As a kid..

'What was the one toy that a friend had that you wished you had when you were little?'

I remember this quite well. And it wasn't a toy. It was books.

As a kid, we weren't really allowed to go to friend's houses. My mum had given us strict instructions to play at the playground and head straight home. We were forbidden to go to other kids' houses or to invite them home unless mum was with us or there was some other important reason that she knew about. I had this friend when I was I think 8 or 9 years old. She wasn't such a special friend and I didn't like her all that much too. Until one day she turned up at the playground with a wonderful storybook (I don't remember what exactly it was). She wasn't really interested in it and left it on a bench and ran to play. I discovered it and I spent the rest of the evening on that bench with the book. When it was time to go, I returned her book and sheepishly asked her if she had more. She said yes and I requested her to bring another one, the next day.

And this became a norm and I would sit and read at the playground everyday. One day she brought back a book I'd already read and when I was disappointed, she invited me to her place. I thought about it and then quickly accepted. Then I went to her house and discovered that she had so many books that it was almost like a library. It was like paradise for me and I squealed in delight. Her dad, it turned out was an avid reader and kept buying books for her. She, on the other hand wasn't so interested in them. Many a book just lay there unopened. I asked my friend if I could borrow a book. She wasn't too keen on that once she discovered that I was so excited. She said I could only read when she was with me in the park. That was when her dad intervened. The friend in particular wasn't so nice but her dad, most certainly was. He found out that I had been reading everyday in the playground and immediately scolded his daughter for not sharing her books with me. He asked me about what books I had read and liked and immediately picked out a couple for me and said that he'd be very happy if I read them. After this, I was a regular at their home. I was devouring books at a pace that the friend's library was exhausted soon. Ma eventually found out that I was doing this and accompanied me one day and had a chat with my friend's dad. She was happy to hear what he had to say. I know my friend was not too happy that her dad was encouraging me to read. Eventually I stopped going to her home and I discovered and with Ma's help, became a regular member at the neighbourhood library and thence began my lifelong love with books.

I continue to read, to this day but not as much as I'd like. Pickles also loves to read and he loves to read with me. I'm hoping this is something I can pass to him. He already has a little book collection of his own and loves visiting the library every few days with me. I've stopped buying books at the moment (I read on my kindle or borrow from the library) but I have started hoarding books for Pickles instead. I guess I just don't want him to discover his love for books the way I did.

Pintsized wit

Pickles and I go to the children's playground every evening. It is our special time together.
We've made lots of new friends in the last few months. I am always amused by some of the thought processes of these kids. 

Overheard at the children's playground.


Kid 1: I'm superman!
Me: Ok. then Pickles is Batman.
Kid 1: No, he is not!
Me: Why?
Kid 1: He cannot be Batman. You can be Batman.
Me: But why?
Kid 1: Because you are Batman
Me: Oh, and he?
Kid 1: He can be Robin!
Me: Ok. But why?
Kid 1: Because Superman and Batman can fly. Robin cannot!


Continued with the same kid on another day
Me: Hello, Superman!
Kid 1: No, I'm Batman.
Me: Why?
Kid 1: Beacuse Batman can also fly.
Me: But, Batman cannot fly. Only Superman can.
Kid1: How do you know? I saw on TV.
Me: I saw on TV too. Batman cannot fly.
Kid 1: On my TV, Batman can fly! Your TV is spoilt!


Kid 3: Can you wait for a while longer? There is still some bubble solution left in the gun.
Me: It's ok. Leave some for tomorrow.
Kid 3: Oh! I'm not sure I will come tomorrow!
Me: :/


Kid 4 played with Pickles' ball and his truck and his bubble gun.
Me: Oh! Pickles has to go home now. Bye!
Kid 1: Can you bring his guns tomorrow. I like playing with guns.
Me: Oh! Pickles has no guns. Why don't you bring your own?
Kid 1(Totally ignoring my question): Just bring whatever toys he has. It's ok!


Kid 5 played with Pickles and his ball for a while.
Kid 5: I'm bored now. Lets play run and catch now.
Me: But Pickles is too little. He can't chase you.
Kid 5: But you can! Let him play with his ball and you can chase me.


Me to Kid 6: Hello there!
Kid 6: Hello! My name is xyz.
Me: Hello, xyz! His name is Pickles.
Kid 6 (totally ignoring an excited Pickles):But what is your name? I want to be friends with you!
Me: Oh ok. My name is Maya. Now can you be friends with Pickles too.
Kid 6: He is too little to be friends with me.
Me: How old are you?
Kid 6: Four!

Reflections: the A to Z challenge

I'm sorry that this comes a bit late. We took a vacation just as the challenge was over. And yes, I had a fabulous time, thank you!

I'm so glad that I did this challenge. It was an eye opener for me, in so many ways.

First of all, it got me out of my inertia to actually do something, have fun doing it and not complain about lack of time. Like I've said before, I have proved it to myself that if I want to really do something, I can! Even at the risk of sounding immodest, I'll say I'm quite proud of myself.

I don't know which part of this was more fun, racking my brains everyday, writing the posts, reading my friends' posts or discovering new blogs. Thanks to the fact that my friends did the challenge with me, it took the fun to another level. And I think it just brought me closer to the friends who took part and then to others who are quietly read and egged me on. And yes, our whatsapp discussions just made sure we kept in touch frequently. And thanks to this whole exercise, I know my friends a little better, they know a little more about me. Even R commented that he didn't know about me, some of the things that I wrote about. I guess along the way it was a path of discovery for myself too.

As some of you may have noticed, in the beginning I only posted at the end of the day but towards the middle of the challenge, I started posting it first thing in the morning. It just helped me instill some discipline into my life again. Also, it made my life a little more exciting. It was something I looked forward to at the end of the day although I'll admit that some days I would loathe having to do anything by the end of the day. But such days were few.

I know all my posts were not the best I could have done and some were better than the others. Still, I am glad I kept going. I started at a slow pace, not sure I liked what I was posting but as I went on, I actually was happy with some of my posts. Most of my posts were random ramblings, mostly about the things going on currently in my life, a lot to do with friends and family. I finally got started with the escapade series and that brought on so much nostalgia. (Yes, I remember. I will finish the series. I promise there is more exciting stuff coming up).

Thanks to all of you for reading and being a part of this journey with me. And more importantly, thanks to all of you who made the effort  to comment. It really kept me going. And it also taught me a lesson, to comment on other people's blogs when I read them. And yes, the traffic at the blog has increased as compared to nothing I had before. It is definitely good to know that someone out there reads and maybe enjoys my posts.

And most of all, I'm glad I'm blogging again. I hope I will continue. I sure as hell will try. I've heard from friends, from my sisters and the five people who read this blog, that they enjoyed it. You know who you are. I want to say thank you for your encouragement. One part of me is happy that it is over and that I don't have to stress about another letter tomorrow. But another part of me is also sad. All that excitement is now gone. I have to find a new project now to look forward to.

I wasn't sure how to deal with the withdrawal symptoms until I realised the simplest solution. To keep blogging!

Q is for Quality time

When I was a kid, the number of working moms was fewer than they are now. My mom, however, fell into that category. She used to work for a bank. I was really proud of her and would tell anybody who'd ask that she was superwoman, Yes, she had 4 kids and still went to work (and worked at home too). People would raise eyebrows and wowed. I never understood why. But I remember that Ma was always around. Even when I think really hard, I can't remember a time when she wasn't there for me when I needed her.

I remember, no matter how early I woke up, Ma was always up. I remember thinking that maybe she never went to sleep. But every morning, she would be so fresh. She would tend to each one of us and help us get ready for school. Our breakfast would be ready and she would pack our lunch boxes to take to school. Ma went to work from 9 to 5. But once she was back from work, she was all ours. She would play with us or help us study. She would immerse herself in making sure all her kids were happy. She would go with us to the playground (for as long as we wished for her to go with us). And even at home, I never ever remember her saying that she was busy or that she didn't have the time. She would just leave everything and play snake and ladders with us. Saturdays and Sundays were even more special. She took us to parks and on bus rides. Every little thing was special.

My dad was a workaholic. He never got home early. By the  time he got home, most of  the  time we would either be sleepy or fast asleep already. I don't remember him playing a very active role either in our studies or in our playtime. But strangely, I never missed him. Because Ma was there and she was enough. Ma never asked for 'me-time'. I don't remember her going for any pampering sessions. Neither did she demand that dad be actively involved with the kids.

Today I look at how things have changed. I love spending time with Pickles,but  I want my 'me-time' too. The time that I spend outside of work has so many demands. I want to cook, read, surf the net, watch movies, work out, go for a run, swim, spend time with my friends, with R, go shopping. Phew, the list is endless. So, there! I want to do more. I want some of my life just to myself. I am selfish. I am not happy, just being a mum.

One spare moment, and I am looking at my phone, reading a message or chatting. Or reading some article or book on my ipad. I remember that is how I spent most of my breastfeeding time when Pickles was little. I knew I shouldn't but I did it anyway. I still do that sometimes, when he has just fallen asleep, snuggling next to me. Maybe that is why the concept of 'quality-time' came into being. To make sure you had some non-electronic-gadget time. To actually stop multitasking and enjoy the moment, doing the most important thing, spending time and making memories with your baby. And it's not that I don't spend quality time with Pickles. I do. But I am not happy with that either. I always feel I am not doing enough.

Ma had a job, a busy workaholic husband, minimal help and 4 kids. Still, Ma was always happy and had a smile on her face and no complaints. I have a job, a very helpful partner, full-time help and one little kid, but you will still hear me complaining that I don't have enough time to do everything I want. The amount of time that she had and I do are similar but the problem, I realised is that  I want to do more and more. I am never satisfied. Maybe I should slow down and do fewer things for now. I should probably pick the things I want to do carefully and put off the rest until Pickles grows up. Maybe that will make for more quality time with Pickles and a happier me!

E is for Escapade

Would you believe me if I told you that I ran away from home when I was 15. I almost started to write out the whole story as it happened, when it occurred to me that I could make this more fun. I’ve made up some part of the story but most of it really happened. I will leave it to your imagination to figure what is fiction and what actually happened.

This story is about young girls from a small town in India. But our protagonists were anything but ‘small-town girls’. They were all of 15 years old. I spent a good deal of time thinking of a name for them; fearless (they were not!), fun adventurous (which they were) etc. but none of them did justice. In the end, I decided on ‘Jackdaws’. Like the birds,  they can easily be mistaken for normal crows but they are very different in being keenly inquisitive, high spirited and gregarious in nature. To be honest, the name is also inspired by Ken Follet’s book with the same name. In the book, the Jackdaws are an all female group of reniassance fighters. The girls I’m talking about had all the above characteristics and more. Let me first introduce you to the Jackdaws: I will just call them Soo, Shee, Vee and Mee.

Soo a.k.a the fearless one:

The most gutsy character of the group, she was almost fearless. She would stand up for her friends, whatever the cost. She was tall and pretty but on the flip side, a little daft as well.

Shee a.k.a the pretty one:

Very generous and kind hearted but because of which, she was super-gullible.

She was vain but also the prettiest of the lot. Born to a rich family, she had unlimited access to a lot of resources that the others didn’t.

Vee a.k.a the charming one:

Quite the charmer, she could talk her way through any situation. The story started thanks to her! Never one to follow rules, she was creative, fun-loving and a dreamer. She was the glue that held the pack together.

Mee a.k.a the smart one:

The most practical one in the group and the smart one as well. Always followed rules but the Jackdaws brought out the wild side of her. Extremely loyal and would always go the extra mile for friends.

The girls happened to meet in school. They got along like a house on fire and eventually got into a lot of trouble, both in and out of school. Soo and Shee grew up in the small town but Vee and Mee had both been brought up in the big city but had landed in the small town due to different circumstances. Now lets get to our story.

It all started when, due to family circumstances, Vee came to live with her aunt and uncle in the small town. Lets just call them the Evil Aunt K and Uncle Chot. Vee was very unhappy living with them. She hated the samll town and her aunt and uncle. She longed to go back to the city, to live with her parents again. Aunt K and Uncle Chot made life very difficult for Vee. But once she met the Jackdaws, life was bearable again. Aunt K and Uncle Chot did not approve of her friends and did all they could to stop her from seeing them often. Most of the adventures of the Jackdaws involved tricking and of course, making a fool of Aunt K and Uncle Chot.

One day, Uncle Chot told Vee that she to go to another city to visit her relatives. Vee suspected there was more to it than just ‘visiting’ although she did not know what. She suspected  that she was to be parceled off to another place but she didn’t want to leave her friends. When she voiced her dissent, he would have none of it. Her tickets had been booked and she would leave in the next two days. When Vee told the others, they were all heartbroken. She told them she didn’t want to go but she had no choice. They said their goodbyes and Vee told her friends not to come to the station to see her off, as Uncle Chot had warned her. He personally came to see her off to the bus stand, standing guard until the bus left.

Soo, Shee and Mee had decided they just had to say goodbye to their friend and see her one last time, no matter what. They stood hiding in the bus stand, and once the bus started, they started their bikes (I mean two-wheelers, not bicycles) and set off behind the bus. What followed was a very bollywood style bus-chase scene. Vee was so happy to see her friends but also sad that she was leaving them and waved goodbye. But the trio just kept following the bus. After about an hour, the bus stopped at the end of the town to pick up more passengers. The trio then went up to the bus and asked Vee to get off. Vee picked up her luggage and came down. By now, they were all in tears and in between hugs, they decided that Vee would just come back with them. And Vee did just that! And together, they just rode back to Shee’s place.

Shee’s home was a big place. She had a room to herself and could go in and out of the house without anyone finding out. So, quitely they all went there and plonked themselves on the giant bed in Shee’s room. Everyone was super happy and danced away for a while. Eventually, Soo and Mee had to go home. It was then that they began to realise the enormity of what they had just done. They had just helped their friend run away. The next morning, the relatives would call Uncle Chot and tell him that Vee was not on the bus. What now? Vee could hide here for a while but what after a few days. Uncle Chot would know they had smething to do with Vee’s disappearance and would come looking for her. They didn’t have a plan yet but they had to think of something. And fast!

To be continued.

Writing this post has inspired me to start a series called the ‘Escapades of the Jackdaws’. This is only part I of the story.

D is for Dreams

And I’m not talking about the REM kind but about the ones that we envision with our eyes wide open. I’m not exactly who you would call a ‘dreamer’. I like to think that I am a practical person, always only yearning for such things that I foresee can come true in the future. I tell myself that I shouldn’t be bound by such rules but that is who I am.

From a young age, I’d dreamt of becoming a doctor. I was always in awe of doctors and how they could actually know what is wrong with you just by listening to your heartbeat and listening to your symptoms. And they could also save lives. I was fascinated by science and particularly, medical science. I remember being very interested in Biology in school. At my plus 2 levels, I chose to major in Botany and Zoology. I was all the time prepping myself to do well in the Common Entrance Test, which is the entrance exam for medical and engineering schools in the place I grew up in. I did reasonably well too.

And then the inevitable happened. I found out about the fees. It was, what seemed to be to me then, a humongous amount, even for a merit seat . I had sleepless nights  just thinking about how my parents could ill afford my fees and how it would affect my sisters’ education after me, if I decided to go ahead. I knew that my parents would never say no, if  I wanted to enroll into medical school. And then I made a very silly but important decision. In my naivety, I didn’t tell them what I was thinking. I just said I don’t want to enroll into medical school any more. I said I just wanted to do my Bachelor’s in Biology. My mom was surprised. She coaxed me a little to try and consider engineering at least but I would have none of it. So finally, I went and enrolled into a college for a Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology. I remember dad had to pay my fees for the entire three years upfront, as the college was worried that someone with such high marks will enroll and then quit the moment they got admission into med/engineering college.

And just like that, I gave up my dream. Looking back, it was such a silly decision. I could have taken a loan that I could have paid back in due course. There are so many things that I could have done. I should have at least spoken to my parents about it. But I was scared that they wouldn’t let me ‘sacrifice’ and would make me go to medical school. But don’t let that make you feel sorry for me. I ended up in a good great place.

When I come to think about it, I am so happy I didn’t enroll into med school. If I had, I would never have met R. And I’m happy with my life now, just the way it is. I have a doctorate, just not the medical one. I ended up doing a PhD , which I think is pretty good too. I am now involved in understanding what else is happening in the human body and making drugs that can enable the doctors to cure illnesses. I like to think that I am still in my own small way contributing towards making the world a better place.

Then again, one is never too old to dream a new dream. When old dreams get lost, newer ones make their way into that space.

C is for Culinary skills

My earliest relationship with the kitchen was one of hate. When I was a kid, a yell from the kitchen meant an errand or a chore and I would turn and run in the other direction. My mom eventually figured it out that I hated it and would never ask me to do anything food-related, other than eating it. I was excused from the chopping and the cleaning and my sisters filled in nicely. Instead, I would get all the shopping lists. I still have memories of shopping for vegetables and groceries and coming back with a big bag hanging on the handlebar of my bicycle.

Eventually, I discovered my love of good food, eating it that is. And I remember asking a friend’s mom for the recipe of a tomato chutney that I had absolutely loved at their home. And I came back armed with the recipe. My mom wanted nothing to do with it. She said, if you want to eat it, you’ll have to cook it yourself. With too much pride at stake, I marched into the kitchen portraying a confidence that I didn’t really have (my earlier experiences in the kitchen had been limited to just boiling some water and cooking maggi for a quick snack). But I still managed to follow the instructions for the recipe. I know you’re expecting to hear about the disaster next, but it didn’t happen. The chutney actually turned out pretty well.  And it felt really good to eat something that I had made on my own, not to mention the generous compliments I got at dinner from my family. Now I know that it is really a fool-proof recipe for chutney, but then it really boosted my morale and thus began my journey of culinary adventures.

After that, I started cooking random dishes for dinner and sometimes, when I felt like it,  even a full course meal. I have to mention that my sisters loved it that I was cooking. It just meant that they would get to eat something unusual. So they were all supportive and actually would even help by chopping the vegetables and cleaning  up afterward. I would, of course, get all the credit if the dish turned out well. I remember the one thing that I cooked many a times was butter chicken. Today I can make awesome butter chicken evenif I say so myself. But it is only because my guniea pigs/sisters lapped up every single morsel of the million attempts I made before I perfected the recipe.

And then, I moved  to Singapore. Now I had to cook if I wanted to have a home-cooked meal. And what’s worse was that I had no help whatsoever. I had to start from scratch and actually even clean up after myself. But it was also an exciting time because it meant I could buy stuff for my very own kitchen. I started small. I remember I had one little wok in the beginning and if I was cooking two dishes, I had to cook one, transfer it to a serving bowl/plate and then cook the next one. Slowly, I started investing in my kitchen. But even with fewer utensils I had, my cooking has fed quite a few mouths. Friends used to drop by for a meal and happily agreed to be guinea pigs for any new experiment.

Singapore also exposed me to a variety of cuisines. Until then, my idea to world cuisine had been limited to  Indian-Chinese food and well, pizza! In Singapore, started my journey of experimenting with all kinds of new food and newer ingredients. I started getting addicted to a lot of cooking shows and trying out newer recipes. It was also around this time that I met a bunch of other foodies, Shub, Sayesha and Pizzadude. We’d catch up for a meal or two every week and try different restaurants, not to mention different cuisines. Although we miss Shub now (she  moved far away, breaking all our collective hearts), we still have our brunch/lunch/dinner meetings, wailing babies and jumping toddlers and all. Our potluck meals are great too. We also have cookathons (I just coined that!). We’re all super enthusiastic and I don’t know what is more fun, cooking together or eating the food later!

And did I mention, I love frequenting the kitchen-tools section in supermarkets. Thanks to the frequent visits and some weak moments of excessive splurging, I now have a decent set of kitchen tools, which are among my most precious belongings. And yes, more importantly, I am a decent cook now and I can put together a great full course meal. People I meet after many years are surprised when I invite them for a meal. But I guess, its not that difficult to figure. To cook good food, you must love to eat good food, which I most definintely do. And ultimately, cooking is all about getting the proportions right. I guess that is almost second nature to me because of all toiling for so many years in the lab.

I guess it all comes down to that one little incident that started me off on this amazing journey. I never thought I’d say this but thanks Ma, for saying no.

Scotalnd - the land of food and drink- First impressions.

Scottish people are absolutely smashing! They are a great friendly bunch. Just as soon as you figure out what they're saying. It takes a while to get used to their accents, you see. Every single person you see will not pass you by without hurling a hiya or great day! your way. If you think that is just a formality, most people are eager to make conversation too.

The weather is to die for! At least now. It's summer. The sun is out but the breeze is cold. The evening air is chilly. Just nice for a pint of beer or a glass of single malt.

I just love the dogs here. Apparently, so do the scots. There are dogs pretty much everywhere. A husky in the park, a lab in the bus, a border collie in the departmental store, you name it and they're all here. Adorable creatures, of all colors and sizes. I will post pictures soon. The people are so proud of them, and for good reason.

They have a lot of national pride. Anything you pick up, the label says made in the UK. Nothing else, if you catch my drift. Their national pride shows. And if  you think bagpipes are a thing of the past, think again. The kilts and bagpipes are not in anyway obsolete.

The Scots have an awesomely wicked sense of humor. Will do a post on that soon.

The fish and chips are really something. So are the fried Mars bars :) They love their fried stuff almost as much as Indians. But then again, they love Indian food too! Apparently, you get the best Indian food in the UK in Scotalnd. I will let you know once I taste some. I am beginning to get sick of the fish and chips and sandwiches anyway.

As of now, loving it here. I'll be here for a week more. Will keep you posted. 

My 10 minutes of fame -II

You can see the first part of this post here.

And so it finally dawned. The day I was supposed to make my presentation to the BIG scientific community. You might think I'm making a very big deal out of this but to me, it was a big deal. And probably that's why I was putting enormous pressure on myself to do this right!

Usually student and post-doc presentations are held in the afternoon after the symposias are over in the morning and most of them are held in small rooms. But imagine my horror when I was told I was supposed to present in one of the big symposia halls itself. These symposia halls are big ones with the capacity to hold at least 600-800 people. Since the speaker cannot be see by everyone, there is a huge screen which projects the live feed of the speaker. So, every single expression on the speaker's face is obvious to everyone. Every grimace, every frown and every bead of sweat is out there for everyone to see. But the good thing about it was since there is so much light on the speaker's face and the rest of the room is dark, you don't realize there is an audience. You might as well be in an empty room.

So, anyway on the day itself, I was too nervous to actually concentrate on any of the morning talks. During lunch I couldn't really eat much either. My talk was scheduled to be at 2 pm. All my friends and colleagues were wishing me luck and making random conversation. But I couldn't really get my head to do anything. So I went to the auditorium a little ahead of time. 

To my surprise, my supervisor was already there. I was touched to know that he was there even before me. Have I mentioned he is one of the best bosses around. (And no, he is not reading this blog. I am sure!) He wished me luck again and told me just to be myself. He told  me about his first talk and how it was a horror-show and that it would only get better. I can only hope. 

Ten minutes to two, I went to the chair (not the electric one, just the chair-person of the session) along with  other speakers of the session.The chair told us we each had 2 minutes extra as one speaker had cancelled out. So I now had 10 minutes for my talk and 2 minutes for questions. I was delighted that I could manage with time to spare. I don't have to face the timer ticking on my slides if I take too long. One of the other speakers sat right next to me. He was a post-doctoral fellow and I'm so thankful to him. I didn't even catch his name. The only thing he said to me was " Why are you so nervous? You do realize that you know more about this project than anyone else in the audience does!" , which is actually very very true. That did boost my morale quite a bit. 

And then, my name was announced. And today's first speaker is Dr. Maya. The chair person didn't know I was a phd student. And he also said " He is going to speak to us about...",  he didn't know I was female either. He did apologize when I went on stage, but by then I didn't care any more. After I was at the podium, everything else went blank in my memory for the next 9-10 minutes. It was just me and my slides.I know I blanked out a few times, but came back immediately, which my colleagues said they didn't notice. And then there was applause. I was too blank to notice that too. Then the dreaded Q and A session started. Every one of the people who asked me a question complimented my talk/work. Maybe they just did that just as a formality. Nevertheless, it felt good. I am proud to say I answered all questions. Surprisingly, it did look as though I knew more than I thought I did! My Q and A session was better than I had ever dreamed of. After a round of 8-9 questions, I came down the podium and sat through the other talks in a daze. After the session, my boss came up to me and patted my back and said, "You did well, kid!".That meant a lot to me. 

And just like that it was over. There! I had given my first presentation at an international conference in front of at least 500 people.

I am hoping that someday, I will look back and laugh at myself and think how silly I was to feel so nervous about a talk. And that is one reason I am recording this in such detail.

And now that the tough part is over, let the holiday begin.

My 10 minutes of fame - I

My 8 10 minutes of fame

It all started in the end of july when I was making plans to attend my annual conference. This year I decided to to the UK, having already gone to Europe and US the last 2 years. So, there was this conference in Glasgow in September that I decided on. When I told my supervisor, he was quite happy coz he said he was going to this conference too. And I found that quite a few of my colleagues were going too. So, it would be a fun lab trip. That was that. It was decided.  I was going to Glagow!

How it usually works is that you send out your abstract (a brief summary of your research findings) and then the conference organizers choose a few of them for actual oral presentations and all the othes go into the poster category where you only present a poster, like I've been doing the last couple of years. So, quite certain that it would be the case this year as well, I submitted my abstract. Then we all started making plans for the trip and where we would travel afterward etc etc. A few days later, all my colleagues got their acceptance letters for posters but I didn't. I was just beginning to think that the unthinkable had happened and my abstract had been rejected (which almost never happens, coz they accept 98% of the abstracts). And then it came! The email which said my abstract had been chosen for an oral presentation. 

Ohhhh, the horror!! I have to make a presentation in front of a huge audience. I spent the next two days in shock, excitement, stress and then shock again. And there began my preparation of my slides, getting my data in good shape, presentation and practice. My supervisor was super proud and wanted to make sure I do a good job. He always said "You'll be fine. Just be yourself!". He made me prepare my slides well in advance , went through it in fine detail and then made me practice my actual presentation. The problem was, you see in such conferences, all the big shots get about 30 minutes to present but measly students/post docs get only 8 minutes. That was the tough part. Because you see, you have to give just a short introduction to your work, present all your good data, conclude and thank everyone, all in just 8 minutes. In all my practice sessions, no matter how many slides I cut down, how fast I spoke or how little I said about each slide, my presentation always took at least 10 minutes. I decided I'll take it as it comes and set off....

And then we came to Glasgow! Unlucky as I am, my talk was scheduled to be on the last day of the conference. So I had to bear the stress for 4 more days. And I couldn't actually enjoy Glasow much but I still did as much as i could, with the presentation in the back of my head. The day before the last day, there was a party which I had intended to skip, but my boss insisted that all of us go. And so I went. And I'm so glad I did. I had a ball. It's been a long time since I had that much fun at a party full of strangers. It's amazing to see all the scientists having so much fun. It seemed that they were actually for real. The serious speakers and sharks drinking, letting their hair down and having a good time. It was a fun party with 3 parallel sessions of different music, one of them of course being the Scottish pipes, with the band called the red hot chilli pipers. 

Did I mention I did the Scottish dance, with my boss and other team members and of course the kilt-wearing pipers. We had a roaring good time. I'm glad I went to the party for another reason, it took my mind off the stress for the talk. We partied until late and as soon as I went back, I was fast asleep. I had a dream though, that I went to present and my slides weren't showing as they were prepared on a Mac and we had to use windows to present. So I said I'll just use my own computer. Then I couldn't find my adaptor and by the time I ran around looking for an adaptor, they said my time i.e 8 minutes were up. So I couldn't present any more.

When I woke up in a sweat, I realized it is THE day. My first thought was OMG!! I was stressed. I had intended to do a few more practice sessions but that didn't happen due to the party. But I told myself I had done it enough number of times, so much that even in my sleep I was running through my slides.I was going to be ok.

More to come. Watch this space!

The Smile Spreader

• This man is 78 years old and he still works for a living. 
• In spite of that, there is never a bitter moment around him.
• He is almost toothless but his smile is perfect.
• He always sports a smile and you can’t help but smile back at him, even when you’re having a really bad day.
• No matter what you say to him, he always has a funny retort. There was this time when I asked him, “What’s in your pocket?” and he said, “my girlfriend’s letter, don’t tell my wife”.
• He walks with a stoop but he always opens doors for the ladies.
• He plays pranks on the aunties on the floor. In spite of that, they all pamper him.
• He has nicknames for everyone. He calls me Mona Lisa. And tells me I must smile more often.
• He reminds me to comb my hair.
• He is one of those people who make you want to believe the world is good.
• He told me today was his last day at work today.

Goodbye, Pachek. I’ll miss you.

Nostalgia

Ta na na Ta na Na na Naa

Ta Na na Ta na Na na Na

Ring a bell?

When I saw this book in the bookstore, I just had to pick it up. And although I am not a short stories person, this was one exception I was willing to make.

This has been one of the books I’ve most enjoyed in the recent past. And I don’t mean just reading it.  The memories that they bring back are another treat.

R.K. Narayan portrays the extraordinary stories in the ordinary life of the common man. He almost paints the stories in your head. The short stories are all witty, some are ironic and all of them very simply written. But why this book is also special to me is because of the sweet memories they bring of the old episodes of “Malgudi Days” on DD.

As I read through the stories, images of those particular episodes flash through my eyes. That was one hell of a production not to mention well cast. Whether it was Anant Nag as the Mithaiwalla or master Manjunath as little Swami, all of the characters stayed with you. My favorite episodes back then was “Swami and friends”. I really enjoyed watching them as a kid. What I didn’t know is that Malgudi is actually a fictional place and is not actually on any map.

The book and the serial definitely made a lasting impression, not to mention the cartoons by R.K. Laxman. But what I’ll probably never forget is this music. I’ve been humming this tune from the last few days. If you heard me, now you know why.