Coda

I take my place among you as among any
The past is the push of you and me and all precisely the same,
And the night is for you and me and all
And what is yet untried and afterward is for you and me and all.
I do not know what is untried and afterward,
But I know it is sure and alive and sufficient.
-Walt Whitman, Song of Myself

This will be my last entry to this blog as this phase of my life has come to a close. I am back in the United States (almost exactly 1 week now) and already missing Incredible India and all my friends.

It is very weird being back. Everything seems so organized and predictable, in other words, boring. Some things are very nice, the absence of garbage everywhere being the most prominent but I miss the feeling that each day something completely new will happen. It could be surprising, funny, annoying or infuriating but there was always something new. I'll have to give the good 'ol USA a few months to grow on me again; as I am sure it will.

This is going to be a short farewell as now I need to become a American consumer and go car shopping....

Take care anyone who is reading this.

Counting Down....

When we are young
Wandering the face of the Earth
Wondering what our dreams might be worth
Learning that we're only immortal
For a limited time
Rush - Dreamline

I'm in a reflective mood; it is really starting to dawn on me that my time in India is quickly counting down to an end.

There are so many things I though I'd be able to do because "I have so much time". It turns out in the Paul vs. Time competition Time is going to win quite decisively. The list of things I wanted to do and just won't have time for keeps growing every day:
-Trek the Himalayas
-Visit Chennai, Pondicherry, Mumbai, Kolkata
-Tour Tamil Nadu by train
-Go to Bangkok and Hong Kong
-Visit Varanasi
-Etc.........
Don't get me wrong, I'm not cribbing about the opportunities I've had. I have seen more incredible, amazing, and beautiful, people, places and things than I ever could have expected. That's the problem though, the more I see the more I want to see and experience. When I'm asked "How was India", the only answer I can give that comes close to encompasing what this experience has meant to me is "Life Changing". Wanting to see more and more of the world, not to play it safe, and to put myself in uncomfortable situations, not only to learn about the differences and similarities in all cultures but also to keep learning about myself; is just one outcome.

The thing I am going to miss the most without question however is my "ex-pat family". I am truly astonished by how close we are, particularly my fellow Zen Gardens residents given that before coming here I've had very few close friends; many aquaintenances but few close friends.

We all have our own quirks, be it ensuring everyone sees the beautiful painting we bought in Vietnam, needing a completely empty room for yoga, or claiming not to like children yet volunteering to teach English at a children's charity, but we know and respect each others' uniqueness (often with sarcasm and jokes but respect nonetheless). For my part everyone may breathe a sigh of relief that they don't have to hear me say "Oh that reminds me...here is your useless trivia for the day" then proceed to tell them something truly gripping like the physics behind a converging-diverging rocket engine nozzle. I can't help it. Trivia for me is like an additional element at the base of Maslow's Hierarchy; Food, Shelter, Sex, Trivia.

I know we will get together when we are back in Minneapolis, and I am looking forward to seeing again the friends who have already returned but I know we'll never recapture the intimacy we shared here. The 4 hour brunches at Olive Beach where everyone individually decides to drink waaay too much, the get togethers were I can say 'before anything else I need to vent for 5 minutes' and everyone simply says 'OK, that's what we are here for', the e-mails saying 'who wants to go to XXX this weekend' and 4 people respond 'OK' and we all jump on a plane 6 days later and squeeze 4 people into 2 beds in one cheap hotel room somewhere in India, the impromptu hookah parties at my place, Thanksgiving dinner with horrible turkey and friends who drop the midwestern emotional stoicism to genuinely say what they are thankful for. And on and on and on...

I'll also miss all the new friends I've made here. Other ex-pats from around the world and the people at Target, particularly my team. They have all taught me something about India and myself. They've shown me the world isn't black & white and my way of viewing it is only one of about 4 billion and counting. Thank-you, danyavath, shokria.

So now I'm frantically try to wrap up here; ensuring my team and work is in a good spot, gathering the souveniers I've procrastinated on purchasing, trying to buy a house in Minneapolis, researching cars (I'll need one of those again, aargh), squeezing in a couple last weekend trips and planning a 2 week stop over in Australia on the way back to Mpls. And as I think about what I will take with me from India I've decided to make a list of "Minneapolis Resolutions":
-Stay close with the friends I've made, those in Minneapolis and around the world
-Take at least 1 international vacation each year (one of which has to be trekking the himalayas)
-Don't let myself go back to thinking the world is black & white
-Smoke and drink less but continue to enjoy life just as much

After all, although we may only be immortal for a limited time and time will win every contest; I'm not quite ready yet to give up my immortality and stop wandering the Earth.

Signs, Signs, Everywhere a Sign

Sign Sign everywhere a sign
Blocking out the scenery breaking my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign
-Five Man Electrical Band: Signs

Signs are funny things they attempt to anticipate questions that haven't been asked, convey information, lessen stress, even improve our lives and sometimes unintentionally, they really are "funny things" and provide a good laugh....Here are some I've encountered in the last category while traveling around India ...

Think I'll get some Decent Poultry for dinner tonight - but wait... what is this right next door...

Excellent Poultry, that's more like it but hold on...

Famous Chicken two shops down! That's where my rupees are going

I feel like such a loser but what can I do about it?

What if I want to pay with something other than money???

And how do you become a winner - by enforcing critical defense directives

Of course it's not just the defense department engaged in "Operation Urine"

Unfortunately the battle is going poorly

Don't pluck anything else for that matter either

I said No Plucking and wake up you lazy bum

I have no idea what this means but whoever painted it in Bangalore has a cousin in Jaisalmer

And here is his cousin....

Good idea but can't we find a more appealing word than "Pit"

Hey this place looks good. I actually stayed here but I had a hard time choosing my breakfast...

Israeli, Italian, Continental or Mececan.
Damn it, I'm really in the mood for Mexican - too bad

Guess I'll have some Spagatti with a side 'o American Chopsuy at Lasania's Italian restaurant

Finally something to eat - I've been craving a bread cake

Zorba the Budda! The Greeks aren't going to be happy about this

Just give me some meat but it better be from a trusted name in meat

Think I'll snack on some Tit bits - (if you think this is juvenile just wait a bit, a Tit bit if you will)

See I told you - more juvenile. I can't help it. I know it means but Sweets & Fast Food but come / cum on...

Ready for desert? In addition to Andre flavored ice cream they also have chocolate and vanilla

Simple, direct, and troubling

When you have a friend named Jamie you have to take this picture

After all that a Child beer would great. A nice blonde ale would really hit the spot

Hey, did anyone catch the check-out time? (This is the inside of the room door at the Rama Guest house)

There is so much useful info on this sign its amazing:
Do you want A/C or not?
Hot and Cold showers - why haven't other hotels caught on to this yet...Oh, maybe because this one is run by Canadians

I can't stop laughing long enough to make a smart ass comment

Good to see you too Captain

Safety first. This is the cabin of the Paragliding boat I was on in Goa

What could possibly go wrong with stopping a bunch of panicky people suspended by a really tiny looking metal cable several hundred feet in the air? It is for greater enjoyment

I said Don't Panic! DON'T PANIC! (this is in the elevator i.e. lift, in my apartment building)

Suddenly I feel kind of good...

Almost...Happy

Definitely feeling Happy

Disneyland is like Auschwitz compared to this place

Ooh Oh, happiness fading a little. I guess this means I shouldn't pluck them either

Shoe stealing, cocktail drinking monkeys - I'm really not happy anymore but what can I do...

The answer to all my problems, and not a cheap temporary solution like that loser bitch with the silver medal would provide. I presume the only problem she can't solve is how to spell "Money" correctly.

On to healthy living... I don't know though, the guy in the photo doesn't look all the healthy to me

For an extra 500 rupees he throws in a preventative apendectomy

Come to think of it I am having heart palpatations

My dog is having palpatations too but I'm in a real hurry, if only we could make just one stop

Screw all this healthy living. Let's just get our hair fixed

The Sikkim Tourism Development Corp is pretty proud of themselves

Maybe they should spend less on big signs and more on weed control so we can see what they want us to do

Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you (this in in Gangtok, Sikkim and it really is one of the few litter and spit free zones I've been in yet)

It's sad when monkeys get to the point of allowing themselves to be used

How embarrassing would it be to be the one king who can't afford a Turkish Bath in the palace. All the other kings constantly laughing behind your back and calling you "Your Smelly Majesty"

Ever wonder where the internet is actually located? It's over there next to Rant-A-Motor Bike (I think Dennis Miller is part owner)

Some hotels have Seeing Eye Dogs to help people others take a different approach

This is just awesome

Not sure what a Fizzy Babe is but it's going in my pick-up line repertoire - "Hey Fizzy Babe, can I buy you a drink"?

Is it legal to post this sign on a cloudy day

And so do I Robert, so do I...