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New Year. Tabula Rasa?

Posted by Akash under Life on December 30th,2008. 1 Comment.

Eh. Not completely. I actually enjoy my life at the moment. 2008, I would say, was a pretty good year. It was most definitely life changing (for the better and worse), and I don’t think I have any regrets. Getting closer to friends, accomplishing academically, and thriving musically were some things that I am happy of and thankful for. As for my resolutions, I only did one of them – number 3. Hopefully I will try harder with my new ones. Even though there are twice as more, I really want to accomplish all of them.

  1. Usar más español.
  2. Do homework away from computer, eliminating distractions.
  3. Actually get through all the piano lesson books so I can learn real music.
  4. Save more money.
  5. Get a summer job and volunteer over the summer.
  6. Try harder to get my semester grades up so I won’t be so stressed during finals.
  7. Read more.
  8. Sleep earlier.
  9. Be nicer to parents.
  10. Take more leadership.

Wish me luck?

Thanksgiving of Terror

Posted by Akash under Life on December 24th,2008. No Comments.

I actually wrote most of this on the 27th or 28th of November, but I forgot to actually publish it. Even though it’s too late, I still want to publish this memoir for the future (with some minor edits).

So. Last time I came to Mumbai, those train bombings happened (~July 2006). This time I come to Mumbai, terrorists torture our city once more. Perfect timing.

At around 10 AM (local time) on the 26th of November, this all started. My family was awake. We were just chatting and then I went to sleep. My parents were woken up to see the news. So the next morning (the 27th), I woke up. I DID make a mental note that it was unusually quiet outside (normally, the streets are bustling and noisy from very early in the morning). I logged on the computer and checked my email. I got a few more than usual. Several of them were asking if I was OK. I panicked. What happened? I started trembling as I navigated to CNN.com, and there I saw the news of the terror.

I watched the news a lot on that day. Things were not getting too much better. There was still firing, explosions, deaths, and hostages. On Thanksgiving day, I was so thankful that my family was safe. We knew a few people that were in this horrifying situation, but luckily, they were also safe. My thoughts are with those families and friends who have lost their loves one during this event.

Mumbai has experienced a nightmare. I think we did a great job of picking up the pieces. The hotels have already done so.

“We dedicate our reopening to the city of Mumbai as affirmation of the values of courage, resilience and dignity,” Raymond Bickson, managing director and CEO of Indian Hotels Company Limited, said.

In India

Posted by Akash under Life on November 16th,2008. 2 Comments.

I know I haven’t blogged in a long time, but I want to right now. I left for India on the 14th (almost 12AM). I will be back on the 29th. I am am in Mumbai for my cousin’s wedding. Here’s how my first day went:

Being in India is actually kind of nice. It’s a new, fresh feeling. It’s more real. Except the pollution, insane driving, poverty, etc. I am staying at my mom’s brother’s house. Their flat is really big, but my parents and I have to share a bed. And my cousin has to sleep in my other uncle’s room. And my uncle has to sleep in the living room What fun. At least my dad agreed to stay here and not the bride’s house. It’s insanity over there. My mom was happy to see me and vise versa. But she got SO mad when my dad and I was unpacking. Basically, my dad did the opposite of what she instructed. I got a bit of jet lag yesterday. I was falling asleep in the morning. I took a nap in the afternoon so I would stay awake for the evening and now I am OK. (It’s currently ~9AM)

I am so excited to miss seven days of school!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY. blah. I am going to start doing homework today. I want to finish a lot of it before the wedding, but I know that’s not going to happen because GUESS WHAT. I have to learn a bollywood dance! This is what I have been waiting for all my life. My mom kind of told me about this before I left, but now I realize that she was actually being serious. Oh well. It may be a little bit fun… I will keep an open mind.

In the evening, we went to my cousin’s fiancé’s sister’s house for this interesting party. I forget the Hindi and/or Gujurati name for it, but it’s basically a game of Antaskshari, where you guess songs given some clues. I obviously did not participate because I have a 1% knowledge of Hindi music compared to everyone else. The groom’s family is ALL Gujurati, and we are like… everything. We are a mix of Sindhi, U.P., Marathi, Gujurati, Keralite, etc. We also cover the major religions of India: Hindu, Muslim, and Christian. It was hard for the groom’s family to accept my cousin at first, but I am really proud of them for doing so and being so welcoming. They were really friendly and lively, and I am looking forward to seeing more of them.

Slowly Crumbling into Dust

Posted by Akash under Life, School on September 14th,2008. 1 Comment.

Wow. Three weeks of school have been completed. I don’t know how I am going to survive the rest of the year. From the first day up to today, I have been getting a consistently large amount of homework each night. Sure, there’s one or two days were I get a small break, but then I have an after-school activity of some sort. My day is so filled up that I barely have time to eat lunch.

On Mondays, I have piano lessons after schools. That’s not too bad because I love piano, I have a great teacher, and she lives literally five seconds away from me. Spanish Honor Society meets on some Wednesdays, and every other Friday I have JSA (a debate club). My plans for going the YMCA on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays have failed, and I haven’t gone since summer ended. I am going to try to find time now. I will be able to go some Wednesdays and Fridays, and Thursdays will be open once my PSAT class is done. I have found time for SOME social fun on the weekends, which is great!

My classes are much more challenging this year. AP Chemistry isn’t as a bad as I thought it would be, but it’ll most likely get harder. I think I will do OK. Psychology has taken me by surprise. I didn’t expect so much work. The test on Friday was tough…

I really like music this year. In piano, I am picking up on the books again, and it’s great to continue lessons after that long break. I am also teaching myself a fun jazz song called “Old Fess Joe Rag” by Riccardo Scivales. In my voice lessons, I am singing a variety of songs, including a Mozart aria that’s in German.

Sorry for those pretty random blurbs! This is what happens when you don’t blog for a long time. Oh, I cleaned up the footer (there was way too much junk: scrobbler, books, etc), and I also added a Lifestream page, thanks to the RSS Stream plugin.

PS – I coded a very beautiful layout today. :]

Last Day of Summer

Posted by Akash under School on August 24th,2008. 3 Comments.

It’s here. Tomorrow, everything will change. I will be a Junior in High School. Before I know it, I will be in college. This year is going to be simply hectic. Due to zero hour AP Chemistry, class starts at 6:55 A.M. for me. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I will go to the YMCA after school with Marijke, as we have been doing this Summer. On Tuesdays, I will have voice lessons and vocal jazz in the evening. ISA and this PSAT prep class I am taking are on Thursdays. I still have to find out when my piano lessons are. I will also sign up for volunteering at the hospital (probably on the weekends). I plan the join the Spanish Honors Society, and maybe one of the following three: Speech, Youth & Government, or Model UN. If I somehow have free time and decide to completely give up my social life, then I will apply for a job at Barnes & Noble or at the local movie theatre. As for the musical (Crazy For You), it depends on how busy I am and my desire to do it. I may try out for the pit orchestra. I will do Solo & Ensemble, as always, but I will not audition for the IMEA District choir because I will be in India for my cousin’s wedding.

As for my classes, I think I picked a moderately challenging selection. I am deathly afraid of AP Chemistry, but it’s my fault I signed up for it. I will also take Honors Math Analysis (pre-calculus), Dramatic Literature and British Literature (semester each), Spanish III, Psychology and AP Psychology (semester each), Varsity Chamber Singers (top choir), and of course, P.E. Some other options, and classes that my friends are taking, are AP English III (but I am not that great at English), Honors Physics (which I will take next year. I took Honors Chemistry last year, so I’d like to keep the Chemistry classes consecutive), AP US History (I took regular US History last year, so there’s no point), and AP Biology (Chemistry interests me more).

Wow. Big plans? Yes. Will all of this work out? Hopefully. Will I have time to blog and design? Barely. Do I use too many parentheses? Yeah. :|

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