A brief update of Life

The past 3 weeks have been so busy that i have had no time to even think what i have been doing. Well, I don t remember where I should start, but there are 3 prime things that I can categorize my activities under:

1. Academics
2. Applications
3. The Cultural Spaces project

Since it was the time to break during diwali, a lot of portion had to be completed. It was the time when I had to prepare the graphics lecture – deliver for 3 hours. On the other hand, juries at Kamla Raheja and Academy…there was so much of thinking activity happening. Along with this was the fellowship, which I have not even got a chance to think about. There was an extreme pressure to be considerate towards students and not let one frustration pour over another.

On the other hand, I gave my GRE and then later TOEFL – and god knows how I managed both! Luckily, it was a weekend and a Dassera holiday before my GRE exam and I got 2 whole days to study. This was the peak of preparation for the Cultural Spaces project. I am grateful to my boss at the MMB to allow me a holiday on the day of my exam. The GRE experience could be elaborated in another blog, and I do not have the time to do that, but all I can say right now is that I can’t understand why I got such less marks even when I felt that the paper was easy. How is one to understand or comprehend such a feeling? My score was just 1140 and it still scares me while putting my applications. On the other hand, I literally had no time to prepare for TOEFL. I just took a CD one day prior to my exams from a friend, and had to seriously catch up on sleep the day before the exam. I went home straight from college and slept for a good 4 hours. I then got up and revised from the computer software. I felt so lazy even practicing those questions that I just familiarized myself with the questions and went back to sleep. The toefl exam was long, extraordinarily long. I felt it was an utter waste of time and resources. Both in GRE and TOEFL, I feel I did well in the Writing sections.

Lastly. the cultural spaces project was a roller coaster. It started with elaborate preparations in Mumbai before going – making lists, confirming schedules, pick ups and drop-offs…plethora of silly managerial things…However, after about 20 years, I made a journey through the flight again. The main meeting was to be held in Delhi and we were accommodated at the Taj Palace. This was my first stay at a fivestar hotel… I made some blunders too – by eating from the store…and paid a bomb – but that was just a case of misunderstanding by me. Anyway, I don’t want to elaborate on that enough. We travelled in Delhi for a day and I met a lot of people – considered to be great names in the research and criticism field. the meeting was very formal, which was not intended to be so. The food at Delhi was only German and Thai all the time, which was partly the reason of munching at the Taj (oh! I still feel the pinch on my pocket!). Rupali, Matthias and myself came back a day earlier to start the Mapping workshop at Kamla Raheja…I never got a chance to participate in the workshop, but the next day, I took Matthias for a South Mumbai Darshan. I think I made him mad after a lot of walking and roaming. But I think now I know about him a lot more than anyone else in the international expert team. Matthias was the sweetest of all in the group! As the days went by, the experts started making shifts in their schedules and then started the rounds of changes, rescheduling and re informing. I could hardly concentrate on all that, since I was busy with ,my TOEFL, colleges and also I was least interested in the managerial jobs. However, Jayashree did taunt me a couple of times, which I almost ignored, until the last day. On 17th, when the trip was supposed to end, Jayashree again wanted to tell me things, but I also resisted to some extent. Later, I spoke to Marla and things were fine.
Diwali was good – I invited Robert and Bindi home for the laxmi poojan. Otherwise the Diwali was a quite affair…it gave a much needed rest time and I have got back at my applications and paperwork…

Have to compile a portfolio, resume, SOP, transcripts, admission forms, recommendations….a lot of stuff to be done…so no breathing time yet…hope to see positive signs in future!