Monday, February 14, 2011

Been Thinking...

Here I am after over 2 years back on the blogging arena. The interest and the passion for writing kept going for a toss as the life took new steps and new challenges. Challenges that are sometime heartening and sometimes the exact opposite. The first of the steps taken was to read some of the few comments that my readers left behind on my old blogs. One of which asked me whether I plan to restrict myself to just cycling related blogs. Now, here is the new challenge, a smaller one though, facing me now at this moment. Damn ! just when I thought I have enough tasks to worry about but hey why not ?

Well ! To answer that question - Do I plan to restrict myself to just cycling related blog ? The answer could be "yes" but with a fair bit of hesitation. For now and for a change, let me reflect on the past 2 years that I have lived away from the blog-world and alike. The two years or so since the great disappearance a lot has changed. The big one is that I am now not one but two. Yeah ! I got married with a lovely woman from my homeland a.k.a from Kerala, the God's Own Country. The God's Own Country gave me my partner-in-crime for the years to come and of course for what is left of my life to live. The big move I have done is return to my motherland.

Oh ! Homeland and motherland, you must be wondering.

No need to run for the dictionary as these words mean the same but have it own distinct place in my books because the former is my place of origin and the latter is my place of belonging. Confused, again ?

The past two years were spent corrupting those honest but devilish aam-admi-farmers-with-devilish-horns to part with their hard earned money into this new world order of manipulative-but-admired stock market. Two years were spent traveling across the South of India to some tiny villages which boasted of having stock exchange terminals with broadband connectivity which allowed them ownership of some top company. Let us not talk about the blackberrys and other smart phones carrying bullock cart mounted farmers from these villages who boasted of technology to do with everything but not water. I loved it for the convenience part (the city devil is smiling inside me) because I could report back to my higher-ups back in Cochin but at the same time felt a sense of sadness. The sound of rattling bells on the goat neck and the smell of burning cow dung and the smoke were soon becoming an over-admired folklore item, like in thousand or so "India-the shinning village" travel literature novels in Central London big book shops.

The big move was a difficult choice. The homeland and motherland factor question was indeed a difficult one but in the end the latter won. It has been 4 months since I have moved back. The 4 months have been the longest I have spent in my city since the even bigger move to London in 2003. The last 9 years have brought me back to the city of dreams (or is it "city that never sleeps", never mind) several times but only for few days which was just not enough to catch up on the senti-memory part or the custom of standing and eating the customary vada-pav backed chit-chats. But all is well that ends well and I am here to make and take the best of what is left of this once shocking but much-loved and admired city - The CITY of BOMBAY.... errr Mumbai, else I have been warned by my wife as I write it here ! These nationalistic souls.... !!!

For the meanwhile, the crank is ready and the cleated shoes awaits for the year ahead...