Its been almost 4 years since I started writing this blog. A couple of days ago, I was tagged by Atul to list the 12 posts of 2010 that held a special meaning for me. He may be rather surprised to know that this was my first ever tag. Infused with the excitement of trying something new, I went through my posts, relieved to see at least one post a month. Of course, choosing posts that mean a little extra ended up being a lot harder than I thought. But then again, most experiences usually are, no ? Here we go then:
January: Year of tha boomerang - Written the day I resigned from my first job in Bombay. Now and then, I go through a mental closet cleaning exercise, evaluating experiences and the state of my life at that point. Here, I dwelt on what the change would mean to me.
February: After forever - I wrote this the on day of the German Bakery blasts in Pune. Not my best stuff, but it was written in the moment; one where I lost the last vestige of an innocently peaceful image of my home town.
March: Nobody's home - One of the hardest pieces I've ever written; not in terms of effort but what it meant to me. The post was tinged with a bit of everything - humour, friendship, nostalgia and sadness.
April: As I am - My only post of the month. Nevertheless, it was an awakening of sorts; for too long, I'd ignored my beloved books and with this post, I flagged off another chapter in my love affair with the printed word.
May: The memory remains - Cambodia will always have a special place in my heart. I chose to revisit some memories of the place within the context of another favourite - the Indian monsoon.
June: The seeker - A melee of feelings came together in this post. It couldn't have made much sense to the reader, but it was written for me.
July: One more cup of coffee - I returned to Bangalore after 10 years and fell in love with the city all over again. It was just a 2 day visit, but it had a beginning, an end and everything in between. And much more.
August: The weight of my words - In a Mumbai train, there are a thousand minute meetings and a million untold stories. This just happened to be one of them. One of my favourite ones of the year. And no, I never did see her again.
September: Once upon a time - We think we know all about teenage angst, love and life's slings & arrows. A generation ago, our elders walked the same road. A post from the past.
October: Chug all night - This was the month I went back to Bangalore and saw a test match live for the first time. Much happiness, but I didn't write about those 5 days. But the post that still makes me smile in resignation is one where longing meets reality and I shrug away some looming gloom.
November: Between the lines - I'm pretty much an arm-chair traveller, my head tied down to routine whilst my heart dreams of faraway places. There was a point where I was reading 3 excellent travelogues at once and it was like being given a favourite dessert but having no room for it.
December: All good things - There was a point this year when I almost shut this blog down. For the most part, I need companionship and conversation to find a spark that turns into a post. This piece is about my failings as a blogger, certainly, but also a question to those whose blogs I follow about why they've stopped blogging.
Okay, so my first ever tag is done! My first instinct was to tag Atul because he writes more frequently than most others I know. Unfortunately, he's off the list. So, more in hope of stimulating more blogging than anything else, I tag the following suspects:
Bhumika - New city, new life, new experiences. More blogging, please ?
The Puneri - Because of the excellence of this post, I'm hoping Saar will take hint and write more this year.
Neha - Someone whose blog output is decent enough to think she'll take this forward.
Dennis - I know, I know. But it wouldn't hurt to hit that 'publish post' button, right ? No ? Okay.
~Me - The only one I don't know personally. Or at all, for that matter. I'm not even sure she visits this site, but one can always hope. But she hosts an interesting blog and here's looking forward to more unique posts this year.
Also, you, its about time you unfolded a few thoughts this year. A 'mind of the married man' monthly series. And as for you, find stories from somewhere and write.
Considering very few of the people tagged here have actually written 12 posts this year, please choose arbit number but say what was mucho grande especial about it.
Song for the moment: Brand new day - Sting
January: Year of tha boomerang - Written the day I resigned from my first job in Bombay. Now and then, I go through a mental closet cleaning exercise, evaluating experiences and the state of my life at that point. Here, I dwelt on what the change would mean to me.
February: After forever - I wrote this the on day of the German Bakery blasts in Pune. Not my best stuff, but it was written in the moment; one where I lost the last vestige of an innocently peaceful image of my home town.
March: Nobody's home - One of the hardest pieces I've ever written; not in terms of effort but what it meant to me. The post was tinged with a bit of everything - humour, friendship, nostalgia and sadness.
April: As I am - My only post of the month. Nevertheless, it was an awakening of sorts; for too long, I'd ignored my beloved books and with this post, I flagged off another chapter in my love affair with the printed word.
May: The memory remains - Cambodia will always have a special place in my heart. I chose to revisit some memories of the place within the context of another favourite - the Indian monsoon.
June: The seeker - A melee of feelings came together in this post. It couldn't have made much sense to the reader, but it was written for me.
July: One more cup of coffee - I returned to Bangalore after 10 years and fell in love with the city all over again. It was just a 2 day visit, but it had a beginning, an end and everything in between. And much more.
August: The weight of my words - In a Mumbai train, there are a thousand minute meetings and a million untold stories. This just happened to be one of them. One of my favourite ones of the year. And no, I never did see her again.
September: Once upon a time - We think we know all about teenage angst, love and life's slings & arrows. A generation ago, our elders walked the same road. A post from the past.
October: Chug all night - This was the month I went back to Bangalore and saw a test match live for the first time. Much happiness, but I didn't write about those 5 days. But the post that still makes me smile in resignation is one where longing meets reality and I shrug away some looming gloom.
November: Between the lines - I'm pretty much an arm-chair traveller, my head tied down to routine whilst my heart dreams of faraway places. There was a point where I was reading 3 excellent travelogues at once and it was like being given a favourite dessert but having no room for it.
December: All good things - There was a point this year when I almost shut this blog down. For the most part, I need companionship and conversation to find a spark that turns into a post. This piece is about my failings as a blogger, certainly, but also a question to those whose blogs I follow about why they've stopped blogging.
Okay, so my first ever tag is done! My first instinct was to tag Atul because he writes more frequently than most others I know. Unfortunately, he's off the list. So, more in hope of stimulating more blogging than anything else, I tag the following suspects:
Bhumika - New city, new life, new experiences. More blogging, please ?
The Puneri - Because of the excellence of this post, I'm hoping Saar will take hint and write more this year.
Neha - Someone whose blog output is decent enough to think she'll take this forward.
Dennis - I know, I know. But it wouldn't hurt to hit that 'publish post' button, right ? No ? Okay.
~Me - The only one I don't know personally. Or at all, for that matter. I'm not even sure she visits this site, but one can always hope. But she hosts an interesting blog and here's looking forward to more unique posts this year.
Also, you, its about time you unfolded a few thoughts this year. A 'mind of the married man' monthly series. And as for you, find stories from somewhere and write.
Considering very few of the people tagged here have actually written 12 posts this year, please choose arbit number but say what was mucho grande especial about it.
Song for the moment: Brand new day - Sting
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And Happy 2011!