Diversify to Derisk
Henry Markowitz won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1990 for his work on reducing Portfolio risk by diversification. Essentially it means the more company shares you own ( if the companies are from different sectors, still better ), the less vulnerable to risk your portfolio will be. Very commensensical, one would say. Would it surprise you that our UTI proved that theory wrong. UTI's US-64 had the shares of nearly 3000 companies in its kitty at one time ( though most were not traded in stock exchanges would be a small matter ). Still its performance when compared to the benchmark BSE Sensex were abysmal.
Bring down your average cost
I bought shares in a mid cap company. The prices went down and I bought more. The vicious cycle continued till this particular stock formed nearly 70% of my portfolio. Bring down your average cost, the experts will tell you. Don’t throw good money after bad, I reply.
It was very recently that I came across this quotation from economist John Maynard Keynes, "The markets can remain irrational longer than you can remain solvent. " But I have always tried to be positive in my thoughts. The way I look at this is a couple hundred more shares in this company and they should be inviting me to join the Board of Directors. And then we will see who is laughing on the wrong side of his face
The Sachin touch
I believe I have the Midas touch. True , I may not have benefited personally , but what the heck, you cant have it both ways, can you. Shares I bought , and then sold for a pittance in profits have since reached the stratosphere. Consider this - Indian Rayon bought at 74, sold at 80 ( current price is 1200 ), M&M bought at 80 , sold at 120 ( current price is 750 ) , SBI bought at 185, sold at 215 ( current price is 1100 ) - the list goes on. So the next time you want to make a killing on the stock market, just ask me what share I recently sold.
Don’t listen to the 'experts'
I was disillusioned by the so called 'experts' pretty early into my stock market foray. You would have one expert talking glibly on the TV, singing paens to company X - 'X is clearly on an uptrend , will surely rise 20% in one month'. One month later , by which time X would have dutifully dropped 50% and numerous investors having lost their shirts are trying desperately to hold on to their chaddis, the same expert would be back on TV screaming "SELL X!!!" without so much as a polite "Sorry , I screwed up".
TINSTAAFL
There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch - this is as much true of the share market as it is of any other field. It’s a zero sum game - one man's loss is another's gain - unless your stock is going only one way - UP. Two words of advice : Caveat Emptor - Buyer beware applies here.
Showing posts with label General. Show all posts
Showing posts with label General. Show all posts
Friday, May 04, 2007
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Speak Out or Shut Up
"In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up."
Martin Niemoeller
How often has it happened to you? You see something that raises your hackles. You keep quiet at the time, not raising your voice in public. Then from the safety of anonymity provided by your home, you denounce the incident , expousing your righteous indignation to all who may be willing to lend you an ear. Well I have two words of advice for you - "Zip it".
If you see something wrong being done, show the guts to voice your dissent. Break out from that lofty group called the 'Silent Majority'. Its not enough that something has offended you, dont congratulate yourself that you still have your morals, as long as you keep silent you are nothing better than a willing accomplice.
Dont hide behind that oft touted line, "What difference can I alone make"? Your reaction today will make a person have second thoughts tomorrow before doing the same wrong. Its easy to be cynical and take the soft path of being Silent.Much more difficult to stand up for what you believe is right and make a real difference.
Edmund Burke rightly said, "The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing"
Martin Niemoeller
How often has it happened to you? You see something that raises your hackles. You keep quiet at the time, not raising your voice in public. Then from the safety of anonymity provided by your home, you denounce the incident , expousing your righteous indignation to all who may be willing to lend you an ear. Well I have two words of advice for you - "Zip it".
If you see something wrong being done, show the guts to voice your dissent. Break out from that lofty group called the 'Silent Majority'. Its not enough that something has offended you, dont congratulate yourself that you still have your morals, as long as you keep silent you are nothing better than a willing accomplice.
Dont hide behind that oft touted line, "What difference can I alone make"? Your reaction today will make a person have second thoughts tomorrow before doing the same wrong. Its easy to be cynical and take the soft path of being Silent.Much more difficult to stand up for what you believe is right and make a real difference.
Edmund Burke rightly said, "The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing"
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Dont Shh Shh Me
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.".
Voltaire.
Article 19 of the Constitution of India guarantees to every citizen the Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression. And one would assume an Indian could speak his mind throughout the country without fear of reprisal. The above would hold true certainly for the mass media. You only need to see the issues they focus on to realize that they certainly dont believe in any restrictions on their freedom. In addition to this, our judiciary zealously guards this right. But what about the Common Man - you and me , included.
If we were to judge the freedom available in India against the 'Sharansky Town Square Test' , we would rightly come to the conclusion that India is a 'fear society'. For the test states:"If a person cannot walk into the middle of the town square and express his or her views without fear of arrest, imprisonment, or physical harm, then that person is living in a fear society, not a free society."
Could you freely go to any public place in India and voice your opinion freely and expect to go unpunished? The answer is No. There is a rising trend in this country to gag voices which may be voicing opinions unpalatable to any group of people. The Government usually takes the lead by banning the offending piece. In such cases where this does not happen, the self proclaimed moral police takes it upon itself to put the perperator in his place. Two recent episodes would serve to highlight this.
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board ( AIMPLB ) has asked for Taslima Nasreen to be expelled from India. An article she wrote in the Outlook has offended the sensibilities of some moulavis it seems. I would advise the moulavis , that this is India, not Pakistan or China. If something is written that offends you, I have a simple advice - Dont read it.
Another case that shocked me was the self imposed exile by artist MF Husain. Arguably India's best modern painter , he has been hounded by the saffron brigade out of his own country because of his paintings of Hindu Godesses. I do not find some of his paintings very tasteful. But that is beside the point. A true test of democracy is how tolerant you are of criticism. If you take the line that nothing that is unpalatable to anyone should be printed, soon you will have newspapers coming out with only advertisements and classifieds in them.
Truly a long way to go before India attains the dream Tagore had for this country.
"Where the mind is without fear
And the head is held high,
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father,
let my country awake."
Voltaire.
Article 19 of the Constitution of India guarantees to every citizen the Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression. And one would assume an Indian could speak his mind throughout the country without fear of reprisal. The above would hold true certainly for the mass media. You only need to see the issues they focus on to realize that they certainly dont believe in any restrictions on their freedom. In addition to this, our judiciary zealously guards this right. But what about the Common Man - you and me , included.
If we were to judge the freedom available in India against the 'Sharansky Town Square Test' , we would rightly come to the conclusion that India is a 'fear society'. For the test states:"If a person cannot walk into the middle of the town square and express his or her views without fear of arrest, imprisonment, or physical harm, then that person is living in a fear society, not a free society."
Could you freely go to any public place in India and voice your opinion freely and expect to go unpunished? The answer is No. There is a rising trend in this country to gag voices which may be voicing opinions unpalatable to any group of people. The Government usually takes the lead by banning the offending piece. In such cases where this does not happen, the self proclaimed moral police takes it upon itself to put the perperator in his place. Two recent episodes would serve to highlight this.
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board ( AIMPLB ) has asked for Taslima Nasreen to be expelled from India. An article she wrote in the Outlook has offended the sensibilities of some moulavis it seems. I would advise the moulavis , that this is India, not Pakistan or China. If something is written that offends you, I have a simple advice - Dont read it.
Another case that shocked me was the self imposed exile by artist MF Husain. Arguably India's best modern painter , he has been hounded by the saffron brigade out of his own country because of his paintings of Hindu Godesses. I do not find some of his paintings very tasteful. But that is beside the point. A true test of democracy is how tolerant you are of criticism. If you take the line that nothing that is unpalatable to anyone should be printed, soon you will have newspapers coming out with only advertisements and classifieds in them.
Truly a long way to go before India attains the dream Tagore had for this country.
"Where the mind is without fear
And the head is held high,
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father,
let my country awake."
Monday, January 15, 2007
The World View of an Atheist
"God made me an atheist. Who are you to question his wisdom."
(Unknown)
Iam not a very religious person. I do go to the temple once in a while but those of you who may have read my previous posts on this subject ('Swargathile Leela Vilasangal' and 'The Gods Must Be Crazy' ) would have typecasted me as a non believer.And you would have been right.
I have been inspired to post this after going through some very religious-cloaked-in-the-garb-of-spiritualism posts that I came across various blogs. Isnt it an irony of fate ( Duh!!! What am I talking about , there is no Fate ), that the more we seem to progress , the more we seem to be sinking in the mire of new found beliefs
that defy all logic. Religion indeed seems to be like the mythological Hydra , a poisonous new head springing up for every old one we cut.
The earlier century superstitions have been replaced by the new age Godmen ( and women ) , who having learnt the tricks of the trade from the less revered P C Sorcar and his ilk, would now ascend the throne, commit the ultimate blasphemy of claiming to be God himself ( or herself, depending on which con artist you are talking about ) , all this accompanied to the cheers of their delirious supporters. And the saddest part is these supporters do not consist of the rabble that formed a major part of such charlatans support base in the earlier centuries. No, the new supporters are supposedly educated men and women who should know better.
Is this our vision for 21st Century India? An India driven by IT to take on the world, still keeping one feet firmly planted in the puja room , always ready to give alms to the prayer book armed , sagely looking con artists, all the while ignoring the really needy , the downtrodden , who are not mentioned like the Elephant in The Room.
I can believe in a God who asks me to help my neighbour, not in one who demands I show my loyalty by regular prayer. I can believe in a God who says I will be saved if I do good to others, not in one who claims my only road to salvation is through my belief in Him. If God indeed be so insecure that he feels the need for me to pander to his ego by regularly singing paens of praise, "Sorry , but No Thanks".
(Unknown)
Iam not a very religious person. I do go to the temple once in a while but those of you who may have read my previous posts on this subject ('Swargathile Leela Vilasangal' and 'The Gods Must Be Crazy' ) would have typecasted me as a non believer.And you would have been right.
I have been inspired to post this after going through some very religious-cloaked-in-the-garb-of-spiritualism posts that I came across various blogs. Isnt it an irony of fate ( Duh!!! What am I talking about , there is no Fate ), that the more we seem to progress , the more we seem to be sinking in the mire of new found beliefs
that defy all logic. Religion indeed seems to be like the mythological Hydra , a poisonous new head springing up for every old one we cut.
The earlier century superstitions have been replaced by the new age Godmen ( and women ) , who having learnt the tricks of the trade from the less revered P C Sorcar and his ilk, would now ascend the throne, commit the ultimate blasphemy of claiming to be God himself ( or herself, depending on which con artist you are talking about ) , all this accompanied to the cheers of their delirious supporters. And the saddest part is these supporters do not consist of the rabble that formed a major part of such charlatans support base in the earlier centuries. No, the new supporters are supposedly educated men and women who should know better.
Is this our vision for 21st Century India? An India driven by IT to take on the world, still keeping one feet firmly planted in the puja room , always ready to give alms to the prayer book armed , sagely looking con artists, all the while ignoring the really needy , the downtrodden , who are not mentioned like the Elephant in The Room.
I can believe in a God who asks me to help my neighbour, not in one who demands I show my loyalty by regular prayer. I can believe in a God who says I will be saved if I do good to others, not in one who claims my only road to salvation is through my belief in Him. If God indeed be so insecure that he feels the need for me to pander to his ego by regularly singing paens of praise, "Sorry , but No Thanks".
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Why Tragedy is King
The question's been posed to me before - why do your stories always seem to end in someone dying. I frankly dont know. There is something about death, about sadness that happiness can never match.
I offer to you these beautiful lines from a song by Don Mclean in homage of Vincent Van Gogh who committed suicide in a fit of depression.
Now I understand
what you tried to say to me
how you suffered for your sanity
how you tried to set them free
they would not listen they did not know how
perhaps they'll listen now
For they could not love you
but still your love was true
and when no hope was left inside
on that starry starry night
You took your life as lovers often do
But I could have told you,Vincent
this world was never meant for one as beautiful as you
I rest my case.
I offer to you these beautiful lines from a song by Don Mclean in homage of Vincent Van Gogh who committed suicide in a fit of depression.
Now I understand
what you tried to say to me
how you suffered for your sanity
how you tried to set them free
they would not listen they did not know how
perhaps they'll listen now
For they could not love you
but still your love was true
and when no hope was left inside
on that starry starry night
You took your life as lovers often do
But I could have told you,Vincent
this world was never meant for one as beautiful as you
I rest my case.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Nothing to Be Proud Of
A friend had posted this article recently. At the time I thought it overly pessimistic. Now Iam not so sure.
I had occasion to go on a train journey recently. The one thing that struck and saddened me was the abject poverty. Little children sweeping carriages for a small coin, old people shivering in the early morning cold begging from people half their age, mothers cradling children to cajole money or food from the coldest hearted. Clearly they had not heard about the newest Asian tiger, poised to become the third largest economy in the world by 2025.
Insulated as Iam in the city life I live, these scenes were stark reminders. True, there are beggars in the city too, but I have all along dismissed them as opportunists, out to make a fast buck. But these were the real people of India. Mahatma Gandhi said, "India lives in its villages". This may come as surprise to Manmohan and co but the Mahatma's India is still poor, living a hand to mouth existence thankful if for one night it does not need to go to bed unfed.
I buy a shirt for Rs 800 and marvel at the new spending power of the Indian Middle Class. I go to Coffee Day , pay Rs 100 for two cups of coffee and sing paens to Globalisation. I switch on CNBC , hear the experts toasting to the Indian success story and bask in the reflected glory. On the way to office in my car, I come across street urchins rummaging in the garbage. I look the other way, preferring to see the gleaming buildings by the roadside, heralding India's arrival on the IT scene.
p.s : I had started this post immediately after the Vizag trip, but feel unable to complete this. Too pessimistic. But sadly enough , this is nothing but the truth.
I had occasion to go on a train journey recently. The one thing that struck and saddened me was the abject poverty. Little children sweeping carriages for a small coin, old people shivering in the early morning cold begging from people half their age, mothers cradling children to cajole money or food from the coldest hearted. Clearly they had not heard about the newest Asian tiger, poised to become the third largest economy in the world by 2025.
Insulated as Iam in the city life I live, these scenes were stark reminders. True, there are beggars in the city too, but I have all along dismissed them as opportunists, out to make a fast buck. But these were the real people of India. Mahatma Gandhi said, "India lives in its villages". This may come as surprise to Manmohan and co but the Mahatma's India is still poor, living a hand to mouth existence thankful if for one night it does not need to go to bed unfed.
I buy a shirt for Rs 800 and marvel at the new spending power of the Indian Middle Class. I go to Coffee Day , pay Rs 100 for two cups of coffee and sing paens to Globalisation. I switch on CNBC , hear the experts toasting to the Indian success story and bask in the reflected glory. On the way to office in my car, I come across street urchins rummaging in the garbage. I look the other way, preferring to see the gleaming buildings by the roadside, heralding India's arrival on the IT scene.
p.s : I had started this post immediately after the Vizag trip, but feel unable to complete this. Too pessimistic. But sadly enough , this is nothing but the truth.
Friday, November 17, 2006
This Oven is Not For Me
Angeethi is a restaurant famous for its North Indian food in Bangalore. I got good food reviews about this restaurant from a couple of friends. Thats why when the time came to go for a team lunch, I decided to go for this place. I called them up and made a reservation for 12 people on a Friday afternoon at 12 pm.
Now you know what Bangalore traffic is like. We started for this place and by an unfortunate quirk of fate ( read traffic jam ) we reached Angeethi at 12:45 pm. And there was this big hulk standing in the lobby informing me of the pleasure he felt when he decided to unilaterally cancel our reservation, since they had a policy of waiting only for 15 minutes. He also was kind enough to give me a lecture on the advantages of punctuality.
Before you dear readers come down with your moral sledgehammer on me , let me give my point of view. I accept that reaching 45 minutes late was inexcusable ( even by India's allowed slack time standards this was a bit extreme ). But I was not informed of the "15 minutes" policy when I made the booking, nor did they have the common decency of informing me when they decided to cancel. Now this is a bit hard to stomach. To reach this place , we had to walk 15 minutes after getting down from our vehicle near Brigade Road. This being a Friday afternoon , we could not reasonably expect to find a place in any other good restaurant. ( That we were able to get seats in Ebony is beside the point ).
For those of you aware of my short tempered side, it would seem inexplicable that I left the place without punching that d***head on the nose ( excuse the language ) .The thought did cross my mind, I assure you. The only thing that saved him was his six foot frame and a chest to match. Only an Evander Holyfield can take panga with Mike Tyson - or so I consoled my grieving heart.
The Angeethi guys might be better cooks than me , but I sure can teach them some manners.
Let the hate mail pour in.
Now you know what Bangalore traffic is like. We started for this place and by an unfortunate quirk of fate ( read traffic jam ) we reached Angeethi at 12:45 pm. And there was this big hulk standing in the lobby informing me of the pleasure he felt when he decided to unilaterally cancel our reservation, since they had a policy of waiting only for 15 minutes. He also was kind enough to give me a lecture on the advantages of punctuality.
Before you dear readers come down with your moral sledgehammer on me , let me give my point of view. I accept that reaching 45 minutes late was inexcusable ( even by India's allowed slack time standards this was a bit extreme ). But I was not informed of the "15 minutes" policy when I made the booking, nor did they have the common decency of informing me when they decided to cancel. Now this is a bit hard to stomach. To reach this place , we had to walk 15 minutes after getting down from our vehicle near Brigade Road. This being a Friday afternoon , we could not reasonably expect to find a place in any other good restaurant. ( That we were able to get seats in Ebony is beside the point ).
For those of you aware of my short tempered side, it would seem inexplicable that I left the place without punching that d***head on the nose ( excuse the language ) .The thought did cross my mind, I assure you. The only thing that saved him was his six foot frame and a chest to match. Only an Evander Holyfield can take panga with Mike Tyson - or so I consoled my grieving heart.
The Angeethi guys might be better cooks than me , but I sure can teach them some manners.
Let the hate mail pour in.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Whats the Frigging Problem?
I know I made a blooper
Just dont know what it is
My mind sneers , aint it just super
Who knows what my crime is
Was never good at playing games
'Nere va nere po' is my philosophy
Why is it this way with the dames
Mind reading was never my forte
Enough of this , my heart cries out
What for , do you now blame me
Decide, do we now grow apart
How will I know if you dont tell me?
Just dont know what it is
My mind sneers , aint it just super
Who knows what my crime is
Was never good at playing games
'Nere va nere po' is my philosophy
Why is it this way with the dames
Mind reading was never my forte
Enough of this , my heart cries out
What for , do you now blame me
Decide, do we now grow apart
How will I know if you dont tell me?
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Planned Sick Leave
Planned Sick Leave ( an oxymoron if ever there was one - can oxymorons be phrases or only single words , lets leave that for another post ). How do you plan a sick leave? ( That thunder rumbling in the clouds tells me Iam going to have fever Monday , and so be unable to come to work ). Now you see a conscientious guy struggling with his conscience ( Conscience led on points in the first two rounds, but past experience tells the guy is going to knock out his opponent with a killer punch ).
You know you have to take leave and you are also fully aware that you have exhausted your quota of Annual Leave that your company so generously provides. What to do except to fall back on that tried and trusted friend - Sick Leave ? But can you just disappear and send a text message on the D Day saying you are sick - of course not. You cannot leave your team mates holding the bag like that. So you need to tell them in advance that you are "planning" to fall sick on such and such date
Which leads me to the events that triggered this train of thought. Oct 2nd is Gandhi Jayanthi and Oct 4th is likely to be Karnataka bandh. What more auspicious time to fall sick than Oct 3rd?
You know you have to take leave and you are also fully aware that you have exhausted your quota of Annual Leave that your company so generously provides. What to do except to fall back on that tried and trusted friend - Sick Leave ? But can you just disappear and send a text message on the D Day saying you are sick - of course not. You cannot leave your team mates holding the bag like that. So you need to tell them in advance that you are "planning" to fall sick on such and such date
Which leads me to the events that triggered this train of thought. Oct 2nd is Gandhi Jayanthi and Oct 4th is likely to be Karnataka bandh. What more auspicious time to fall sick than Oct 3rd?
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Aint Love Grand?
I have always wondered how people can opt for arranged marriage. To tie the knot to a person you only know through a few casual conversations has always seemed to me a very risky proposition. You never get to see the "real" person. Even if you arrange any meetings, wont the person be putting on a "show" , projecting only his / her positive self. For to show our negative side or vulnerabilities , we would have to really trust the other person - trust which can only be gained after years of bonding.
Thats not to say arranged marriages do not work - far from it. Most married couples I know personally have been "arranged and married" . And they have been successful as well. But I have a sneaking suspicion that these actually work because arranged marriages are usually "Union between families".So your whole family has a stake in guiding this experiment to a successful outcome.
No such familial pressures in love marriages. ( By love marriages , I do not mean the fell-in-love-at-first-sight kind of puppy love ). The kind of love Iam talking about assumes you know a person for years, so much so that at times, they seem to be just an extension of your own persona. No problems sharing your hopes and dreams, fears and worries with them. You feel as much comfortable talking with them as you do talking to yourself. You have nothing to hide from them and vice versa.
These are my feelings but what would I know - Iam not married, yet. Lets see if I sing a different tune after that.
Thats not to say arranged marriages do not work - far from it. Most married couples I know personally have been "arranged and married" . And they have been successful as well. But I have a sneaking suspicion that these actually work because arranged marriages are usually "Union between families".So your whole family has a stake in guiding this experiment to a successful outcome.
No such familial pressures in love marriages. ( By love marriages , I do not mean the fell-in-love-at-first-sight kind of puppy love ). The kind of love Iam talking about assumes you know a person for years, so much so that at times, they seem to be just an extension of your own persona. No problems sharing your hopes and dreams, fears and worries with them. You feel as much comfortable talking with them as you do talking to yourself. You have nothing to hide from them and vice versa.
These are my feelings but what would I know - Iam not married, yet. Lets see if I sing a different tune after that.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
In memory of Gabriel
Gabriel George. The name evokes the fondest memories. My classmate for 4 years , hostel mate for 3 and best friend for life. Ironically , our friendship had what could be hardly called an auspicious beginning.
I joined the Computer Science branch at GEC Thrissur in Aug 1994. Gabriel had already spent one year there in Civil Engg. He wrote the Entrance again and got admission to Comp Sci. So eventhough we were classmates, he knew all our seniors. One of these guys came and ragged me to give him Rs 100. Having been warned beforehand about the dangers of freshers carrying money to college, I told him , quite reasonably I thought, that I couldnt give him money I did not have. If I thought the oldest excuse in the book was going to faze them , I was sadly proven wrong. One of his other senior friends offered to lend me the money to give his friend. I was bowled over by this act of unselfish kindness, till the next day this second guy came and asked me for the money he had "lent" me !!! Of course, when I came to know Gabriel better, he confessed that he had personally chosen me as the "bakra" for this operation. Boy, was I flattered !!! That was the low point in our relationship. Things could only get better from there.
And did they!! The next three years of college were the best of my life. Did all sorts of things - parties, fights , movies, even went to classes when we had nothing better to do (your typical Engg college hostel life).Life seemed one long party. Why did they have to end? But "Life has to go on and a living has to be made".After college we went our separate ways - myself to Chennai and then to Bangalore , he to Hyderabad. We did meet up once in a while. Other than that we kept in touch with the odd email ( sending the reply 2 weeks after getting the mail ). I remember sending him a particularly biting email because he had not sent a reply to a previous mail I had sent one month back.That was the last email I sent him.
Sept 9 2004, how can I ever forget that day. My friend and classmate Ajayan was getting married that day. I called him up to congratulate him. After that I called up some of my friends who I was sure had all gathered in Thrissur for the wedding. I got the news. Gabriel had been in hospital after an accident with head injury for two months and had just passed away the previous day. My friends came to know of the news from a newspaper. Nobody told Ajayan till after his marriage. Then they all went to Gabriel's place in Ernakulam. What could I do? I was stuck Down Under in Melbourne. I dug up the email I had sent him two months back from my Sent Folder and offered a silent prayer. "Unwept , Unhonoured and Unsung" - this line from Ulysses had never seemed more poignant.
Gabby buddy, this round is on me.
I joined the Computer Science branch at GEC Thrissur in Aug 1994. Gabriel had already spent one year there in Civil Engg. He wrote the Entrance again and got admission to Comp Sci. So eventhough we were classmates, he knew all our seniors. One of these guys came and ragged me to give him Rs 100. Having been warned beforehand about the dangers of freshers carrying money to college, I told him , quite reasonably I thought, that I couldnt give him money I did not have. If I thought the oldest excuse in the book was going to faze them , I was sadly proven wrong. One of his other senior friends offered to lend me the money to give his friend. I was bowled over by this act of unselfish kindness, till the next day this second guy came and asked me for the money he had "lent" me !!! Of course, when I came to know Gabriel better, he confessed that he had personally chosen me as the "bakra" for this operation. Boy, was I flattered !!! That was the low point in our relationship. Things could only get better from there.
And did they!! The next three years of college were the best of my life. Did all sorts of things - parties, fights , movies, even went to classes when we had nothing better to do (your typical Engg college hostel life).Life seemed one long party. Why did they have to end? But "Life has to go on and a living has to be made".After college we went our separate ways - myself to Chennai and then to Bangalore , he to Hyderabad. We did meet up once in a while. Other than that we kept in touch with the odd email ( sending the reply 2 weeks after getting the mail ). I remember sending him a particularly biting email because he had not sent a reply to a previous mail I had sent one month back.That was the last email I sent him.
Sept 9 2004, how can I ever forget that day. My friend and classmate Ajayan was getting married that day. I called him up to congratulate him. After that I called up some of my friends who I was sure had all gathered in Thrissur for the wedding. I got the news. Gabriel had been in hospital after an accident with head injury for two months and had just passed away the previous day. My friends came to know of the news from a newspaper. Nobody told Ajayan till after his marriage. Then they all went to Gabriel's place in Ernakulam. What could I do? I was stuck Down Under in Melbourne. I dug up the email I had sent him two months back from my Sent Folder and offered a silent prayer. "Unwept , Unhonoured and Unsung" - this line from Ulysses had never seemed more poignant.
Gabby buddy, this round is on me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
