The year that was part 1

Wow! So the year has come to an end..well almost...exactly 24 hours from now and we will be entering the next decade-2010 and boy does it feel strange!!
Like every other year, this one's been a mixed bag for me yet again...but i seem to remember the happier moments over the sad ones this year. The sad ones have taught me lessons...lessons i will remember for the coming years. Of death..of life..of friendship..of betrayal and of trust.

The year started on a sad note...i lost a friend...murdered by the society's insensitivities and by her own haste. And the high point was that i had become permanent with The Hindu..a permanent employee with perks et all!

And then came March when i went to Chennai to visit my best buddies Nalini and Sumitra..Though the four days passed in a haze i remember having lots of fun...the walks on the beach..the endless hogging...non stop yapping...venting, laughing, giggling, bitching! It was four days of masti! :) of clicking super crazy photographs...A month where i revisited some superb memories when we went to our dear ACJ together..and caught up with some super cool juniors-Ajai, Moon, Mehran, Sneha and others.. March 2009 my kid sister Soumya turned 18 and i was once again amazed at how fast time flies! From being the naughtiest cousin to a mature young woman, she has come a whole long way! :) And i really hope she discovers herself better in the coming years! :)

April, May were 'hot' months in every sense! I got a taste of political reporting (almost!) when i got to cover the Assembly elections...was amazed and disgusted at the same time at the money that is spent (given away) to acquire votes(read)..the period left me disillusioned and worried with our so-called democratic system...I also voted for the first time...No i don't have a voter id card still! I just know my serial number! I remember standing at the polling booth and wondering whom to vote...and also remember regretting the second i voted! May 28 my sis Sandhya left behind her teens and entered the 'Terrific Twenties' ... Wow! I still can't get over the fact that these two sisters (Sandhya and Soumya) have grown up and then i am reminded of my own age! :)) :D And my birthday in 2009 was also one of the best that i have had in a long time.. :) Thanks again to all those who made my birthday the 'Most Memorable' one...

In between all these special moments..was my own emotional craziness...of people whom i thought i knew 'well' turning out to be 'not so well'...and i realised that detachment is not a bad thing after all and that there is huge difference is saying "hey iwill be there" and someone becoming an 'emotional leech' on you....The months were also difficult as i was fighting against the system at work...thanks to some really close friends...i managed to pull through that one! Thanks Rak, Nal, Sumi, Abhi, Anna and Akhila Aunty for being there for me :)

June-three new ACJIANs entered the Hindu world...two who made my life at office much more bearable and fun! Thanks Suvasini and Jayashree for all the fun 'canteen moments', for the friendship..for the sisterhood! :)

Then came July when a secret trip happened! Haha :-) And No i shall not disclose it even now! ;) But yea the keywords remain-friends...trip...farmhouse...food...fun....and some superb bonding! :) From discussing heartbreaks with anger to verbally bashing a few 'idiots', the entire trip was a fun and supremely refreshing one! :) :)

But the weeks and days were interspersed with days of intense frustration to days of intense joy...and on days of frustration, a special someone would always know how and when to make me smile...so much so that even getting caught in crazy Hyderabad jams become enjoyable and i was actually looking forward for them...like i would look forward for the 'ice-cream breaks' just as i would look forward to just getting a glimpse of that special someone-my soulbrother :)

The year that was....part 2

But no,the year was not a bed of roses for me...It was also an year of some freakishly scary moments..like the day when i found out that Venky Anna was hospitalised...I remember feeling scared and lost and praying fervently to God...I remember going to the hospital and getting impatient just to see him...and feeling at peace when i found out he was going to be alright....

A few months later...i saw my otherwise agile grandfather weak and wanting to give up on life.To see someone who had lived life to the hilt in that manner bothered me intensly...I saw him slip into a depression that was never part of his life..2009 also marked the end of my grandfather's drinking years (he is not an alcoholic)...But thankfully, he hung in there and fought it off :) it's good to see him back again in his elements..

August was a visit to Mumbai-to attend Rajesh's engagement and i made two cool new friends there-Nitya and Vidya :) Nitya the silent mischievous one and Vidya the cool funny babe :) The trip was a special trip as both the families were travelling together for the first time and it was super duper fun! :) The train journeys..the engagement ceremony et al and the Mumbai trip..But all through the trip i missed Rakesh a lot...i would phase out at times thinking how nice it would have been if Rakesh was here..It was a special trip also coz i met Rahi and Homi after over an year and felt sooo nice! It's so nice to have insanely sane friends! :)

September 2.the Chief Minister YSR died in a terrible helicopter crash! The month was one of crazy reporting..of seeing and experience mass grief for a supposed despot...it was also the month when Rakesh turned 25 (:D) and a bit more mature! :)

October 2009 my darling niece Sarayu (second one) was born...It was awesome being there and seeing her minutes after she was born! A tiny little creature with cute little features who is growing up rapidly with each passing month...It was a different feeling all together watching my second cousin donning the role of a mother...We all had grown up together and though there is a good 5-years gap between us, Swetha never let me feel the gap! She was the one who would be the first to know about all my crushes..who would hear out my stupid school problems and who would counsel me..she was perhaps also the first of my cousins who treated me not as a 'kiddo' but as 'Priya'... Swetha,Jagathi akka,Ranjitha, Karthik, Vikram (my own bro) we have had a time of our life together...and hve shared some crazy moments together...so it feels weird to see all of them (minus Karthik) married...and in new roles! :)

October was also the month when i got my FIRST BONUS! And boy it felt goood :) Professionaly the month was interesting as i was allowed to do report from Kurnool district,following the floods...the trip saddened me personally....the destruction..the loss of life and livelihood.....

And then came the best news of the year-That Rakesh would be coming to India after 15 Loooooonggg months in November for his brother's wedding and for our ENGAGEMENT! :) :)

November: We got engaged! :) But the best day was when i met him at the airport after so long (November 22)...just feeling him beside me...and not just hearing his voice...just holding him..and hugging him and knowing that he was here now...and then the pre-engagement shopping happened..the hunt for the perfect rings began! :) and the clothes..and the arrangements! And then the friends landed on November 25! :) The month was also the time when i realised that i had a wonderful set of girlfriends who are just there at every special moment and difficult moment of my life..who just know how to make my special day a brilliant one... even if it means being asked crazy questions like "Are you ready for this engagement"or being told that "Life is going to different after engagement"...But then these are people who are there for me come what may who take me for what i am! Thanks once again Chandrika...my darling cousin, Krishna, Sumi, Nalini, Mallika,Neha, Priyamvada (though she wasn't at the engagement) Jayashree and Suvasini for making this year and my special day so much more special :) November 26 is a day in pictures! :) I was humbled by the sheer fact that almost each and every person-family and friends who were invited had turned up to bless us-myself and Rakesh... be it the old friends or the new friends..the cousins..the uncles and aunts and not to forget my new family who have made me one of theirs! :-) Thanks Mamaya, Athaya, Rajesh, Nitya, Pavan, Dheeru,Karthik, Swetha, Charan, Lalitha and Lakshmi athayas and Gopi Uncle :)

November 29 Rajesh and Nitya got married and it was one hectic day but a day full of fun and lotssaaaa bonding with the family again..

December has passed me in a haze....it's just been a month full of Rakesh Rakesh and more Rakesh and i remain unsatiated...my thirst for him and for his love remains unquenchable...every minute i have spent with him so far has been memorable one...whether it be sitting at Barista our favorite coffee shop and talking 'family' stuff or just hanging out at Eat Street or discovering our combined love for good food at Tansen, Little Italy and elsewhere..or laughing together in cinema halls... or just chilling at home...the month has been one of the best months of 2009 and i wish time would stop!December was also the month when i met up my other besties from school Anusha and Bhavana..not to forget the brilliant Christmas lunch with Akhileshwari aunty, Pronoy,Amulya and Rakesh :)

This year will be remembered for many reasons...most important of all...friendship...New friends of 2008 A and V are now my closest buddies...older ones remain the golden ones :) Here's a toast to all those who made my year so so so special! :)

And Yes HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010 :)