The year gone by

Yes, it is one of those posts, though it may be a bit late in the coming. So what? Its been six days now since the New Year dawned on us. Few of my friends say that there needn't be such fanfare over it, I mean after all, it is just another year. But I want to pen down or rather type down what the past year meant to me, so that I can at a later stage look at this post and smile or frown, as the case maybe.

Ok, enough of build up. Here goes:

I made lots of friends and by lots, I mean it. Even in college I hadn't met so many people I genuinely liked and wanted to know better. If people were to ever ask me how much of an impact Infosys had on my life, this part would definitely score higher than the learnability shit. It's funny if I think about it actually, how much I despised college and how much I like being a working woman. People usually are of the opposite opinion.

The end of my brief stint with independence. I got transferred back to Bangalore, back to living with my family, back to the comforts but also, back to the restrictions. I did have periods of home sickness while living on my own, especially when my health wasn't in the best of phases or during events/festivals that I had previously celebrated with them. But on the whole, I think I was managing quite well, given that it was my first time. I think that is what disappointed my family the most *grin*.

The confirmation of the fact that I have a lot of personal issues to overcome - control, intimacy, trust, to name just a few. I don't like people telling me what to do, I can't get close to someone beyond a certain point and I still don't trust people completely. One would think that such "problems" would impede a person's social standing but to my amazement, it has only helped mine. I have started to recognise these as my strengths, rather than my weaknesses. I still haven't come across a good enough reason for me to change myself.

On the professional front, I think I can label it satisfactory. I am being real. A chemical engineer in the software industry should be rooted in reality. I could have achieved much more but I never have been the ambitious kind. I do wish I had a better boss, but you can't have it all. I am in a project that has never required me to sit beyond 8 pm and teammates that co-operate and even cover up your mistakes. Life could have been a lot worse, I know it and hence am thankful that it isn't.

Oh how could I forget the most important one! I started blogging. Blogs to me were an alien concept, something I had read about online, something I thought only geeks and losers dabbled in. Was I wrong! I have discovered a whole new life after I started blogging(ok maybe I am stretching it a leeeetle bit). I started with InfyBlogs, the internal blogspace of my company and I got hooked. I rediscovered my passion for writing, which was, since school days, gathering dust. It also lead me to do something I was always cautious of - making friends online. To be able to carry a conversation with people I had never met personally and some I never would, was a totally new experience for me!

Well what do you know, this post didn't turn out as bad as I thought. I guess when you look back, the positive memories are more willing to make themselves heard than the negative. Or maybe it is the effect of the peaceful weekend. Whatever the reason, I am glad that the thought of the year 2007 doesn't bring a bitter taste to my mouth. I must confess that I have learned a few lessons the hard way in the past year, but I shall not let them spoil the memories.

Goodbye 2007, you were good to me. 2008, I think I am ready for you.