If you could relive one day from your past, which day would it be and why?
I would love to relive any day before my dad got diagnosed with Lung cancer. He used to be a pillar of strength, a motivating and inspirational figure for all of us family members, as well as for those influenced by him in any way.
I still remember the day of his retirement from college as a Sr. accountant; it was the first of its kind in the college’s history. I remember he was covered in marigold garlands, and all his peers were saying good things about him. I was lucky to be present there. I didn’t say anything about him due to stage fright, but it felt so good to see how much people used to admire him.
His personality changed completely after cancer treatment. Chemo has taken a toll on him. He is no longer optimistic and has no wish to live. The person who used to give us strength is now out of strength. The one who taught us to be strong in tough times is weaker than we thought. That’s how life is. Each moment is a test. Sometimes we pass, and sometimes we fail.
It’s hard for him to be helpless and dependent on others. I know how he feels: to become frail after being a person of strength. But this is how it is; we should accept whatever god gives us, pain or pleasure.
I would really love to live to see the day of his retirement, to see him happy, alive, and proud.
“The Mist” is based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name. The whole story is about survival, and it was surprising to see the Walking Dead characters in the movie. But it was just like any other survival movie, except the concept was unique, as in King’s books.
Spoiler alert – Do not read further if you haven’t watched the movie
In the end, when the protagonist leaves the store with his kid, a female interest, and an elderly couple in the car, he decides to go as far as they can, with no plan in place. Once they run out of gas, they remain silent for some time and then make the tough decision to commit suicide rather than be killed by merciless creatures. But the catch is, they had only 4 bullets.
The kid was sleeping during all this, and we, as viewers, watch the car get bloodied and hear 4 gunshots, wondering if the man killed his boy too. Finally, we learn that the man killed everyone, and he is having an emotional breakdown. He gets out of the car, shouting, ready to be eaten alive by the creatures. This was devastating: to kill your own kid. I was already high on the emotions, thinking of my own kid, putting myself in his shoes.
But hold on: when no creature attacks him, he gets confused and, after some time, notices that the military has rescued some citizens and controlled the situation by killing the creatures. He just missed them by a few minutes; that’s when I started crying uncontrollably. That’s the worst thing that can happen to any parent.
Have you seen this movie? I heard the director changed the ending from the novel, and King praised it. That book is on my to-read list now.
If you could erase one event from history, what would it be?
Actually, I would like to erase at least two events: the first would be slavery, a black chapter in human history, and the other would be the infamous Holocaust.
For the sake of this question, I would keep it to the holocaust. I have read many novels and watched movies on it, each hitting me hard and badly. We can only imagine what happened to those poor souls and wish it had not happened at all. But that’s how human beings are, power-hungry and devilish. It’s just that some have more evil than others, but we all possess that evil.
If you haven’t read or watched any of the above-listed work, try one. I don’t want to comment on why it happened, who was wrong, or who to blame. I would say it was really sad what people had to go through.
As human beings, we should always keep our logic intact and not mindlessly follow anyone. The real problem occurs when we follow a leader without questioning him and see him as a father figure or as a god.
Politicians have a way of influencing people and making them do what they want without them realizing they are being played. It happens all the time and will happen in the future too. Unfortunately that’s how it is.
What’s a conspiracy theory you actually find believable?
I find this Area-51 conspiracy theory about aliens a lot. Are there any theories that Area-51 is a top-secret facility where they keep aliens to study and experiment on them?
I personally feel there is no smoke without fire. If this theory is not 100% solid, there must be some truth to it.
Another thing I strongly believe is that what we think can exist. All inventions and discoveries are based on this principle alone. Someone thought of something and then invented it. Even this world is considered to be manifested by Brahma, the creator in Hinduism. So if we think there can be life on other planets and aliens exist, then they surely exist.
Every year, we have this Corporate Cycling Challenge in Omaha, Nebraska, which is known as the largest single-day ride in the state. My company provides free entry to the event; I make sure to attend every time.
The challenge routes consist of 10-, 25-, and 42-mile routes for road, gran fondo, and gravel bike rides. I mostly do 25 miles, but 2 years ago I did 42 miles too; that was fun. Last year I did it with Harmit; she did 10 miles, and I did 25.
This year, the ride challenge was yesterday, on August 16th. I rode 25 miles without Harmit or any friends. These days I am playing lots of Pickleball, almost 2.5 hours daily, so I haven’t had enough chance to ride this year. In fact, this was my second ride of the year.
I was actually thinking of skipping it the night before, but then decided to get at least my gear ready. I fine-tuned the bike, packed it in the car trunk, and put the helmet, water bottle, and pouch in the car, along with a protein bar and a towel.
Yesterday, when I woke up at 7AM, it was raining heavily, testing my mental toughness about whether to go. The race was at 8:30 AM, and we were supposed to check in at 8AM. Against my will, I pulled myself out of bed and got ready. The rain was so heavy that the roads were flooding. I wasn’t sure how this event would take place.
When I reached there at 8AM, to my surprise, cyclists were there—few in ponchos, few under shades, and few at the registration desk. I loved their spirit. I registered and joined a few of them in the shade. We waited for the rain to stop, but it didn’t, so we started our ride at sharp 8:30AM. That was cool; rain or shine, the ride should happen.
Rain interrupted the eventCyclists were readyMy loveGet set start
Initially, I felt cold from the rain, but then I shifted my focus to the beauty of the weather. It was actually a pleasant ride, free from sweat. I sweat a lot, unlike most people, so the rain helped me conserve energy and avoid dehydration.
Break time Half way
I didn’t stop paddling. I tried to maintain my pace as much as possible. In between, there was an instance when the other cyclist confused me by telling me not to follow the trail we’d taken to avoid the highway, saying it was too muddy. I turned back and wasted some time before realizing it was not that bad, as other cyclists were following the same route. So I realigned myself; this wasted a couple of crucial minutes.
The only break I took was at the route’s turnaround. I checked in there and had a banana. My mom called me during that time, so I talked with her briefly before starting the next half.
Dirty roads take me home
Beautiful ride
The second half was easy; I completed the ride in less than 2 hours, and it was satisfactory. If I had not wasted some time on that muddy trail, it would have been even faster.
Another bottle for the collectionSense of achievement
Do you also like to bike? What brand and model do you have? By the way, I forgot to mention: my bike’s gears stopped working midway. My god, how nervous I was on that ascent. Has this happened to you ever?
