Disclaimer: I love all the people that are/have helped me ... this is just to see the other side!
Now you'll know why I am cranky, when I am!
Its been a while.
In the "while" that its been, I've managed to get myself admitted into The University of Texas at Arlington, for a Masters in Architecture.
As a result of that, I have had to do a LOT of running around ; deal with Govt. offices ; talk/meet/act in ways that I normally wouldn't.
At the end of every "step" ; when it seemed that things had a dead end, something happened that cleared the clouds. Call it providence, call it fate, call it a divine intervention. I'm just happy that it all did - and thankful to all the people who made it happen :)
Now that I have less than a month to leave, apart from the usual (Will you come back ? ; will you remember us? ; When will i see you next? ; Will you come back with an accent? ; I'll kill you if you talk to me with a twang! ; Happy 4th of July ; Will you start wearing short skirts and tank tops? ; If you go away now, WHEN do you intend to get married?) ; I am also getting a LOT of gyaan.
Free, unsolicited gyaan.
What I thought only held good for cricket (ref my post titled ICF ..) is now good for Foreign travel also. especially if you are travelling as a student. alone.
One person tells you to learn to cook; another says its no big deal .. you'll learn anyway. One person tells you its no use learning; whose going to eat the junk that you prepare? Another tells you that you are doomed if egg is not among your preferred list of foods.
One tells you to carry as many clothes from here as possible. Another says that what you get here is not in vogue there; and you'll end up feeling like ugly duckling!
One tells you that you;ll learn to adjust to other people/ habits / cultures ; another says that it'll be near-impossible : given how finicky I am.
One tells you not to live away from campus another says that far aways is all the place you will get to live, initially.
One tells you that it is going to be all fun ; another says it'll be all work and no play.
My response to all this:
THANK YOU.
I understand that you mean well, but no thanks.
If you have anything to say that you have experienced (i can see that smile on your face, appa!) then share your wisdom... but please don't "expect" me to listen. Just as you think you are entitled to your opinion, I am too; to mine!
2 comments:
When i went through this whole ordeal
,I thought to myself it really can't be this difficult, seventy five thousand guys do this every year. Maybe it was just me who made things difficult but looks like its been the same experience for everyone.
Bank Managers are someone I would not want to deal with anytime soon. Dealing with a nationalized bank is a subject someone should write a book about. "Nationalized Bank for Dummies", I would be first in line to buy it.
My manager would ask me to get this and that and I would have no clue about any of that stuff and when I would say so he would give me this stare that said "You look educated, you should know this stuff, you've been working for two years didn't someone teach you all this".
Here's one illuminating conversation:
Me: Sir, tickets booked I'm flying next week.
Manager: oh great, Congrats! Where's the sanction letter?
I happily hand over the letter , at least i got this right.
Manager Where's the margin?
Me: hmm let me see, oh I forgot. Sir if you've a scale I can draw it right here.
Manager: NO!! not that. Margin amount , is it deposited in your account?
Me: Weep, Sigh, so near yet so f***** far....(why me!)
I walked out hiding my face while all the bank clerks pointed and laughed "He doesn't even know what margin is...".
I did get things sorted out finally , on the day before the flight.
But once you get here things start looking up. Especially after you've discovered apple Cinnamon and maple syrup, life just is *SWEET*.
Oh and in between all this helter skelter bank jobs a bright young cousin ,who hasn't been through a quarter life crisis yet ,walks up to you and says "Anna, I want to do MS".
I think of telling him the million other things he could do with his time and money, but you're so exhausted and lost yourself so you just reply "Great, send me an email we will get started!".
Maktoub (?) ,
I have no idea who you are, but thanks for stopping by.
I felt the same way too, especially since I had a LOT of paperwork to do because the passport office guys forgot my last name in my passport; and the guys in the US cannot understand if you tell them that some people do not have a last name !
Well, things looking up or down depend on where you are looking from ! There are a lot of things that are good, like apple, cinnamon and maple syrup, but each one has its own downside to ( like all the extra calories from the apple, cinnamon and the maple syrup). Having said that, I think grad student life is *awesome*. It comes with its set of quirks, trials and tribulations; but heck .. as Baeney says " it is going to be Legen .. dary!"
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