Thursday, October 6, 2011

One down, three to go!

A couple of years ago, if you had asked me if I would ever do an MBA, I would have vehemently denied it. Vehemently, in the sense, screamed "NO" so loud, that your  toupee would have flown off, like in the cartoons. And don't even try to deny that even if you don't wear one, you want to at least own one.

But, here I am, sitting in my room, one day before the first semester of my MBA ends. Who would have thought that this would ever happen. I don't regret my MBA, because somehow, I found an MBA in Communications which means I can happily skip the subjects like macro economics, finance, etc. The sad part is that I am stuck with Design Technology, Audio-Visual Communication and horribly, Statistics.

Now the first two sound like fun, and I'm sure they are, if you have any aesthetic sense for design and a yearning for technology. Learning about Photoshop and (God save me!) Flash next semester, does NOT make me want to jump with joy. Instead, I'd like to start digging a tunnel to the centre of the earth because that would be easier.

Now, learning about different camera angles and different cameras, is fun. Give me an exam, where I have to write a treatment plan for a short film (based on some excerpt from a story), DRAW a storyboard, write a script (YAY!), make a shooting schedule, plan locations, equipment required and write casting sides in an hour and a half is rather ridiculous! Let's just say my boxes with stick figures and squiggles leaves a LOT to be desired. The only thing worth anything in that paper was the script.

A semester here has taught me a LOT of things! For starters, I was introduced to the concept of roommates. Yeah, I'm an only child and I've only ever shared my room with my dog. And she's small and sleeps under my bed, so it doesn't really count. I'm so not used to having someone around me ALL the time!

Another fun thing, boys in my class! I've never really had those! Girls' school and then girls' college for my undergrad! They really do mix things up!!!

I FINALLY met someone who is as big a fantasy geek as I am, and that is saying something. I won't mention who it is, because that person is a closeted geek! Needs to maintain an image and a reputation and all that!

My friends here are super awesome! I honestly didn't think I'd be lucky to have such fantastic, quirky friends!

There's Supriya, who reminds me of me, when I was 16 and thrown into a world that was so alien to me and I had to grow up really fast to catch on. I LOVE that she still has her innocence, cracks PJs and is wide-eyed at a LOT of things! She is also my tall and skinny buddy and my guard-detail partner (you know what I'm talking about!). She also helps me keep in touch with my super girly-ness and I still feel cool talking Meg Cabot and Nora Roberts with her!

Aloka is someone who I doubt I'll ever be able to describe! She lives on pure instinct, doesn't have a filter (ever) and always claims to be an "introvert" and a "good girl", which cannot be further from the truth. She is one person who can always make me laugh, no matter what mood I'm in and I love freaking her out when I read her mind! All she has to do is smile (Aloka style) and meow.

Shaliny is my literature buddy! She is the one who understands my whining about how it's just wrong to sit in a classroom and not be studying literature. She is also someone who gives me an immense amount of comfort during exams (Shalu, you know why) and she is the most fun to irritate! (Swaliny .......)

Anisha is the powerhouse singer. We all knew Anisha could sing, and then she sang. Shaliny and I were left gaping. She is someone I can talk to about life philosophies and theories, even though mine and her's are polar opposites. She always gives me a different perspective. Other than that, I love the fact that I can mention names like Yael Naim and she knows who she is!

Darren is my entertainment. He was put on this planet for this purpose! He's someone who "gets" me and who I can talk to about a lot of things! Our opinions are the same on a LOT of things which is awesome! We have somewhat similar tastes in music, but our TV/Books tastes match almost a hundred percent! Thank you for coming here dude! I don't know I would have survived Stats class otherwise!

I got luckier I think when it came to my roommates! They are seriously the best I could ask for!

Azmeen is wonderful! She and I have the same feelings about a lot of things. I vibe so well with her. She meows, not like Aloka though, and she doesn't share chocolate. She makes me give her my gulab jamun and tells me that I remind her of her eldest sister. She is someone who I can laugh with, whine with and share gossip with! I love it when she gets excited and jumps up and down and when she leaves notes on the mirror that no-one sees.

My other roommate Jayati is someone who is hyper-active and loud. But somehow she is endearing and I know that life would be rather boring without her! In the beginning, she used to be the one who woke up the earliest and now, she is the last one to wake up! She is someone who plays The Pretty Reckless, followed by Akon in the mornings while taking a shower. If there is music coming out of the bathroom, you know she's in there!

I love our late night talks that leave us rolling with laughter. We all are so different from one another but I can't see anyone else I'd rather live with! It's horrid, because I am going to miss them for the six weeks that we're gone!! And here I thought I would never, ever want to live with a roommate!

I did learn some language skills from people I've come across. Here are some phrases, every person from SIMC-B must have in his/her vocabulary.

"Ai Shappat"
"Sheri"
"You know"
"You getting it?"
"You understand no? You understand?"
"Lordy"
"Basically..."
"As I was saying..." (with gestures)
"Oye listen"
"My friend knows someone who...."
"Okkkay then"

Other valuable take aways include how to sleep with your eyes open, how to talk non-stop, without a breath, how to text in class, how to write emails, a lot of Hindi, how to hide while studying and how to play spy.

It's been a fun four and a half months overall, I've stayed up till 4am doing projects and gone to class at 8 the next day, I now feel like my knees have been reshaped, the amount of times I've rammed them into various tables, I've learned to sleep on what can only be describes as a slab of granite, I've lived in a grey and white building (after ALL my houses/rooms have been multi-coloured) and I've lived without Gypsy (that has been the hardest of all!).

I am so looking forward to going back home to Gypsy, my cupboards, my TV, my books, my alone-ness, my green walls, my posters and all that, but all said and done, I am going to miss this place and all the people in my life here!