Monday, September 7, 2009

Fate and Serendipity!!


Long long time!! as i return to my blog, not because i had nothing to share, but because i had no words or patience to write. Continuing from the last blog, with words like Belief in BITS... I finally landed with a job in Wells Fargo. I just remember the lines that took me through the two rounds of the interview where they selected 5 out of 70. The strangest part was that I have to mention my sidie's name again in this blog entry.. Yes he was the best performer in that interview and we both cleared it. Coming back to the punch line.. "I have already sat for 9 interviews. This is my 10th interview and I am confident of clearing it. If you want a confident man in your firm. Take Me". If i had boasted something of this sort in my 1st year, I would have got a great deal of ragging, m sure from my batch itself..

But words are words.. u never know how different impact they leave on different people.
The final verdict... I had a job dated 4th April,2008. And then... as usual.. u get a thing and you dont respect it.. I ditched Wells Fargo.. Prashant.. well last week he enjoyed his first salary.. and yes i greeted him all the very best for his life.. and that this was just one great step to be followed by many alike.

So, the story of shift from job to another frontier is what takes up the next portion of the job. The entry I suppose is set to be so big that I wanted to give links to other pages.... that coz of my lazyness i dont want to finish in a single go... But yes.. this entry would be completed.. without fail..

As they say.. truth is stranger than fiction.. probably we will come forward with this sentence more than once!! But the reference as well as the impact would be different.

It was 6th June.. and with delays... I had just enough time to apply fr visa and give the interview.. to finally get it and fly to US. God when made us... didnt want us to learn what satisfaction is.. And we delay this learning to the next step in life... everytime..
I had everything then... I had a job in Wells Fargo.. and a job almost certain in Oracle. Life is so predictable.. and the verdict being a good life ahead... (me thinks!!) . And then the Indiana Bloomington I-20 came.. that I had to collect in Delhi.. My first journey towards final destination started here. Train got delayed by 12hrs in Patna.. and I took a general ticket for another train.. that eventually got me to Delhi... 12hrs late.. plus the comfort of the general class.

I was in Delhi for 15 days. Backdrop of the story shall be reveled later.. coz I dont want to get predicatable as I write this down. Watever.. after 15 days..I returned back to home. !!
We go back to 1st June.. That day I got a mail from Purdue telling me to confirm if I wanted an RAship in College of Technology, Purdue.... and I reluctantly said yes to it.. just in time.. coz some how I was more convinced that IUB was a better destination. with MS CS , then Purdue with a degree MS in Technology. Purdue said about half time assistantship and I had no clue what that meant. and thought I still need to give half the fees!!

So, after I returned to home from Delhi, around 18th June.. I had to just wait for Purdue I-20.. coz by that time i was sure I would give my Visa interview for Purdue, with my sister convincing me everyday about importance of brand name. I was more concerned about a cheaper university. Finally both thought process ended to the same result... PURDUE.

Next run to Delhi was by the end of June again with a general ticket ....coz time was important. This time the general compartments were full packed.. and I got to sleeper.. ended in getting some place just near one entrance of the coach also paying fine for the first time. This was to file the Visa fees. Each trip to Delhi was important then.. coz of more important reasons.

The return journey had the same fate.. ended up travelling for 24hrs for a journey that in ideal conditions should take 14hours. There are two stories being plotted against the time axis. I am describing the one that relates to just going for MS... the other more important story atleast deserves another blog post. I keep writing it.. coz I would need to take reference of this post as I write another one.

Day 17th July... Visa interview was fixed, again Delhi!!

I took a gap of some 10 days coz i had to figure out the finances I need to show in interview.. With no clue of how things happen.. and with no relation to edulix, or orkut.. or any other group.. I was sitting in a small township in Bihar... trying to figure out how to get loan sanctioned.. My father being in bank was always a plus.

Reached Delhi on 16th.. Just before my interview, my sister called me up telling that her sources confirm about a lady, who interviews there who is suffering with DontApproveVisaTrauma.
In the interview each of us are given a token. There were two rows for F1 visa interview. The odd numbered were going to THE lady and the evens were going to a safer zone. I was '63' !

At '55' the lady's window closed for a 10min break. And when it reopened.. the even were the sufferers. I was still '63'. The man at the other window helped me saying Purdue is a great place.. and confirmed my Visa.

Delhi was finally done with!! Next destination was Kanpur.. for getting my Passport with Visa. I got my Visa delivered in Kanpur Bluedart Office before time. and hence again a general travel in IRailways. Somehow everytime I was taking a step to going abroad.. my heart sank... (there were good reasons to it.. but i am to be blamed for all). Kanpur confirmed by departure to USA.

My last journey was to Nagpur between 1st and 4th August.. Went to Delhi one last time to board my flight. to Birmingham, Alabama, my sister's place... and finally to West lafayette, Indiana, US on 12th August,2009.


We have reached the end of a chapter. But the most important question has still not been answered!! Question : Why this blog afterall?
Answer: There are few things in life you cannot decide for yourself. For those decisions there is an external force behind you. Things become bigger than trivial when that force is 'Divine' . There are several arguments to it. When the world was gloomy with no jobs in campus.. and me desperately needing an admit for MS..I got my 4 admits clicked in April. When I received an admit from Purdue... first, they did not gave me funding.. I reluctantly put YES on a form that asked if you are coming to Purdue.. That reluctant event.. was driving by Force. Next when I lost hope with money... I got the RAship... and Purdue became the automatic choice.. Visa interview.. the flip in odd and even.. got me working.. and finally.. my most important asset .. lost faith in me. There were various incidents.. when till the end moment just toiling left no open road..but some Force... got things in the direction, IT wanted me to move... ... and I have moved on...... from Pilani to Purdue.. and from India to Indiana......

2 comments:

Prateek Sharma said...

Whoa!
That is one hell of a struggle to just get the visa, something only you can possibly do and not crib about much.
Wow.

Excellent details which have surely scared me enough.. but please do keep writing, hopefully also about the nice comfy happy days at purdue :-D

Grasshopper said...

Very well written. :) Pilani to Purdue, India to Indiana .. Hats off to your struggle.. !