There are moments in life when you realize that you are totally out of your depth. That moment hit me just before lunch yesterday as the speaker droned on & on about random whatnots. I was just thankful no one paid any attention to the less than attentive expression on my face. To be invited to a 3-day conference is not exactly the pinnacle of my achievements, but this one had about as much chance of seeing me in a professional avatar as the last cold one in the fridge on a summer evening. Or any evening, come to that. What sealed the programme's fate was that it was being held in Pune. To make matters worse, the venue was the National Insurance Academy in Balewadi. To be paid to go to Pune is akin to... err, dude I'm being 'paid' to go to 'Pune'. Enough said. Much joy. But, to be spending the day at the NIA is even less encouraging to the get-project-done stakes. A verdant campus even at the worst of times and February is not the worst of times. The trees p...