The weird girl and the sea.

-
I recently read in a book called "The Trust" that if it is love at first sight, you should run in the other direction, as fast as you can. But that is not true in my case of falling in love with Goa! Goa has a piece of my heart. You must be thinking hmm Goa is a pretty good place! The beach, cheap booze, extreme chill, I get it how one could want to go there but love? Isn't that a bit too much?

Well, let me give you guys some context. For me, Goa is my second home. It is where I have spent four wonderful, blissful and adventurous years. I did my engineering from BITS Pilani Goa and over the course of those four years, I fell in love with the place. The brightly colored houses, the air which almost smells like the ocean and even the incessant rains. For the world it might be a place to chill, party, get drunk and basically have a blast, for me its home. It would be safe to assume I have a Horcrux hidden somewhere in Goa.

I know Goa so pretty well, and it knows me too. (Not bragging but I am better than google maps to navigate the Anjuna area). Honestly, I know all of it. And I think it does too. The waters there know me too. Again, I am or was not stoned. You might think I am stupid or was stoned but not the case. I recently went to Goa with a few friends back from college. Spent the weekend. The most relaxed I have been in a very long time. I felt like myself after a really long time. We went to our favorite places, the old beaches, saw the people. There was this shack called Johns near our college we used to frequent. Went there, met John, he was so happy to see us! Went back to college, tried to relive 4 years worth of memories in 40 minutes. It was amazing.



On my last night, I took a walk by myself along the beach and it seemed like I managed to have an entire conversation with the sea at Bogmalo beach. I just stood there on the beach and let my feet get wet, stared at the tiny lights in the sea and enjoyed the sound of the waves. And suddenly I started crying and I couldn't stop. I have been holding it together for a long time now. And it does get tiring, making that conscious effort every single day. And you know, I have been looking for a hug. A hug where I can just let myself go, even for a minute and it would all be okay. At that moment someone else would take my burden from me. And standing there with wet feet, I broke down. I like to think, "I have been looking for a hug, and the sea broke me down". It's as if it knew. It held me, and in that moment I just let myself go. And that my friends, was bliss. Believe me, I wasn't high! :D

Of course a few minutes later, we played kabbadi (Like Shahrukh does in Dear Zindagi) and we said goodbye only to meet again next year! What I realized was that sometimes our memories are strong enough to hold us when we ourselves can't. The weird girl and the sea. My happy place.



Comments

Post a Comment

All time highs

Where are the "Friends" now?

-
Image
It's been 11 years since Monica and Chandler moved out of the apartment. That was one big moment for the group, after which they all really did grow up. Their lives went into six different directions, but they still try to keep in touch. The keeping in touch does not go very well with their busy lives. But they try to meet at least once a month at the coffee house, and swap stories like old times. This has now become a tradition. Also they always always go to Monica's place for thanksgiving where she cooks them a delicious meal and the kids run around and have fun! Monica and Chandler moved to the suburbs with the twins, who are now 11 years old. Monica is not only a chef at one of the best restaurants in NY but has published two cookbooks as well. Chandler who started on a new career path is now booming in that field, He is working at a great advertising firm, but he prefers to work from home (at least half the time) and stay with the kids. They have a perfect littl
Read more

Old Manali - Alternate realities

-
Image
As I sit down to write this, I have too many things going on in my head. Too many Manali stories, too many ideas, a lot of great places to visit if you ever happen to go down there and maybe somethings that made me think. Let me start by saying, that this short vacation to Old Manali, was by far the most chill 4 odd days I have had in I don't even know how long! It was a lot of French fries, every board game ever, sitting by the river and listening to the gushing sound of the water, smoking up to the point of indescribable chill, talking endlessly and enjoying silences, walking along the street with no purpose and trying to take one decent picture on the bridge. This was my trip. Though the best part was trekking to the waterfalls, sitting down along the water with Magoo (the doggo who led us there), eating Maggi, listening to soft music, glancing at my Malcolm Gladwell, laughing at strangers as they were attempting to get a candid profile picture just right with the girl wh
Read more

The Blockchain of Trust

-
Image
I have been working in the technology space for over a year now. And it has significantly shaped my thought process and decision-making. I find myself seeking logic in every aspect of my life, to the point that I have started annoying people around me! One fine day when I was driving back home, it hit me. Trust is the foundation of how we operate. Certain people are closer to us than others because we trust them more. We believe in them. This trust is an underlying component of every friendship and relationship. Actually, let me rephrase that, it is a quintessential ingredient, without which your recipe is going to be incomplete and your friendship bland.  We all have our network of trusted friends, the individuals closest to us in this world. We would want these relationships to continue for as long as possible, and if something happens to even one of them it would be devastating. So there I am in my car, listening to Coldplay, pondering if there was a foolproof way to optimize this
Read more

Is ignorance really bliss?

-
Image
So there is something that I have been thinking for a while now. Our lifestyles today, the independence, the freedom, the lack of any restrictions etc are all very good and is the kind of life we all have aspired to have since we were kids. Since we were able to play house, we have been dreaming of actually living that life for real. But now that I am here, I don't really see what the fuss was all about. Yeah I mean total financial independence is sort of a plus point. But then it comes with its own set of asterisks. Young adults today have far more liberty than our previous generations at that age. With lesser responsibility and more freedom, our lifestyles have somewhat gone haywire. Maybe we aren't ready for the independence that has been given at such an early stage in our lives. A person in his 20s, is already burdened with a massive change in his lifestyle, i.e. the transition from the carefree college life to that of a responsible full time employee. This in itself is
Read more

An amazing course!

-
This semester I took a course called "Introduction to western music" with two of my friends and today was our last class. I wasn't required to but it seemed interesting and easy, plus I had already done music earlier so I assumed I would pretty much know most of the things and would get a head start. Within the first few classes only I realized, that I did not have much of an advantage because western and hindustani are completely different. The first few weeks were fun, we sang and danced in the class and I really had a good time. That was one class I would always look forward to and I tried never to miss. Things were all fine and then we were given the assignment to perform a musical in a group of 23 or so people. This was a huge turning point in the course. We performed the musical called "Mamma Mia" and somehow I ended up with the role of the main character.  While preparing for the musical me and friends had some disagreements which turned into a
Read more

Discovering Serenity: A Digital Detox in the Tranquil Embrace of Shimla

-
I have been in Shimla for almost a full week now. Despite my phone usually having full bars, here it struggles to catch even one or two. The internet on my phone is practically non-existent, and the wifi makes me feel like I'm 10 years old again. Life here is a stark contrast to Bangalore, where I have been residing for about two years. Bangalore is the epicenter of start-ups and technology, and my daily life is intricately intertwined with various tech applications. From the moment I wake up until I try to fall asleep using my white noise app, there is always some app assisting me. If I were to count, there would be easily over 100 apps on my phone. These aren't dormant apps that I use occasionally; these are tools I rely on regularly. Despite numerous attempts to declutter and eliminate unnecessary apps, I always seem to hover around the 100-mark. In Bangalore, my phone dictates my daily routine – from office tasks to meals, ordering groceries, managing expenses, staying
Read more

Book Review | She Said : Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey | A Feminist Triumph

-
Image
Bite-sized review: After months of anticipation, I finally read "She Said" by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, driven by my feminist perspective. It's a compelling and eye-opening exploration of the challenges women face when confronting harassment, even if they're prominent figures. This book is a must-read for all, prompting reflection on the urgent need for systemic change, particularly in the context of sexual harassment. It also sparked my interest in Indian sexual harassment laws, potentially leading to a future blog post. Full book review: I have been wanting to read the book “She Said” by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey for a long time now. It had been on my list for about 6 months. But it was only recently that I picked it up and finished it pretty quickly. Being a feminist, I knew I had to be in the right frame of mind to be able to read the book, hence the delay. The book is a riveting read from the very first page. It kept me engrossed throughout. Hence
Read more

India is Akbar Birbal and Tenali Rama: हमने कभी फर्क नहीं किया

-
Image
A lot has been happening in our country over the last few weeks. There has been a lot of talk about it in every form of media available. I myself have been giving a lot of thought to the processions happening all over the country. It is a very complex and complicated issue. On the one hand, I cannot even begin to understand and comprehend the emotions of hundreds of millions of people across the world, who have their emotions invested in this and their joy on the 22nd of January and Ram Mandir. And my love to all of them. It has been a long battle, and they finally got what they had always wanted.  In a serendipitous moment last night, while engrossed in reading Walter Isaacson's "Elon Musk," I came across a chapter about Twitter, talking about Elon Musk and Parag Agarwal. This prompted a train of thought in my mind about the millions of Indians relocating to the USA annually. I imagined a future where, perhaps, a century or two from now, people of Indian origin would con
Read more

#10 Something you always think "What if" about

-
 Hmm, interesting topic. There are a lot of choices we make on a regular basis that define everything in our lives. When I think about one of my "What if" moments, I can remember one decision I made back in 2013, that I felt myself going back to once in a while for a long time. I used to think about that decision with decreasing frequency over time. I don't do that anymore. Maybe because it has been a long time. The statute of limitations has run out.  Apart from that one thing seven years ago, I can't remember myself going back to any other crossroad I have been in my life, questioning my judgment or wondering what would have happened, let alone daydreaming about it. I mean I have made some very tough choices. Life-changing decisions so to speak, but somehow, I think that was the best thing for me to have done at that point in time. In fact, I will not say it best, but the only thing I could have lived with. I know it sounds too serious, but I am someone who needs to
Read more

30 days of my Notice Period

-
Image
I know a lot my posts have been a bit morbid to say in the slightest.  Apologies for all the ranting, preaching and the poems! (I might not be done yet) But somehow the sun has managed to finally wake himself up from his cozy slumber and managed to throw some light my way, putting a crack in the dense clouds hovering over. Too much imagery eh? As I am writing this, I am imagining a dark mark hovering in the sky. But yeah, getting back to the tiny bit of light I have in my life. I have been giving interview after interview for this firm for about 1.5 months now, and finally, they have decided to stop throwing case studies and guesstimates my way and graciously extend me an offer! Yay! I put in my resignation yesterday and I already feel extremely free. I have to serve one month of notice period here, where I will be extremely free, hopefully. It's barely been one day and I am already bored. So I have decided to take up one of those 30-day challenges. I have picked the one below
Read more