The College

I can’t take a bike to college right now. So I took a train instead.

Up. Up, up, up aaaand down. Whoooish. You know what? I’d just like to see someone deny that the Garware Pul is the highlight of the morning journey to college. Yes I’d just like to see someone deny that. Refreshing. Refreshed. Although. I would be more refreshed if I weren’t wearing a helmet. Wasn’t wearing a helmet. Yeah whichever. Yeah I’m not supposed to do that and all but maybe only for this stretch. And tons of people do it anyway. Hey there goes my teacher. She’s not wearing one. Some speed. So what, she recognized me and is now hurrying to reach class before me? Show us she is never late? She might want to after that speech she made yesterday. No, I am wearing a helmet. How could she have recognized me. Still it would be good fun to just overtake her and reach before her and wish her a pointed good morning like such a pointed, pointed.. pregnant good morning. You know. Meaningful. Like how I’m early, for her, and she’s not early enough, for me, or for whoever, whoever comes early to check if she came early but then she comes late and so tomorrow they come late and she’s come early…. Hey she’s behind me now. Is there anxiety written all over her face? Can’t hurt to look. Just a peek. The road ahead is clear. Just peek. Don’t overthink it. And she’s not my teacher. Why the hurry ma’am whoa where did that truck come from.

Great and now I can’t overtake that truck. Never stay on a truck’s tail. Never overtake from the left side either. Right side’s not safe though, I know the rule but it’s a truck. Guy’d have to put his whole upper half out the window to see who he squashed. I wonder if I could. Crawl out from under the truck in the split second between getting hit and getting run over I could, right? Yeah but if I want to try that I should really overtake from the left side so I can at least crawl to the footpath. Otherwise out of the frying pan and into the yellow the light’s just turned yellow up ahead. Red by the time I get there. What would the truck do? Wait who cares what the truck would do the truck’s not going to enter the college or is it? Funny people enter the college nowadays. Maybe it will. Red. It’s going straight through. Should I jump the signal? Of course I should I only have to turn. Am I going to feel differently when I’m crossing the road later today. 

That bump on the way to the parking doesn’t get any friendlier. What’s a good spot? If it’s parked outside and it rains, but if it’s parked under the shed it gets terribly dusty and I wonder why I always wonder why? Do pigeons have parades on top of them? You know, they probably do. Yes that could be it. Okay outside then but if it’s parked inside and it gets terribly dusty and then it rains so it gets washed clean off so yes better park it in. Oh sorry. Sorry didn’t mean to wake you but you have to move old boy. Go lie somewhere else. Yes inside the shed it’s not like the shed’s going to be full today it’s just a Monday. And the weather’s romantic. I’ve been told so. Wait I know that sound okay quick lets park and off the bike and keys are taken out and I’m standing still. There we go. Of course you’re singing it too.

Going round the gate for the umpteenth time. I wish one day I could just throw the gate open and walk in. Make an entrance wait. Which way does the gate open outwards or inwards. Wow I really can’t tell. How crazy is that. You see something everyday and you just don’t look. Or maybe you look but you don’t observe. Okay I’ll keep a watch on that throughout the day and we’ll see. Funny the kind of things I think about. There’s all these problems out there in the world and the thing that’s making me restless is which way the gate opens. Maybe that’s because I can actually solve that problem. Just keep a watch. Now turn. You’re supposed to walk to class now. And there goes the teacher you thought you saw on the road and she’s actually early today. Should you say good morning? You should say good morning. But you say good morning and you look sycophantish. Sycophantish? Sycophantly? Sycophantlike? Or does obsequious fit into the context? Is that really what you should be thinking about now don’t say it then but then you look supercilious. Quick. Supercilious or sycophantish. Oh she sees you. Oh good morning, ma’am. Great. Now you just look stupid.

And so begins the solitary walk up to the economics department. I’m a pilgrim on a lone journey and yes it’s my fault it’s a lone journey who reaches at seventhirtytwo? And then I spend some time standing in the doorway of the department waiting for someone else to show up. What’s harder than walking to it alone is watching someone walk to it alone from it because they’re all so insufferably slow. Feels ostracized yes right word. Why is the department here. I know if I even say that out loud the people from the Tutorial Building are just going to say at least we have our own building yeah well but at least you’re right in the Town Square and we’re in New Jersey I should remember that one. I should remember that one to tell the others later. Is New Jersey a very hard reference to get maybe for some. What can I say instead of New Jersey oh yes I can say Hinjewadi. Perfect I’ll just say you’re right in the Town Square and we’re in Hinjewadi and we don’t deserve to be in Hinjewadi and our department needs to switch with but all the others are so perfectly placed I wouldn’t want to displace anyone because nobody should have to be in Hinjewadi but then if every other department is perfectly placed how can only ours be so imperfect something else has to be imperfect right why is there even a Hinjewadi.

What was I thinking as I left the class? Yes, I’m hungry. Let’s take the company to IMDR better save the lunchbox for later it’s going to be a long day if I choose to hang around. Why do we keep calling it IMDR. IMDR is a different thing in a different building. A different beautiful building. Its name is Whistling Woods. The Whistling Woods. No. Whistling Woods. We should say that we should say we’re going to the Whistling Woods no then the the just sounds wrong there. We’re going to Whistling Woods. Better. Whistling Woods. Whistling Woods. Let’s go to the Whistling Woods. What can we have today at the no just Whistling Woods. Will we get a table at Whistling Woods. Do we have enough time to go to oh it’s you. Yeah I know you had to discuss that was important no we’re not too late but we should hurry now if we want to go to IMDR. IMDR. You said IMDR. It sounds right. You’re too close to change. You’ll tell your juniors to call it Whistling Woods.

Oh you have to check something at the main building can we go the longer way to IMDR yes we can I also have to check something at the gate. So off you go and find me back here when you’re done. I’m watching the gate. Which side does it open. It’s funny I should be thinking about that when I should be thinking about the assignment due later today which I have brought. Which I most certainly have brought. Probably certainly have brought. Probably. Maybe. No, of course I have. Maybe. The katta is empty. Putting the bag down opening it checking the folder leafing through why do I carry last year’s fee receipt still aah here it is. Knew it. Did the gate open while I was doing this? No matter you’re back. You got what you needed? Then let’s go. I’ll check it later. Plenty of chances.

Long walk now it would have been better to send someone from us early and place our orders and book our table we’ll do that tomorrow. But if we Hi! walk a bit faster Hi! and not take any stops along the way Hi! not even to say Hi to some people Hi! we should make it in time and let’s not talk to anyone on the way Hi why didn’t you come for the morning lecture. It’s boring. Yeah but attendance. It’s not marked now. But something is marked so you don’t want the teacher to forget you and what she’s calling me? Oh I lingered. No, sorry, now let’s walk and let’s not stop to talk to any more Hi!

Great we got a nice table nice secluded and all to ourselves so I’m taking my papers out and let’s study until the food arrives. We have to discuss the group assignment but I forget the details who still has that image. Open it. Sure check your notifications first. Now until she finds that we can have a preliminary thought about No! Really? No you must reply now you must have messed up bad for the teacher to message you personally. This is urgent. Get on that. We. Need. To. Have an answer for that right now. Why don’t you sit with her and craft some elaborate explanation and while she’s doing that we can’t work obvio so you had that video you were dying to show us. Hang on I get 4G. 4G. 4G YouTube searching found no connection 2G why now yes good idea airplane mode on one two three four five airplane mode off 4G! Oh yes its great! You’re done? Good reply. We’ll start working as soon as this video ends and oh thank you thanks a lot for bringing all our orders let’s clear the table obvio we can’t work now. Later.

Come to Kimaya when you’re done. Message on my phone. From my group. Got to go. From my other group. No, from my group as you’re my other group. You’re my assignment group yes sorry you’re also my IMDR group but they’re my main group sorry I’ll tell them I had to work with the other group and I’d rather be with them no, I mean with you. I’ll tell them I’d rather be with you so I said it in indirect speech I’d rather be with them and yeah okay I’ll just leave. We’ll work tomorrow plenty of time.

And so begins the solitary walk up to the guard wasn’t there before. Am I wearing my id card? No I’m not. Should I but then if he doesn’t bother to ask me he usually doesn’t care. Why should I take the trouble you know take it out and wear it and put it back in lets just test the chance that he doesn’t stop me and I’m walking walking walking to the gate and everyone walking to the gate around me is wearing their id card is that why he’s not stopping them? Maybe I should wear mine too then. Taking it out putting it on walking through the gate and he didn’t notice me but was that because I was wearing the card or because he simply didn’t care?

I am walking and making way for the car and walking and turning around the chemistry building C6 is such a huge class and walking and turning around the main building and the psych department is looking so nicely green and the circle is jam packed ahead and walking and making way through the students and umph grunt squeeze checking if bottle’s still there and making a better way through the students and looking at the main gate but it’s closed and not waiting for it to open to check people waiting for me in Kimaya better check the door when you leave for home and walking.

Oh look and there’s my people sitting in a circle in the centre of the structure and great spot to have good thing nobody has any dance practice going on. Yeah they all have their books out and their tiffins out and I’ll take my tiffin out and not my books as I have no work. It’s good to have your work done in advance so you can hang around as long as you like with people who have work which is bad. When someone’s working others are bored so others let's get together and talk about something and why do you want to join the conversation you’re supposed to be working. Why even pretend to work in the first place. The day is officially over and no further lectures and we’re just hanging back for each other so why not do that. Okay so we’re talking about something else and who has stuff to do for all of us you you you you either okay so only you have something to tell and it’s a short story which can be told on the way to the parking so let’s just go home we should totally get cards sometime.

I’m at the gate and I was supposed to do something about the gate. It had something to do with the gate. Gate gate gate. What was I to do with the gate? It’ll probably come to me once I’ve crossed the gate or maybe when I’m halfway home and I can’t see the gate anymore but no matter I’m coming back tomorrow whatever it was I’ll do it tomorrow I’ll be here the gate will be here the college will be here and we’ll all be here.