Aman’s Blog….ANYTHING goes here!

I am sure if you come here often, you must have started thinking or rather I should say, assuming that every post of mine is going to be either about me leaving or coming back to my place isn’t it? Well, just to keep the tradition alive , this one is also for the same thing . But before I say the usual, just for the record , I have been given a very very tight calendar which means I shall be on the road most of the times for quite some time. So bear with me if you feel that travel is the only thing that I am writing about! I have heard couple of songs which I would be sharing soon with their translation as well and shall talk about some thoughts which I do have in my mind wandering around! But for the moment, I am leaving tomorrow for a long and very tough tour. Since I am not well and that’s still not an old story as I fell sick just yesterday only, its going to be rather much harder! Hope all goes well. Pray for me guys and wish me luck. Its time now to have some rest since the travel starts in less than 7 hours !

As I mentioned in the immediate last post, this tour of mine was the most shortest one. I just went for one day, that’s it! I thought it would be a simple tour since I was supposed to do an overview of a technology. Though the module itself is very hard but since it was for only one day, I thought probably I shall be able to sail through. I did decide to prepare for it very well  ( I did do that) as well! Normally, I don’t do traveling atleast up till the 4th day of my tour but this time, it was going to be happening the immediate next day. Anyways, I thought things would not go much bad and despite all the issues, I would be okay. But it just can’t happen when it comes to me and smoothness in anything. Things are bound to go shaky, wrong, upsetting and the same happened this time as well!

I normally take a bus to Delhi from where I catch the flight to my next destination. Its just a pity that the closest airport that I have for me is there only. There is another one in Chandigarth but that’s good to nothing actually since there is only one direct flight from there and that is to Bombay( there I said Mr. Thakrey, come and shoot me) where I normally don’t go. So the destinations where I fly most of of the times are all available from Delhi only. Shouldn’t come as a surprise since its the capital of India as well. Since there was a great difficulty assumed in the program, I decided to get to Banglore a little early so that I can have some rest and start preparation. So I requested for an afternoon flight and a train in the morning to Delhi. I believe that one should not break rules and if you do, one must be ready to face consequences as well. I travel via bus most of the time and don’t believe on trains much. But I had no choice but to take a train only since I had an early flight this time. Well, to be honest, I did have a choice to pick up bus as well and my mom did suggest me the same too but I just thought it would be better if I would take a train in the chilled out weather which is going on now. Another big mistake, listen to your mom always! Anyways, my dad and me went to the train station and train was on time. It was expected as well since there is almost no fog now a days for both mornings and evenings. Since the train was on time, I rightfully thought that I would be able to get to Delhi at the scheduled time only and would catch the flight on time as well. There was less to slim chances that I could afford to get delayed in this entire process since there was only a buffer of one hour and 45 minutes between the time I was supposed to get to Delhi and to catch the flight. Things did kick off smoothly since the train started on time but I am not sure what did happen on the way to it( neither did anyone else had any clues) and it started getting halted for few minutes. Those few minutes accumulated a little too much and finally it was 12.20pm when I got at Delhi platform. It was 80minutes later than the scheduled time of the train and guess what, my flight was supposed to leave at 13.20pm! Great! The train was supposed to come over the platform 1 but it arrived at platform 3 which means I would waste around 5 minutes to get out finally from the station. Can you imagine the scene that I was practically running over the platforms to get out ! Finally, I did make it out of the platform and took a cab( overpayed since there was no time for bargaining) and asked the driver to drive it as fast as possibly he could! One of my friends sent the text to me that I am going to miss the flight and I was pretty sure myself as well that this time, for the first time, I was going to miss the flight. I had a backup plan ready with me that if I would miss this flight, I would take another one but the only issue was that the next one was at 17.30pm which means 4 hours late than the actual one! So I had no interest in taking that flight. My driver did drive the cab like  a formula 1 race car( managed to skip few very close accidents as well) and made me reach at the airport at 1300hours. It was just 20 minutes to the flight and I just rushed inside the airport. The very first thing that I asked the lady over the counter was “Banglore flight” and she said,” you just made it sir”! OH MY GOSH! Fortunately for me, the boarding didn’t get start yet which was actually supposed to get started by 12.40pm only so the counter was still open! And as soon as I finished the security checks, boarding was announced! I couldn’t have anything since I was supposed to board the flight but that didn’t matter since I managed to catch a nearly impossible flight . Was I happy? You can bet ! Oh yes, I did send the text to my friend as well that I got the flight !

It was a very tiring and long flight ( it always is to the Banglore thanks to the distance) so I was obviously very tired but there was no time to rest or take a nap since I had to start studying. I was also supposed to prepare an exam for the delegates and that was an additional headache for me! Anyways one has to go what one has to do so there was no place for excuses. I had a cup of tea and started the work which went up till about 2am in the morning! I was dead tired and when I woke up in the morning, I had no intention to go to the office but there was no option like it so had to go! The program started off well ( I guess) and we did quite a lot of discussions about the module. It was fun, it always is when there is discussion involved! Since it was an overview so there was no chance that we could stretch any discussions or hands-on for a longer time period. At about 4pm, we closed the day! Since it was a virtual class I couldn’t see the reactions of the delegates but I just hope that they did like the small overview that we did! It was time now to start the travel back for home and I was just praying that things would go well at least for this time!

The journey to the airport was a smooth one. Over the airport also, there wasn’t any chaos or something so I could finish all the formalities well on time with complete ease! I decided to have an Iced Latte with Chocolate flavor once I got free only to see that it tasted like YUCK!!!! I just somehow finished it and started waiting for my flight which fortunately was on time. So I managed to get to the Delhi almost on time only! I take a prepaid cab to the bus stand and did the same this time as well. There was a bus ready to leave for my place and I just grabbed a seat for me! There was no fog so the driver drove the bus like a plane only and managed to get us at Ludhiana almost on time only! There was no fog but the winds were ice chilled and that gives some explanation of the condition in which I am at the moment. Keep on reading what do I mean by saying so?

I got at home in the morning and was feeling a little cold. I got a call from my very close brother-alike-friend Amandeep that he is not well. So I just took my scotter out and drove straight to his home. I forgot to wear inner woolen of mine and by the time it was 6pm, I started shivering so much! I just got back home and since then, shivering hasn’t got any better at all. I am writing this sitting over my bed and going to skip dinner since I am sure, I shall vomit if I shall have it! Will have medicines for fever, cold and hope by tomorrow morning I should be a little better. But at the moment, there is only one sound coming from me, ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ !

When ever I have travelled so far, its atleast for 3 days. That’s the shortest amount of time I can recall spending on an official tour so far. But I guess, this time, I am going for the shortest program that I would ever do. I have a program of just one day but for that, I would be requiring to travel for one day as well which would make in total 2 days but still, it would remain the shortest duration in my travelogue. And since, its just one day of it, my luggage( can I still call it one) seemed to be the lightest one in all of these years, I mean how much just one pair of trousers and shirt can weight right ?

But the smallest duration doesn’t make the program any lighter. The program remains the toughest among of all that I have handled so far and to add more to my pains, the practice setup and book that I was supposed to get for it, both are still nowhere to be found which means, I have nothing in my hands/computers/anywhere which I can use to prepare for it and its a completely new program for me as well! So how would one delivers a program which he hasn’t studied yet? Well, I frankly don’t know and I am just as worried as anyone would be who would be asked to fight in a war with a locked gun and told that how to unlock it would be told to you in a practice session which never did happen! I hope I won’t be a sitting duck . Pray for me guys and wish me luck!

Oh yes, this one is not the last program, I am travelling after it “very soon” . Stay tuned to know when/where/why !

I got back home today morning. Well, its just for two days only and out of that one is already over. From the last few months, its been a real hectic schedule that is there for me and I believe, its going to be the same for next few more weeks as well. Besides the hectic travel schedules, the modules that I am handling are all very tough and the audience as well  which is coming is very elite and experienced. So overall, its being a very tough time for me.

I just managed to get a sleep for about an hour in the evening though I was so much tired and couldn’t sleep at all last night. But there were some tasks that I had to finish so had to step out of the house and finish them. I am having a very severe pain in my right knee and left elbow and I have no idea why? I know the reason for the elbow pain but about knee, I am a little worried because it has just started few weeks back and its really really painful. I shall wait and watch for few more days and than will see what to do about it?

There is just tons of work that I need to finish and I am just finding it very much tough to do. Part for the reason that I am traveling like anything and part being just distracted, thanks to tons of things which keep on going in the mind. Anyways, I guess at least for tomorrow, I can put all of this on a halt and enjoy being at home. And the best thing about being at home is home made food so  its time to go and eat something . Ciao!

Tears are that asset of human beings which are around all the times. If one is happy, they come to increase that happiness. If one is sad, they still come to share that pain, let it flow down from the eyes from the heart. It doesn’t matter that what you are, how rich/poor you are, tears in all the eyes are of the same color and forever will be in this entire world. Tears, something which say hundreds of stories even without using a single word even! Tears, which can melt hearts made of stone as well. Tears, seeing which in the beloved’s eyes, one can kill and even can get killed! Tears, seeing them in that special person’s eyes appears that the whole world has no meaning, has no importance! Tears, some one who never leaves you, doesn’t matter what! But at times, even these most faithful friends choose to sit back and enjoy the pain of the beholder.

When tears come through the eyes, at least that pain stored in the heart flows down with them. Though it doesn’t help at all, pieces of a broken heart which always is a gift from someone who doesn’t value it but values the entire world out there, flows through these tears. It all happens when that drop of a tear flows down from the eye. But what if when the eyes appear to be dry yet hiding oceans of these tears in them? Ever felt how it feels when one is not able to breathe under water or when someone is chocking your throat? Ever saw someone smiling from his face but having eyes which look so lonely and are dry yet crying? Tears, even when not flowing out from those eyes, may still be there! At that times, the pain touches its peaks and one just feels that why is he being punished to be alive yet die with every breathe? At times, tears stop from coming out of these eyes knowing that this world would make fun of them. Even those who gifted these drops of pain, at times, may go a step ahead and would say this even that there is no time that they have for these useless tears since they have many better things to do like making a good, bright career! And in that important process, there is no place for a useless, worthless item called tears! Just don’t be fooled by this illusion that just because you can’t see someone’s eyes wet, there is nothing in them! You may never know, waves in the oceans of “silent tears” may be touching skies even!

I shall close by putting here two lines of Ahmed Faraz. They are in Hindi and I shall put this version first and will also translate in English. First, the Hindi version,

Yehi soch kar uski har baat ko sach maana tha Faraz,

K itne khoobsurat lab jhooth kaise bolenge!

And the translation in English is,

Just for this reason, assumed all what she said as truth “Faraz”,

How come such pretty lips can speak a lie?

Isn’t Faraz just great!

At times, with very few words and lines, those things are said for which even books of thousands of pages may not be enough. Doing so is not an easy task to do and very distinct authors only are gifted to do so. Ahemd Faraz is one of those few who can recite an entire story in just two lines! I have already posted couple of poetries penned by him over my blog which you would find using the search option and I would strongly suggest that you must read as much poetry as you can of his!

Its always pain, sadness which can’t be confined in words. One doesn’t need much to show his happiness but for pain, sadness, even tears fail to express the intensity. One may want to tell what he is feeling but there seems to be no words matching with that expression. But some times, you just read something which hits the nail right on the head! The following two lines are just like that only, explaining pain in the most beautiful manner I shall say.  Its in Hindi and as usual , I shall do the translation in English as well. Have a read,

Mili saza jo mujhe wo kisi khata pe nai Faraz,

Mujh par zurm saabit hua jo wafa ka tha!

And its meaning in English is,

The punishment that I got was not for any mistake of mine,

I was just declared convict of doing a crime of being in love!

Nothing fits for it other than a word,”awesome” !

I was pretty sure when I wrote the immediate last post that something wrong would surely happen. I just could feel it coming but I didn’t think that it would turn up to be really bad! I have done the travel of that same number of hours which one would spend traveling back and forth from Singapore from India. Any guesses? Yes, about 12 hours when I was actually supposed to spend only about 5 and could be here at about 1pm in the afternoon while I actually landed up at 5pm and in my hotel at 6.45pm!

I had my flight booked initially for 11.30am. It was fine but some problem was coming for the confirmation of it so my travel desk intimated me that they would give some another flight and guess what timing they gave to me, 9.40am! WTH! To get it, I had to start at about 6.30am and which means, I would have to get up at about 5am! And given the reason that I can’t sleep when I have to get so early and that too to catch a flight, I couldn’t really sleep at all the whole night! I got ready and left when my cab came right at 6.30am. I was at the airport at about 7am, finished check-in and went to have breakfast. Finished it and was waiting for the flight to be announced , only to see that nothing happened up till 9.30 even! Staff told that the flight is delayed to 10.10am and since then, it was just 30 minutes increasing every time when I asked! Finally at about 2.30pm the flight took off, making us reach at Bangalore at about 5pm. And since it takes about 1.5 hours in a day light traffic from airport to city where my hotel happens to be, it just covered up the entire 12hours timeline perfectly! And it was just not travel but couple of other things as well added to the agony!

When you have to wait for so long, its for sure that you would like to have some thing. I did have the breakfast in the morning at about 8am and I thought to have a mini lunch sort of thing by having a pizza and Coke. The sales guy said that would I like to spend few extra bucks and would like to add garlic bread as well, to which I said yes! Just when I paid the amount of bill, the airline announced that free refreshment would be given to the passengers! Great, just damn great! Couldn’t they announce just a minute ago so that I could skip paying the amount? Anyways, I didn’t bother to check what they were offering because the stuff I got was good. Those who know me, are aware about this fact that I drink coffee a lot and I did have a latte with the breakfast as well. But I wanted to have another one and just when I was wandering around to decide where to get it, I saw a counter where Aloha drinks were being served. I asked for something hot and that guy said he can give me a mint, ginger, lemon based tea. Now how bad that can be right? I said yes, go ahead and get me one! He asked me that should he be adding some honey to it as well, why not I said ? I paid for it and had the first sip. YUCK! May be I can’t have any tea which is not traditional or may be the guy did make it really bad or may be it was Aloha! I just cursed myself that why I didn’t go and pick a standard one but hey, that’s how one learns!

Finally, after all said and done, I am in my hotel now and from tomorrow, a very tough session will be starting. Hope no one says Aloha to me ! 

Its just always that whatever I think/plan, that doesn’t work and what I tell others as well, they seem not to bother about it as well. And that’s exactly what’s happening now as well. I had finished half part of one program yesterday. I was having a program of 1 day which was going to start from 28th and I thought, I shall get some free time to have rest and study. And since I am staying with Sidhu, I asked my travel desk to get my flight booking done a little early so that I can go to Banglore, have some rest there and unpack myself in a nice manner rather than getting there at midnight and still feeling sleepy next day. Well, this was all what I thought and surely enough, it was bound to not to happen and it didn’t as well! I was told today that my 1 day program has been changed to 3 day program. Its going to be a real tough one as well. The travel desk guy has “really” listened to what I said to him and has given me a flight at very early in the morning which means I can’t sleep now as well because the thought of missing the flight is knocking in my mind! So I am just sitting and trying to kill time. My morning, despite being a holiday would be getting ruined and there is nothing that I can even do about it !

There are times when one wishes so much from god, all what is good, all what is best for him, he asks from god. But some people, don’t do it. They only wish very rarely for something and that too normally is not something earth shattering kind of thing, something as costly as asking on a very cold day, a ray of sunlight from him! And they don’t do it only with the god but from the people around them. They don’t ask for a BMW or an I-phone or anything stupid thing like that but just a very simple thing like a smile or a hug, things which may mean nothing to many but for some, that’s all what counts! Is asking for a sunlight or for a moment of smile too much costly to ask for? It seems it is for both god and for people because somehow, both fail to give it most of the times! And that’s exactly what did happen today which fortunately(or unfortunately, I don’t know) is the day when I came on this planet Earth! Yes, its my birthday today and as per the convention, it should had been a “happy” birthday but for me, it just turned out to be a day when I got upset almost at its peak!

I was called by a colleague for some troubleshooting which needed to be done over his database. My phone was switched off for some time yesterday since I was having a very severe headache and I just wanted to have some rest and I guess, that’s a crime to do. I was told many “lessons” in a very “strong” pitch that why I must not switch off my phone. If it would be a normal day, people won’t bother for this even that whether Aman is dead or alive but since someone needed my help, even for my phone being "dead”( off is the same state what dead is for a phone) was a problem for them! Nevermind, I did solve it and in that process, the time period of birthday wish, 12am , also did pass! I couldn’t even attend to those who did call me up ( the number was very less though , can count it on fingers ). I did try to revert back to those who did take the pain to stay awake and call me, even from across the other ends of the world even! This was one part of the story which made me upset. The second part which did make me upset was that I saw some doing things knowingly which are bound to make me upset and it did happen just when I opened my eyes. It was still so early in the morning and hotel staff mentioned that its cold today but I was burning like anything and the irony was that the day wasn’t even started yet!

At work, I asked someone few days ago to send me some documents which were needed for today’s session. That person took it lightly and only did manage to send that document late in the evening yesterday. When I did see the document, it became visible to me that I won’t be able to handle the requirement. I did try reaching the concerned person but he didn’t pick up my calls. Since the delegates asked me to check couple of things about today’s session and to add to it, I knew there would be issues with the document that was sent to me, I wanted to speak with this guy very keenly! But I came to know that he had to leave the office since there was some medical emergency that did strike to one of his relatives. I called him up and he promised me that he would call by 9 in the night but he didn’t. I would say that he couldn’t because in the morning, whatever he told me , that makes me say “didn’t” only! Anyways, all said and done, I was able to speak to him in the morning and explained to  him the entire situation, discussing which we came to the conclusion that we would call off today’s program. I decided to speak to the delegates and he said that he would talk to the senior management as well as would start working for the next possible schedule for the same program! Since he himself was not able, he mentioned to me that he would come late! I did say all whatever was there to the delegates. One delegate got very upset.  We did speak for about half an hour and skipping all the nitty-gritty details, I would just say that it didn’t go very well. I had no fault of mine anywhere since it was never my duty to revert back to them and I would even say that it wasn’t  a mistake on the part of the other guy as well who was actually supposed to do it since he himself was facing serious personal issues. All what was required by others was to understand this and let it go since we are committed to deliver whatever we promised and its not just like that, its our job! But all the heat still came over me since I was the one who was doing the public facing and despite having no part anywhere, I was giving explanations for things which I didn’t do even! Anyways, all this did happen and kept on for quite some time. For enough time which did make me say finally that is  it really a “happy” birthday of mine and if this is what birthday is supposed to be, its better that if it won’t come next year! I shall be much happy with that rather than seeing all of this happening on this day which won’t come back in a year again now! I was told that the last program did go exceptionally well which was a bit good to hear after an almost spoiled [birth]day!

I am back in my hotel and just when I entered, I got a message from my airline carrier that my flight has got delayed by 3 hours which means, if it would actually fly(which I am starting to doubt now), it would be almost morning when I shall be reaching Delhi and on the same very day, I have to start a program. There goes the idea of having some rest and also goes away the feeling that it was supposed to be a day when I was meant to be a little happy if not too much! Yeah right!

Well, I have become another year older today. Yes, its my birthday which did start with an upset mood. I am away from home and is all alone this  with no one around me. To make things more worst, I shall be working tomorrow as well! So with an already upset mood and no one around to celebrate the day with, its going to be a tough day tomorrow rather than a “happy birthday”!