Down the memory lane(2)

When I was in class 3 or 4( I don't remember exactly), Verma Teacher was the Assistant Head Mistress of our school. She used to teach us Geography , and I was afraid of her. She was very strict ( Asst Head Mistresses are like that!), and also very, very reserved. Rarely any student has ever seen a smile on her face, and I never saw. But she used to teach nicely, a bit slow, but the method was entertaining.

In the first Geography monthly test, I got 23 out of 25. That was the highest number I have ever obtained in any Geography exam till then, and it has remained as my "all time best"! So, one can imagine how happy I was after the exam, and I started to fear Verma teacher less than what I used to do.

Her class was in the 4th period, that is, the one before the tiffin break. We had a 15 minutes tiffin break, and 15 minutes play break. We, the boys, used to have the tiffin secretly during the 4th period itself, so that we can have 30 minutes to play! But I feared eating during Verma teacher's class, and I feel that the other boys also had the same feeling.

One day, in the midst of the class, she asked one question to a friend( I dont recall the name now). When he was unable to answer, she told him the correct answer, and then started advicing him. The tone was so boring and monotonous that I could not help myself, but started laughing!! I have this strange habit of laughing, and once it starts, its very difficult to stop it! Verma teacher saw me trying to conceal the smile, she told me to stand up, and then again turmed her attention to the other boy. Again the monotonous tone started, and after a couple of minutes, unable to control myself, I burst into laughter!!!

Verma teacher was really surprised, probably, she had not seen such a scene before. She ordered me ," No tiffin, no play either. Stay in the class during the break!" What a strange punishment it was!! The class ended, and when the tiffin period started, my friends started eating opening their tiffin box. I had brought maggi and chocolates that day. So after a while, unable to bear the scene that Godol is putting a whole Paratha in his mouth , I opened my box, and finished the contents within 2 minutes.

Since I disobeyed the first order, I decided to break the second one also, and went to play. After 10-15 minutes, somebody told me that Verma teacher was looking for me. Fully sweat, and without a tie(while playing, all of us used to get rid of that nuisance), I stood in front of Verma teacher, and she asked me:

Where is your tie?
- I was playing, teacher.
- What???? I told you not to do so, isnt it? Did you eat your tiffin also???
- Yes teacher, I like 5 star very much, and I was hungry!!

Verma teacher, undecided about what to say, looked at me in an eye which bored the expressions of surprise, disbelief and a bit of anger! I was certain that the matter is going to get worse, but to my surprise this time, she told me," Go away! From next time, never ever disturb the class laughing, understand??" I nodded, and again went back to play. My perception about Verma teacher changed from that day, and from the next class, my fears went away, although I followed her advice, never laughed in her class!!!!

Down the memory lane (I)

It is almost a uniform belief that school days are the best days in one's life. I do believe the same, and one of the vital reasons for that belief is, those days were really free from the tensions and boredomI face now. Today morning, I thought of writing about some incidents of my school life. There are numerous events which I can recall, most of them are still very much alive in my memory. These are the events which I like to cherish the most, so I have decided to blog them from time to time.

NICKNAME : In school, almost in each class, the boys have a nickname which is more famous than their original names. I dont know about the girls, although our school was a co-ed one! According to our teachers, our batch was "notorious yet brilliant". That is really a unique description I have ever heard of. Nevertheless, we had some out-of-this-worldnicknames, and I would like to list a few of them: Amartya : GaNtu , Mainak : Oshur(Demon) , Samrat : Lali , Prithwish : Latka , Sandip : Bile/Boyoshko(old)/ Rat-tat , Anirban: Pant , Dibyendu : Biri(this guy have never smoked in his life yet!!) , Souvik : Godol, Soumik : Krishno/Boudi , Shantangsu : Keshto, Animesh : Chasha, Subhankar : Kochi, Suman: Kathi(for his one-dimensional figure!) , Tamojit: Tommy, myself : Badam, Sumonjit : Kaku das , Pradeep: Danob/DeNto/DaNtal and so on.

Why Badam???? One day, while returning from school in a bus, it happened. We usually used to board a bus in a group of 4 or 5 friends. From the bus-stop near our school, a hawker used to board the bus too, and he used to sell badam(nuts) and candies. On that day also, as we took our seat, the hawker boarded, and started calling : e badam e badam, ek taka packet, lobenchus takay 6 ta ! I don't know what occured to me, I too started calling : e badam, e badam!! To my misfortune, Siddhartha was there with us, and he and Mainak were responsible for all the nicknames I have mentioned. Hearing me, Sidhhartha said, " Array, tui to or thekeo bhalo bolchhis re!!! Ekdom professional badamwala r moton!!!!!!!!" Then obviously, he proposed that I should be nicknamed as badamwala, which the other boys found no reason to oppose. Thinking a while, Sidhhartha said, " Nah, naam ta boro hoye jachhe. Ok badam bolei daka hok".

For obvious reasons, all the other guys supported him, and the nickname Badam was unanimously accepted. The next day, as I entered the class, Mainak yelled, " Array Badam bhai!!!!!!"

I have left school 10 years ago. But still now, school friends call me "badam". Earlier this year, we had a get-together, where we were meeting with each other after almost 8 years. Seeing me, Mainak shouted, " Array badam bhai, koddin baade dekha?" Hearing this, the scene at the private bus came in my memory. Those sweet old days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. : I tried to write the conversations in english, but did not get the feeling. So I wrote them in bengali to keep the tempo intact.

Fire ! Fire !!

It was 11:15 this morning, I was in the middle of a presentation, which was about to end at 11:30. Suddenly, the building was alarmed by a shrill--------which was low at the beginning, but gradually went on increasing. My professor, a little bewildered, popped out of the room. After a few moments, he shrugged, and telling me that we would be continuing next time, left the room quietly. During that time, I figured out that this harsh noise is the sound of a fire alarm! So, gathering my belongings, I came out of the room.

11:15 is the peak time in any university, so I saw that a lot of students coming out of the classrooms and heading towards the stairs. Nobody opted for the elevator, probably because of the fear that it might get stuck in the midway. The entire building was evacuated within 3-4 minutes. I came down to the parking lot, and lighting a cigarette, noticed the different groups of people standing there.

Two students were writing an exam, and they were having a tough time. Leaning against the wall, they continued writing , the faces bored the expressions of anger, frustration, surprise------a threesome mixture of feelings. Some of the students were very happy though, chatting with each other, and enjoying the unexpected break. The faculty members , in small groups of 3-4, were chatting in a serious manner. The alarm, however, was continuing, only it got shriller and we were gradually adopting with it.

After 10 minutes or so, the alarm stopped as suddenly as it had started. A good portion of the crowd clapped their hands, some of them uttered, " Thank God, we are safe!" . Happily, the people started retreating towards the entrance.

Coming upstairs, I gathered that the fire alarm just "went-off" . For a number of days, it(the alarm) did not utter a single noise. So this fine morning, it "went off" ! Today is 3rd April, so the behaviour of the alarm can be considered as a "belated April Fool" event . I had to admit that inert objects have their own sense of humor, which comes out under the most unexpected circumstances.