Birthday 29:
So it was the last of my 20’s, and boy has it been a fantastic decade for me! So many highs and lows, and stories worth writing at least 10 different books! Only if I can get down to it, that is. I’m already getting a feel of how the 30’s are gonna pan out – boring as shit. But that’s how life possibly works out. All the stuff that happened in the 20’s and kept life so exciting is totally out of the question now on. Life is all about working weekend to weekends. Working enough days to earn that hiatus. And then go to some exotic place and blow that cash up. So apart from a few exciting weekends and that one or max two odd trips in a year, life has nothing much else to offer. But back in the 20’s (I’m already giving the 20’s an obituary, although I still have one final year to go) there was just so much happening! So many friends, so much of drunken revelry, so many fiascos with women.. man, it was something else!
Birthday 29 actually started off as drab as it could possibly be. We just reached home after a trip to Scotland that turned out completely opposite to what I hoped it would be – not one person liked it. Naan and Geeta were pissed on Day 1 of Scotland itself. I was upset seeing them that way and admonished myself for actually planning a trip like this, when we could have easily gone to a place like Edinborough. I mean, really, the places we went to were where the Scots went to after retirement. It was interesting and all, in a way of doing something different, but come on, I get one bludy week of leave in a year, I’d rather live it up.
Anyway, we got home and Geeta very sweetly made the most of what was available at home at that point, and arranged a cake and a can of JD for us to drink. Given the way the last 2 days went, I was glad she and Naan even took that much effort to do this. Anyway, we had a decent time drinking that JD and chatting into the night.
But the next day, the entire day was spent shopping! I mean, there was no doubt that we had to do it, coz not just for us, but there were people back home also who expected us to bring some things back. But the fact that it was all we did for the day was a real bummer. Anyway, nobody to really blame here. We were so drunk and slept so late that the day started late for us and shopping even the amount we did was all that we could do for that day.
Of course, the way the day ended was good. We went to a really neat steakhouse and I had probably the best steak I’ve had till date – one called rib-eye which I keep hearing on TV. So that was the highlight really. But frankly the best we could salvage of the day. Anyway, I was fine coz being in London itself was a friggin big deal right. So no complaints at all. Figured I had one more good birthday.
And that was until exactly a week later, when Geeta planned this whole thing out for me that turned out to be probably the best birthday bash ever.
For the last few days I kept telling her how I’m missing my school friends. Dunno why I was on the trip. No, actually I know exactly why I was on that trip, but that’s a separate post now. So basically, I kept talking about school and friends there, that Geeta decided to use this as the theme for the party.
So I come to a place where 2 of our office friends – Parul and Aanchal stay, and thought I’d be picking her up from here and going to Bangdu’s, where we would drink and do the usual. I least expected a “party” for me. But the moment I got there, there was a board on the door saying “NJS welcomes Dumma”. I get in and everybody there – Parul, Aanchal, Gannu and Geeta were dressed in school uniform and recreated an entire school environment inside for me. So there were pictures from school days that Jeetu had mailed Geeta. There were words like Prasanna Ma’am, NJS and even Tyke written and strewn around. And the best part was, Geeta actually carried clothes for that resembled my school uniform – now wasn’t that something! So I changed into that and Gannu brought his Xbox 360 that all of us began playing – which was supremely entertaining.
We had a bottle of Gentleman Jack that I couldn’t wait to open, but G kept asking me to hold on. I figured we were waiting for Bangdu to come in, but then at 10 when the door bell rang, and in came not just Bangdu, but even Amit and Suyash, and all three wearing a costume similar to what I was in - white shirt, tie and shorts for all three. It was hilarious. I couldn’t believe they actually did all that and landed up there.
We finally opened the bottle of GJ and started drinking. After a bit, we ate, played DC and having so much fun, that it actually turned bright outside and only then did we crash. I didn’t realize when I slept off, and woke up with a killer hangover – which basically meant I had one helluva party.
Now that was a nice birthday number 29. And it was only possible coz one person believed in it. Thanks babe :)
