to one person without any fear of being judged. For the past one year I have gone to the likes of Niagara never once feeling envious at the hordes of (desi) couples who hold hands and embed themselves in kisses notwithstanding what is happening around; For the past one year I have gotten hit when I appeared ogling at Anu Hassan; and fought with someone so much only to make up the next minute; and have eaten excellent food - even at lunch; and do anything & everything, just to see a smile curl up...

Of course, for the past one year, I have been in love and I am being loved.

I am no poet but I believe Elvis Costello did justice when he wrote this.. and I dedicate this to my first year of paradise..

She
May be the face I can't forget
The trace of pleasure or regret
May be my treasure or the price I have to pay
She
May be the song that summer sings
May be the chill that autumn brings
May be a hundred different things
Within the measure of a day
She
May be the beauty or the beast
May be the famine or the feast
May turn each day into a heaven or a hell
She may be the mirror of my dreams
The smile reflected in a stream
She may not be what she may seem
Inside her shell
She
Who always seems so happy in a crowd
Whose eyes can be so private and so proud
No one's allowed to see them when they cry
She
May be the love that cannot hope to last
May come to me from shadows of the past
That I'll remember till the day I die
She
May be the reason I survive
The why and wherefore I'm alive
The one I'll care for through the rough in ready years
Me
I'll take her laughter and her tears
And make them all my souvenirs
For where she goes I've got to be
The meaning of my life is

She
She, oh she

Thanks for all the wishes and prayers.
Ciao..