My equation with Chennai

Its one and a half years since I started my professional life - as a software engineer...I have bittersweet memories of my work life...It has taken me places, given me the chance of meeting different people, made me part of an amazing process of knowledge and idea sharing, at times shown me that I'm a small immature girl in this big IT field, taught me to keep distance from people, hurt me to the core at certain times, increased my faith in friends, fuelled my ambition to excel, brought 60% order to my 100% disorganized life...

The major part of my work life has been spent in Chennai...I was not particularly happy when I got a relocation to Chennai from Hyderabad...I was definitely excited for my project which is the most important word for every software engineer...Hyderabad was fun - lots of friends, some "own" money in hand, lots of places to roam about, and a wonderful, reasonably costly and beautiful city to roam about...Chennai only brought heat, dirt, misery, nearer to home feelings to me...

But my feelings for Chennai has changed ever since…so much so that I was really sad to leave Chennai for Bangalore…Looking back at Chennai and the equation between me and Chennai =

1. Made me a lot systematic, I started to be forever obsessed to folding and arranging my clothes and cupboards, took a fancy for washing...
2. Made me a lifelong high dosage perfume user...courtesy Thoyakat :-)
3. That the best way to tackle irritating people is to keep mum and have a slight smile on your face…
4. Taught me that there are some locations that capture the soul of this rich and diverse country better than the rest...My long treads thru Pondy Bazar have brought me close to this nation's soul, gave me a sense of oneness, a feeling of togetherness and amazing clarity of the thought and feeling of "my country"...
5. Tunes sung with passion, together with friends will bond hearts and forever reverberate in your life…so much so that you’ll always relive those moments in your day 2 day thoughts…
6. Sea will never make you sick…It’ll jus make you feel better and better, take off all your troubles and worries with the waves…
7. Cooking is fun…So is home making…Also window shopping...And bargaining...
8. Made me hooked to .NET technology…N given me the feeling that “I’m doing some great programming stuff”…
9. Helped in the transition from the thin, emaciated "Reshmi" to the fatter, plumper n healthier side of the world...
10. Given me some great friends…especially the 3 musketeers with whom I first stepped into Chennai and also reiterated my friendship with certain people, who have become my friends for life…

The list goes on...

Well Chennai...you'll always be close to my heart...for teaching me that its not the place, but people who lighten up ur life...:-)