10 February
2025
10 February
2025
No caffeine for you!
This morning Jay Jay and I had come to Boarding Pass Coffee to grab a cup of tea during our morning walk. (I am the only family member not in a foreign country this week – so I get to walk him).
This evening, during our walk, he made a beeline for the coffee shop and stood in front of the door with that “Let’s go in and get some coffee” attitude around him. No amount of showing him that the sign clearly says they closed at 4PM would convince him!!
8 February
2025
One more of those surprises
The genesis of this story starts from our short Dallas trip last week when we met up with my best friend from school days – Avijit Bose – who was visiting his brother in law. At that time, I had enquired after his return itinerary and realized that he would be leaving for Australia from JFK the same evening as Sharmila and Natasha were to leave from India (also from JFK).
I was in New York for work this week anyways. I extended my stay to get a chance to see Sharmila and Natasha off to India. Their flight and my flight was scheduled to start at exactly the same time. However, Avijit’s flight was to start long after mine – so, I did not harbor any thoughts of being able to see him at the airport.
Besides, JFK is a huge airport with 8 terminals and you cannot go from one terminal to another without getting out of secured zone and taking a train.
An idea started taking shape when I found out this morning from Avijit that he was coming from Dallas to JFK by Delta. Dallas being the hub of American Airlines, I had assumed he would be traveling by American.
Quickly checked his flight and realized something. He is coming into the same terminal (4) as my departing flight. In fact, his international flight is also from the same terminal.
And that is when the plan was laid.
After seeing Sharmila and Natasha off at the security queue in Terminal 8, I took the train to Terminal 4, finished off all formalities and waited outside Gate A14. Finally, their flight pulled in and they were one of the first ones to get off. You can see them walking out of the plane as I took a few snaps from the other side.
Then I put the phone in my pocket, hauled the backpack and briskly walked up to them. And like I have done before to surprise others, brushed past Avijit purposely with an audible “Excuse me!”. Avijit instinctively pulled a bit aside as he kept walking. And I kept walking next to him. Staring squarely at him as he looked back at me.
One mississippi… two mississippi… and then it struck him!!
“Arrey, tui? “ (meaning – “Huh? You??”)
We grabbed together a coffee and had some laughs before they had to claim their baggage and do the international check in and I had to run to my plane!!
Another surprise pulled off!!
7 February
2025
New York Board meeting means a chance to see good old Tuey!
1 February
2025
First tasting of Kava at home
Aseri, you will be proud of us. Like you had suggested, we went straight for the Indian curry right after having kava! On a related news, Sharmila claimed to have had the most peaceful sleep at night. Did not get up even once (usually she is not a good sleeper). We are not sure still whether it is placebo effect, uncorrelated or kava has that effect on her.
31 January
2025
The other reason we are in Dallas
31 January
2025
Another intersection point
Following instructions, we had all arrived a bit early to the birthday party. The idea was to get together before Mita (whose birthday it was) could arrive and we would all spring a big old “Surprise” on her.
While mingling with the crowd and making new friends with strangers, I struck up a conversation with this young, handsome young man. After a few pleasantries, our discussion went something like this:
“By the way, I did not catch your name,” I said.
“Amit. Amit Walia.”
“Got it. Wait… Amit Walia? I have heard that name before. In fact that name came up recently….”. I was trying to rack my brains to remember where had I heard that name. (Later realized Mita had mentioned his name when Kushal and she visited us in Atlanta a few weeks back)
“What is your name?”
“Rajib”
“Got it…”
“You know, I am still trying to remember… I know that name was discussed very recently…”
And then he interrupted me.
“Wait, Rajib Roy?”
“Yes”
“Atlanta?”
“Yes”
And then in a few minutes we were able to put the whole thing together. Both of us were in school together – way back in the 70s. St. Xavier’s School, Durgapur to be precise. Amit was two years senior to me.
One of the advantages of my blogging all my life events was that I was able to take him thru pictures of all our teachers from the school. In the last decade or so, I have looked all of them up and visited them from Hyderabad to Ernakulam to Pune to Lucknow to Delhi… name the city and I have gone and visited them.
With each of the names, Amit was getting more and more animated as a lot of memories started coming back to him. Finally I gave him the contacts of a few teachers that he remembered the most and wanted to talk to.
Meanwhile, the birthday girl had started coming our way and we all switched off the lights and went silent in waiting.
I need to sit down with Amit again and go thru our school days in more detail.
30 January
2025
Good old friends from St. Xavier’s days
The real big reason we were in Dallas – my best friend from school days was in Dallas to visit his brother in law. The last time I saw his son Rajit – he was a toddler. I think I saw Rakhi last in a get together in Taj Bengal many moons back (early 2000s). And of course, our inimitable Pratyush Paul from Dallas joined us too. And kept us entertained!
30 January
2025
Father Son duo
20 January
2025
