With my roomie (The original one spends far too much time in the library to qualify)

It’s a pleasantly chilly winter morning, the kind where it’s nice to be snuggly wrapped up in a quilt in bed. The dawn finds me enveloped in a warm glow of happiness. There’s no particular reason for the smile, I’m just in a good mood.

Yesterday I went out with my friends to the trade fair at Delhi. Despite the fact that we almost got squished in the stampede to the entrance we still emerged from that great swarm of humanity laughing, with numerous stories to tell on how we survived.

We spent the day roaming from stall to stall, eating every type of food that was on offer. We shopped, haggled with the vendors and spent a large portion of our time getting lost, getting repeatedly separated from each other and then frantically getting directions on the phone.

We huddled together in the cab on the journey back; the temperature outside being close to freezing. It felt good to be alive and surrounded by the warmth of the smiles of my companions. While it wasn’t mentioned, with placements around the corner, everyone was looking forward to that first salary. It felt glorious to be young, to be alive, to be with friends and to have the promise of a secure future ahead of us.

I’m aware of a certain amount of naivety that this post contains. But what is life without hope for a sunnier tomorrow? I’m just exulting in being alive here right here and right now :-)

Random Thoughts on a chilly winter evening:

1) Leaky nose, rasping cough, head filled with lead and a stomach that is gloriously upset, I want to go home.

2) The room smells so much better after I washed 16 toxic pairs of socks in one go. I managed to survive so far because of a partially blocked nose. My roomie spent the last week in the neighboring room.

3) The dog keeps following me around. She sits quietly under my bed not revealing her presence. I don’t even know she’s there most of the time. She follows me all around campus. She even dutifully accompanies me to the bathroom. Other residents in the corridor are not impressed. I have decided to call her Silk Smitha.

4) How can I possibly convince companies that I am dynamic, intelligent, eager to learn and anxious to undertake extra responsibility? Will the MBA tag make up for my utter lack of initiative?

5) Winter is a lousy time to be single. The campus is lovely and everyone looks nice in sweaters and jackets. It would be heavenly to snuggle up to a warm and loving woman under the blanket. Instead all I have is a dog under the bed and an insomniac for a room mate. I hate all couples.

The scent of placements is in the air. It was mild to begin with but as every day passes more and more students have begun to sniff around with interest. The Economic Times has been much in demand off late and the library has begun seeing some new faces. Books are being dusted and examined more intently. Small groups of people have also started meeting secretly to discuss current affairs. Its still a crime to be seen in the open with a text book in your hand but that will soon be forgiven as the days pass by. For now we just hide the Macro Economics textbook behind the Delhi Times and pretend to be lost in the pages and pages of page 3 (Actually its kind of easy to get lost in the Delhi Times)

At the end of 18 months in IMT, I have just begun to realise how appalingly ignorant I am of all thats been taught here. Sometimes I worry if I'm going to leave IMT knowing less than when I came in. I still cant get myself to read Philip Kotler and the Financial Management textbook gives me the willies. The Economic Times does a spectacular job of failing to hold my interest. I stare blankly at it for a while before my mind starts wandering. I fantasize about Deepika Padukone for a few minutes until she asks me my views on the sub prime mortgage crisis.Then I snap back into attention. I want to leave each job interview with my dignity intact.

There's about a month to go before companies descend on campus. God willing things should go well. Wish me luck.

IBCD is four years old. In the last four years I have experienced love, unemployment, employment, death and heartbreak and managed to survive so far with my soul reasonably intact and a fond hope for a sunnier future. IBCD has been with me all along, a canvas on which I have liberally smeared my emotions, my thoughts, my dreams, and my ego. Whether the picture that has emerged is pleasing is something I cant decide because there's still a lot left to paint.

To those of you who read my blog, thank you so much for being a part of my life. I may not know most of you and may probably never meet you...but thank you just the same. It warms my heart to know that there are so many people out there who take an interest in what I say.

I love blogging..it only bothers me that there's so much more I can write but somehow end up never doing because I'm too lazy to latch onto every inspiration that springs forth.

Here's hoping that IBCD will continue to hold your interest over the next few years of my life. Here's also hoping that the future is warm and bright.Good night.