VII. Candid Verses: One Smart Fella!
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"So Smart Guy! do you not watch American Football on Sundays?" She had asked on our very first date.

"No. I don't really watch." I had replied truthfully then. She breathed a sigh of relief. Little did she know I had basketball, European soccer, tennis, formula 1 etc to keep me very occupied. It was only after this date I decided to find out what this American Football hoopla was all about . Needless to say, I found something to cheer me up on gloomy Sundays as well. But that is besides the point. The real point is I passed off as a smart guy on the very first date.

 Once upon a time, I too was deemed a smart-fella. No kidding!  Like all children of immigrants, I have my nursery and LKG report cards to prove that. Check in with your friends. They were all top 3 students in their kindergarten(s). The real question is what has happened to me (or a person like me) now?

Nothing much. I was just going with the flow you know-  finishing school and all. Getting the job. Yes, the dreaded 9-5 job (more like 8 to 7). Day after day. I guess the American dream (my ass). Suddenly I feel entrapped. Completely! I don't know why I didn't use my "smartness" to do something else along the way. Something innovative. Something creative - the kind of cliches you hear from all those entrepreneurs and billionaires.

 Well, creativity is not in my genes. But it is not entirely my fault. My primary school teachers, mentors, and my dearest parents preached about everything but creativity. In fact, the reason I did so well in primary school was my ability to memorize the hell out of anything. Be it a multiplication table, a prayer, a poem or even the whole god darn story from My English textbook. I knew "By Heart." And boy, did I write what I memorized. To the every last of the prepositions and conjunctions.  Writing that was original, something that came from your heart, and inspirational was considered a heresy. I remember my classmate who had once written an essay about a possible vacation in Mars and encounter with aliens in English class and was humiliated for not being practical. But I was considered the "smart" fella who would succeed in life.

"And what happened to your friend?" you might ask? Well, I quickly google him and find out he has his own company now. Something he built from scratch. No I am not bitter (Ok maybe just a little)! More so,  when I found out this morning that my department is cutting the budget for coffee and donuts. Darn it! there goes my last bit of motivation!

In these dark period(s), I languish in my cubicle often romancing about my "smart days" in school. I draw some inspiration. I decide to have a staring contest with my monitor. It is a no brainer. The monitor switches to screensaver almost immediately. A psychological victory. YaY!

My girlfriend calls me up. Oh no! A grocery list. I tell her to email me. I can't memorize all of that. After the end of it all, I ask her hesitantly "Hey! Do you still think I am smart?"

"Of course! Remember when we're spending evenings together? You pretend to listen to my musings, watch sports on television, sip your malt-whiskey, and check out my female- friends in FB almost instantaneously. Only a smart-fella can multitask like that."