For the longest time, I’d been searching for a pickup group in Hyderabad. Ideally, one that has members who play well, regularly, and in the mornings. It’s nearly impossible for a group to meet all 3 of these criteria. Naturally, I was elated when I found one this month! The organizers are mutuals, and I’ve played with them before. My senior from college joins them whenever he’s in town. I met one of them last month in a badminton hall when I went to play with my friends. We caught up, and I mentioned that I was looking for a group to play with regularly, so he invited me to join them.
The hall they play in is quite far from my place, but I’m not inconvenienced because it’s early morning. On the way back, I can take the metro to avoid traffic. The games are intense and there are no distractions. It leaves me fulfilled and refreshed. It’s a good start to the day, except that it is physically exhausting. I replenish my energy by taking a nap as soon as I get home.
I’ve also gotten slightly leaner. I suspect it’s because I’ve cut down my junk intake.
Fever
One day, after my first week with this new group, I suddenly felt feeble. I took a break from work to lay down. While I was resting, my temperature spiked. That night, I had a 104F fever. Fortunately, after taking some Paracetamol and sleeping for a few hours, my fever broke. I was still weak and it took me a couple of days to fully recover.
Do you want to know what the worst part of this episode was? On the first day that I fell ill, my parents went out to shop and I asked my mom to bring me back a cinnamon roll. Being the glutton that I am, I stuffed as much as I could into my mouth. Then, it sank in. I wasn’t hungry, I couldn’t taste the roll, and I wasn’t able to relish it.
I’m not sure what caused the abrupt fever, but I have a hunch that it had something to do with the change in weather.
Reunion
Towards the end of the month, my senior visited. It was his last week before he began his higher studies and he wanted to catch up with his friends in the city before leaving. He’s close with the pickup group, so we met almost everyday to play. We mostly played doubles. For his last day, we had planned a round-robin tournament. Sadly, some of the members had personal commitments that took precedence and the plan was canceled. The 3 of us who were present that day played singles instead. Everyday, after the game, a few of us (my senior included) would head for breakfast. It was nice that we got to spend time. I miss having him around. I hope he enjoys his course and makes the most out of it.
Tailbone Pain
Around then, I experienced acute tailbone pain. It lasted for nearly the entire week. For the first couple of days, I didn’t think much of it, and I iced it periodically. I assumed that it occurred because I sat on the floor (or on my bed with bad posture) for too long. But the pain wouldn’t let up. In fact, it got worse over time. It was so unbearable that I couldn’t sit on my butt or pivot while playing. On the court, although it still nagged at me, I could ignore the pain once my body was warm enough.
Later, I noticed that there was some swelling. I called my gramps up to consult with him on how I should treat it. It’s called a pilonidal cyst, and it’s common in adult males who sit for long periods. For the next few days, I ensured that I used my desk while standing, I tried my best to not sit on the swollen region, and I applied a heat pack 4-5 times everyday. If there wasn’t any progress after a couple of days, I was supposed to visit a doctor, who would perform an incision to drain out the cyst. Fortunately, on Sunday, it burst while I was applying heat.
I’m grateful that I invested in a standing desk. But, I have to confess, I mostly use it while sitting nowadays. I’m a bit tired and lazy since I play early in the morning. I’m trying to figure out a system that prevents me from sitting for long durations. It’s also alarming that I had 2 health concerns this month. That has never happened before.
Projects
Earlier this month, I hacked on an ongoing project; a small UI library written in Svelte that I wanted to make for myself. It’s an offshoot project that I started because I got sidetracked while making my site. It got out of hand when I decided that I needed to implement a sophisticated carousel component. One that lets you:
- define the percentage of the viewport each slide should occupy
- loop the slides infinitely
- select the direction in which slides move
I was fixated on this for a few weeks until I reached the brink of unbridled frustration. It drove me insane that I couldn’t figure out how to maintain the illusion of looping. After a lot of head-banging, sketching a diagram helped me think more deeply about how it should work. Then, it magically clicked for me. I lost my motivation once I solved this problem.
That seemed like a good time to put the UI library on hold and finish making my site. I’m excited about how it is shaping up, and I can’t wait to share it with my friends.
I was also supposed to help one of my friends with making a site for his rooftop strength and conditioning gym in BLR. My excuse was that I wasn’t doing well health-wise on 2 separate occasions this month. I’m lucky he isn’t in a rush, but I’ll prioritize this and have something ready over the weekend.
On a side note, if you’re looking for a place to train you should check this place out. The instructor/owner is warm and very knowledgeable. Drop me a message and I’ll introduce you!
Shows and Movies
This month, I watched a bunch of movies, both in the theatres and in the comfort of my home. By the time the weekend rolls by, I’m bored out of my mind and desperate to get out of the house. So, I decided to try watching movies solo in the theatre! Surprisingly, I quite like it. It’s a welcome change of environment.
I can’t recall what triggered it, but I also binged through 4 seasons of Modern Family (re-watch) recently. Anyway, here’s a list of movies I watched this month.
Sinners
Watched it twice, first in 2D with a friend, and then alone in 4DX. I wanted to watch it in IMAX, but I couldn’t find any screenings. I missed the opening sequence the first time, but I caught both of the end credits scenes. I wasn’t prepared for the turbulence my second time watching. The first time, there was just so much happening all at once, that I found it a bit difficult to process. I decided right then that I needed a re-watch. The lighting was bad (I heard that this wasn’t the case in IMAX), yet, I thoroughly enjoyed both watches. This also happens to be my first horror film in the theatres!
Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning
It was pouring the day I went to watch this. I was running late and I missed the opening sequence. I’m not into action flicks, but I just went ahead anyway. Like I said, I’m trying new experiences. I had watched the 7th installment with my friends. In fact, we did a movie marathon that day. We watched MI7 and Oppenheimer back-to-back. My memory of the specifics is foggy, but I remember the main plotline. I felt like I had the relevant context to understand this movie. I don’t have much to say about the experience, but I think it’s the kind of movie that wants you to shut your brain off in order to enjoy it.
Ala Modlaindhi
This is an old Telugu rom-com film. I watched it with my mom when I was a kid. I was looking for something light-hearted to watch with a friend and we landed on this. This quickly morphed into a hate-watch session. The plot is generic and wafer-thin. Despite that, I caught myself chuckling from time to time, although I’m unsure whether it was because of the delivery of jokes in the movie or our incessant hating.
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
My dad’s been on a crime documentary marathon this month and my mom couldn’t stand it any longer. During dinner, she decided that she needed to watch something less grimy and settled on this film. Back when we were living in SG, I watched it with my whole family in the theatre. I didn’t watch the entire thing this time, but I kept popping in occasionally. It’s a decent watch, and I think the acting’s really good.
Dil Chata Hai
My sister wanted to watch it after ZNMD. They both share the same template, but get this, Farhan Akhtar, who was one of the leads in it, was the director of this movie. In fact, it was his sister, Zoya Akhtar, who directed ZNMD. The trios in both the movies share a similar dynamic too. I left halfway because I got bored, and I’m unsure if my family completed it.
Aayutha Ezhuthu
I’ve seen a sum total of 3 Mani Ratnam films, and this is one of them. I have vague recollections of watching it with my parents when I was a toddler. The idea and concept were cool, but I think the film fell flat on execution. I thought to myself numerous times that the film felt like a bunch of events strung together, and that made it difficult to feel invested in the characters. I still think it had a lot of potential.
It’s jarring to see Siddharth and Surya so young. Madhavan does a great job at playing a villain; it’s very easy to dislike and denigrate his character from the outset.
Games
I decided to try out Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. I finished the game with the bad ending and the normal ending. I got stuck in the endgame area, without any potions, and no way to go back. So, I decided to start a new game. I’m not sure if I’ll stick with it till completion this time. I thoroughly enjoyed this game, but I tanked my way through it with the help of potions. I wish I was more deft and graceful. Maybe in this new run. Now that I’m done with my first game in the series, I’ve decided to watch the show on Netflix.
Books
Last month, I was halfway through A Happy Death by Camus. But I ended up losing steam and didn’t feel like picking it up again. Instead, I decided to pick something else from my catalogue that seemed more enticing, Taleb’s Fooled by Randomness. To my surprise, I’m enjoying it so far. I hope to pick up some vampire books in the future. Maybe I’ll start with Salem’s Lot?