After a long time!!

Its been a long time since I have posted. I have always taken inspiration from something which has happened with me and turn it into a humourous account of events using my imagination. During these last four months, hard as I might try, I could not convert my experiences into something funny, which is, I know hard to believe. Due to my inability to rely on my personal happenings to produce amusing bits of stories anymore, I have decided to rely only on my imagination alone to come up with posts. I know it might be difficult, but as somebody said - on the other side of difficulties is success.

I love the character of Lord Emsworth from the Blanding series by P.G Wodehouse. My new posts will center on conversation and situations with someone who is like Lord Emsworth and Me. I will be narrating the story of course.


1. An introduction to Harsha

It is imperative that, you should know how Harsha and I met and how we came to be friends. So here it goes:

"Its a tricky situation. Prasad has to apply all his experience."
"What do you think?" The guy who was standing beside me said loudly. Almost everybody in the crowd looked at this guy with an expression that indicated - one more word and you are a dead man. And that look transferred to me, because the guy addressed it to me, as if I had something to do with this guy shouting loudly.
I looked at him and pleaded him to lower his voice and concentrate on the screen.
And suddenly the entire crowd started shouting wildly, like a tribals preparing to sacrifice before their beloved gods. It took a moment for me to realise what happened and joined the celebration with a scream.

After a couple of minutes, the thrill died down and I started becoming aware of where I was. I was in front of a TV showroom watching the Indian cricket celebrating the win on one of the numerous televisions on display. And the hero of course was Venkatesh Prasad, the Indian fast bowler who hit 3 runs of the last ball to take India to victory (of some series I don't remember).

"You are from Om Vidyalaya right - 97 batch?" asked the guy who was standing beside me as the crowd started to disperse. I replied in the affirmative and asked "Do I know you?"
"You were my class mate in sixth......and you are Nrupesh.... aren't you? You and I were partners in building a model of a village with a wind mill and a bio gas plant"
"u.... huh" I said with some difficulty. Who could remember with such alarming details of events of nearly 8 years before?
"I am Harsha" he said with his right hand propped up. I shook his hand trying to recall why did I ever make a model of a village with a bio gas plant.
After some more introductions of what he was doing and what I was, exchanging our mobile phone numbers (which has become a common practice as saying bye to an acquaintance), I was planning to say good bye.
"Great partnership, wasnt it?" he said and I said yes. Without the crucial partnership between Venkatesh Prasad and Javagal Srinath the match was as good as lost.
"We scored 5 upon 5" he said
"What?"
"The village model, Annapurna ma'am was really impressed by it"
"Oh ..... ok, I thought you were referring to the cricket match"
"What cricket match?"
I looked at one of the television screens on which the presentation ceremony was being conducted. Following my lead, Harsha directed his attention and for 3 to 5 seconds, his mouth was open staring at the TVs.
"Oh...this cricket match" he said with the conviction of understanding a complex mathematical theory.
I was planning, for the second time, to say good bye when Harsha uttered a curse which made the dispersing crowd stared at us....... again. An elderly man gave a look that could have meant either we were better of unborn or if it was up to him, he would have hanged us upside down and give a thrashing of our lives.

"What happened?" I asked
"Somebody flicked my wallet" he said and frantically searched all his trouser pockets. He was tensed like I did before I gave my X class exams and the trouser was a cargo which had at least 10 pockets. "I should have been careful. Shit man, my mom is going to kill me. what shall I do Nrupesh?"
"I think your wallet is in shirt pocket" I said when I saw it just before he questioned me.
He took out his wallet and the relief spread across all his features as fast as ink spreads on a blotting paper.

I was planning, for the third time, to say good bye and before I could, he said it this time and turned muttering something unintelligible with out waiting for me to return his farewell. He walked away very fast without giving me any opportunity even to catch him up.

I returned to my home. The face actually looked familiar, though I was unable to place it. I slept with Harsha out of mind, though little did I know that he would call me the next day, the day next to that and almost every other day!!