Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Love Story




Well keeping up with my Aspiration of being a novelist, let me tell you a story.

This story begins as they often do with a guy and a girl, but as I like my stories this doesn’t have a happy ending, or probably no ending.

There is a guy, let’s call him A and there is a girl let’s call her B. The names here are immaterial, and you probably would know a 100 such As and Bs.

Well begun is half done –

A and B have been going around for around 2 years now and are seemingly very much in love. But the thing is that A recently moved to a different city and a different college and it is now what they call a ‘Long distance relationship’. All is going good; they talk to each other every day on the phone and miss each other very much. They try to meet each other whenever they get to and it looks like ‘Happily ever after’ scenario for both of them.

Enter the third guy C here. C & B are classmates and have recently become good friends. B tells A about C that they have recently become good friends. A smiles and feels happy about B; he was never that nosy/jealous/possessive type. In fact he feels happy about B, thinking that good she has found a good friend, he was worried about B after he left thinking that she might be lonely.

Things continue normally between the two, just that there is an increased mention about C on the phone. A once in a while teases B about C. "I’m sure that there is something going on between you two" but all in good spirit, B always laughs it off.

Trouble in Paradise –

All bad things start as small. One phone call that B couldn’t pick because she was watching a movie with C. One engaged phone because B was talking to C all night, after all the poor guy had a bad fight with his girl friend. One rebuff by A when he was out drinking with his buddies because he couldn’t get to speak to B for an hour.

A increasingly starts to get worried and there are fights aplenty between them. It’s like both of them are looking for excuses to fight with each other. But both are very much in love and very much willing to patch up every time they fight. In fact both of them go out of there way now days to make each other happy. But A can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong somewhere and C is to be blamed for it.

A is back to his old city for a few days and tries to spend as much time as possible with B. But he realizes that things aren’t exactly the same like he left them, and B is busy a lot these days. One day he meets a few buddies of his which are classmates of B. After a few drinks they pull out worried looks on their faces, like they are about to announce somebody’s death. A asks

"What up Guys, why you people look so worried?"
"Nothing bro, but there is this thing we wanted to tell you"
"Ya tell me then"
Na... Never mind. It’s nothing "
"No no, tell me"
"Well.....You know about C, right? Well there is buzz around the campus that there is something going on between them, they are ALWAYS together."

A rubbishes the whole conversation and is in fact angry at his buddies for bringing this up.
But his worst fears are spelled out now. Confused he calls B and talks to her for an hour just to reassure him that this is the girl he fell in love with. Just when he is about to keep down the phone he says

"Hey I have heard about your friend C so much, when am I going to meet him?"
"Oh anytime, In fact he also wanted to meet you. I talk about you all the time in front of him."
He thinks and you talk about him all the time when you are with me.
"Listen why don’t you come to the CCD outside college tomorrow, I’ll meet you there, my class ends at 5. I’ll also bring C along"
"Cool, see you at 5 then."
"Bye"
"Bye. Love you"
"Love you too"

It’s 5 and A is before time and all dressed up waiting in CCD. He doesn’t want C to think that she goes around with a jerk. But actually he wants to assure himself that he is a good boy friend and B would never want to leave him.
It’s half an hour past and there is no sign of both of them. He calls B but her phone is switched off.

Then B enters.
"Hi..... I’m soooooo Sorry, Prof P’s class went on too late. And we have to keep our phones switched off in his class"
"It’s ok. Hey your friend was also supposed to come na?"
"He has a name. It’s C"
"Ha ha ha. Yes that’s what I meant. Where’s C?
"He is outside parking the bike"
"So where do we sit?"
"We’ll sit on the table. That’s our Adda, we always sit there"

Then a tall guy enters looking around. Dressed up in clothes that A never thought of wearing till he is 30.

B’s face lights up seeing him, she frantically waves at him and asks him to come sit. She introduces both of them to each other. A shakes C’s hand hard and looks him in the eye with the look probably saying -
"If you are fuckin’ with Tony Montana, you are fuckin’ with the best"

Then the Uncomfortable Silence. After 5 long minutes C says he will go the counter and order coffee and asks A what is he going to drink. He doesn’t need to ask B, they probably had 100 cups here. As soon as C stands A puts his arm around B, signalling ‘My Property’. C notices it with the corner of his eye but doesn’t react. B starts feeling uncomfortable and wiggles out of the embrace of the arm soon.

They have their coffee and for that half an hour C doesn’t speak anything apart from short whispers in B’s ear. And A begins to wonder what she saw in this guy. And how the hell does she talk him for hours on the phone; he doesn’t speak at all. After half an hour B announces that they have to leave, they have a major assignment the next day and she is going to C’s house to do it, as they are in the same group. A masks his irritation and says bye to both of them. ‘Hi’ and ‘Bye’ were probably the only two words C spoke to A. A wonders why had C wanted to meet him in the first place and why did he ever plan this meeting.

That night after 10 missed calls from A, B messages that she is very busy with the work. It’s already 10 and they haven’t done any work till now. They will be working whole night tonight.
This pisses off A. If they haven’t done any work till now what work were they doing till now. Angry messages fly off between them ending with A sending " U shud marry him i think...After all u luv him sooooo much"
And B breaking down in tears and sending "U are an asshole.... Dont ever tlk 2 me again"

So much for the super trip home. A goes back to his city and calls up and apologizes to B for acting like that. B also apologizes for not giving enough time to him while he was there. She also clarifies that nothing is going on between them; C actually has a girl friend. And she will stop talking to him if it bothers him. A says no need of that. He is sorry and he just hopes that she gives little more time to him. That’s all.

Beginning of the End –

But things have changed irrevocably. B hardly talks about C anymore. She says she is out 'with friends' whenever A asks what is she doing. She is watching movie 'with friends' or she is studying 'with her friends'. She never calls him when she is upset. Every time when A senses B is in a bad mood she says yes but she doesn’t want to talk about it, she just needs some time alone. Most of the conversations now hover around –

"So what else"
"Nothing, you tell me"
"Same here"
"So how’s college"
Ummm.... Ok"
"When are exams?"
"Next month"
"Hmmm... So what else...."
A repeatedly asks if something is wrong, if she is sad or something, is she is angry with him. All these questions are replied with
"No, nothing like that. Why do you ask?"

One day after finding B’s phone engaged for an hour A calls C and finds his phone engaged too. After getting through to her he asks whom was she talking to she replies my cousins had called from Australia.

A gets increasingly paranoid and one day decides to log into B’s email account. He always had the password but never bothered to use it till now. He snoops around in her account looking for mails from C or Chats with her. But there is no conversation with C, not one. A wonders if she has been deleting her chats because he is dead sure she used to chat with C.

Every time he wants to confront B about that he hesitates because she doesn’t want him to think he is possessive or jealous or anything. Plus there is nothing B can say that will put an end to A’s suspicion once and for all.

The End –

There is a long weekend coming up. A borrows money from his friends for a flight ticket to and fro from his city. He wants to surprise B. He flies off to his city without telling B.

He stands outside B’s college with a bouquet of flowers all ready to surprise her. He calls her but she is not picking up. After half an hour of frantic calling and standing the Sun he ditches the flowers and enters the college. He sees some friends of hers, after inquiring about her they tell her that they did see her in college in the morning but they think she left. One girls says she probably saw him leaving with C.

He calls C. He doesn’t answer either. He is surprised out of his wits. She said she had a test today, she said she was studying for it last night.

Worried he goes to her house. He asks her mom if she is home, because she isn’t in college. Her mom is unaware. Even she was thinking B was in college.

Now both of them are worried. Her mom calls tens of friends and none of them knows where she is.

It’s nearly dark and suddenly A’s phone rings. It’s B’s home no.
"Hello"
"It’s me"
"Where the hell have you been? I’ve been looking for you since morning. I went to your college...."
"Did you tell my mom I wasn’t in college?"
Yes. I was so worried about you. When I couldn’t find you in...."
"What! Do you know how much trouble I have gotten into because of you? Mom is screaming like anything. She told Dad. My cell has been taken. No pocket money from now. Dad is actually thinking to hire a driver to take me to college every day."
"Look I didn’t know. I had no other option. You were not picking up my call too."
"My phone was in my bag"
Bag? What was it doing in the bag? A cell phone is to be carried with you and supposed to be answered when I call."
"You call?"
"I mean when anybody calls. Why was C also not answering?"
"His phone was also in my bag"
"What? What were you two doing?"
"We went to the beach. Were we supposed to carry the phone in the water? I don’t know if your phone is waterproof but mine is not!"
"Beach! What beach? And didn’t you have a test today? You lied to me!"
"No I didn’t. We were supposed to have a test today but it got postponed. So C said lets go to the X, he always wanted to go there with me."
"What! I flew 2000 kms, borrowed money from 5 people, bunked college and came here to meet you and you were busy coochi-cooing with that bastard on the beach!
"Shut up! Keep him out of this!"
"Oh you are worried about him. You never even bothered to ask how am I here. What all did I have to go through this morning? How worried was I? What all thoughts did not come in my mind?"
"Oh I know what were your thoughts. That I’m having an affair with C, that I am sleeping around with him."
"Shut up. I never said that."
"Oh but you have thought about it"
"Shut the fuck up! And why the hell did you go alone with him? You didn’t tell any of your friends or me."
"I didn’t tell them because I didn’t want them teasing me with his name. I’ve had enough of this shit. Every other day you or your friends are teasing me with his name. I’m sick of it. That’s why I never talk to him or about him in front of anybody. And I don’t need to explain myself to anyone."
"I’m your boy friend god damn it! You need to explain yourself to me."
"I just went to an outing with my best friend. I don’t need to ask your permission for this. I never ask you anything"
"That’s right these days you never ask or tell me anything. We hardly talk these days."
"There’s nothing like that. You only used to say you are too busy and can’t talk to me 24/7"
"And I thought I was your best friend"
"You are, you both are my good friends. But I swear there is nothing going on between me and C."
"Good friends uh? Well let me say one last thing sweetheart. I don’t know if there is something going between you two but there is sure as hell nothing going on between us, not anymore. Good Night and Good Luck"

*click*

P.S. - This is not to show a wrong or right decision. Nor to Malign Guys or Gals, but to show a very common scenario. If you have bothered to read through 2430 words please also bother to comment. I really want this in this case.

Also check the notify follow up comments box when you post your comment.

P.P.S - Do you think B was cheating on A?
Do you think this is anybody's fault? If yes, whom
And lastly do you think anyone could have done anything to save the realtionship? If yes, what ?

Monday, March 2, 2009

M.B.A






"All business is show business"


You Know You Are taking Your MBA Seriously When...
  • You know 50 ways how to say ‘I don’t know’ without saying ‘I don’t know’
  • You can say “The organizations needs to re-engineer its business process to focus on its core competencies by using lean manufacturing to leverage its human resources for better consumer focus” and still keep a straight face.
  • You can answer all questions with ‘It Depends’
  • You have to specify ‘Meeting at 2’ meant 2 in the afternoon or 2 in the night
  • You refer to 5 people seated in a circle and screaming at the top of their voices as a ‘Meeting’.
  • You don’t know what ‘Ego out of control’ means.
  • You think ‘Maggi’ is a perfect meal.
  • You can’t imagine doing an MBA before ‘Google’
  • Whether given 2 months or 2 days, you still come up with the same quality of work.
  • You use abbreviations like POD, COC, EBITDA, ROI as it is common lingo.
  • Your laptop is actually your best friend.
  • You can quote data like ‘The total no of Malaria Patients in Namibia is 326,987’, ‘The PAT of Pfizer grew from 7.82% to 11.08% this year’ out of thin air.
  • You ask the waiter what the restaurant's core competencies are.
  • You refer to dating as test marketing.
  • You know how to pronounce 'paradigm'.
  • You actually know what a paradigm is.
  • You write executive summaries on your love letters.
  • You think it is actually efficient to write a ten-page paper with six other people you do not know.
  • You believe you never have any problems in your life, just 'issues' and 'improvement opportunities’.
  • You know Micrsoft Office like the back of your hand.
  • You can explain to someone the difference between 'retrenchment', ‘lay off’, ‘down-sizing', 'right-sizing', and 'firing'.
  • Telling you mom she hasn’t cooked well is ‘Constructive feedback’ to you
  • You start to feel sorry for Dilbert's boss.
  • You refer to divorce as 'demerger'.
  • You insist that you do some more market research before you and your spouse produce another child.
  • You use the term 'value-added' without falling down laughing.
  • Marriage is Another "M & A" for you.
  • You can give a presentation on a topic without knowing anything about it.
  • Having more than one girl/boy friend is just ‘Hedging your Risk’
  • Your justification for cheating on your girlfriend is that you were only trying to exploit ‘Economies of Scale’ or ‘Economies of Scope’

After all MBA only stands for
Master of Bullshitting Art (yes it is an art)

Or
Master of Bakar Accordance

P.S - Few of the points are not written by me and I picked them up while surfing the net. No plaigirism intended. But more than half are purely my own. So its not fully copy paste :-)