Of Whining, Winning & Wine

Calvin and Hobbes © of Universal Press Syndicate & Bill Watterson

Jim Carrey, in a movie yet to be released in India, titled “ No. 23”, assumes that his life is based on the number 23. He seems to come across this number wherever he looks; on the jerseys of early morning joggers, his birth-date added up, the number of letters in his name and so on. This, he applies, even for the cause of his death and consequently finds himself being paranoid about life.

Yours sincerely is celebrating his 23^rd birthday. Any similitude? May be….

It is after a year that I am trying to update this page with my musings, and I am finding it hard to fish for words in a sea void of creative juices. But I am putting my best foot…er… keystroke forward.

Ever since I first started this self proclaimed tradition of Birthday Blog, Life has changed a lot. Much water has flown in the river of relationships. People have moved on. Friends and buddies have gotten jobs and are getting used to their new skin of responsibilities. It is finally dawning upon us that our erstwhile thought of being friends forever may not be pragmatic after all. I am not saying that this is the end. But sure enough, people are less accessible now. You can bet your last rupee on the fact that some of us will be in touch with each other for a long future to come (knockwood), yet most of us will have to move on. No choices there. What matters are the decisions each one of us make. We have to look back at our childhood days. They are gone for eternity now. A long road of conscientious adulthood lays ahead. How each one of us treads this path depends on our decisions. Will you decide to concentrate on your career and become a new person, basking in all the success that you yearned for all your life? Or will you strengthen the bond with your buddies whom you spent a quarter of your life with? YOU gotta decide. YOU gotta swim. Either with the tide or against it.

And that pretty much paints a picture of my present state of mind. As Calvin aptly proclaims above, maturity engulfs you. Suddenly, you become aware of your life. How good or pitifully bad it is. You have to get a job, earn, buy a plot, build a house, buy a car, find an ideal life partner, pamper him / her, make babies, buy them toys and stuff (One of my dear friends has started saving for this toys thing albeit another is buying Barbie dolls already). Jokes apart, later, you have to educate your kids, create a good future for them…. So when are YOU going to live the dream you had? You realize THIS IS life….all of this….struggling and achieving. “Settling” in life.

Many of my buddies have struggled and have achieved a few things in life, most of whom have got careers to concentrate on. Two of them (as far as I am informed) are pursuing further education. One in USA and the other in Manipal.

Me? I am still struggling. Struggling to make sense of a life in constant change and upheaval. Struggling to build a career for myself. Struggling to make a better impression amongst a few buddies who blow their own horns about their achievements which sometimes makes me feel inferior.

But fortunately, I have a few people to boost my confidence. One, with her unconditional love and support, tolerates my ‘empty-mind-devils-workshop’ circumstance and gives a reason for my being. Another with broken bums and all gives me sane advice which I always feel is insane. Also this Arsenal aficionado who is always there to lend me money, bandwidth and irritating jokes. And there is the suave spokesman with the Nokia, who unwittingly inspires me.

So that’s it. No PJ’s, no euphemisms, no drooling over HONDAs (what with the traffic and all). I myself am surprised at the topic my mind has poured over here. Which is why the title.

Given the fact that I am a wine connoisseur, although an amateur, I would like to draw an analogy between life and wine, looking at life as a bottle of wine. There exist many kinds of wine, each requiring a specific variety of grapes grown in specific weather conditions and fermented using specific methods. Go wrong at any one of the stages and the wine turns out with a different taste. But be diligent and go through the stages with hard work and then you end up with a good wine. If you want to enjoy it immediately, go ahead! Have a gulp. But remember, if you wait, then you will end up with an aged wine which tastes better. Even though it is painful to have something in your grasp and not have it

The nearest landmark to my house is a Rama Mandir and what little I know about life, I learnt from my house, if you know what I mean.

And if you don’t, then stop scratching your head and send me birthday presents dammit!

ashwinsid at gmail dot com

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Imaging and design by Ashwin S. The author acknowledges that Calvin and Hobbes is © of Universal Press Syndicate & Bill Watterson. The © holders are in no way responsible for the content present herein. Drinking is injurious to health and is illegal for minors. Image is only depiction of authors’ point of view and does not imply Calvin and Hobbes drink alcohol. This article is of personal opinion and is for general reading. Any resemblance to anyone is purely co-incidental.