24 Till I Die !!

Yes, I want to be 24 till I die. 18 worked alright for Mr. Adams, but I'd prefer to be a good 6 years older. He had his reasons, I have mine.

When I was 18, I was in the second year of my college. Even though my parents have always been of the 'unstinting' and ‘he’s the youngest, let him spend as he wishes’ kind, I was still cash-strapped on most occasions. Now money is not the most important thing in life. I know that. People say it's Love. And I agree. The unfortunate thing was that I was in love with money...too many things to buy, too little money at hand. Now, that I am 24. And working. Well, yeah you infidels ! I am ;) And doing decently well at that. Staying in one of the costliest cities of the world, the money is still not enough for all the things that one could want, but its way better than what it was when I was 18. Whole another thing that I don’t desire a lot of things now. At least not the ones that money can buy. Refer 'Dad, I’m a Socialist'. So, there we go.

TwentyFour 1 – Eighteen 0.

Having broached the topic of ‘love’ in the very beginning let me take it a little further. Love of the lucre has been right up there on my list. Not far behind is, yes you’ve guessed it right, Girls. And mostly girls older than me ;) I still remember the time when I went absolutely crazy for a girl, only to find out that I was 18 and she was 21. I also remember that damsel-in-distress who I wanted to be the rescuer of. Sadly I was 20, she was 23. If I had a dime (even a cent) for every time this has happened, I would easily beat Warren Buffet to be the richest man around. Sigh... So as I was saying, due to this age barrier I couldn't hit on these swans. Well now that I am 24, I don’t have that problem any more. 24 is the perfect age. Anyone more than 24, I don’t want to hit on them anyways. Anyone less than 24 is now fair game !!

My four elder sisters are going to come after me with large steak-knives if they read this, so if this is the last post you see from me for a long time to come, please be the good samaritan and inform my parents. They’d appreciate it.

TwentyFour 2 – Eighteen 0

Another thing that I love about life at 24 is the freedom that I have. This partly stems from the fact that I am staying alone now. Since I'm away from my family I can be my own master. Stay out till late in the night, sometimes till early morning. Have a few beers here, there..everywhere!! The party just doesn’t stop. Needless to say I couldn’t drink when I was 18. Plus staying with my parents didn’t help. I remember cutting short many an outings with friends after getting a call from Dad demanding that I come home immediately.

TwentyFour 3 – Eighteen 0

3-0

Now that’s a margin comfortable enough to win a soccer match. And if it's good enough for my deities then it's good enough for me !! I have a few more reasons but they'd all come out in good time. Till then, Keep it real!!

P.S. This post is dedicated to my sister whose birthday it is today. Happy Birthday Sistah ;)

An Affair with New York

Studying in Philadelphia, and having some family in New York has helped me form a close bond with both these cities.

In the last two years or so, I have been to NY numerous time. Most of these visits were merely jaunts, with a few somewhat elongated stays and one prolonged fling last summer.

Its a novel spectacle each time that I go there. It shows me things I never knew or imagined it had.

At times I do tell my friends how much better I think NY is as compared to Philly. How much more titillating and exhilarating it is. How I careen uncontrolled on its streets. How blithely is my time spent when I am there. Doing this almost gives me the feeling that I am cheating on Philly. Like cheating on one's wife with another woman !!

Looking at the two cities I realize how stark the differences are.

Philly is like the Mrs. She is demure. She is sedate. Docile too. And scenic. At least the Philly that I know is. The city has some sordid sides but then I've never seen them.

NY is like the mistress. She's ravishing, scintillating and enticing. Perilous and treacherous. She's smokin' hot. She's a siren. She's a seductress.

Profuse with all the carnal pleasures she's got an inexplicable, secretive quality that attracts you to her.

The big billboards and neon lights are much like the mistress' jewels. They dazzle the eye. Her fast pace gives the vicarious feeling of a fling. Gives you an adrenaline rush that you've not known in a long time. You disremember all your worries. You can do nothing but have a good time with her.

She has always lived up to my expectations. Never has she disappointed me.

But then after a few days I grow blase of her glitter. That's when I long for home. That's when I long for Philly.

And so I start the journey back to Philly. Away from NY, away from it's salacity. I tear my temporary NY subway card, the checks and other tidbits for the binges I had while I was there. Its like destroying all evidence that I was out with someone, before going home.

When I reach Philly, she embraces me with open arms. That's the place where I really get a true sense of home. There's a warmth that I can find no place else. I am a happy man when I am there. There's an air of reassurance that surrounds me. Even the sleep is that much more sound. And when I get up in the morning, look out of my room's window, I can see how beautiful she is. Its like waking up next to the Mrs. and realizing that she's all that you'd ever need. She's innocent, she's pretty and she's the one who makes you really happy.

But the dog that I am, I know I'd leave her soon. Probably forever. Go away and ensconce in NY. That's what I did with Delhi !!

I'd miss her though :-/