10 years on...

I could be a tad rusty here, but I believe it's been just over 10 years now (not to the day, though) since I'd first stepped into B-school. To say that most of us who undertook that journey together are today under 'somewhat altered circumstances' will probably be a huge understatement . Some of us will be fatter, balder, but most will be wiser, I hope. Some of you may be reading this against a backdrop of baby chatter, or office hubbub, or general ambient noise as life passes by. For some, it has been a journey worth making; some are still waiting to find out. But I'd like to think that the journey has been worth it for most if not all of us.

When we stepped in that day, I thought that the world was my oyster. Of course, I didn't know any good recipes for oyster, but the idea appealed to me nonetheless. Today, things probably taste a little blander. Moreover the dollar sign is a little blurred sometimes, often shaping itself into words like family, duty, friendship and home.

Funnily enough, I realised the other day that - knowing now what I know of what it took to go through those 2 years - I might just decline if the opportunity presented itself again. Those 2 years in a room with no walls (figuratively speaking), changed a lot in me. But at the end of the gruelling lectures, the undending tests, the late nights, the placements, the tension, the petty squabbles... the only thing that mattered was that I was among friends. For those 2 short years, we were like a family. At least so I'd like to believe.

Those of you who know me well, know that I love movies. Thankfully, it's a habit I've never quite been able to kick. There was one particular one, which ended with a quote that I always carry with me. The context is somewhat different, and those of you who recognise the movie will - I hope - excuse the little liberty that I've taken with its 're-branding' as it were. I thought it might make an appropriate ending for this note.

It runs something like this - "...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature." - Abraham Lincoln, in his first inaugural address.

Peace out. And back to the real world. Where the dollar sign is sharper.

No Fear Or What it means to live shamelessly

As I wade knee deep into the mid-30s, I realise for the first time that there is actually a chance that I may die someday. And whilst I am not given to morbid phases of trying to imagine the time and nature of my eventual exit from this floating spaceship, I do think a lot more about the R -word these days. For the uninitiated - R stands for regret. That unnamed entity that lies somewhere between 'What next' and 'Oh shit was that me?'

Of late - the thoughts have been gnawing at me with frightening periodicity.

So I decided to do something about it. I've made a bucket list - things to do before I die (does not include Megan Fox). I first came across the title in the movie of the same name, and I quite liked it. It was nice to see Jack Nicholson ageing (but no less grumpy) and Morgan Freeman carried off the 'dying philosopher' with class and ease.

So here goes:

1. Write a book that will leave its mark
2. Fly my own jet
3. Attend my kid's graduation at Harvard with my wife
4. See at least one of them marry a supermodel (I mean my kids - not my wife; she's already married to one... ME!)
5. Go on a world cruise first class, ... and have money left over!
6. Spend a weekend at the Waldorf Astoria (could be the same weekend as the graduation)
7. See the 7 wonders (see - killed 7 with one wish!)
8. Learn 3 new languages
9. Be someone people can trust
10. Eat the perfect omelette

Of the 10, I think I've come close to achieving the 10th, thanks to a stay at the Hilton in Leeds.

The others are work in progress. Watch this space.