Minneapolis...

Gud morning Minneapolis!!!
or rather, gud afternoon, coz it's almost always noon by the time i wake up... if i do wake up earlier than that, i laze around in bed (sleeping bag actually...) till i really HAVE to get ready for school...

i do get up and get ready finally, gulping down some coffee and grabbing whatever bite there is to eat from the fridge... washing the sinkload of dishes will have to wait another day - i'm in a hurry now... boy this bag is heavy , feels like being in high school again :)

i'm walking to the bus stop, which usually takes 3 minutes on an average, and realize that the closer u r to missing the bus, the longer it takes to walk to the bus stop... yes, murphy's law of traffic lights affects the pedestrians too, not just the motorists.. plus, the bus is late when u're on time... and is early when u're late
despite these statistic odds, most of the time i do manage to catch the bus...

all of my classes are in the afternoon, and whether i have lunch before class or not, i nod off peacefully - yawn after yawn after yawn... should... stay... awake.. ur in the 1st row for God's sake... are my eyes open? i think so... well wait... they're not... oh damn... how much did i miss..? have i taken notes while sleeping? not surprisingly, my page is loaded with scribbles as my hand embarks on a journey into subconscious creativity... wish i could also learn subconsciously while i'm sleeping... would save a lot of time...

class goes on for what seems like a century... praying for time to run faster so i can go back home and sleep... once the prof says "that's all for today! thank you!" i rush out with my bag wondering what to do next... head off to the grad computer lab, which is like the hub for our desi gang here... dump my bag, open my laptop and check my mail... each time i open my mail i have a chill sent down my spine, wondering what new assignment or project deadline is coming up... i should really get some more sleep (inspite of sleeping a gud 6 hours a day , 8 if u count the sleeping in class)

really hungry - i dont remember seeing any food prepared at home... go the vending machine and stare at it for a gud 10 seconds... is there anything here that would satisfy my hunger??? the answer is no, so the next stop is to Chipotle or Subway or someplace were i can get something filling for around 5 bucks... (estimated per meal expense for a grad student)...
Chipotle...
Me: "One vegetarian burrito please..."
Girl behind the counter: "what fillings would you like?"
how should i know... what are all these things here...? i dont even know what you call these stuff...
Me: "I'll have everything thank you!" and smile at her...
Cashier: "To eat here or to go?"
Me: "To go please!"

Grabbing the paper bag handed to me, I walk quickly back to the grad lab, getting hungrier by the moment...
back at the grad lab, I get to my chair, frantically open the tin foil, and devilishly devour the huge burrito, trying not to spill anything...
3 minutes - it's all gone... hunger satisfied, i walk to the water cooler to get a drink ... oooh the water's cold...
after an abrupt sip, I go back to my laptop... open a things to do list... homework, assignment, homework, exam... never do today what you can safely postpone till the last minute - well that means i dont have to do anything concrete now....
mess around with matlab till it gets boring.. head off to home after that...

I hang out in 708 with the gang till it's 2 oclock at night... somehow i'm not able to come back home before 2...

after 2.. still not sleeping... watch another episode of X files over cold orange juice...
stare outside the window in the dark sipping the still cold orange juice...
Minneapolis nagaram urangum pothu... thanimai thanimaiyoooooo
get back to bed... think of all the assignments to be done the next day.. there's nonlinear optimization, matrix compu... Zzzzzzzzzzz....

Gnite Minneapolis!
(or early morning rather...)