The drudgeries of life

One year back, if someone had told me that I'd survive one year in the corporate world, it would've sounded funny! But a couple of days ago, on May 28th to be precise, I actually completed one year at this company! Needless to say, it feels good! And well, as usual, I got nostalgic :p

Left home for Infy, Mysore on the 25th of May, 2006, quite doubtful about how worklife is going to be! The moment I stepped out from that auto in front of the campus gates, I was stunned! The place was huuuge and from what portions of the place I could see, it was damn beautiful! And the cool breeze and romantic weather of Mysore gave me an all time high! It was the umpteenth instance of love at first sight!

However much I praise the Infosys, Mysore campus, it is bound to be less! I spent four months there and I shall never forget the good time I had there! It was like an extended 9th semester of college, for all of us DA-IICTians! Our college courses came in handy, and rather than indulging in studies in order to pass the training tests, we concentrated more on the extracurrics! The list is huge and there are so many things worth mentioning that I'll dedicate a separate post to Infy Mysore and the life we spent there :) Look out for that...

Anyway, my first day at work was terrible! First of all, formal wear felt so stupid! We guys were used to crushed up tees and torn jeans or cargoes, a pair of sandals, messed up hair... well hostel life can be blamed for that! So imagine our tryst with brand new undergarments, full-sleeve shirts, trousers, ties, belts, et al! On top of that, the ID card which you have to hang around your neck! Everyone looked like a genuine salesman for Videocon vaccum cleaners, I tell you :D! Getting up early, not once, not twice but every day for God only knows how long! Just the thought of it gave me goosepimples! Well lots of doubts, fears, we had but the sense of adventure and a new beginning was awesome!

Survived the first half of the first day which was crammed with sessions, and then went for lunch... the most embarrassing thing happened to me amidst the new junta there... I let my tie and ID fall into my chicken curry bowl with such force that SPLASH! Before I knew it, I had the gravy all over my new shirt, tie and pants! Yuck! How's that for starters! Rest of the initial days were spent fearing the worst about all the new things around the corner... courses, online tests, assignments, etc. But like they say, when you get done with the worst in the starting itself, the going is easy later on! After the inital hiccups, time at Mysore flew by like anything and before we knew it, it was time to leave! I still miss the place, and everything associated with it! First salary, the optimum utilisation of the facilities at the employee care centre, the walks and cycle rides around the campus, the new friends made there and sharing a renewed bond with the old ones, slowly by slowly getting moulded from a college dude to don the role of a professional, and a lot more!

After training, got placed in a department which many loathe, about which many held bad opinions, but seriously speaking, the department I am in rocks! We got posted in Pune but had to undergo training at Bangalore, and that was a terrific experience... seemed like an extension of the Mysore training! Only difference was that we were getting paid extra to be on this project-specific training!

Getting allocated to a project when back at Pune, plenty of new faces who seem to recognize each other but ignore you just becuase you're not one of them, not yet at least! Finally finding a foothold, making new friends, enjoying the work, a series of fortunate events ;), and yes! The feeling of belonging is there like never before and it feels sexy! Side-by-side, life in Pune rocks! Damn I'm so addicted to this place, the people here and the way of life I've adopted here that leaving this place will be heartbreaking! But then, there's a long time before that happens...

After a long time I think I'm typing out such a humungous post! All the credit goes to my confirmation as a regular Infy employee which happens in a couple of days... no longer will I be under probation, no longer will I be bound by the bond which was included to make sure we stick... all in all, it feels good to have one year's worth of work-experience!!

As of now, love is in the air! And coincidences seem to be helping iron out the creases in life... more about the same in subsequent posts ;)!

Labels: Beginnings, Celebration, Experiences, Good mood, Happiness, Life, Nostalgia, Reminiscence