Pictionary-101

This is about the time when we were working on our MA thesis... By working, I mean sitting in the lab, watching videos of penguins falling into ice-holes and people being kicked in vital areas; eating; watching re-runs of How I Met Your Mother and Friends; eating; adjusting screen resolution; eating; changing the font to something more interesting and sharing it; laughing; eating; and eventually packing up and going off to KFC for a change of scene, good intentions of studying some more AND you guessed it, eating :P
Some of our fondest memories of those days were formed in that KFC. We used to go up to the sitting area, we had this favorite booth, a round table with a semi-circular sofa and a couple of chairs. The hours we have spent there were some of our happiest.
We would order a nice batch of original recipe fried chicken and coke and then 'study'. Only, by studying I do not mean studying any material which can be remotely helpful in the writing of a thesis. We taught and studied, pictionary; to be more specific educative, fun, graphic and not-so-clean pictionary. You see, at the time R. still had herself a ship well-anchored, which for the rest of us had sailed a long time ago...This game, we told her, was a means to teach her the nuances of the larger game of sexes, multiplication and manipulation. And it was, by far, the most fun we ever had.
By all means, it was not ALL dirty... We played the regular version as well; and K.'s chicken scrawl became apparent one afternoon when S. and R. got a point just because the word 'Scrutinize' was looking like 'Dcrutinize'... K denies this, but we all saw it. I still have a picture for proof :P
KFC was not the only place where many versions of this singularly joyful game were played. I think I still have a napkin from Route-04 that has I think the last game of 'dirty' pictionary we ever played. It now resides in a little folder I have which contains other things that always make me laugh.
Another one is a napkin from said KFC which has S., R. and my renditions of K.'s nose. K. also marked these efforts and R.'s version reads, "THATS NOT EVEN A NOSE!!!" We love you, K. and we love your expression when we do what we do :D
Writing the thesis was the time we really and truly became a unit... Before we knew it, the thesis was submitted... We were so happy that MA was finally over...We were post-graduates... Now when I look back, I wish it had lasted a little longer...This post by no means envelopes all the wonderful thesis-writing-time memories. There are many more to come...

Parting of the ways-2

So, to take up where we left off we move to about a month after S, R, K and I had started to get to know each other. It was around this time that we had to organize a farewell party for our seniors. The three of us were in different teams (three, 'cause S and I are, to quote K, "a hermaphroditic blob"). K. was in charge of the food committee, R. for decorations and favors and we were in charge of anchoring the day's entertainment. That was the time when the four of us became really close. K. was in charge of food, which meant we used to go out tasting cakes and stuff which is when we discovered our mutual love for food.

The party was a great success and we had a blast preparing for it... Our theme was 'kites' and we spent quite a few afternoons, writing invites on little kites that proved to be much tougher than it sounds. The kites refused to hold up under the assault of pens and many were sacrificed before someone had the sense to suggest markers. The organizing took a long time, it was chaotic and hot and noisy and great fun...

Another memorable morning was spent wrapping gifts. Sticky tape on our fingers, scissors being passed around with a great deal enthusiasm, scissors being lost and frantic minutes spent tracking them down... I don't think I helped much. I was trying to make a behind-the-scenes for the party... Which gave me a great excuse to excuse myself  from the actual work of preparation :)

The day's entertainment included a dance performance. After much arguing and abusing our phonetics lab computer, ethernet and speakers to converge on a song, we thought that the hard part was truly over. Alas, it had just started for our performers. They spend entire afternoons practicing while we had the easy job of criticizing...We shot their rehearsals and asked them to watch for the mistakes. True tyrants, we truly were...

In the end, that party took us as individuals and integrated us as a group. Later, events would follow that would break up this feeling for good, but for the next few months, all of us really got to know each other and be a team... Of course, nothing could break up the four of us... But we do look back fondly at those sunny days when our entire class hung out as one...

Parting of the ways-1

A month ago, our ways parted... Here I am going to revert back to initials, mainly because I am up against a wall finding apt Greek names for everyone :) This post is about the four of us: Erebos or S., K, R. and yours truly.
We met during our Masters, a time of change and and new beginnings for all of us... Funny thing, S. and I were together at this time, but people say we look alike so at first, our classmates had a dilema: soulmates or siblings; consorts or cousins? For the record, we look nothing alike except for the curly hair, glasses and general chubbiness... Eventually, K. and R. knew from some of my (now famous)indiscreet comments. Oh, and there was this guy, lets call him G. who figured out we weren't related in any way from the beginning, but didn't know that we were in college together. So he spent the first week asking S. how he got a girl to...ahem...go out with him that soon after meeting. I think S. enjoyed the suspense while it lasted...
The four of us weren't that close to start with... In the beginning, S. hated K. because K. has been the reason he was forced to do extra work for an assignment that would otherwise have been easy. I remember an entire afternoon spent doing said assignment and cursing K. with each stab of the pencil... Sorry, K. :P :P
We didn't know R. that well and she didn't know us.
Our friendship evolved slowly. We found out that K. and R. were very sweet and very much our kind of people. We shared the same principles and interests (no pun intended) and all of us shared one great love: that for food. As we explored and discovered new eateries together, our hearts grew fonder.
We realized we shared another great love, one that is so beautiful and fulfilling: that for dogs...I realize that in context of eateries and 'fulfillment' one might get an impression that we love dogs as edible things. No, we just love dogs because they are the best things that ever happened to humans. K. has two adorable little things (they are not little, literally, but then aren't these darlings always little :)) Bo and Sh. Bo is the cutest thing, always trying to run away from home with his incredulous cute little expression and he would curl up oh so sweetly on your lap and sleep... Sh is the most innocent little thing, he looks everywhere for his ball, answers even when you call him 'idiot' and when he nudges you with his nose, I dare anyone to not go 'Awwwwww'... R.'s little cutie is called 'Bud' and he is the most adorable thing. He also shares the great love for food with us and spends long hours sitting in front of the kitchen with that melting look that only dogs can practice and have. He hates exercise, loves chewing slippers, doesn't like baths and is insanely jealous of an imaginary dog. He has the world's cutest little butt and R. says most of his puppyhood was spent trying to walk upright with that little butt weighing him down :)  
Talking about shared love of things, we also had shared dislikes. In the beginning all of us had kind of an icky feeling about babies, more specifically little ankle-biters that just ambush you and pull your hair, grab your phone and scream until you have nightmares of screaming babies. Over time, K. and R. have started to come around to the idea of having babies. S. and I. still refer to babies as 'it' and though we still feel a little queasy about the whole idea, I promise you K. and R. that when you have babies we'll love them and hold them and everything... :) And someday, we too shall take the plunge ;)
Over the years we have had our moments, our memories, little fights as well but the beginning is always the best part.
This was our beginning, and thus started an association which has given all of us trunk-fuls of memories and laughter, shared together...

Getting to know us-1

I am Rhy and this is for Erebos. He knows who he is and he knows that I miss him a lot these days... He is the best thing that has ever happened to me and after more than 4 blissful years, I find myself 9000 miles away from him. This too shall pass and so we shall soon be re-united. Until then, these posts will make him smile... At first I thought I might use initials instead of names, you know, privacy, defamation and what not. But then I decided to go whimsical and use the Greek pantheon instead. Why I call my partner Erebos, you ask? He is  the God of darkness and shadow, Erebos, I mean, not my partner. And I decided to call him Erebos because he would rather be the master of darkness and shadow than be the master of something beastly and goody-two-shoes like air, light or harvest... This blog will take us back 7 years, we will re-visit fond memories we made together and also not-so-fond ones. The blog will actually go back to the time life was barelling us towards each other, things you already know about me but which I will write anyway because, well, because its nice to write things. And also, when our baby walks up to you and surreptitiously asks if you too believe his mother is crazy, you can just show him this :)