Today
I happened to watch an advertisement on TV. Which is a very rare event because
1) I usually change the channel as soon as an ad comes on, and 2) I rarely
watch TV. So this ad comes on, about Splendor bike, and it went something
like: a guy sends a text that says “Chai
in the Misty Mountains.” Then three of his friends, happy to receive that text,
drop whatever they are doing, and ride on their bikes towards the Misty
Mountains. Somewhere on the way our four friends meet up, and they ride happily
together until the Misty Mountain is reached and the chai is drunk.
It
left me thinking, “Wow these guys are something else, not only do they want to
go to the same place, but get ready immediately and reach the meeting point all
at the same time,” and wished meeting up with friends was as easy as that.
Flash
back a couple of years ago. Hyderabad, when it still was the capital of united
Andhra Pradesh. Me and a bunch of friends from work often meet up on holidays
and weekends and do something, go somewhere. Our plans were never plans, more
like a puzzle where you don’t know where you’re headed until the last minute. Someone
would have the grand idea that we should do something, and call everyone. Plans,
or something similar to that would be made. Fellow with the car would pick up
everyone and then the discussion on where to go would begin, and the actual plan would emerge.
AR was always late. Since he was the guy with
the wheels, we could never go anywhere without him, and he knew we would wait
for him, which makes him even more late. Oh how we cursed him and bitched about
him and called him and texted him, only to hear “I’m almost ready”. Of course almost could mean anything from
five minutes to two hours. Sometimes we would all go to his place and while he
ran around getting ready his family was forced to feed us and be nice to us.
And
then there was the “invite someone along without my friends’ approval” which always
ruined the day/evening/night because we then had to be extra polite and use
nice words to each other. There was that
one time AJ decided to invite one girl, who declined the invitation and then
once we had started off changed her mind and had to be waited for an hour. I remember
that day, we waited for her on a petrol bunk, and just opposite the road was a
bar-cum-restaurant. We had waited for almost an hour, and everyone was low on
patience. We were so tired of sitting in
a car, on a hot sunny day, waiting for someone who might or might not show up, that
when someone suggested we all go into the bar and get drunk and go home we
almost said yes.
However,
time delays never dampened our spirits. There was that one time we decided to
go to Medak and see the church and maybe visit a nearby waterfall on the way
home. Medak is about two hours’ drive
from Hyderabad. AR was late again (no surprise there), and when we left the
city it was almost 3 PM. A few photo shoots on the way, a tyre puncture, and by the time
we reached Medak it was after 5 PM and the church was about to be closed to
visitors. We managed to get inside, did a quick tour, and left when it was
dark. We then visited nearby old buildings and drove back to the city, and on
the way had the best dal pakodas with coconut chutney.
Incomplete
research on a place you intended to visit (visiting a beautiful lake, except it
was the middle of the June and the lake was completely dry)? Breakdowns at
night in the middle of the forest with no equipment or spare parts? Police
patrols asking you to show your ID because you are in the middle of a
Naxalite-infested area? Wondering what the living arrangements are between two
women and a man who sheltered you while your car is being fixed? Check all
that. Having a good time in spite of all that? Check!!
Life’s
changed. Now everything has a timestamp.
Go to that place at that time, do that thing and go home. If you’re going to be
late be sure to call home and relay the news. No more long rides and going out whenever and
wherever just because you can. No more touristy and sightseeing trips. No more
being free. All I wish for now is
Gandalf to show up when I'm 50 and take me on the adventure of a lifetime.
