01/01/2010--- a nolstalgic begining

I never thought 2010 Jan 1 would be so special for me. Its not that I got a promotion or my proposal bids, but what I could get was a feel of what I had lost for last 16 months. Nothing but my college days. Time could wash the days but not the memories. All the days of those precious 4 years(2004-2008) lie impringed in my heart(our heart)-not a single guy can afford to forget those days.

After buying some sweets for teachers we (I was accompanied by stan, bejo and sika) drove our way to our lovely Govt Engg College TSR. The same Vadakke Bus Stand, which used to stuff both us and cuties of Vimala College(Ladies Arts College-God has been kind to us), Chembookavu Junction, Pallimoola Bus Stop(the destination-highway engineers seldom use these words).Intentionally I missed Chembookaavu. That place have lots of stories to tell, and the hero of the story is none other than Mr Stan who stopped the car there to have a feel of his old battle field. Today he has won the battle and conquered what ever he wanted. Stan –hats off to you gentle man. I can’t go beyond this as my good friend has himself decided to write about his days in chembookaavu.

The gigantic architectural beauty welcomed as usuall and as we 4 marched into our department, we all were spell bound by what we saw in front of us. Shabna taking Survey 2 for the juniors. Shabna is our classmate now working in our college. But teaching Survey 2 was hard for me to digest (Survey 2 is not your choice if you hate mugging ). Goodness gracious. What is happening all around?

We went to meet our tutor Reeba mam, but to our bad luck she was on leave. Stan really wanted to see her as he would be flying back to Dubai in 2 days time. We met almost all of our teachers and HOD and they enjoyed distributing our sweets through out.There were a few fresh lecturers there and when HOD mam told them-our students bought these new sweets (pointing us). I rarely feel the power of certain words-OUR-Today when HOD uttered that word I found inexplicable meanings for that.

Though we are away by hardly 5-6 kms, we never turned up to college. Not because we have been tied up by busy work schedules but the college would be the same when it had the aura of our team. With stan and bejo around today, I could smell the fragnance of yesterdays (though many were missed)-The culverts next to our department and seminar hall-it is houseful during internal examinations, the canteen ( where you get masala dosa for 5 Rs and chicken biriyaani for Rs 18-I am not talking about early 90s-Its 2008),milma which is famous for its thanni mathan ,pazham pori and bajji , the gallery where we spend half the class hours-we discussed more issues than UN executive meetings would have done, M H-men’s hostel-those days and life I will have an exclusive session-our room D 40 (bejos), hockey ground, basket ball court, the labs ,western amphi, eastern amphi, the college bus-gentle man of GEC, main block graphics hall remembered for not engineering graphics but for the bulk of our university exams, survey lab, the landscape of gec and what not……………

Gone are those days when we all reigned the campus, gone are those days when each nook and corner of the campus welcomed us, gone are those days of masthi , fun and mazaa….

Today when we walk across the campus something was missing……..not books or bags…but something that stiff I cant make out……even the posture of walking was different. 2 years back we used to walk with hands on others shoulders. But today all were a bit stuff in their body language. The society wants us to be looked and behaved in that way………Is this what the corporate culture buries in you or is it the burden of being an engineer…….

Will we get those days back……….

I know it won’t……but days like today when I get to recollect my past would come and sweet memmories of these 4 years will reiterate in my heart of heart…….

A nostalgic new year gift………….

4 a bourbon bite

I don’t remember much of those days in late 80’s but there are certain things that I carry in my mind even today. I was a fat and chubby boy those days. And if there was something that I couldn’t compromise with then it would be food. Orange juices daily 3-4 times were a must as far my diet was concerned. I don’t know how my family afforded that. My fathers house is in Irinjalakuda and mothers at Chalakudy,Aloor. These were my dynasties.I ruled here for the last 2 decades and still going on. But I would say there has always been a decline in power (As age increases, your power will show a marked decline).Simple common sense. What I would like to tell is about my days in kinder garden.I remember those days. I adore it to my heart.

I don’t remember the name of my L K G class teacher. But I remember her face. 1989 Irinjalakuda Don Bosco School LKG. You can imagine a typical K G boy. Water bottle like a garment, a school bag featuring Cartoon Network and most importantly the tiffin box. When ever it’s the tiffin time, my eyes will be on my partner’s tiffin box. As I had told earlier food was then BMW for me. I finish my thing in 1 min while my partner would be slowly munching it. I still remember her name. LINTA. She would have plenty of things like cream biscuits, beans biscuits, at times juices. I would be having similar things not as much as hers.

One day she bought bourbon biscuit. I have never tasted it. The thing I had was arrowroot. I always hated that stuff. It looked good only in tv advertisements. I swallowed my snacks very quickly but I had never taken my hands off her snacks box. I asked her for one biscuit for which she refused as usual. I don’t know how I cursed them those days. I mean what was the mode of language that I used. The saliva in my mouth could fill the whole of Indian Ocean. I regained my calm and asked for a half. She had finished one by then and had 3 more. This time she closed her tiffin box. I didn’t give up. I asked for just a bite. And she reluctantly said NOOOO…..Now I said to myself…you are done….She opened her box for the next one….I had not taken my eyes of her box for the last 5 minutes. She was actually enjoying it. I could see it in her face. I don’t know how I did it or why I did it. The action was spontaneous. I gave a smart bite to her arms which was responded by a huge cry. Actually she was howling at the top of her voice. In the mean time I saw one of her biscuit in my hand. Before my tongue could have a feel of it, teacher came running at us. From here on you all can expect. My small hands had to bear huge thuds from both teacher and head mistress. While walking to HM’s room she was weeping like anything. I knew that my bite would not have pained that much. The tears always was supplemented by the pleasure of the tears that my eyes shed. Next step from my H M was so simple. Reporting to my mother. Another feast awaited at my home. But in the end it was me who won the battle. For the next few weeks I was given bourbon biscuit. Linta was no longer my neighbour. She was replaced by Manju to whom I never shared a single bourbon inspite ofsobbing requests…….

Today when I write these stories of my good old days, I bear a smile in my face and what more can I ask for from my life other than these YADHEIN-the memories of yesterdays…..