Checking In

I haven't been around for a while...though, would you believe it, I've written some five posts in my head in the last month or so. They just never materialised into anything here. But, this afternoon, I want to write. The last ten days have been a change from the routine - even if so in superficial ways. The Saturday before the last was exciting - one of the three occasions a year that I dress up in a saree for. The saree is my favourite garment...but I wish I had enough grace for it. Trying, trying :) :)

This weekend was interesting too - the annual convention, a two day long affair. Blasphemous though I may sound, I enjoyed the International Business chapter better than the Human Resources part. Trussed up in a black business suit for the better part of two days (and feeling like a penguin, if I may add), I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the discussions on red and blue ocean strategies and financial engineering...AND the 20-cover lunch. ;)

What else...I'm happy because I was finally able to give someone a piece of my mind (I sometimes have very misplaced notions of niceness). I'm glad that a long-term project is beginning to yield results. I'm astounded at the number of people falling in and out of love around me, and thankful that I've managed to retain my sanity so far :)

The Pujas are here. Today is the third day, and I'm homesick like I always am at this time of the year. I miss the smell of dhoop and fresh flowers and bhog, and the sounds of the dhaak and cymbals and the conch and chants. I miss the colours of autumn and the vibrant hues that the Goddess comes decked in. I miss the camaraderie and the anticipation surrounding the festivities, both those that are happening and those that are on their way. I miss the peacefulness of the mornings, the golden afternoon light and the pulsating energy of the evenings. I miss the feeling of crisp new fabric against the skin. I miss the smell of camphor.

There's so much that I want to write about. I'm just grappling with a writer's block of sorts. I'll be back soon :) Till then, have a great autumn! :) :)

Push

I've spent all of my adult life in Delhi...by the time I finish postgraduate studies, I will have completed six years in Delhi/the NCR. Over the last year - maybe a longer time, actually - I've often caught myself wondering if it's time I moved on. I am essentially, constitutionally, a nomad. Since last year, as I said, the idea of moving to a new city - a new place with new weather, a new language, new pluses and issues, new quirks and idiosyncrasies - has increasingly appealed to me. I'm beginning to tire of the city and its ways. And I think it's best to leave while you can do it without feeling compelled to. Yet, I could never be a hundred per cent sure I actually wanted to leave Delhi, in that I thought I wouldn't mind staying here either, if it came to that. Kind of a limbo, I mean. No concrete reasons...no professional logic, no academic purpose, and personal reasons too nebulous to explain or even to count - sometimes, even to or with myself.

Until this morning.

This morning, the city made my mind up for me.